{"id":305117,"date":"2025-11-20T02:25:48","date_gmt":"2025-11-20T02:25:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/peraltafinancing.com\/uncategorized\/drinking-and-dining-like-a-pro-on-an-interview\/"},"modified":"2025-11-20T02:25:48","modified_gmt":"2025-11-20T02:25:48","slug":"drinking-and-dining-like-a-pro-on-an-interview","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117","title":{"rendered":"Drinking and Dining Like a Pro on an Interview"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n<\/p>\n
\n
\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
Interviews are already stress-filled events and the worries about how to handle yourself around dinner and having a drink can amp this up to nerve shattering levels.\u00a0\u00a0 It doesn\u2019t have to be that way.\u00a0 There are a few basic things to remember to change an interview dining experience from a thrill ride to a walk in the park.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
You aren\u2019t there to eat<\/strong><\/p>\n
When you get invited to dinner during an interview process, you might be starving after a long day of travel and interviewing and assume it is time to fuel up.\u00a0 It isn\u2019t.\u00a0 The dynamics of the conversation will mean you are talking more than eating and it is hard to consume a meal.\u00a0 I have interviewed many people over dinner and I usually take mercy and talk for a while to give them some time to eat.\u00a0 The key thing to remember is that you aren\u2019t there to eat, you are there to talk.\u00a0 No matter how much of your meal is left, don\u2019t get a doggie bag to bring home, it\u2019s not a power move in a business setting.\u00a0 Eat what you can and hit a burger joint on your way home if you need to.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Interview isn\u2019t Over<\/strong><\/p>\n
It is very easy to relax and enjoy a nice meal with your potential new boss or a senior person in the firm, but you need to remember that this is part of the interview process.\u00a0 It isn\u2019t over yet.\u00a0 This is especially true if there will be an element of entertaining on behalf of the company as they will want to know if you can handle yourself over a meal, where a lot of deals get done.\u00a0 It isn\u2019t time to talk about your college hi-jinks or that one time you danced on the boss\u2019s desk at the office party.\u00a0 Keep it to business and light personal topics, just like an interview. While things generally get a bit more personal and casual over dinner, the rules of acceptable questions remain the same as during office hours.<\/p>\n
Treat the Wait Staff Right<\/strong><\/p>\n
I think it is always the right thing to treat your wait staff right, because they can make your dining experience great or middling.\u00a0 In an interview situation, it is even more important because you are being assessed on how you treat the waiter.\u00a0 Polite, pleasant are the watchwords and don\u2019t ask too many questions about the menu, remember you aren\u2019t there to eat.\u00a0 I have seen plenty of six figure job offers vaporize over dinner because the candidate was a jerk to the waiter.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Order Something Easy to Eat<\/strong><\/p>\n
When considering what to eat, head to something easy to eat.\u00a0 That means you shouldn\u2019t get spaghetti with an excess of red sauce.\u00a0 For me, that means it is going to end up on my tie.\u00a0 Head to drier items, perhaps a salad, roast chicken or a steak, items that can be cut to size and managed.\u00a0 Multitasking by eating, trying to be witty and give good answers and managing something dripping with sauce can push things over the edge.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Follow Your Host<\/strong><\/p>\n
Dinner during an interview is a dance so let your host guide the dance.\u00a0 If they have a cocktail and you want one, feel free to indulge.\u00a0 If they ask if you want wine, ask them to decide because you are flexible.\u00a0 As always, if you prefer not to, that is acceptable as well.\u00a0 The same goes for the meal, make sure you have the same number of courses as your host, so they are not eating their salad alone.\u00a0 This can be a little dicey as you will be ordering first, so I usually pick a main and a starter and then politely ask them what looks good before I finalize my order.\u00a0 If theirs includes a starter, I keep mine and if it doesn\u2019t, I only order the main entr\u00e9e.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Do Not Drink to Excess<\/strong><\/p>\n
The simple case is a lunch interview and my rule is to never drink at lunch.\u00a0 If the meal is dinner, you aren\u2019t at this meal to drink either and a cardinal sin is to drink to excess.\u00a0 It is easy to let it happen after a stress filled day.\u00a0 One goes down easy, then a second and before you know you have over consumed.\u00a0 That does not make the impression you want, and it leads to a less excellent version of you in the form of poor answers to critical questions.\u00a0 Keep your consumption to two adult beverages with a max of three over a long dinner.\u00a0 As always, take a ride sharing service or a taxi if you are drinking as that is viewed as a judgment item by a hirer.<\/p>\n
It is a Chance to Assess Your Hirer Too<\/strong><\/p>\n
Like all interviews, dinner is a chance to check out your new company in a less formal way.\u00a0 Lots of questions that might not be perfect in the office are okay here. \u00a0Cultural questions are fair game and how the informal organization works are good things to ask about.\u00a0 You can also learn from where you are brought to dinner \u2013 was it the Olive Garden or was it a top steak house with a prodigious wine list?\u00a0 That will give some indication of the spending patterns when entertaining clients, which might be important to you.\u00a0 How your host behaves and how much they drink will give you insight to the drinking culture at the firm.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sometimes Spouses are Invited<\/strong><\/p>\n
In more senior roles, your significant other might be invited to dinner, usually with the significant other of the interviewer.\u00a0 It is a great way to help along the recruiting process by bringing your partner into the conversation for a major decision, so they have met some people.\u00a0 Once again, they are assessing your partner as they are part of the equation.\u00a0 This is especially true if partners are sometimes involved in events or client entertaining.\u00a0 You might need to do some coaching about the things in this chapter before the dinner to make sure everyone knows the rules of the game.<\/p>\n
Your Host is Going to Pay<\/strong><\/p>\n
Realize that your host is going to pay, and you don\u2019t have to fake like you are paying like we do in other situations when we know someone else is paying.\u00a0 But that also means that you can\u2019t order the most expensive thing on the menu.\u00a0 Don\u2019t worry more broadly about the prices, after all, your host picked the restaurant.\u00a0 I tend to head to a middle priced and neat eating item and only order a starter or a salad if host does as well.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I know that\u2019s a lot to think about when you are trying to make a great impression at the same time, but master this and you\u2019ll be well on your way to becoming a master diner.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Interviews are already stress-filled events and the worries about how to handle yourself around dinner and having a drink can amp this up to nerve shattering levels.\u00a0\u00a0 It doesn\u2019t have to be that way.\u00a0 There are a few basic things to remember to change an interview dining experience from a thrill ride to a walk […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[5876,7055,5727,1190],"dealstore":[],"offerexpiration":[],"class_list":["post-305117","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","tag-dining","tag-drinking","tag-interview","tag-pro"],"yoast_head":"\n
Drinking and Dining Like a Pro on an Interview - Som2ny Network<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Drinking and Dining Like a Pro on an Interview - Som2ny Network\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Interviews are already stress-filled events and the worries about how to handle yourself around dinner and having a drink can amp this up to nerve shattering levels.\u00a0\u00a0 It doesn\u2019t have to be that way.\u00a0 There are a few basic things to remember to change an interview dining experience from a thrill ride to a walk […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Som2ny Network\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-11-20T02:25:48+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/professionaldrinking.theceoproject.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/04\/Interview-over-Dinner.jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b85e3c3dc0e1daea076524dc8810c371\"},\"headline\":\"Drinking and Dining Like a Pro on an Interview\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-11-20T02:25:48+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117\"},\"wordCount\":1178,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/professionaldrinking.theceoproject.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/04\/Interview-over-Dinner.jpeg\",\"keywords\":[\"Dining\",\"Drinking\",\"Interview\",\"Pro\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117\",\"name\":\"Drinking and Dining Like a Pro on an Interview - Som2ny Network\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/professionaldrinking.theceoproject.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/04\/Interview-over-Dinner.jpeg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-11-20T02:25:48+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/professionaldrinking.theceoproject.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/04\/Interview-over-Dinner.jpeg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/professionaldrinking.theceoproject.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/04\/Interview-over-Dinner.jpeg\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?bp_activities=1\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Drinking and Dining Like a Pro on an Interview\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/\",\"name\":\"Som2ny Network\",\"description\":\"Daily Deals\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Som2ny Network\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4a0953c4-logo-300x86-1.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4a0953c4-logo-300x86-1.png\",\"width\":300,\"height\":86,\"caption\":\"Som2ny Network\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b85e3c3dc0e1daea076524dc8810c371\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/729ae85bf62b9917e93538db2f2688ca?s=96&r=g&default=https%3A%2F%2Ffivemor.com%2Fwp-content%2Fplugins%2Fbuddypress-first-letter-avatar%2Fimages%2Fdefault%2F96%2Flatin_a.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/729ae85bf62b9917e93538db2f2688ca?s=96&r=g&default=https%3A%2F%2Ffivemor.com%2Fwp-content%2Fplugins%2Fbuddypress-first-letter-avatar%2Fimages%2Fdefault%2F96%2Flatin_a.png\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Drinking and Dining Like a Pro on an Interview - Som2ny Network","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Drinking and Dining Like a Pro on an Interview - Som2ny Network","og_description":"Interviews are already stress-filled events and the worries about how to handle yourself around dinner and having a drink can amp this up to nerve shattering levels.\u00a0\u00a0 It doesn\u2019t have to be that way.\u00a0 There are a few basic things to remember to change an interview dining experience from a thrill ride to a walk […]","og_url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117","og_site_name":"Som2ny Network","article_published_time":"2025-11-20T02:25:48+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/professionaldrinking.theceoproject.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/04\/Interview-over-Dinner.jpeg","type":"","width":"","height":""}],"author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"6 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b85e3c3dc0e1daea076524dc8810c371"},"headline":"Drinking and Dining Like a Pro on an Interview","datePublished":"2025-11-20T02:25:48+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117"},"wordCount":1178,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/professionaldrinking.theceoproject.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/04\/Interview-over-Dinner.jpeg","keywords":["Dining","Drinking","Interview","Pro"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117","url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117","name":"Drinking and Dining Like a Pro on an Interview - Som2ny Network","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/professionaldrinking.theceoproject.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/04\/Interview-over-Dinner.jpeg","datePublished":"2025-11-20T02:25:48+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/professionaldrinking.theceoproject.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/04\/Interview-over-Dinner.jpeg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/professionaldrinking.theceoproject.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/04\/Interview-over-Dinner.jpeg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?p=305117#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?bp_activities=1"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Drinking and Dining Like a Pro on an Interview"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/","name":"Som2ny Network","description":"Daily Deals","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#organization","name":"Som2ny Network","url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4a0953c4-logo-300x86-1.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/4a0953c4-logo-300x86-1.png","width":300,"height":86,"caption":"Som2ny Network"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/b85e3c3dc0e1daea076524dc8810c371","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/729ae85bf62b9917e93538db2f2688ca?s=96&r=g&default=https%3A%2F%2Ffivemor.com%2Fwp-content%2Fplugins%2Fbuddypress-first-letter-avatar%2Fimages%2Fdefault%2F96%2Flatin_a.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/729ae85bf62b9917e93538db2f2688ca?s=96&r=g&default=https%3A%2F%2Ffivemor.com%2Fwp-content%2Fplugins%2Fbuddypress-first-letter-avatar%2Fimages%2Fdefault%2F96%2Flatin_a.png","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/fivemor.com"],"url":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/305117","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=305117"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/305117\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=305117"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=305117"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=305117"},{"taxonomy":"dealstore","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fdealstore&post=305117"},{"taxonomy":"offerexpiration","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/fivemor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fofferexpiration&post=305117"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/professionaldrinking.theceoproject.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2020\/04\/Interview-over-Dinner.jpeg\")
<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n