Pass the Manners, Please

In addition to our Cotillion classes we offer a variety of protocol, etiquette, and custom-designed dining skills classes for young adults and adults alike. Annually we offer a Dinning Skills class called  “Pass the Manners, Please”that is open to young people in Grades 5–12 and one parent. It’s a fun, informative dinner that covers all the important distinctions in table manners. So as students enjoy a multi-course meal, they are learning all the key skills that define proper dining protocols, including:

  • Taking a seat properly
  • Identifying place settings and glassware
  • Handling utensils and napkins
  • Eating common and unusual foods
  • Passing food around the table
  • Handling unwanted foods
  • Saying thanks and toasting
  • And more!

Enrollment is limited. Registration is managed on a first-come, first-served basis, so don’t delay. Your Registration Form may be printed and mail/make tuition to AB Cherry : 3500 Lakeview Trail, Kinston, NC 28504 . (Please note that there is a five-day cancellation policy for this program.)

  • Four Things Etiquette Is NOT

    by Emily Post

    Misconceptions about etiquette and the need for it abound, which make it necessary to list four things that etiquette is most certainly not:

    A set of rigid rules. Manners change with the times (something Emily Post emphasized from the beginning) and today are more flexible than ever before. Etiquette isn’t a set of “prescriptions for properness” but merely a set of guidelines for doing things in ways that make people feel comfortable.

    Something for the wealthy or well-born. Etiquette is a code of behavior for people from all walks of like, every socioeconomic group, and of all ages. No one is immune to having his life enhanced by good manners.

    A think of the past. Sometimes it seems that yesterday’s standards have gone out the window, but today’s more casual approach to things is something that sits on the surface. The bedrock principles of etiquette remain as solid as they ever were.

    Snobbishness. Little violates the tenets of etiquette more than snobbery---which, more often than not, is just another name for pretentiousness. A person who looks down on others shows himself not as superior but small---the kind who’s anything but respectful and considerate.