Gilded Age Finger Foods

 

For olives, the forks, spears and spoons are for serving only.

There are a number of things that the most fashionable and well-bred people now eat at dinner table with their fingers. They are: 

• Olives, to which a fork should never be applied. 
• Asparagus, whether hot or cold, when served whole, as it should be. 
• Lettuce, which should be dipped in the dressing or in a little salt. 
• Celery, which may properly be placed on the table-cloth beside the plate. 
• Strawberries when served with the stems on, as they often are. 
• Bread, toast and all tarts and small cakes. 
• Fruits, of all kinds, except melons and preserves, which are eaten with a spoon. 
• Cheese, which is almost invariably eaten with the fingers by the most particular people. 
• Even the leg or other small piece of a bird is taken in the fingers at fashionable dinners, and at most of the luncheons ladies pick small pieces of chicken without using a fork. — Exchange, 1888

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