Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Chapter 4 Preparing and Maintaining the Dining Room for Remarkable Service
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Learning Objectives Explain the steps of opening a dining room. Discuss the importance of the dining room arrangement. Describe how to prepare wares for service, including storage, polishing, and cleaning. Explain how to stock side stands, waiter stations, and guéridons for service. Discuss the importance of personal mise en place. Discuss maintaining a dining room during service. Explain the steps of closing a dining room after service.
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Opening the Dining Room Opening Checklists The first step in preparing the dining room is cleaning it completely. The mise en place of the opening dining room crew includes: – Wipe down menus. – Check supplies for printing checks. – Polish serviceware. – Set tables. – Stock side stands. – Stock pantry.
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Opening the Dining Room (cont’d) Keeping Checklists Relevant Having a list is not enough—use it to keep track of what is done. Use the list as a tool to manage work, reassign tasks, and make scheduling changes. Some servers may be assigned to come in before service, or to stay after service to complete closing tasks.
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Opening the Dining Room (cont’d) The Front Door The initial contact that guests have must be welcoming and overwhelmingly positive. Someone must be responsible for the upkeep of the front desk area: – Polish all hardware, such as door handles. – Keep door and window glass clean. – Remove clutter from the entrance area. – Check trash from the sidewalk or floor. – Put down floor mats when it is rainy or snowing.
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Opening the Dining Room (cont’d) The Reception Desk or Host Stand A properly set-up reception desk makes it simple to take reservations, assign tables, and greet guests. It is useful to keep items at the reception desk, such as: – A reservation log – A seating chart – Contact numbers for staff and emergency services – Maps of the area – Extra umbrellas – Reading glasses
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Arranging Tables and Chairs The goal is to arrange tables so that they are evenly spaced and in neat lines. Spacing tables 4 feet apart generally leaves enough space for the guests and servers. Once the tables are in position, check to see that they are level. Set chairs square to the table edge, with the front edge of the seat just touching, or “kissing,” the tablecloth. – If there is no tablecloth, the chair should be pushed in so that it is even with the edge of the table.
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Arranging Tables and Chairs (cont’d) Table Numbers Even if a restaurant has thirteen tables, it rarely has a table number thirteen. Number the first row of tables using single digits and number the second row using the twenties. Number the first table using a number that ends with a one, not a zero. – This system makes it easier to count.
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Arranging Tables and Chairs (cont’d) Seat Numbers Assigned in reference to one of two spots in the dining room: the front door or the kitchen door. Seat number one is the chair with its back to the kitchen door. – Seats are counted clockwise from seat number one. Seat numbers remain constant, whether the seats are occupied or not.
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Preparing Wares for Service Flatware Handle pieces by the handle with gloves or a polishing cloth. Dip the flatware into hot water and polish with a lint- free cloth. Start with the main course flatware, since they are placed first. © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Preparing Wares for Service (cont’d) Carrying Flatware Always carry or hold flatware by the handle to avoid cross- contamination. While preparing the dining room, it is convenient to carry flatware on a tray. During service, carry flatware on a plate lined with a serviette. STP Silverware Transport Plate – This cuts down on noise and prevents smudges.
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Preparing Wares for Service (cont’d) Silver-Plated Flatware Silver-plated flatware requires slightly different care than stainless steel. Use a paste or liquid polish and a clean cloth to remove tarnish. Chemical polishing compounds can also be used to remove tarnish. Avoid touching polished items with bare hands to prevent new spots. Wrap the silver in an anti-tarnish cloth before storing.
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Preparing Wares for Service (cont’d) Glassware Steam and polish glassware before setting the table. Use a chafing dish filled with steaming water to polish a rack of glasses. Use a pot with hot water for individual glasses Dispose of any glasses with cracks or chips. © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Preparing Wares for Service (cont’d) Storing Glassware Cleaned and polished glasses can be placed upright on a side stand or shelf for short-term storage. Always place glassware in the correct-sized rack; the stems should not extend above the lip of the rack.
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Preparing Wares for Service (cont’d) Handling Glassware Always handle glassware so that your fingers are as far from the rim of the glass as possible. The way you carry glasses depends on the type of restaurant, as well as whether the glass is full or empty, clean, or dirty. – Carry clean, empty glasses to the table on a bar tray. – Carry clean, empty stemware to the table on a bar tray or by hand. – Remove dirty glasses on a bar tray.
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Preparing Wares for Service (cont’d) China In an à la carte restaurant, much of the china is kept in the kitchen. Best practices for handling china: – Discard and replace any chipped or cracked china. – Do not place the flat of your thumb or your fingertips on the rim or the interior of the plate. – Wear gloves during setup to keep china clean and un- smudged. – Stack china carefully so that the stack is stable.
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Preparing Wares for Service (cont’d) Hollowware Hollowware pieces used in the dining room are usually specialty items. – Tea and coffee sets; tureens; ice buckets; chafing dishes, etc. Often hollowware is made from some form of metal and is durable. Best practices: – Clean and polish all hollowware. – Be sure sets are kept together. – Some pieces may be hot; wrap their handles in serviettes.
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Setting the Table All of the items on the tabletop should be lined up perfectly. Now, even fine dining restaurants may leave the table bare or simply set. Table setting involves linens, flatware, glassware, and china. Each restaurant should have an established set of standards. – For example, the water glasses are placed one inch above the dinner knife.
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Setting the Table (cont’d) Table Linens Linens are a significant expense for a restaurant, so maintain them carefully. Best practices when handling linens: – Inspect all cloths before using them in the dining room. – Store linens on covered shelves, by size. – Never store liquids above linens.
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Setting the Table (cont’d) Napkins Cloth napkins are usually folded in the style of the house. Uncomplicated folds take less time, create a mood of simple elegance, and are more sanitary. Napkins should not be placed in glasses since it is unsanitary. Folded napkins are also used in the dining room for ornamentation. – For example, napkins can be folded to create a pocket for dinner rolls. – Napkins can be folded to use for wine service or to wrap around hot serviceware.
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Setting the Table (cont’d) Dressing the Table A silence cloth (molleton) makes the table feel plush, soft, and luxurious. – This is placed under the tablecloth and can be used for several seatings. Place tablecloths on the table according to house standards. – Location of the crease and direction of the hem are examples. – All tables should be clothed consistently.
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Setting the Table (cont’d) The Cover The word cover refers to a place setting, and determines what goes on the table. Best practices for spacing and aligning covers: – Allow a minimum of 18 inches for each setting. – The napkins for seat number one should be on the center crease of the tablecloth. – On round tables, arrange the bottom edge of flatware, napkins, and show plates in a straight line. – If the cover includes preset wine glasses, they should almost make an X on the tabletop.
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Setting the Table (cont’d) The Cover (cont’d) Flatware should be positioned in the order in which it is to be used. In the United States, it is traditional to place forks with the tines facing up. Best practices for placing flatware include: – Place the main course fork six inches to the left of the center of each place setting, main course knives six inches to the right of the center. – Place spoons to the right side of the knives, with the bowl of the spoon face up.
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Setting the Table (cont’d) The Cover (cont’d) Place the bread-and-butter plate (B&B plate) to the left of the place setting. There are several acceptable positions for the butter knife. – Parallel to the forks; perpendicular to the forks. Position glassware to the right of the cover, above the tip of the dinner knife. If a water glass is to accompany the wine glasses, it is generally placed just above the dinner knife with the wine glasses.
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Setting the Table (cont’d) The Cover (cont’d) Some standard covers include: – Simple à la carte – Banquet cover – Breakfast cover (shown in the photo) – Special setups, like caviar, finger bowl, and bouillabaisse © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Setting the Table (cont’d) The Cover (cont’d) Most restaurants place the salt shaker so that the salt is on the right of the pepper, when the guest is seated at seat number one. One set for every four guests is customary. For a large banquet table, put three or four sets on the table.
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. A stocked side stand holds all of the items a server might need during service. There is typically a side stand for every station in the dining room. A waiter’s station or pantry is used by all the waiters, and might include backups of salt and sugar, as well as coffee and tea. A guéridon or cart is generally used for tableside service of foods as well as for opening and decanting wine. Stocking Side Stands, Waiter Stations, and Guéridons
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. The side stand should have backups for all items that are on the tabletop. – Salt and pepper shakers – Cleaned and polished glassware – Clean and polished flatware – Napkins, folded – Bread baskets – Water pitchers Stocking Side Stands, Waiter Stations, and Guéridons (cont’d) Tabletop Items
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Stocking Side Stands, Waiter Stations, and Guéridons (cont’d) Service Items Plates Serviettes Tongs or serving spoons Dupe pads Condiments Silverware transport plates © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Tray stands, or jack stands, may be part of the dining room’s mise en place. Clean them well before each shift. Fine dining establishments and bistros often cover tray stands with a 60-inch tablecloth for a neater appearance. Stocking Side Stands, Waiter Stations, and Guéridons (cont’d) Tray Stands
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Freshly cut flowers can enliven a dining room, but need to be properly maintained. In selecting flowers for the dining room, consider fragrance as well as appearance. Edible flowers are very popular, but it is important to note that not all flowers are safe to eat. Best practices for caring for cut flowers: – Change water every day or two. – Nightly refrigeration can extend the life of flowers. – Store away from food, especially apples. Ambience Flower Arrangements
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. When the dining room has subdued lighting, make sure there is lighting over the tables and service areas. The right lighting can influence the way guests perceive the food, change the pace of a meal, or reveal textures. Warm-colored lights flatter your guests and make them feel relaxed and happy. Ambience (cont’d) Lighting
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Music provides a significant part of a restaurant’s ambience and is generally chosen to complement the décor and theme. Music should be loud enough to enjoy, but not so loud that guests cannot hear each other or the server. Ambience (cont’d) Music
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. You must complete your own personal mise en place. – Go over your appearance. – Wash your hands and nails. – Check your side stand for service items. – Make sure to have functioning pens. – Have a corkscrew and matches. Personal Mise en Place
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Two extremely important rules of dining room maintenance are these: 1. If you see something that should be done, do it as soon as you can. 2. Never walk through the dining room empty-handed. Maintaining the Dining Room The Golden Rules of Dining Room Maintenance
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. Maintaining the Dining Room (cont’d) Resetting the Table During Service By the time the guests leave, there should be relatively little on the table to remove. Tablecloths should be changed without exposing the table’s surface. © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America
Copyright © 2014 The Culinary Institute of America. All rights reserved. There are two major parts to consider for the closing crew: – Cleaning up the mess. – Leaving the room ready for the next service staff. The mise en place of the closing crew might include: – Adjust lighting and temperature. – Lock doors. – Remove and refrigerate flowers. – Clean and stow trays and stands. – Clean and store china. – Check, wipe down, and store menus. – Remove garbage. Closing the Dining Room