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A meal is an instance of eating, specifically one that takes place at a specific time and includes specific, prepared foodstuffs.
Meals are served at home, restaurants, and cafeteria. Meals are usually held in conjunction with such special occasions as birthdays, weddings, and anniversaries.
A picnic is an outdoor meal where one brings one's food, such as a sandwich or a prepared meal in a picnic basket. It often takes place in a natural or recreative area, such as a park, forest, or beach. On long drives a picnic may take place at a road-side stop such as a rest area.
A banquet is a large, often formal, and elaborate meal with many guests.
Colleges and universites require their students to choose certain meal plan.
A multi-course meal
A modern multi-course meal will typically consist of several of the following meal courses, as well as suitable beverages to fit the course being served:
There may be drinks and snacks served both before and after the meal.
There may be served something to clean the palate between courses, such as a sorbet.
The order of the courses will likely vary depending on local custom.
Customs, tradition, and etiquette
Customs and traditions regarding eating and meals varies from country to county, as well as within countries, based on such factors as regional differences, social class, education, and religion. In a complex, multi-multural society there is increased risk of different customs and traditions clashing. What is correct behaviour, and what is not, and in what circumstances is the provenance of etiquette.
Examples of different customs and traditions:
- Food in some cultures is eaten from individual plates or bowls, while in other cultures people eat from a common one. Even where people tend to eat from individual plates, there may be exceptions, as in the case of some small pieces of food that can be held in the hand easily, e.g. cookies or some snack foods, where it is common to eat from a common plate or biscuit tin, etc.
- Different cultures might have different rules for eating the same item. In the USA people eat sausages in a bun, or with a knife and fork, while in some countries in Europe sausages are held between the fingers while being eaten.
- In some cultures, it is considered proper to wait until everyone is seated at their chair before starting to eat, while in other cultures it is not an issue.
- In some cultures it is considered proper to wait for the host to give the command before guests sit at the table for a meal, while in other cultures there are different rules.
In some religions people pray and/or read aloud from some religious text before and possibly also after eating. In diverse, religously-mixed company where some people might want to pray, and others might not, it may be proper etiquette to allow for a short time of silence allowing those who want to do so, the chance to pray.
See also
Meal is also coarsely ground grain or other seed, coarser than flour.
de:Mahlzeit
fr:repas
ja:食事
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