for someone to pass you a dish or a seasoning . Never reach across a dish or someone else's plate to reach something; instead, politely ask the person sitting next to you to "please pass the _____." 4 Don't put your elbows on the table when you're eating . It's an old standby to admonish people for putting elbows on the table during a meal. If the meal has yet to begin or is over, however, putting your elbows on the table is acceptable. 5 Know how to manage informal and formal place settings . One of the most intimidating parts about dining can be not knowing which utensils or plates to use. Here's a quick primer: If you forget the particulars, remember: "work from the outside in." This basically means that if there are utensils on both the right and left sides of the plate, you'll start with what's furthest right and furthest left, and gradually work closer to the plate. If all else fails, just watch what everyone else is doing. For an informal place setting, you should have a dinner plate in the center. Immediately to the left of the plate will be two forks -- the one closest to the plate is the "dinner fork," to be used for the main course; the one furthest from the plate is meant for a salad or appetizer. A dinner knife will be directly to the right of the plate, with the blade facing toward it; next to that