Foods and home making

What is the Russian style of service ? There is another style of serving which is sometimes followed for luncheon or supper, especially in homes where there is a maid to wait on table. The style is called the Russian style . The main difference between this and the family style is that food is divided into individual portions in the kitchen rather than in the dining room. These portions are often put on individual serving dishes. Thus, a salad may be arranged on as many individual salad plates as there are persons at the table. A portion is then placed at each guest’s cover. Sometimes the food is separated into portions in the kitchen but left on the general serving dish. A roast of meat, for example, is sliced in the kitchen and arranged on a platter. The platter of meat is then passed to each guest, who lifts the food from the general serving dish to his own plate. No matter in which way the Russian style of serving is carried out, it is not suitable for service without a maid. If a hostess attempts to follow this plan when she has company, she must make too many trips to the kitchen to serve the meal gracefully. What is the compromise style of service? There is a third style of serving called the compromise style. It is a combination of the English or family style and the Russian style. The 340 Luncheon or Supper Russian style is often used for the soup and dessert, the family style for the main course. This style is used in many homes. If one has a wheel tray so that the individual portions may be carried in one trip to the dining table, the compromise style is efficient to follow when there is no maid assisting. To arrange the food in individual portions in the kitchen may mean the saving of filling, emptying, and washing a general serving dish. The main thing to consider when using the compromise style in serving without a maid is whether many trips must be made in getting the food on the table. Statistics show that there are servants in only a small per- centage of homes in this country. We are particularly inter- ested, then, in learning how to serve a meal gracefully and efficiently without a maid. In the following section let us con- sider serving luncheon or supper without a maid. How shall soup and fruit cocktail be served? One of the charms of a good soup is that it is hot. A soup should be served, then, so as to keep it hot. When there are guests at a meal, should soup be placed on the table before or after the guests are seated? If placed on the table before the guests are seated, a soup sometimes becomes cool during the seating of the guests. A general rule that may be followed is to serve a hot first course after the guests are seated. However, if the guests are few in number or if only the family are present at a meal, it may be satisfactory and more convenient to have the soup on the table before the guests are seated. A fruit cocktail or fruit cup used as an appetizer may be placed on the table before the guests are seated. Since this food is served cold, it is not harmed by standing during the time the guests are seated. (See Figure ioi.) How should the main course and the salad be served ? When there is no maid serving, the main course of luncheon is served much as the main course of breakfast. The serving dish or platter containing the main dish is placed in front of the host.