Yes, Please and Bon Appetit!
Yesterday, I wrote about how working in Europe has added interesting words to my English vocabulary; today at lunch I realized that my English has also become more polite…
It was a sunny day at a nearby lunchtime restaurant. Two locals were having lunch with a business visitor from the US. The food was on the table, everyone was about to start eating when one of the non-native English speakers asked “How do you say…” and pointed to the food. The American visitor was confused. Was her host referring to the pasta or the salad? “Before you eat?” the first one added.
Bingo! And here we are at our first etiquette lesson. What does an American say before eating? Dig in? Help yourself? Grace?
Today, the American visitor replied “bon appetit”.
When was the last time you said “bon appetit” to your colleagues at lunch?
Here is another example.
You are at an international meeting and are offered coffee. You reply “Thanks!”. Later in the meeting you realize that you never got any coffee. What happened?
Lesson number two. The correct expressions are “Yes, please” and “No, thanks”. If you just say “thanks”, most Europeans will interpret it as “no, thanks”. The American expression “yes, thanks” is a mystery to non-native speakers. It gets used a lot in the US, but think about it this way: would you ever say “no, please”?
What experiences have you had (language or otherwise) where you were amazed at the politeness level?
If you are reading this at lunchtime, enjoy your meal!
Image from www.stylepochoir.com
Tags: american_expression, bon_appetit, business_visitor, correct_expressions, working_in_europeRelated Stories
POSTED IN: Customs and Culture
3 opinions for Yes, Please and Bon Appetit!
Laura
Jan 17, 2008 at 9:34 pm
What an interesting post! It’s easy to see where communication problems get their start.
Mihaela Lica
Jan 17, 2008 at 11:02 pm
I do believe that when in Europe if you say “thanks” it means yes. I’ve never heard of any European country where “thanks” means no. And I’ve been through a few, lived in 2… The best would be not to generalize in your analysis and name exactly the European country where the coffee incident has happened. :)
Ali
Jan 18, 2008 at 6:41 am
This post is really funny to me. I live in Germany and always manage to confuse people, especially with the “thanks” as in “that would be great, thanks.” But it works both ways because here in Germany I’ve learned that even if I say “no, thank you” or “nein, danke” I still get more and end up saying “no, please, no more.” Feeders, all of ‘em!
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