
Reaching across the table
No matter how much you want to avoid bothering other guests, reaching across the table to grab something during a meal is always a serious etiquette blunder.
“If it’s far enough away that you have to stand to reach it, you shouldn’t do so and you should ask instead,” says Thomas. And, she explains, if you’re the one passing food, you should pass it to your right.
So, why is reaching across a table such an etiquette mistake? “Because your personal space is being invaded by the reacher,” explains Thomas. “It’s also a germ situation: My hand and my arm are now invading the space in which you’re consuming food.”
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