I just read through this whole thread and just wanted to add my thoughts. I'm British, but have lived in the US for a while (study abroad year) and I can related to some of the differences mentioned.
- Re: not rinsing the dishes when washing up - although we've had a dishwasher for several years (and are not rich at all), we never even considered rinsing the dishes under clean water and no one in my family has ever gotten ill from it! I guess we have the mentality that the water in the washing-up bowl is full of soap, which cleans things - therefore there's no need to rinse... it's clean.
- I have a feeling that there are no electrical sockets in the bathrooms here because there is a danger that appliances can come into contact with small amounts of water on the surfaces and the floor. I know I wouldn't feel safe using a hairdryer in the bathroom, if there were likely to be puddles of water on the floor that I could be standing in at the time!
- I didn't even realise there was any difference in the way we hold our cutlery until my parents visited me in the US (after I'd been there 7 months) and told me I was 'eating the American way with just a fork in my hand'! I was also told by my mum that I sounded very American when I used the word 'gotten' instead of 'got'.
- I also don't get the whole politeness thing here. I work at Boots and say thank you 3 or 4 times to each customer... I have no idea why!
- Food sell-by dates - I've never considered this to be a big deal. The food is good until the date on the packet, so unless you want to get sick, you don't eat it after that date. But, you do have to be careful if you work in a shop that carries dated items - they have to be checked every single month because if you sell an out-of-date product to a customer, the store can suffer major consequences (the customer can sue if they so desire).
- We don't get much ice in our drinks because they are more expensive than the US and you don't get free refills here. We're paying for the drink, not the ice, so we want our money's worth!
- I spent years not drinking milkshake because it was just flavoured milk (which I hate). However, I have now discovered American ice-cream milkshakes, which are great!
If Americans think McDonald's french fries are greasy and fattening, they obviously haven't had thick-cut, deep-fried in fat chips from the local chippy . . . is there anything so unhealthy and terribly delicious?
Actually, the American fries are more unhealthy and fattening because there is is only a small amount of potato in them compared to the fat around them. Big, fat chips are better for you because there is more potato and less fat and grease on the outside. In fact, schools can now only serve fat chips because the McDonalds style ones were too unhealthy for the kids!
The British are apparently trying to starve their citizens, else gain profit by making people buy in bulk . . . resaurant sized portions leave a lot to be desired and everything in the grocery store is incredibly miniature. Anybody heard of a gallon of milk or a head of lettuce bigger than a baseball? Vanilla and almond extract bottles are good for one recipe, and their bananas are five inches long. Everything is on a smaller scale! The roads, the houses, the cars, the food! Wanted to make chocolate chip cookies, only I had to buy 8 miniature sized bags . . .
I suppose it depends what you're used to. I visited the US again last summer and could barely eat one third of the food on my plate! Vanilla extract bottles last 2 years in my house and one small bag of chocolate chips for cookies lasts 2 batches - but we've been brought up on small portions!
For people who seem so proper and worried about taking food home from a restaurant, they have no problem asking where the toilet or the loo is, even in a high-class place. I prefer to keep the toilet in the restroom and use the restroom for whatever purpose I have to use it, whether that includes the toilet or not. I am constantly surprised to see garish signs with arrows that proudly announce "toilets" in very classy style . . .
It's not that we're proper and worried about asking for a doggie bag - we're just not allowed to have them - most restaurants won't let you take food home. However, we are allowed to use their toilets so we ask where they are.
A few weeks ago, my brother decided to try his luck and ask for a doggy bag. He was told that they couldn't let him take the food home in case he got food poisoning from it and try to sue the restaurant - how ludicrous!!
I really don't mean to be gross, but feminine products are regularly flushed down the toilet. Ummmmm . . .? David informed me that putting those things in the waste basket is "unheard of" in England, but . . . "it certainly won't flush down the toilet, will it?" In America, the products clearly state, "do not flush!" and I still can't bring myself to do it . . . I'm afraid it will overflow!
I have never flushed a feminine product down the toilet (I didn't think it was possible)- it all goes in a waste basket in the bathroom!
It is REALLY ok to tip just 10% or not even tip if the service was average. That is one of the hardest things for me to give up... Also watch at a lot of ethnic places (Chinese in particular) will add the service charge in automatically, so if you do tip, you are double paying.
Good service when dining out is rare... lower your expectations or you will just get frustrated.
Tipping is much more of an added extra and not compulsary because restaurant wages are generally better than in the US - probably at least £5 per hour, so the tip isn't the main source of the wages.
I have to admit that once I returned to the UK after being in the US for 10 months, I found myself converting back to dollars for everything... i.e. '£2.50 for a sandwich? That's about $5. Would I pay $5 for a sandwich? No.' It took a few weeks for me to stop automatically converting in my head!
