Miss Manners: What’s the deal with silverware at breakfast buffets?

MISS MANNERS by Judith Martin, Nicholas Ivor Martin and Jacobina Martin

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I beg for guidance on the proper etiquette with one’s cutlery at hotel buffet breakfasts. While there are abundant clean plates, the protocol seems to be that one has but a single set of cutlery.

Perhaps this is to shame one into avoiding gluttonous behavior.

However, when moving from bacon and eggs to toast or muffins, how should one get a clean knife? The knife and fork disappear in the hands of the waitstaff. Asking for new ones is rarely met with a gracious response from the (admittedly busy) servers.

GENTLE READER: Is this a trick question, Miss Manners wonders? One gets a new knife and fork by requesting them, an answer that does not depend on whether those previously supplied were made d