I nearly started a thread about this the other day, but restrained myself. This is a big bone of contention for me, probably getting disproportionately so as the years have gone on. I come from a family(and, come to think of it, a country) where it was serving dishes all the way, for every meal, no exception. Makes perfect sense to me, people eat what they want, sure, my parents would prompt us when we'd try to dodge the greens or whatever, but essentially, we all served ourselves. It looks attractive and encourages modest portion sizes, as you know that if you really want to, you can just help yourself to a little more of whatever you fancy right there at the table. No need to labour over an over-stacked plate, and hopefully less waste. DP, on the other hand, is a keen plater-upper. He doesn't like the extra dishes on the table or in the sink afterwards, but enjoys seeing plates neatly plated up. He does at least half, if not more, of the cooking, so in this respect I think it's fair that he gets to present his meals as he pleases. But I wish I could impress upon him how much better it would be if we could go serving dishes all the way. He is far too generous with portion sizes, probably thinking he's saving someone a trip to the cooker for seconds. I'm sure I end up eating more than I would have, had I been able to serve myself, as I really dislike food being left discarded on the plate at the end of a meal. Actually, I know I end up eating more than I would otherwise as he insists on making my serving almost as big as his; "Aw, but Peaceful, it would be unfair if I got more than you..." (aargh, but you're a big , active bloke, DP, with an enviable metabolism!) Hence the gradual emergence of a totally avoidable middle-age spread... It drives me potty! But my objections fall on deaf ears, he is adamant plating up is how he likes to do it. Short of standing right next to him and spelling out exactly how much of everything I want, I can't see a way around it. Sorry about rant, just had to scratch that itch...