Dua Before Eating

When the Prophet s.a.w. was blessed with food, he praised Allah s.w.t. and acknowledged the blessings given. He taught us to recite the Name of Allah s.w.t. at the beginning of every pleasant task or deed, including eating. Thus, before we eat, we should recite:

بِسْمِ اللهِ

Bismillah

In the Name of Allah.

However, in case of forgetting to recite the Bismillah and we are already halfway eating our meal, we may recite:

بِسمِ اللهِ أَوَّلَهُ وَآخِرَه‏ُ

Bismillahi awwalahu wa akhirahu

In the Name of Allah at the beginning and at the end.

This is based on the hadith of the Prophet s.a.w:

When any of you wants to eat, he should mention the Name of Allah (Bismillah) in the beginning. If he forgets to do it in the beginning, he should say (I begin with the Name of Allah at the beginning and at the end).”