Restaurant Etiquette France and Italy
 

Do they have the same protocol we have in the States, where you wait to be greeted at the entrance to the dining room and then ask for a table for two? I guess there aren't many other ways you could do this, but maybe you don't actually ask for "a table", maybe you say something else? Can one of our more sophisticated travelers tell me how this is done, in the appropriate language? Thank you.

Unless it's a cafe -- yup.<BR><BR>And for most restaurants in France & Italy a reservation is considered polite.

Thank you. So in France you would say, "Une table pour deux, s'il vous plait", and in Italy you would say, "Una tavola per due, per favore"?

An extra little hint:<BR>I tend to talk with my hands, and find it impossible to say deux or due without holding up two fingers. But in most of Europe you will find that they start with the thumb, then add the index finger next. So when asking for a table for two, hold up your thumb and index finger -- not the index and middle finger as most of us would tend to do. I once entered a very busy and noisey restaurant and in my best (which is none too good) Italian asked for a table for two, holding up the usual two fingers. They seated us and started adding a third place. They often see those two fingers as representing three, not two.

It seems to me that often you don't ask for a table, necessarily, which is implied, they usually just ask you how many people are in your party. I don't usually ask for a table, I just tell them one or two persons (sometimes holding up fingers to indicate--never noticed the thumb thing Patrick mentioned, holding up a thumb for some reason doesn't seem very feminine to me--maybe that's an Italian thing?) and in France, there is always someone at the entrance except in cafes (and even in the nicer ones of those, they usually have someone to seat you in the formal dining area for an evening meal, you should not just barge into any area with place settings, tablecloth, etc. on the tables.) Cafes usually have a formal dining area and then the terrace and regular tables for more casual dining or drinnks.

In Italy in particular do not ask for butter for the bread as they consider this very unsual. Also, be sure to greet shop keepers upon entering their stores and thanking them for letting you browse upon departing.<BR><BR>Have Fun!