To Darryl’s first point, I agree we need to make the distinction between what’s considered correct in polite society in a given country and what most people there actually do. I was raised on the UK style but my parents neglected to include the always-tines-down rule, so I only adopted it after learning about it in adulthood. I had a lengthy adjustment period for dealing with small particulates like rice, but I never looked back once I’d got the hang of it—to my eye, transferring food on a tines-down fork simply looks more elegant, because of the difference in arm and hand posture vs. tines-up. Tines-down also means you generally can’t load as much food on a given forkful, which fosters a more leisurely meal.

Thanks, David! Glad to hear we have your support.

It would certainly be an interesting topic to discuss those “problem” food items that don’t conform to standard fork & knife etiquette

An interesting addition, thank you!