Flatware

On those special occasions it’s nice to have a proper set up for your dinning room table. Here is a guide to follow that will help you with the setup if you are not sure how it works.

• First set up your dinner plates, make sure there is enough space for other items (you can either place the salad and soup bowls on top of the dinner plate or off to the left)
• Having the proper flatware is important. An easy way to remember how to place flatware is that you will always work your way from the outside in.
• Place the knife to the right of the plate (blade facing in), the dessert spoon should be placed to the right of the knife, the soup spoon comes next (placed to the right of the dessert spoon).
• On the left side, the dessert fork is placed to the immediate left of the plate, the entree fork to the left of the dessert fork, and the salad/appetizer fork to the left of the entree fork.
• Place your salad plate to the left of your fork ware and the bread plate above the fork ware
• Drinking glasses should be placed on the right starting just above the knife (if you have more glasses, like a wine glass, work your way to the right)
• The napkin can be in two different places. Either on top of your dinner plates, or to the left of your fork ware.

When serving for a dinner party it’s important to keep things organized and orderly. Consider some of these tips to help you:

• When setting your table with food keep general items on the table. Things like vegetables, salads, breads, and condiments should be readily available on the table.
• Make sure your flatware is properly setup and your have the appropriate dishes.
• Have your main foods in the kitchen where you can put them on the plate for your guest and serve accordingly. Try to place the food on the plate artistically and avoid having spills around the rims of your plate.
• All dishes are served from the left and are taken away from the right
• Picking an order in which to serve people is really up to you, the best way to go about it is to start at one end of the table and serve clockwise from that.
• When your clearing plates take no more than two at a time (and from the right!), and be sure to not have too long of a wait period between courses.
• Remove all main dishes before serving dessert and be sure to have sugars, toppings, creams, and butters available on the table when dessert is served
• If you have many guests and not enough helping hands, be sure to ask for help from a close friend who might be attending the dinner party.