Miss Manners: Am I wrong for requesting clean cutlery at the buffet?

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 dirty by yourself or an unnamed third party.

As to whether the staff is