BellaOnline Forums Food and Wine Etiquette Don't take your shoes off!

sometimes i put my elbows on the table, talk with food in my mouth, and have been known to put one foot under the knee of the other leg. I don't like people taking their shoes off and putting their feet up on the chair, but then again, I am wearing clothes so there is a barrier between me and possible fungus.

With a closed toe shoe, open toe or what have you the only thing I am really concerned with is if the person has a fungus that can be spread.

so better to be safe than sorry.. but then again, it's a personal choice.

and black sheep can be so much fun Jilly

Ok Jilly, I'm ready to join you in the black sheep club, but probably for different reasons. When I go into a restaurant I assume that things are not sterile. The table has probably been cleaned with a dirty towel, we all know the lemons have been touched by everyone, and the seats that we are sitting on could have been (stop reading here if you get upset easily...) urinated on by someone there before us. Sorry if you think that it is gross, these things do happen. It doesn't stop me from eating out, I just won't eat directly off of the table or sit directly on the seat. I wear clothes that protect me and I wash my hands as much as possible. Our bodies adjust to germs and we all manage. So here's the part of not wearing shoes that I question: if the tables and seats have germs, imagine what the floor has! But if your sitting in a seat and not walking on the floor, and no one sees your feet, well... I don't think it's my business if someone does it discreetly.

I think elbows on the table are fine sanitary wise - I'm pretty sure historically the reason people didn't do it was to keep their body safe from the unsanitary table. So it's sort of a "don't eat food that's fallen on the floor" issue which no longer is of concern.

But I do think feet on the booth is a sanitary issue - and as others mentioned it's even more serious if it's bare feet up there. Fungus and other nasty things can be in feet

So it's a double problem. If you put your feet up there not only are you exposing others to your foot fungal germs - but you could easily pick up something really nasty from other people who had done that before you. Fungal issues can take a long time to heal up from.

So I don't think of it as etiquette like "don't clap to your own toast". I think of it as etiquette like "cook chicken before you eat it"

I wouldn't worry about some ones feet, im fully clothed. I would worry more about where my silverware was last, or how clean the food is. Has any one ever watched Busted on the job?
Where people go as far as blowing their nose, or spitting on your food, one guy was caught peeing in the coffee, dropping food on the floor and putting back on the plate. people do some outrages unimaginable stuff to restaurant and fast food, food that you eat.

Yep, if you knew what they can get up to in Mac Donald or Wendys, may put you off eating there for a wee while!!

I totally agree with Rosie - those are actual concerns in my mind. I could care less about the feet.

I think we have situational etiquette, and while that may be sad, it's true. Would anyone behave the same at McD's as at a four-star gourmet white linen restaurant? Without looking silly?

I've read often that one of the main reasons for manners is so that we don't offend other people or make them feel uncomfortable. Of course, today, we don't even have to leave home to offend vast numbers of people.

So, as a country girl who rarely even wears shoes in my own house, I am not easily offended by feet in seats. And, at a casual restaurant, I have probably sat cross-legged with my feet in the booth seat.

Anyway, as to germs, we have to hope we have an antibody or two protecting us from some of them. I can't think of the specific gross things I might come in contact with or I'll never push a shopping cart or eat out again.

I was thinking about this some more. For example, I would never walk barefoot in a tile bathroom in a restaurant. Purely for sanitary reasons - both for my own feet taking on disease and my feet then giving disease to others.

Would any of you walk barefoot in a public restroom at a restaurant? Or would you consider that healthy?

In terms of food safety, I definitely think the better the restaurant, the better the cooks take pride in and take care of their food. When we go to high end restaurants and Bob goes into the kitchen to take photos and talk with the chef, the chefs are VERY proud of what they are making and would never dream of damaging the food. I imagine that at McDonalds people have far less pride. So a lot of food safety is based on where you tend to eat. I'm not saying anywhere is 100% safe - but really, not all homes are 100% safe either. There are definitely home cooks who are less than sanitary too.

If you watch "Busted on the Job" you will see that even in 5 star restaurants, if its not the chef that does the unimaginable to your food Just watch what the people do to your food, who are serving it to you.
As far as walking bear footed in a restaurant bathroom, i wouldn't do that any more than i would walk bear footed out doors. I've seen people spit on the ground among other stuff.

Also i don't think i would be very comfortable with a restaurant that aloud the public to be coming and going into the kitchen. At any time for any reason