Table Settings
Formal & Informal
How you set your table depends on whether you are serving:
Breakfast, Lunch or Dinner?
Formal? Informal?
With / Without Wine or Spirits?
Formal Dinner Settings
This is the time to bring out the "good stuff," including your best china, crystal, and table service.
Fine linens and an elegant centerpiece top off the presentation.
Diagram #1
The placement of utensils is guided by the menu, the idea being that you use utensils in an “outside in” order. For the illustrated place setting shown here, the order of the items is:
- Appetizer: Shellfish
- First Course: Soup or fruit
- Fish Course
- Entrée
- Salad
Service Plate: This large plate, also called a charger, serves as an underplate for the plate holding the first course, which will be brought to the table. When the first course is cleared, the service plate remains until the plate holding the entrée is served, at which point the two plates are exchanged. The charger may serve as the underplate for several courses which precede the entrée.
Butter plate: The small butter plate is placed above the forks at the left of the place setting.
Dinner fork: The largest of the forks, also called the place fork, it is placed on the left of the plate. Other smaller forks for other courses are arranged to the left or right of the dinner fork, according to when they will be used.
Fish fork: If there is a fish course, this small fork is placed farthest to the left of the dinner fork because it is the first fork used.
Salad fork: If salad is served after the entrée, the small salad fork is placed to the right of the dinner fork, next to the plate. If the salad is to be served first, and fish second, then the forks would be arranged (left to right): salad fork, fish fork, dinner fork.
Dinner knife: The large dinner knife is placed to the right of the dinner plate.
Fish knife: The specially shaped fish knife goes to the right of the dinner knife.
Salad knife: (Note: there is no salad knife in the illustration.) If used, according to the above menu, it would be placed to the left of the dinner fork, next to the dinner plate. If the salad is to be served first, and fish second, then the knives would be arranged (left to right):dinner knife, fish knife, salad knife.
Soup spoon or fruit spoon: If soup or fruit is served as a first course, then the accompanying spoon goes to the right of the knives.
Oyster fork: If shellfish are to be served, the oyster fork is set to the right of the spoons. Note: It is the only fork ever placed on the right of the plate.
Butter knife: This small spreader is paced diagonally on top of the butter plate, handle on the right and blade down.
Glasses: These can number up to five and are placed so that the smaller ones are in front. The water goblet (la) is placed directly above the knives. Just to the right goes a champagne flute (lb); In front of these are placed a red (lc) and/or white (ld) wine glass and a sherry glass (le)
Napkin: The napkin is placed on top of the charger (if one is used) or in the space for the plate.
In general:
Knife blades are always placed with the cutting edge toward the plate.
No more than three of any implement is ever placed on the table, except when an oyster fork is used in addition to three other forks. If more than three courses are served before dessert, then the utensil for the fourth course is brought in with the food; likewise the salad fork and knife may be brought in when the salad course is served.
Dessert spoons and forks are brought in on the dessert plate just before dessert is served.
Diagram #2
(above the plate. left to right):
salt & pepper, dessert fork & spoon, water/wine glasses.
(plate row. left to right): fish fork, dinner fork, salad fork, napkin, rim soup plate, plate, salad knife, dinner knife, fish knife, soup spoon.
Your formal menu may not include a fish course and/or your tableware set may not include fish forks and knives. If there is not a fish course then don't put out the fish forks and knives. In the event there is a fish course, it is perfectly acceptable to substitute what you have such that there are utensils for each course.
Informal Dinner Settings
Diagram #1
(above the plate. left to right): bread & butter plate, butter knife, wine/water glass.
(plate row. left to right): napkin, salad fork, dinner fork, salad plate, plate, dinner knife.
Diagram #2
- dinner plate in center of setting
- salad plate to left of forks
- bread-and-butter plate above forks, left of dinner plate
- bread-and-butter knife placed across plate
- dinner fork larger fork, to left of plate
- salad fork smaller fork, to left of dinner fork
- dinner knife larger knife, to right of plate
- salad knife smaller knife, to right of dinner knife
- water goblet to upper right of plate, left glass of the two, and larger
- wine goblet right of water goblet, and smaller
- dinner napkin could be placed in center of plate
Luncheon Table Setting
| A. | Napkin | F. | Wine glass |
| B. | Luncheon Plate | G. | Luncheon Fork |
| C. | Soup (or other first course plate) on a liner plate | H. | Knife |
| D. | Bread and butter plate with butter knife | I. | Teaspoon |
| E. | Water glass | J. | Soup spoon |
Breakfast Table Setting
Start with a dinner plate, soup bowl (optional), bread & butter plate (for toast, muffins, etc.), and a cup & saucer for coffee or tea.
For flatware, use a 3-piece place setting: dinner fork, dinner knife and teaspoon. The napkin should be placed to the left of the fork. Finish the setting with either a juice or Iced Beverage glass.
