American Woman Tries To Eat 'The European Way'—Unprepared for Result
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
A Texas-born fitness nutrition coach has captivated viewers on TikTok after sharing her attempt to adopt what she calls the "European way" of eating, prompting both laughter and disbelief from international viewers.
Amy Gordy, a 42-year-old fitness nutrition coach who was born and raised in Dallas but now lives in Chicago, Illinois, shared a video of her attempt on her TikTok account @amygordy1. The clip has amassed over 2.9 million views since it was posted on June 9.
The video, filmed in the U.S., shows Gordy sitting outdoors at a table, fork and knife in hand, preparing to eat a meal using what she refers to as "the European way," which involves keeping a fork in the left hand while eating, rather than switching it to the right hand once the food has been cut, as is more typical in the U.S.
Text overlaid the video says: "Trying to use silverware the European way (or I guess the rest of the world way)." In the clip, she narrates: "I'm gonna try not to switch my silverware for this meal...could be challenging for us Americans."
Gordy told Newsweek: "It all started a few weeks ago when I went to Ireland with my husband and posted an eating video and several people in the comment section asked why I was switching my hands to eat."
"Then I posted another video and the same comments appeared. So, when I got back to America, I decided to address the comments and then finally I attempted to eat the continental way. It was a lot harder than I thought," she said.
In a later comment, Gordy explained: "In America we learn to switch our fork to our right hand after we cut."
But Gordy's foray into "continental" or "European" etiquette left her struggling, and she wrote in the caption that she wasn't expecting it to be as hard as it was.
'Absolutely Baffled'
TikTok viewers from across the globe were amused and confused by Gordy's table manners experiment.
User AK99 commented: "Scottish here. Absolutely baffled why you're struggling to use a knife and fork."
Suzyt wrote: "As a Brit it amazes me," while Sam added: "this is painful."
Another viewer, user7829799290097, said: "This is mind blowing. It's like watching something from the Middle Ages."
Questions flooded in from others unfamiliar with the American eating style. "Wait .... Do Americans not know how to use cutlery?" asked user jade.sylvie.
Abigail followed up: "I'm confused, so how do Americans use cutlery?"
Perhaps most bluntly, user thrdad90 weighed in with: "It's not the 'European Way', it THE CORRECT WAY."
A screenshot from a viral TikTok video of an American woman attempting to use cutlery "the European way."
A screenshot from a viral TikTok video of an American woman attempting to use cutlery "the European way."
@amygordy1 on TikTok
Some might assume Americans' surprise at foreign customs stems from a lack of international experience. But a June 2021 Pew Research Center study found that 71 percent of U.S. adults have traveled internationally at some point. However, the depth of that experience varies— only 11 percent reported having been to 10 or more countries, while 27 percent have never traveled abroad.
Travel exposure is also influenced by socioeconomic status, with higher-income Americans "significantly more likely" to have visited multiple countries, according to the survey.
It's not the first time that the cultural difference in how to use silverware has caused a stir online. A Quora thread dating back at least five years titled "What do Americans think of the European way of eating with a knife and a fork?" has dozens of comments from people weighing in on the issue, and the topic was also raised on Reddit three years ago.
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