Etiquette Elegance Review (PC)

It feels as if a pompous maître d’hôtel has got me in a chokehold, not necessarily with the intent to threaten me, but to spoon feed me platters of jargon on fine dining etiquette and, for some absurd reason, the variations of silverware that bring perfect balance to a divine culinary experience. I’ll be honest with you — half of the lecture has flown through one ear and drizzled out the other. It’s not that I’m being rude, or even that I’m divulging my attention to an alternate subject; it’s that I’m being real, and that I, in spite of my lack of grace and pristine knowledge, know for a fact that you do not need a sleeping mask to sample hors d’oeuvres. But who am I to say that the mask isn’t a vital component? After all, I’m the idiot here, and Etiquette Elegance, annoyingly, is the maître d’.

If you’ve ever splurged on something as flamboyant and as frivolous as a Michelin-starred à la carte, then you’ll no doubt have a vague recollection of how the waiters presented the table and followed a perfect set of guidelines to ensure that you had the best possible experience. For the price you probably paid, it’s highly unlikely that you would remember the etiquette, or even the position of the silverware, for that matter. Well, I almost hate to break it to you, but you should have taken notes. Why? Well, as it turns out, Etiquette Elegance centers its premise on that exact situation—the stages of an upper class dining experience. And annoyingly, it’s a game that also punishes you for making a mistake. Go figure.

Breaking Out the “Good Plates”

Etiquette Elegance is, if anything, a tongue-in-cheek memory game that has a sole purpose of reminding you that you are not as flush with elegance and grace as you think you are. Here, it doesn’t matter if you’re accustomed to lounge etiquette, or even if you know which fork goes with which meal. Turns out, the folks who accommodate this retro-futuristic cartoon world are painfully ignorant and picky—spiteful, and as equally unapologetic in their portrayal as pompous patrons. But that’s where you come in — not as a kind-spirited waiter whose job is to lick their boots, but as a sweat-addled maître d’ who has to be perfect. Because if you aren’t striving to achieve perfection in Etiquette Elegance, then you’re amounting to nothing.

If you thought you had a clear understanding of how etiquette works, then I almost hate to break it to you, but you probably missed out on a few extra volumes. Oh, Etiquette Elegance isn’t just about laying the table with a few knives and forks; it’s about remembering critical information, ingredients, personal preferences and, more importantly, the back-breaking process of delivering a perfect dining experience. With that, you have a trove of things to remember, including the locations of your silverware and table accessories, and the fine details about your customer’s needs and quirks.

To give you an example of how a scenario works, I’ll give you this: in some instances, you may need to place a napkin in one area, whereas in another you may have to swap it for something else—a special fork that’s primarily used for cured meats, or a complimentary gift, perhaps. Either way, you have a rather strenuous schedule, and one that orbits the fact that every customer is different. It’s your job, then, to keep things in check.

The Thousand Forks of Fine Dining

Etiquette Elegance doesn’t put you in any old run-of-the-mill hamburger joint; it slots you on the frontline of a fast-paced top-tier restaurant—a place where only the richest and most prolific diners come to eat. For that reason alone, the most important thing for you to remember here is that customers are always looking for a little more than the à la carte. By that I mean, the average customer isn’t content with the idea of having a quick bite to eat. On the contrary, the menu here stretches far and wide, and the experience is designed to last for a lot longer than your average buffet. And the worst part is, every course has its own table rules for you to learn and master. It’s Buckingham Palace, complete with all of the pretentious silverware and perfectionist elements that you would naturally expect to find on a diamond-encrusted table, basically.

The good news here is that, despite the gameplay being awfully stubborn and lacking in helping hands, the process of learning the basics and engaging in the camaraderie is pleasantly satisfying. The characters, although often pompous in their appearance and demeanor, are also a lot of fun to work with, weirdly enough. And that also applies to most of the finer details that flesh out Etiquette Elegance, truly. From the vibrant art style to the off-the-cuff remarks, the exquisite collection of culinary delights to the volume of thematic touches, Etiquette Elegance honestly does a marvelous job of capturing a stupidly enjoyable, albeit somewhat mentally taxing experience.

Verdict

Etiquette Elegance fosters an authentically pompous glimpse into the culinary traditions of fine dining and pretentious characteristics, with its souped-up à la carte of bottomless dishes and trunk of questionable silverware providing plenty of food for thought for the ravenous maître d’hôtel. Sure, it’s difficult, and it doesn’t exactly make the act of serving rich folk feel rewarding or worth the blood, sweat and tears. But, where it lacks in divine touch and benefits, it oddly makes up for in its world of whimsical retro-futuristic embellishments and hilarious camaraderie.

If you’re looking for a unique twist on the classic memory-focused puzzler, then chances are you will absolutely adore taking a big ol’ bite out of Etiquette Elegance and its vast banquet of bottomless brunches. Again, it probably won’t give you the urge to abandon your current career to pursue something in the field of fine dining, but it ought to make you appreciate what you have for a short while whilst you mindlessly try to remember which fork goes with which appetizer. If you can stomach that, then you’ll probably enjoy waxing elegance with chaos in this melting pot of peculiar characteristics and steampunk pizzazz.