Open workshop · Mumbai hotel venue · Half day, over a working meal · Also in-company
Business Dining Etiquette: a working meal, coached course by course.
Half a day at a laid table in a Mumbai hotel. Hosting and being hosted, seating, cutlery and courses, wine and the non-drinker, conversation, difficult foods, international dining, the bill and the follow-up. Practised over a real meal, on the Sabira Merchant curriculum.
Who it is for
People who do business at the table
A great deal of business is decided over a meal, and the meal is where people are least sure of themselves. Half a day, seated, removes the hesitation for good.
- Sales, business development and account managers who host clients
- Managers and executives invited to formal dinners, banquets and award evenings
- Professionals who travel and are hosted abroad
- Founders and partners who entertain investors and principals
- Executive assistants and administrators who arrange and attend business meals
- Anyone who has ever paused over a place setting and hoped nobody noticed
By the end of the meal you will be able to
- Issue an invitation, choose a venue and host a meal with the courtesies a guest notices
- Take your seat, and know where the guest of honour sits and why
- Read a full place setting and use it without looking down
- Order wine, or decline it, without apology on either side
- Keep the conversation moving, and know when to turn to business and when not to
- Manage difficult foods, settle the bill invisibly and follow up so the meal leads somewhere
What the meal covers
Eight parts of a business meal, each explained, demonstrated and practised while the course is in front of you.
01
Hosting and being hosted
The invitation, the venue, arriving first, who orders first, what the host owes the guest and what the guest owes the host. The small courtesies that mark a considerate host, and a gracious guest.
02
Seating
Where the host sits, where the guest of honour sits, couples and colleagues, the round table and the long table, place cards, and what to do when nobody has arranged anything.
03
Cutlery and courses
The place setting decoded: outside in, the bread plate, the glasses, resting and finished positions, soup, fish, the main course and dessert. Continental and American styles, and which to use where.
04
Wine and the non-drinker
Reading a wine list without pretending, tasting, toasts and when to raise a glass. Declining with grace, hosting when you do not drink, and how to look after a guest who does not.
05
Conversation at the table
What to talk about, and when business belongs. Listening, drawing in the quiet guest, the topics to avoid, and how to end the meal well.
06
Difficult foods
Bones, shells, pasta, bread and butter, finger foods, soup and sauces. The Indian table, eating with the hand where it belongs, and what to leave on the plate.
07
International dining
The Japanese and Chinese table, chopsticks, the long European lunch, the American working breakfast, Middle Eastern hospitality. What a guest is expected to know before landing.
08
The bill and the follow-up
Who pays and how to settle it without a scene, tipping in India and abroad, the thank-you note, and the next step that turns a meal into a relationship.
How the session runs
A half day seated at a laid table in a Mumbai hotel, over lunch or dinner. Nothing is explained on a slide that can be shown on the table.
- Arrival and the settingThe table is decoded before anything is served
- Course by courseEach course is coached as it arrives, with quiet corrections at the table
- Host and guestParticipants swap roles and practise the invitation, the seating and the order
- Conversation drillsGuided table talk, with the timing of business built in
- The closeThe bill, the farewell, the follow-up, and the certificate
Next dates in Mumbai
-
28Oct2026Register
Business Dining Etiquette
For the fee, talk to our L&D consultants. Every seat includes materials, the certificate, lunch and tea, and group bookings of three or more are priced together. For this workshop the meal is the classroom, and it is included. Register by email at register@princetonacademy.co.in or on WhatsApp.
Register online
Choose the programme and the batch. An L&D consultant sends the fee, the venue and a payment link, and your seat is confirmed on payment.
Certificate and inclusions
- Certificate of completion on the Sabira Merchant curriculum, issued through Princeton Academy
- Dining etiquette reference guide with place-setting diagrams
- Host’s checklist, from the invitation to the follow-up
- International dining quick reference
- The working meal, tea and coffee at the hotel venue
For companies
A client dinner, rehearsed
Run in-company for a sales team, a leadership group or a cohort about to host visiting principals. Held at a hotel of your choice or in your own dining room, in Mumbai or any Indian city, and adjusted to the clients your people entertain. HR receives attendance and assessment reporting.
Request a proposalQuestions
Who conducts the sessions?
Every programme is designed and overseen by Sabira Merchant. Sessions are delivered by faculty she has trained and certified on her curriculum. Depending on the format, batch and schedule, Ms Merchant may conduct part of a session personally. The content, the standards and the assessment are hers in every case.
Is a full meal actually served?
Yes. The workshop is held over a working lunch or dinner at a hotel venue in Mumbai, with a full set menu, and each course is coached as it arrives. Vegetarian and other dietary needs are taken at registration.
I do not drink. Will that be awkward?
No. Wine is part of the module because it is part of business dining, and declining well is taught alongside ordering well. Nobody is required to drink. Hosting a table as a non-drinker is covered on its own, as is looking after guests who do not drink.
Is this only Western table etiquette?
No. The Continental and American styles are the base, because that is what formal business dining in India and abroad uses. The session also covers the Indian table and the main international tables a Mumbai professional is likely to meet.
Will I be corrected in front of others?
Corrections are quiet and at the table, and everyone in the room is there for the same reason. The cohort is small. By the second course the self-consciousness has usually gone.
How do I register?
Choose a date above and message an L&D consultant on WhatsApp, or email register@princetonacademy.co.in with the date you want. You will receive the fee, the venue and a payment link. Seats are confirmed on payment.
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The next meal is the practice.
Ask for the next Mumbai date, or rehearse a client dinner with your team.