Boodle fight



A boodle fight, in the context of Filipino culture, is the military practice of eating a meal.

Etymology
Sources indicate that the term "boodle" is American military slang for contraband sweets such as cake, candy and ice cream. A "boodle fight" is a party in which boodle fare is served. The term may have been derived from "kit and caboodle"; caboodle is further derived from boodle or booty.

Table manners
A boodle fight is a meal that dispenses with cutlery and dishes. Diners instead practice kamayan, Filipino for "eating with the hands". The food is placed on top of a long banana leaf-lined trestle table and in the true military practice, diners do not sit in chairs but instead stand shoulder to shoulder in a line on both sides of the table.

A senior officer or enlisted personnel then utters the traditional command for the boodle fight to begin:

"Ready on the left, Ready on the right, Commence boodle fight!"