What is the order of courses?

Dear Polite One,

Could you tell me about the order of courses? Fish should be ahead of meat, right? Is salad eaten before or after the main course? Is bread eaten before the soup?

Wondering

Dear Wondering,

If you are ordering a meal in a restaurant, you choose which course you would like to eat in any order you wish. Traditionally though, a fish course is served before a meat course in a formal meal. When the meal is not formal, most Americans choose either fish or meat. Not both. Here, salad is the first course for the typical meal but is served after the entrée during formal meals. Bread may be eaten any time during the meal. But you don't have to eat any bread.

Sincerely,

The Polite One

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