It’s a boogieman. It’s a way to scare children.

It’s not so much fear. I’d use the silverware if that were my only option but chances are, I have better options I can use before resorting to that.

Kevin, and it wasn’t even close. But how is Ramen not on this list? 

Considering I even like shitty packet miso, there’s a good chance you’re right.

Most of the people commenting here apparently have The Boy in the Plastic Bubble disease. If you’re eating somewhere that quickly dropping your fork contaminates it with something that you can not wipe off, or can not be handled by your immune system, you really shouldn’t be going to that place.

I’m not here looking for a massage, just a sandwich.

And if you really ask for new silverware, you’re unnecessarily burdening your server.

If I see a dropped fork or napkin, as a busser, I get over there ASAP, remove the dropped item and replace it. I mop that floor and I still don’t want anyone eating from it.

My late BFF went BACK to bartending/serving b/c he was tired of his staff taking home 3x what he did for 1/3 of the work. In many places, it’s a fallacious assumption that managers are paid better...and they pay tax on every penny.

If my kid drops his fork, I hope he wipes it off. It’s the only fork he gets unless he wants to crawl under the table and admit he dropped his fork, spoon, or knife. 

There is a case to be made that by challenging your immune system, you are actually making your body more resilant to disease. You probably are not going to get sick from picking up a fork off the floor and using it, even if it has a few dozen pathogenic bacteria on it when you stick it in your mouth. There is the…

No, it’s not. I’m not sure why, but being germphobic has become fashionable, to the point that people mock the 5-second rule. Unless you’ve dropped your fork into mud, urine, or an unidentifiable substance that seems to be rapidly rotting stainless steel, wipe and eat is the way to go.

I would use the spoon instead.

Not really...they pass in the kitchen and when going out the backl for smoke breaks. Server 1 tells the staff near the back door to “Tell Server2 that table 4 was asking for her” so s/he’ll attend to me 1st.  Server A can also nudge server b on her way by. Part of their jobs is to work together and make ME, the…

Was thinking the same thing as I read that topic. Unless it fell away from the table and a stranger stepped on it I’m just wiping off my fork and continuing to eat.

Since you asked.... I think Jesus wants you to wait for your actual server.

I swipe a clean fork that is freshly wrapped in napkins on the table next to me.

Definitely the highest nitrated. 

That is some bad blood. I’d hate to find myself sandwiched between those two.

Seriously. There’s such a classist bent to so many of these jokes about chain restaurants. In a lot of towns and on a lot of budgets, Olive Garden really is the nicest place you can go on a date night. In a perfect world, those people would have access to other, more unique restaurants, but mocking people for liking…