I usually say simply, “What a nice surprise,” but I am then left to shuffle place cards, add settings (often unmatched) and ...

I am a single man who inherited, from my parents and grandparents, both a love of entertaining and also a great deal of the trappings needed – china, crystal, linen, silver – that other relatives didn ...

In Japan, you can assume that the fish at any good restaurant met its end by way of ike and shinkei jime; in the U.S., the ...

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I am a single man who inherited, from my parents and grandparents, both a love of entertaining and also a great deal of the trappings needed — china, crystal, linen, silver — that ...

I am a single man who inherited, from my parents and grandparents, both a love of entertaining and also a great deal of the trappings needed -- china, crystal, linen, silver -- that other relatives ...

My question is how to react when people do not respond to an invitation, nor to a gentle nudge and arrive anyway.

I hold formal dinner parties with limited place settings. But there are friends who never respond to my invitations and show up anyway. What’s the best way to accommodate them?

Please send your questions to Miss Manners at missmanners.com, by email to [email protected], or through postal mail to Miss Manners, Andrews McMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, ...

These are friends of mine, and I do want to entertain them, but I’m afraid I’ll be limiting them to barbecues in the future.

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I am a single man who inherited, from my parents and grandparents, both a love of entertaining and also a great deal of the trappings needed-- china, crystal, linen, silver-- that ...

My question is how to react when people do not respond to an invitation, nor to a gentle nudge (such as an emailed “I wondered if you had received this,” with a second copy of the invitation) — and ...