Ships go out to sea, Soupspoons go away from me

If you find yourself at a dinner where soup will be served, remember this simple sentence and you will know how to eat your soup.

“As the ship goes out to sea, I move my spoon away from me”.  This is something that many of us have heard all our lives, but it is still relevant because it is easy to remember and it tells you that you should dip soup away from yourself, while gently scraping the spoon against the back of the bowl to catch any drips.

Here are some additional tips for eating soup:

• The soupspoon will be on the far right of the place setting.  Don’t confuse this with a dessertspoon which will either be just to the right of the knife and to the left of the soupspoon or above your place setting.
• A soupspoon will have either a large oval or slightly scooped, rounded bowl area.
• To get the last drop of soup, you should gently tip your bowl away from you- then use your spoon in the same manner as before to scoop it out.
• Sip, don’t slurp, your soup from the side of your spoon.
• Place your spoon on the service plate between bites. If there is no plate, carefully rest in in the bowl with the handle on the rim.
• You should not leave the soupspoon in the soup bowl during the course or when you finish; instead, place the soupspoon on the service plate beneath the soup bowl when you are done. If there’s no plate, leave the spoon in the bowl with the handle facing to the right.