^You could experiment with that!
I didn't want to delve into the "rules" since it would derail the thread a bit, but I eat things based on personal rules that I can apply by taking into consideration the food's characteristics. I also learned a lot from watching things decompose in nature (searching for good compost methodologies) and seeing them react with digestive enzymes. Again, it's up to everyone to discover what is food dogma and not.
E.g.
I don't eat heavy food with light food. For instance, heavy whole-grain breads with light fruit. Along these lines, it would be most agreeable to have a thinnish slice of meat with some light bread, and some fiber thingies like pickles to move it along.
I eat fruit before the meal. Raw, light fruit goes through really fast in my stomach. Sometimes after less than an hour, I'm crapping it out (there are some easily identifiable fruits). When you eat this after your heavy meal, you might find some unpleasant mucus/bad-smelling saliva forming-- because the fruit will already be digested but it is not passing through, held back by heavier food.
I try to eat desserts before the meal. This is because these are tougher on the system than my veg meals (especially sugary ones), with more fermentation, and also use more enzymes. And also, I find that beginning the meal with a sweet thing (or even a sour siding) helps me deal better with spicy things later on. Perhaps it forms an unctuous coating in my system? I've read things that suggest this.
I eat salads (especially bitter ones) after a meal, just like I would have thick cacao. The bitter/astringent properties can decrease appetite (and digestion).
Again, these things I follow, because throughout the day, I'm not engaging in warrior-like activities, and therefore I need to make some effort that my body will have an easier time digesting. I have friends who do a lot of gymming and eat everything that they want, and that goes right through.
While I generally follow these principles, I do not allow myself to be held back or controlled by them. Yep, I go for multi-course meals that don't follow these patterns. This is because, ultimately, I trust food cultures more than nutritionism. While we can isolate some nutrients and examine them, a meal is more than the sum of its parts. Thousands of years of evolution and improvements from anecdotes/patterns... you can't beat that. We don't want to be pedants-- it takes the fun out of eating!
And my general tenet is, just don't have too much of everything.
Sorry for the derailment.