# Things Americans don't do that other countries do **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 14, 2017, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-americans-dont-do-that-other-countries-do/791242 "2017-07-14T13:28:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![OldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3bc359/32.png) [@OldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-americans-dont-do-that-other-countries-do/791242/41 "2017-07-14T17:40:48Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > In the US I notice (and am annoyed by) people in restaurants being in a hurry to place their order, eat, pay, and leave. Once they finish eating they look around anxiously for their check. The things that’s strange about this is that it annoys you. As long as those people leaving aren’t shouting for the server, why should it bother you? Doe is bother you if you’re waiting for a table how those “inconsiderate” people sitting at the table seem to be lingering? ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-americans-dont-do-that-other-countries-do/791242/42 "2017-07-14T17:46:16Z")
> [@OldGuy](#): > > The things that’s strange about this is that it annoys you. As long as those people leaving aren’t shouting for the server, why should it bother you? > > Doe is bother you if you’re waiting for a table how those “inconsiderate” people sitting at the table seem to be lingering? Well, it annoys me in that it “harshes my buzz” to see their tension being exhibited. I’m never bothered by lingering diners. We will be waiting at the bar enjoying a before dinner cocktail when the table we’ve reserved opens up.😃 ---
**Author:** ![Drunky\_Smurf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drunky_smurf/32/449_2.png) [@Drunky\_Smurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drunky_Smurf)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-americans-dont-do-that-other-countries-do/791242/43 "2017-07-14T17:50:20Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > Ah, another thread where the SD Cultural Elite Society tell us uncouth Americans why we aren’t doing it right. Whatever “it” may be that day. > > Never mind that we’ve been doing it “that way” forever, and it works fine. Well, we Americans are the worst, at everything. And we have no culture because we’re not doing it their way. > [@kayaker](#): > > Beyond that, what’s wrong with Tuesday night dinner being a “special occasion” just because? Because I have to work on Wednesday and I’d like to get home and kick off my shoes and relax and watch the new episode of Sexy Jet Skis before I have to go to bed. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-americans-dont-do-that-other-countries-do/791242/44 "2017-07-14T17:50:21Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > Beyond that, what’s wrong with Tuesday night dinner being a “special occasion” just because? 😕 Nothing wrong with that. Did I suggest otherwise? ---
**Author:** ![actualliberalnotoneofthose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e79b87/32.png) [@actualliberalnotoneofthose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/actualliberalnotoneofthose)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-americans-dont-do-that-other-countries-do/791242/45 "2017-07-14T17:52:05Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > I think elsewhere, they expect the customer to know which restaurants to go to if they just want to eat and get out, and which restaurants are for spending a whole evening. Has anyone mentioned tipping? I think it’s relevant here. Sure, a server can increase the check size with desserts, more wine, after dinner coffee, etc. But the easiest way to maximize tips (and revenue for the restaurant) is to turn tables. Many restaurants in the U.S. rush you out or consider you loitering if you don’t get the hell up and leave when you are done ordering and buying. When people enjoy their long dinners elsewhere, are they expected to keep ordering many rounds of drinks and desserts, or can you sit around talking for hours drinking water or nursing your last sip of wine? Because in the U.S. they want you to get out if you aren’t adding to the check. Not just for the benefits of tips and the server but the restaurant if they have good business and not a lot of empty tables to seat people. Sure, there are U.S. restaurants that cater to a more relaxed experience but the majority are fast-paced business. Also possibly relevant - most people get 1 hour at the most for a lunch, many get 30 minutes if they get a break at all. I don’t know how many lunches are eaten out compared to dinners but the habits of short lunches probably carry over to dinner. ---
**Author:** ![actualliberalnotoneofthose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e79b87/32.png) [@actualliberalnotoneofthose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/actualliberalnotoneofthose)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-americans-dont-do-that-other-countries-do/791242/46 "2017-07-14T17:53:31Z")
> [@Okrahoma](#): > > Americans (if right-handed) when cutting up their food, tend to have the knife in right hand and fork in left, cut up the food, then switch hands so that the fork is in the right hand. > > Europeans (including Russians) don’t switch. The fork stays in the left hand. Switching AFAIU is considered uncouth. I don’t switch hands. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-americans-dont-do-that-other-countries-do/791242/47 "2017-07-14T17:53:43Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > Ah, another thread where the SD Cultural Elite Society tell us uncouth Americans why we aren’t doing it right. Whatever “it” may be that day. Who here has suggested that the non-American way is better? Or is this a preemptive criticism of posts that you imagine will follow? (Well, except the health insurance, in which case you can hardly claim that the American way “works fine.”) ---
**Author:** ![actualliberalnotoneofthose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e79b87/32.png) [@actualliberalnotoneofthose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/actualliberalnotoneofthose)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-americans-dont-do-that-other-countries-do/791242/48 "2017-07-14T17:55:24Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > I think he means the use of knife and fork. The European way is to keep the fork in your left hand, tines facing down. Which means you are eating with your left hand, and only using your right hand for the knife (cutting food or shoving food onto the back of the fork). I believe this is standard in many other countries too. > > The American way is to cut the same way, but then transfer the fork to the right hand to carry the cut food to your mouth. With the tines facing up. Ah, so I mess up with the tines direction thing. ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-americans-dont-do-that-other-countries-do/791242/49 "2017-07-14T17:56:12Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > Who here has suggested that the non-American way is better? Or is this a preemptive criticism of posts that you imagine will follow? Maybe these? > [@scr4](#): > > **I think it’s because it’s cumbersome and undignified to switch your grip on the fork.** You have to have the tines pointing down so you can skewer the meat and cut it with the fork. And the fork in this orientation works well enough for everything else. It’s not as cumbersome as you imagine. I don’t think I ever skewer beans or peas - they stay on the back of the fork just fine. It does slow you down, because you can’t fit as much food on the back side, but that’s a good thing. > [@scr4](#): > > Another one: buying groceries every day. Or at least every 2-3 days. Even if people have cars and can bring home a week’s worth of groceries in one trip, they \*\*generally don’t \*\ ***choose to eat week-old food**. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-americans-dont-do-that-other-countries-do/791242/50 "2017-07-14T17:58:24Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > Store eggs at room temperature. American egg producers are required to wash the eggs, which reduces the chance of contamination but also removes a waxy coating from the eggs. Once the coating is washed off, eggs will go bad unless refrigerated. (Not that American eggs are safer - other countries have different ways of preventing salmonella, e.g. vaccinating their chickens.) This is important to keep in mind when using recipes from other countries - they assume the egg is at room temperature. I took a sailing trip several years ago and cold storage space was at a premium. While preparing to get underway, some of the crew were told to rub Vaseline on the eggs so they’d keep longer. I always wondered if it was one of those “let’s see if the newbies fall for it and the experienced crew will all get a good laugh” things, but I guess not. I tend to eat the European way when I’m having something like steak that requires a lot of cutting. People talk about switching hands as if that’s the key, but to me it has more to do with which way the tines are facing. In America, we tend to use the fork like a shovel, and so even when there’s something skewered on the end it feels natural to turn it tines-up. But that really is kind of awkward; you have to bring your hand up almost as high as your nose and grip the fork like a pencil. Tines-down really does work, except I haven’t tried balancing peas or beans on the convex side of the fork. Not sure I’ve ever even seen that. I also think we prepare food to go along with our way of eating it. Someone mentioned diced carrots up thread; no problem, just leave them in larger pieces before cooking and they’ll be big enough to stab with the tines. It used to drive me nuts (and kinda still does) that Chinese restaurants don’t include knives with the utensils, but don’t quite cut the food small to eat in one bite, either. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-americans-dont-do-that-other-countries-do/791242/51 "2017-07-14T17:59:38Z")
> [@IvoryTowerDenizen](#): > > Maybe this? OK. I was explaining why Europeans don’t do it that way, because _they_ consider it to be cumbersome and undignified. I’m sorry if it came across as judgmental rather than an explanation of another culture’s perception. ETA: as for the other thing you edited and added, I didn’t say choosing to eat week-old food was a bad thing. It’s just an observation. I have no problem with a meal prepared 100% from frozen food, pantry items and long-lasting vegetables. I do it all the time. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-americans-dont-do-that-other-countries-do/791242/52 "2017-07-14T18:03:15Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > 😕 > > Nothing wrong with that. Did I suggest otherwise? You’re cool. I was just rifting on a theme, relaxed as I am from my after lunch drinks. Cheers! ---
**Author:** ![actualliberalnotoneofthose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e79b87/32.png) [@actualliberalnotoneofthose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/actualliberalnotoneofthose)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-americans-dont-do-that-other-countries-do/791242/53 "2017-07-14T18:05:26Z")
> [@SanVito](#): > > Well, I presume you dine out for the pleasure of it, rather than mere fuel? Otherwise you might as well sit in your car eating a burger. > > If for pleasure, then isn’t ambience, good conversation, a leisurely glass of wine part of it? Some people eat out solo. A lot of single people don’t cook for themselves due to time, waste, whatever. Fast food burgers usually aren’t appetizing unless you really enjoy them or have no other options. Even a “fast casual” place is better if you can afford a few more bucks. Casual dining (moderately priced places with table service, sometimes chains) is big in the U.S. Families eat out with kids and they tend to wear on their parents and other customers in a short period of time. These things may be unique to the American experience; I don’t know. ---
**Author:** ![nightshadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ba0ec/32.png) [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-americans-dont-do-that-other-countries-do/791242/54 "2017-07-14T18:18:57Z")
I was going to post this as a separate thread but here ya go 20 things we do that confuses everyone else : [http://www.msn.com/en-us/lifestyle/smart-living/20-things-americans-do-that-confuse-the-rest-of-the-world/ss-BBEiyrC?li=BBnbcA0#image=1](http://www.msn.com/en-us/lifestyle/smart-living/20-things-americans-do-that-confuse-the-rest-of-the-world/ss-BBEiyrC?li=BBnbcA0#image=1) ---
**Author:** ![IvoryTowerDenizen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ivorytowerdenizen/32/17937_2.png) [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-americans-dont-do-that-other-countries-do/791242/55 "2017-07-14T18:44:06Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > OK. I was explaining why Europeans don’t do it that way, because _they_ consider it to be cumbersome and undignified. I’m sorry if it came across as judgmental rather than an explanation of another culture’s perception. > > ETA: as for the other thing you edited and added, I didn’t say choosing to eat week-old food was a bad thing. It’s just an observation. I have no problem with a meal prepared 100% from frozen food, pantry items and long-lasting vegetables. I do it all the time. I believe you didn’t mean it in a bad way, but the phrasing “choosing to eat week old food” does have a negative connotation, or certainly can. Week old food sin’t exactly a ringing endorsement, especially coupled with it being a reason why Europeans would choose to shop more often. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-americans-dont-do-that-other-countries-do/791242/56 "2017-07-14T18:52:59Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > Another one: buying groceries every day. Or at least every 2-3 days. Even if people have cars and can bring home a week’s worth of groceries in one trip, they generally don’t choose to eat week-old food. Europeans also have much smaller refrigerators than most American homes do. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-americans-dont-do-that-other-countries-do/791242/57 "2017-07-14T18:58:48Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > I took a sailing trip several years ago and cold storage space was at a premium. While preparing to get underway, some of the crew were told to rub Vaseline on the eggs so they’d keep longer. Vicks VapoRub will also work. ---
**Author:** ![jz78817](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jz78817/32/1028_2.png) [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-americans-dont-do-that-other-countries-do/791242/58 "2017-07-14T19:02:15Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > Who here has suggested that the non-American way is better? Or is this a preemptive criticism of posts that you imagine will follow? OP, but I’m assuming it was tongue-in-cheek. > [@Lucas\_Jackson](#): > > Inspired by the spirited thread in [Cafe Society](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=830668), I’ll expand it everything else besides soft boiled eggs. > > Being American I’m obviously ignorant on the subject so come on other countries - what are we not doing right? > > 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![BlankSlate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blankslate/32/80_2.png) [@BlankSlate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlankSlate)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-americans-dont-do-that-other-countries-do/791242/59 "2017-07-14T19:04:56Z")
I’m an American who lived in the UK for several years when I was a teen. By adulthood, sometimes I’d look at cutlery and be like what the fuck? Asked to set a table, I had to think about it. I did the Brit thing, cutting right and stabbing left. Then sometimes I’d switch for scooping with the right. :eek: Seriously, who gives a flying fuck how people use their utensils? Do whatever makes you happy. Just doing things for the sake of tradition is how you wind up with useless shit like royalty and the electoral college. ---
**Author:** ![jz78817](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jz78817/32/1028_2.png) [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2017, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-americans-dont-do-that-other-countries-do/791242/60 "2017-07-14T19:19:50Z")
oh here’s one I’ve personally run into. “Eat noisily.” I love Japanese food, but one dish I don’t order is udon. Not because it isn’t good, but because it’s normally served _extremely_ hot; I’d swear the broth is brought out just below boiling. The usual way of eating it (the Japanese way) is to grab some noodles with a spoon and chopsticks, and suck them into your mouth along with air to cool them off. But I- like many Americans- have been taught since the day we stopped needing mom and dad to spoon-feed us that eating noisily is extremely rude. So even though I might be in a noodle shop and everyone Japanese around me is going “SLURP!” “THWWP!” and so on because it’s the done thing, all those years of programming mean I can’t bring myself to do it. which is how I discovered I should never try to eat curry udon while wearing a white shirt. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-americans-dont-do-that-other-countries-do/791242.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/things-americans-dont-do-that-other-countries-do/791242.md?page=4)