1

Unit 7

Food service styles and techniques

 2

Unit objectives

1. Identify the food service styles and

techniques.
2. Distinguish each food service style
3. Apply the food service styles to practice
The Types of Table Service
 1. Plate or American Service
A Plate or American service style, is a table service style where the ordered dish is already prepared in the kitchen
in the plate by the Chef or Cook and then given to the server to place it on the guests table. It is a very efficient
way of serving and enhances speed between the time of delivery and the time the customer can eat it.

Traditional - Serving from the Modern - Serving from the

left side of the guest – Moving right side of the guest –
counter clockwise Moving clockwise
 Plate or American Service
• Advantages - American service has several
advantages. Service is generally faster. The service
staff needs less training because the service is easier
to master. Equipment costs are limited and less space
is required between tables, so more guests can be
seated and more turns included. Chefs also have
greater cost and presentation controls under this
system.
• Disadvantages - American service lacks the elegance
of French, Russian or English service, and a sense of
theater that makes the dining experience memorable
is sometimes lost. Also, guests cannot choose their
own portion sizes.

Principles of Dining Service

 2. Silver or Russian Service 5

Serving food from the platter from

the left side of the guest

Serving bread from the left Serving food from platter

side of the guest from the left side of the
guest
 General Rules of Silver or Russian

Service
When using silver service, all food is prepared,
portioned, and garnished before being placed on
platters, tureens, or service plates.
 Unlike French service, silver service can involve a
single server or a team of servers. All servers,
however, have a clean service towel, usually draped
over their left forearm.
 Beverages, plates, and bowls on under liners are set
in front of the guest from the right side, and food items
are served with the right hand from the left side of the
guest.
 Service proceeds counterclockwise around the table.
Use service sets to transfer food from the platter to the
guest’s plate.

Principles of Dining Service

 Tureen Service
 When soup is ordered, tureen service is a part of this
service. Preset warmed soup plates or bowls on under
liners in front of the guests.
 Before it leaves the kitchen, the soup tureen should be
placed on a STP/serviette under liner with a ladle in or
beside it.
 Remove the cover before approaching the table. With
the tureen in the left hand, approach and serve guests
from the left, drawing the handle of the soup ladle
toward you, using the right hand to avoid spillage.
Return the ladle to the tureen before serving the next
guest.
 Service proceeds counterclockwise around the table.
Principles of Dining Service
 Platter Service
 Another aspect of this service is platter service. The
chef prepares and places food on a platter in the
kitchen.
 Warmed plates are preset in front of the guests before
the food is presented.
 With platters held on the left forearm and hand, hold
the platter parallel to the table to the left of the guest,
without touching the table. Using the pincer technique,
place the portion onto the guest’s plate.
 Each platter requires a clean service set. Sauces are
generally served separately, or there is a separate
serving spoon for the sauce.
 The server proceeds counterclockwise.
Principles of Dining Service
 Casserole Service
 In casserole service, the dinner plate and any
accompaniments are preset on the table from the
guest’s right side.
 Hold the casserole dish in the left hand and a service
set in the right. The contents of the casserole are
served from the left of the guest and as close to the
plate as possible.
 Clearing is done from the guest’s right, with the server
using the right hand.

Principles of Dining Service

 Silver or Russian Service
 Advantages - service is faster than French service
and requires less extensively trained staff. It also
allows guests to determine their own portion size and
gives the chef greater quality control than French
service.
 Disadvantages - Initial equipment costs in Russian
service are high, and servers need to be skilled in
using service sets. More space is needed between
guests for server access. Additionally, there can be
considerable temperature loss in foods served on a
platter. Finally, the last guests served may receive the
food from a platter whose appearance is unappetizing.

Principles of Dining Service

3. Gueridon or French Service 6

Flambé Cheese Service

Cooking in front Arranging food in front of

of the guest the guest
Four general types of tableside service;
1. Assembling - Salads and other dishes that involve a quick
and simple assembly of ingredients may be completed
tableside. Examples include Caesar salad and Steak Tartare
2. Saucing and garnishing - Servers may put the finishing
touches of saucing and garnishing on dishes that have been
prepared in the kitchen.
3. Sautéing and flambéing - Both sautéing and flambéing are
used for items that can be cooked quickly at the tableside or
hot beverages or desserts that are flamed as part of the
preparation.
4. Carving and deboning - Fish, poultry, game, and meats may
be carved or deboned at the table. Carving also includes
peeling and slicing fruits and cheese to make them more
manageable for guests.

Principles of Dining Service

 Tableside Equipment
 Service set - consists of a large fork and spoon that the service
staff uses in a “pincer” or “pliers” technique to avoid touching food
items with their hands.
 Guéridon - is a portable workstation used for all tableside
preparations.
 Réchaud - is a portable stove used for cooking and flambéing
food and also for keeping food warm.
 Blazer pans - are made from copper or stainless steel and are
shaped to suit particular items, such as crêpes Suzette that are
prepared tableside.
 Chauffe plats - are heat retaining panels that keep food warm
during tableside plating or when direct flame is not needed.
 Flaming swords - are used in flambé service. Food flambéed on
the sword are presented, flaming, to the guests before being
removed from the sword and plated.
 Wagon or slicing cart - called the voiture-à-trancher in French, is
used for carving larger cuts of meats tableside, such as roast beef
or leg of lamb.

Principles of Dining Service

 The Brigade
1. Dining room manager - The dining room manager,
known as the chef de service or chef de salle in
France, must be in close contact with every
department of the restaurant and know all aspects of
the business. The manager holds ultimate
responsibility and is accountable for the success of
the dining room.
2. Sommelier – The sommelier is the wine steward, who
must have extensive knowledge of wines, spirits, and
beverages and may be in charge of the purchasing,
service, sales training, and control of these
beverages, especially wine.
3. Captain - The captain, known as the chef de rang,
supervises and organizes all aspects of service for his
or her station or room, including taking orders and
synchronizing service for the station.

Principles of Dining Service

 The Brigade
4. Waiter or front waiter - Known as the commis de
rang; the front waiter assists the captain and should
be able to perform all duties of the captain in his or
her absence. The front waiter’s primary duties are
the actual service of food and beverages to guests.
5. Back waiter - The back waiter, or commis de suite, is
the bridge between the brigade and the kitchen, with
primary responsibilities including placing and picking
up orders from the kitchen.
6. Busser - The busser, or commis debarrasseur, is
usually an entry-level position, primarily responsible
for clearing and grooming the table.

Principles of Dining Service

 Advantages and Disadvantages

 Advantages - French service is elegant, stylish, and

highly personalized. It is ideal for presenting certain
dishes such as Dover sole.
 Disadvantages - French service takes much longer
than American service, reducing the ability to turn
tables. Equipment such as guéridon and specialty
carts require floor space, limiting the number of tables
in a restaurant. For these reasons, as well as the cost
of the equipment used and the larger, highly skilled
servers required, menu prices need to be higher.

Principles of Dining Service

 4. Family / English Service
Is similar to Russian
service and to family-style
service.
Food is brought to the
table on a tray, or bowls, The Host Carving the Roast Turkey

presented to the host, who

either cuts the food
him/herself or chooses to
have it done by the server,
away from the table.

Vegetables are placed in bowls on the table for guests to

help themselves
 Family-Style Service
 In family-style restaurants, the Chef prepares the
dishes in the kitchen, and then servers place platters,
casseroles or tureens in the center of the guests’ table
with appropriate serving utensils.
 Guests serve themselves using plates that servers
place in front of them.
 Table clearing follows the protocol for American
service. This service style may also be used for select
courses.

Principles of Dining Service

 Family or English Service
 Advantages - Family-style service minimizes the
costs of dining room labor and helps create a warm,
familial atmosphere. Guests can decide what size
portions they want, and the meal is perceived as a
good value for customers.
 Disadvantages The lack of portion control can result
in considerable food waste, and there is no control
over plate presentation. Some guests may miss the
personalized service of other serving styles.

Principles of Dining Service

5. Smorgasbord or Scandinavian Service
Guests help
themselves into the
kind of food they
want from the
buffet table
without the
assistance of the
service staff.
The food normally
consist of light
sandwiches, bread,
cheeses, cold dishes
(fish and seafood)
 Buffet Service
 Guest choose the kind of food they want
from buffet table with the assistance of
buffet the service staff.
 Service staffs positioned behind the buffet
to assist the guest by plating their food as
the choose what they want.
 Buffet service is relatively efficient and
economical to set up. Although the menu
may be limited, guests can select from a
variety of options and choose the quantity
and combinations they prefer.
 Except for the kitchen staff, buffets often
require very little service staffing. Hot and
cold foods are held at their appropriate
temperatures to ensure food safety and
appetizing flavors.
 Buffet Service
 Advantages - Buffet service minimizes dining room
labor costs, and customers have a wider selection of
food from which to choose. They also can determine
their own portions. Buffets can present an impressive
display of food, and, if properly managed, reduce
service time.
 Disadvantages - Buffets produce a considerable
amount of food waste and left-over. Because of the
time lag between the first table of guests to be invited
to the buffet table and the last, the buffet table may
look less attractive for later guests unless it is well
maintained. Guests may have to wait in long lines, and
guests with physical disabilities may also be at a
disadvantage at a buffet. There is also a potential for
food contamination and cross-contamination by
guests, unless carefully managed and supervised.
 7. Cafeteria Service
Guest fall in line
and choose the
kind of food they
want from the food
display counter on
a first come first
serve basis and
collect their meal
on a tray.
Proceed to the end
of the line where
the cashier is
located to accept
payments
 8. Combination Service
Combination Service (American, French and
Russian) - The most common service used for in-
room preparations is a combination of the elegance
of Russian and French service (tossing salads,
serving soups from tureens, carving and slicing
entrees; and garnishing desserts) and the
simplicity of American service.
The best of each system is used, performed by a
single server or team of servers. In this way it is
easily possible to create a memorable dining
experience.