Question about chopsticks

The friendliest place on the web for anyone that enjoys cooking.
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
Welcome to DC, Chad!!! Blade Runner is casting your mind back a bit! Or is that one of your favourites?

I just happened to watch the movie the other night and noticed the chopstick rubbing and was wondering about it. I haven't seen anyone else do it.

I really enjoy Blade Runner although it is a flawed movie.

Chad
 
Haven't seen Blade Runner for eons! Think I was a teenager and I 'drifted' a few times in it so lost the plot. Haven't been able to concentrate on it since. Will have to give it another whirl one day and hunt down the chopstick rubbing scene!!
 
I've seen the movie about ten times over the years, starting with at the theater when I was in H.S. I really like the look of the movie.

You can't miss the chopstick scene, it is the first scene with Harrison Ford and well worth the price of renting. :)

Chad
 
What an amazing turn this thread has taken, LOL. I have seen the movie several times as well. But maybe I should re-watch it and see if he was actually 'making' a statement by doing that...
 
Kitchenelf is correct that rubbing chopsticks together is not proper etiquette in any type of establishment. But I see it all the time. I tell friends that if they happen to get a very splintery one, and they feel compelled to rub, do so discreetly under the table, and careful not to start a fire. ;)
 
What an amazing turn this thread has taken, LOL. I have seen the movie several times as well. But maybe I should re-watch it and see if he was actually 'making' a statement by doing that...

It's hard to say. He tried to get 4 dumplings and some noodles and the guy would only sell him 2. He sat down and broke apart his chopsticks and started rubbing them together. I don't know if it was to get rid of splinters or to thumb his nose at the proprietor.

Chad
 
Could be ignorance, or maybe it's behavior based on old info the person has. Like waving an instant Polaroid photo in the air (unnecessary and actually bad for the photo) and like shaking a can of spray paint for 15 minutes while walking around the store (unnecessary and REALLY annoying).

Lee
 
Here is the real story

From Chef Gaku Homma of Domo Restaurant in Denver.
domorestaurant dot com/qanda.html


Q. Am I supposed to rub my chopsticks together before my meal?

A. Some think that rubbing your chopsticks together before a meal is a Japanese custom meant to remove splinters. In fact, rubbing chopsticks together can encourage more splinters than it actually takes off! This ritual originates from an early Charlie Chaplin movie that was popular in Japan before WWII. In this movie, Charlie Chaplin rubs his knife and fork together as a gesture of culinary anticipation. The Japanese people who were fans of the movie at the time, mimicked this action with their chopsticks. After WWII, American GIs returning from Japan brought this American born custom home again! In Japan today it is not a commonly practiced custom.
 
The first time I used disposable chopsticks, I was told to rub them together, so it became habit. A habit which I have since dropped. I see people rubbing their disposable chopsticks together all the time. I think if you eat at an Asian restaurant they should just give you real chopsticks! =)
 
Back
Top Bottom