How do you serve food?

[ettieb]

Talking to a friend and she said she went to friends for dinner recently and they plated up the food for her which she found very odd. She and her family have always put food into serving dishes on the table for guests to help themselves. Am I committing a faux paux by plating up food?!

My parents always plate up, my in laws have serving dishes. I vary between the two options depending on who im serving and what we are eating!

@WeeFae

I don't own any serving dishes!

😁. ....I didn’t used to....Then I inherited a lovely dinner set with matching serving didshes from my Auntie....but I’ve never used them!

My parents put the dinner on plates (although we all said what we wanted). If I have people over I put the food in serving dishes. If it is just us, we all help ourselves from the food in the kitchen and then sit down. Sometimes it will be in serving dishes sometimes still in the pan (having chilli tonight. the rice is in the rice cooker, the chilli in a pot, the sour cream, lettuce, salsa, cheese and chips are in dishes on the counter)

We have friends who put the food on our plates when we go to dinner. I don't mind because everything they cook is lovely but normally I prefer choosing how much to take myself.

Restaurants are different - doubt the chef cares if I finish her food or not whereas a friend serving dinner might be a bit upset if I left most of it behind.

We sometimes put on plates if just us but if I had people over I would always do serving dishes. Being handed a plateful wouldn't seem quite right and Id be a bit surprised to be if invited to dinner . Wouldn't complain though and ways pleased if someone else cooks for me!

I think I associate ready plated food with eating in front of the tv rather than at the table!

I use serving dishes when having large family dinners and company. If very informal, then we plate up ourselves from the counter. Children I tend to plate for, just so they have a bit of everything.

We have friends that plate up the dinner, but then he is a trained chef so it looks lovely.

Serving dishes and everyone helps themselves every time - especially if you have guests, how do you know how much food they would like?

Everything in serving dishes growing up and I've followed suit.

Absolutely think it depends on what your'e eating and who is eating/occasion. At home, spaghetti bolognaise - I'm just going to plate up for the four of us as easier and quicker. Big Sunday roast with extended family - part of the enjoyment is everything on the table in lovely bowls and platters, helping themselves as per their preference.

For roast and veg, I plate up roast and everything else will be in serving bowls/plates so people can help help themselves.

Depends on the food. Those of you who hate being served plated-up food, presumably you don't mind it in a restaurant? Why isn't it ok when you're a guest?

Plate up.

Why crowd the table and create extra washing up?

Would not bother me if people did with serving dishes but it's a bit odd.

@crazyjinglist

Depends on the food. Those of you who hate being served plated-up food, presumably you don't mind it in a restaurant? Why isn't it ok when you're a guest?

Because in a restaurant you choose what you want, and the quality.

Plate up, apart from Christmas Day when it's all in serving dishes.

But I always bring guests into the kitchen and either ask them how much they want, or just give them the spoon/pan and say "help yourself".

Because in a restaurant you choose what you want, and the quality.

That's honestly the reason? Because you're not certain of the quality? But when you're a guest you're surely hardly going to sit and examine the food in the serving dishes and just take tiny bits because you don't approve of the quality? That would be pretty much as obvious and rude as leaving all but a bit of the food if it was served to you plated. Besides, unless you've been to the restaurant before, you can't be sure of the quality either!

I would hate to be given a plate of food anywhere. Even if it’s just 2 of us we use serving dishes.

Restaurants are different- they usually give you one thing on a plate and the rest in side dishes

We mostly plate up European dishes. For Indian, Mexican or Middle Eastern we tend to have a few different dishes plus sauces, salads/pickles and breads so use serving bowls and plates.

@crazyjinglist typo, I meant quantity.

@crazyjinglisttypo, I meant quantity.

Oh ok. But you don't choose the quantity you get on your plate in a restaurant either .

[quote crazyjinglist]**@crazyjinglisttypo, I meant quantity.

Oh ok. But you don't choose the quantity you get on your plate in a restaurant either .[/quote]
See my earlier post, I would order a starter if I want to eat a smaller portion.

Day to day it’s a bit of both in my house. It really depends on what we’re having. Like a pp it’s more a case of sharing it out or dishing up something that will end up messy.

With guests it’s usually serve yourself but I would occasionally plate up and faff about with presentation and garnishes if it’s that kind of dish.

I don’t like having food plated for me. It reminds me of my childhood dinners where we weren’t allowed leave the table until our plates were clean. I feel under pressure when my pils do this but dh is very good at surreptitiously swiping the meat off my plate if he spots me lagging.

My dad always serves food in serving dishes, even when it's just him and my step mum. If it isn't obvious, he does all the cooking and she does all the washing up .

I really enjoy having all the food in the middle of the table and helping myself, but not for every dinner. DH on the other hand finds it a bit stressful as he feels he doesn't take his time to eat as much as when he's got his own plate (he grew up with 3 rugby playing brothers, so there was a lot of shovelling food to make sure you got enough otherwise someone else would eat it).

Most of the time in the week, I don't plate up for everyone but I kind of leave things in the pans they've been cooked in, and everyone comes and get's their plate before sitting down together (we live with BIL, SIL and their baby as well so a bit different to just for DH and DS).

When we have "proper" guests (aka, not just a friend popping in mid-week) I tend to cook food that it naturally makes sense for it to all be set out on the table, in that there are usually a variety of side dishes so I wouldn't want to assume what and how much everyone wanted - and it would take too long and be too frustrated to ask.

We put serving bowls on the table for help ourselves even if its just the two of us.

Depends on the meal - most we plate up in the kitchen, other meals such as tacos or fajitas (build your own etc) we put everything in bowls and you help yourself. We also tend to do this with pizza

I only serve kids plates but ask them what they want.
I always let adults serve themselves. Normally set it all out on the kitchen side and everyone lines up to grab what they want, and can go for 2nds whenever they want. My parents to exactly the same.

My husband's family serve up for everyone, men get big portions, woman medium and kids small. It's weird and I hate it.

Standard mid week dinners just family I plate up, it's just easier and the kids just make a mess and take too much that they wont eat.

Depends on the meal and occasion. Roast dinner is help yourself at the table, same with anything like fajitas, tacos, pizza and sides.

if we have people for dinner I usually out it on the table for them to help themselves to.