Serving and dining

Question

This piglix contains articles or sub-piglix about Serving and dining

Answer 1

Salt and pepper shakers

Salt and pepper shakers (or in the UK, salt and pepper pots) are condiment dispensers used in Western culture that are designed to allow diners to distribute grains of edible salt and ground peppercorns. Salt and pepper shakers are sometimes held in a cruet-stand.

Salt and pepper shakers can be made from a variety of materials, including plastic, glass, metal, and ceramic. Salt shakers became increasingly common after anti-caking agents were introduced by the Morton Salt company in the 1920s. The Great Depression of the 1930s boosted the popularity of salt and pepper shakers as global ceramics producers concentrated on inexpensive items.

Except in the most casual dining establishments, they are usually provided as a matched set, sometimes distinguishable only by the number of holes on the top of the shaker. Designs range from small, plain glass screw cap containers (invented by John Landis Mason, inventor of the Mason jar) to more ornate works of art. Sometimes the design refers to some pair of related objects—such as a replica of a West Highland White Terrier containing salt and a Scottish Terrier containing pepper. Designs may also relate to specific occasions or holidays. As a result of this diversity of design, collecting salt and pepper shakers is a hobby. Design of salt and pepper shakers has also been used to transmit cultural perspectives about race and other cultural values.

It is important that salt and pepper be in the correct shaker, especially if they are not glass, so guests will not accidentally put salt on their food when they want pepper, or vice versa. Unfortunately various arguments exist for doing it one way or the other, and there is no clear consensus on which should go in the shaker with more holes. The number of holes varies by culture, health and taste.

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Answer 2

Salver

A salver is a flat tray of silver, other metal or glass used for carrying or serving glasses, cups, and dishes at a table, or for the presenting of a letter or card by a servant. In a royal or noble household the fear of poisoning led to the custom of tasting the food or drink before it was served to the master and his guests; this was known as the assay of meat and drink, and in Spanish was called salva. The verb salvar means to preserve from risk, from the Latin salvare, to save. The term salva was also applied to the dish or tray on which the food or drink was presented after the tasting process.There seems no doubt that this Spanish word is the source of the English salver; a parallel is found in the origin of the term credenza, which comes from Italian.

Ceremonial salvers have also been used as major sporting trophies, most notably a sterling silver salver as the Ladies' Singles trophy in the Wimbledon tennis championships since 1886, and, from 1978 onwards, for the runner-up at the Masters Tournament (golf).

 This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain:  Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. 

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Answer 3

Self-heating can

A Self-heating can is an enhancement of the common food can. Self-heating cans have dual chambers, one surrounding the other, making a self-heating food package.

In one version, the inner chamber holds the food or drink, and the outer chamber houses chemicals that undergo an exothermic reaction when combined. When the user wants to heat the contents of the can, a ring on the can when pulled breaks the barrier that keeps apart the chemicals in the outer chamber from the water. In another type, the chemicals are in the inner chamber and the beverage surrounds it in the outer chamber. To heat the contents of the can, the user pushes on the bottom of the can to break the barrier separating the chemical from the water. This design has the advantages of being more efficient (less heat is lost to the surrounding air) as well as reducing excessive heating of the product's exterior, causing possible discomfort to the user. In either case, after the heat from the reaction has been absorbed by the food, the user can enjoy a hot meal or drink.

Self-heating cans offer benefits to campers and people without access to oven, stove or camp-fire, but their use is not widespread. This is because self-heating cans are considerably more expensive than the conventional type, take more space, and have problems with uneven heating of their contents.

The source of the heat for the self-heated can is an exothermic reaction that the user initiates by pressing on the bottom of the can. The can is manufactured as a triple-walled container. A container for the beverage surrounds a container of the heating agent separated from a container of water by a thin breakable membrane. When the user pushes on the bottom of the can, a rod pierces the membrane, allowing the water and heating agent to mix. The resulting reaction releases heat and thus warms the beverage surrounding it.

The heating agent and responsible reaction vary from product to product. Calcium oxide is used in the following reaction:

Copper sulphate and powdered zinc can also be used, but this process is less efficient:

Anhydrous calcium chloride is often used as well. In this case, no chemical reaction occurs, instead the heat of solution is generated.

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Answer 4

Side dish

A side dish, sometimes referred to as a side order, side item, or simply a side, is a food item that accompanies the entrée or main course at a meal.

Side dishes such as salad, potatoes and bread are commonly used with main courses throughout many countries of the western world. New side orders introduced within the past decade, such as rice and couscous, have grown to be quite popular throughout Europe, especially at formal occasions (with couscous appearing more commonly at dinner parties with Middle Eastern dishes).

When used as an adjective qualifying the name of a dish, the term "side" usually refers to a smaller portion served as a side dish, rather than a larger, main dish-sized serving. For example, a "side salad" usually served in a small bowl or salad plate, in contrast to a large dinner-plate-sized entrée salad.

A typical American meal with a meat-based main dish might include one vegetable side dish, sometimes in the form of a salad, and one starch side dish, such as bread, potatoes, rice, or pasta.

Some common side dishes include:

Some restaurants offer a limited selection of side dishes which are included with the price of the entrée as a combination meal. In contrast, sometimes side dishes are ordered separately from an a la carte menu. The term may or may not imply that the dish can only be ordered with other food.

French fries are the most common side dish served at fast-food restaurants and other American cuisine restaurants. In response to criticism about the high fat and calorie content of French fries, some fast-food chains have recently begun to offer other side dishes, such as salads, as substitutes for the standard French fries with their combination meals.

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Answer 5

Service à la russe

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Answer 6

Service à la française

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Answer 7

Sideboard

A sideboard, also called a buffet, is an item of furniture traditionally used in the dining room for serving food, for displaying serving dishes such as silver, and for storage. It usually consists of a set of cabinets, or cupboards, and one or more drawers, all topped by a flat display surface for conveniently holding food, serving dishes, or lighting devices. The overall height of the tops of most sideboards is approximately waist level. The words sideboard and buffet are somewhat interchangeable, but if the item has short legs, or a base that sits directly on the floor with no legs, it is more likely to be called a sideboard; if it has longer legs it is more likely to be called a buffet.

The earliest versions of the sideboard familiar today made their appearance in the 18th century, but they gained most of their popularity during the 19th century as households became prosperous enough to dedicate a room solely to dining. Sideboards were made in a range of decorative styles and were frequently ornamented with costly veneers and inlays. In later years, sideboards have been placed in living rooms or other areas where household items might be displayed.

In traditional formal dining rooms today, an antique sideboard is a desirable and fashionable accessory, and finely styled versions from the late-18th or early-19th centuries are the most sought-after and most costly. Among its counterparts in modern furniture styles, the form is often referred to as a server. Some of the earliest production of sideboards arose in England, France, Belgium and Scotland. Later, American designs arose. Characteristic materials used in historic sideboard manufacture include mahogany, oak, pine, and walnut.

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Answer 8

Silent service code

The silent service code is a way for a diner to "talk" to servers during a meal without saying a word, mainly to tell them that the diner is finished. This will prevent any embarrassing situations where the server would take a meal prematurely.

To tell a server you have finished place your napkin to the left of your plate, and place all your utensils together in a "4-o'clock" position on your plate.

Utensils crossed on a plate signify that a diner is still eating.

If you must leave during the meal, you should place the napkin on your chair to avoid any confusion.

The code is almost always taught during business dining etiquette classes.

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Answer 9

Silver service

Silver service (in British English) is a method of foodservice that usually includes serving food at the table. It is a technique of transferring food from a service dish to the guest's plate from the left.

It is performed by a waiter by using service forks and spoons from the diner's left. In France, it is known as service à l'anglaise ("English service").

Silver service is oriented for a right-handed waiter: to serve the food, the waiter stands behind the guest and to the guest's left, holds or supports the platter with their left hand and serves the food with their right hand. It is common for the waiter to hold the serving-fork above the serving-spoon both in the right hand, and use the fingers to manipulate the two as a pincer for picking up, holding and transferring the food. This technique requires much practice and dexterity.

A modification of silver service is known as butler service.

In butler service, the diner helps himself from a serving plate held by the waiter (butler). Traditionally, this type of service was used on Sunday evenings, when the waiting staff had the evening off and the butler helped out at dinner. In France, this kind of service is known as service à la francaise ("French service").

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Answer 10

Sittning

A sittning ("sitting", often shortened to sits or sitz,Finnish: sitsit) is in Sweden and Finland a seated meal held within a set time frame. In restaurants it may refer to a seating, i.e. the time given for a crowd to have their meal. The term is also used to denote the part of a party that is a seated meal. Though it can refer to any kind of meal, it is often used to refer to a student sittning.

A student sittning in Sweden or Finland is usually a dinner had at the student union's or nation's property, usually a pub room, or banquet hall if the student union is fortunate enough to have one. In academic environments some of the tradition is carried on even after one is no longer a student.

The dress code is different depending on the occasion, everything from white tie to student boilersuit can be the evening's dress code. Sittnings often have themes, and the guests are encouraged to dress to match the theme.

The meal is prepared and served by students who often spend some time working at their union or nation. The number of dishes vary, but three courses is common, and alcohol is usually included in the price (beer or cider and snaps along with Punsch). If snaps or punsch is not included, there will often be tickets for sale.

A vital part of a sittning is singing. The guests are usually given a booklet with songs that will be sung during the sittning. Everyone sings when a song is brought up, and songs are often related to the current progress of the sitting. Sittnings often begin with a certain song and end with another, songs are sung when drinking snaps, and there is often a song to honor the students serving and cooking. These songs differ depending on student union or nation. In some locations, such as Uppsala or Stockholm, it is common for a sittning to end with the song "O gamla klang och jubeltid". During the last verse of the song, the guests stand on their chairs and after the song is finished you are no longer supposed to sit down.

During Finnish-language sitsit, many of the classic Swedish drinking songs are also sung in Swedish or in translated versions. In more formal sitsit, academic and patriotic songs, such as De Brevitate Vitae, Finlandia Hymn and the Jäger March are sung.

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