Shrimp Etiquette Questions? Turn To The Belleville News-Democrat

Face it: if you're a shrimp-eater, you've asked yourself this question...but probably not cared enough to do whatever it is the right thing is. How do you eat shrimp that still has part or all of its shell on? Enter contributing writer for southwestern Illinois paper The Belleville News-Democrat, Dianne Isbell. She attacks the shrimp etiquette question from every possible angle, with every possible culinary implement (fingers included). It's truly comprehensive. Seriously, just when you think the scroll is over, there's another suggestion for another shrimp scenario.

Isbell attests that shrimp should never be served in a restaurant with the tails still on, but since they frequently are, she provides a detailed road to maintaining perfect manners while still enjoying your scampi. In the event that your shrimp still has its legs and head intact outside of say, a shellfish boil environment, there's a clear-cut route to keeping calm and carrying on there, too.

We must bring up one exception to the rule, however. Smoked shrimp, an underrated preparation, should be kept in their wonderfully flavor-infused shells until the moment they're eaten.