Q: I always forget which way to pass food. Is there an easy way to remember this?
A: Most etiquette rules were established for a right-handed world. If you can remember this, you will usually guess correctly. If you are passing a bowl of fruit and you need to hold it so the person next to you can serve themselves, which way do you think you should go? If it is a right-handed world, the odds are they are right-handed, so the person will most likely need to use their right hand to scoop out the fruit and place it on their plate. It helps the person that is scooping their food to use the hand that is over their plate (as opposed to the hand that is over their chair). If this is the case, you would hold the bowl for the person to your right, so they can then use their right hand (which is closest to their plate) to scoop out the fruit. Answer: Food is always passed to the right going counterclockwise (but now you also know why!).