China, silver, crystal, and the table . . .

[Priscilla]

Last Wednesday's LA Times Food section had an article about what amounts to plate psychology. Registration is required, I believe, but for anyone interested, here it is.

[Jinmyo]

Thanks, Priscilla. I forgot to check the LA Times this week.

[Liza]

Thanks for reviving this thread, Priscilla. We're living in a borrowed flat and are using borrowed flatware. However, Davy is very fond of three-tined forks and I'm hoping to find some. Does anyone else have a preference, tine-wise?

[Priscilla]

You are so very welcome. Reviving tableware a specialty.

Three-tined is nice. (My forks are plain old four.) You'll be looking at actual antiques, not as dear as one might think, OR an-tee-cue style, which you can find at not-bad prices, vintage or new. There always seems to be some contemporary manufacturer providing the old three-tiners, if you're adamant about new-only.

Three-tined forks (ALL forks!) can be particularly nice in the large-scale so-called self-styled soi-disant Continental size, don't you think? A consideration: Do three tines sentence one to "pistol-handled" table knives? Course, if you, like me, got nothing against mixed media, the limits are naught but your own good taste.

Edited December 1, 2002 by Priscilla (log)

[CathyL]

Liza, I'll ask my m-in-law what she has in the way of vintage 3-tinerie. We could organize an eGullet field trip to Philadelphia...

[stefanyb]

For formal dinners: (I adore tableware)

Royal Copenhagen dinnerware, a combination of Blue Flower, Blue Fluted, Half Lace and Full Lace. I have a total of 28 place settings and 24 serving pieces including a 22" platter of Blue Fluted from around 1800, or so they tell me. These are my most prized material possessions.

For additional serving pieces I have a diverse collection of glass Heisey bowls and platters in multiple patterns which I have collected for 30 odd years and paid only a few dollars for some of the most beautiful.

Stemware is Riedel, Baccarat and Imperial.

Silver is Frank Smith sterling flatware from 1910, Newport Shell, also known as Puritan in later years. It is your basic bead and shell pattern.

Tablecloths are Bellino damask in a butter color.

I use these things only a couple of times a year unlike our own Robert Schonfeld who eats his dinner every evening on the wonderful Royal Copenhagen china.

Edited December 2, 2002 by stefanyb (log)

[Sandra Levine]

Davy is very fond of three-tined forks and I'm hoping to find some. Does anyone else have a preference, tine-wise?

James Robinson has three-tined forks in a number of patterns. Mine is Trifid, with the cannon handle on the knife.

[Mottmott]

What an amusing thread! As a live-alone, I dine everywhere in the house: sometimes on the counter (sitting on a stool, not standing) sometimes in bed, most often at my round Italian marble kitchen table (inherited from my mother), sometimes on an enclosed porch or outdoors in summer, or at my round Victorian dining room table. It's all a matter of mood, the way the day went, what I'm having for dinner. (Order in pizza is always in bed with the TV, you can guess how that day went!) Some meals demand the dining room even if dining solo.

My solo meals are on an assortment of glass plates, a set of white plates, another of Italian pottery, some white and gold British Airways china someone gave me, cobalt blue or cranberry stemmed glasses, and some gold-rimmed low-ball glasses that are great for ice cream, puddings, etc.; and I usually use stainless or a small set of silver inherited from an aunt. These meals at table are on simple place mats that are more protection than decoration. Every now and then I will use china, crystal, and my mother's silverware (given to me before she died.

I always keep a largish ornate square silver serving piece in the center of the table with a fern or flowers resting on it and a pair of low silver candlabra flanking it. When I dine there solo, I don't usually light the candles, but the light over the table is on a dimmer.

My style is a lot less formal than it may sound, it's just that I like a pretty and warm looking table. For entertaining, which now is mostly family, I usually set the table with one of the lacy cloths crocheted by my mother. I seldom use my linen tablecloths anymore, and do little more than look at the cutwork embroidered linen cloth & napkins my mother made for me. I've never cared much for complete sets of china, so I have different china for different courses. I also like to use some silver and crystal or cut glass serving dishes. Mostly they are either from my family, my in-laws, or antiquing. I have a set of Wedgwood platters that are large enough to use as chargers for some smaller Haviland plates and some Haviland-Limoges soup plates in different patterns. As they all have some red in them, they work well together. I like using the cranberry glass water goblets with the grey Fostoria wine glasses. I also have a set of silver rimmed goblets, but I reserve them for appetizers served away from the table as they do not go well with my china. (I no longer use my mother's crystal from the 30's as it is much too fragile.) I have a variety of crystal and silver serving bowls and trays and serve family style or from a serving table at the side. I always use silverware and napkins and candles when entertaining. I have other soft lighting around the perimeter of the room. Sometimes it tilts slightly formal, mostly it tilts casual.

I do some food decoration, first by taking care to have colorful food arranged so that it needs little decoration other than herbs, lemons, etc. A swirl of creme fraiche or something contrasting on squash soup or even a slice of lemon floating on it, entrees with some contrasting sauce, fruit, vegetable, or herbs are as far as I go - no carved flowers. But dessert is always very pretty, sometimes complex.

When doing an informal buffet (particularly outdoors) I will serve from black LeCreuset and copper pots, wooden and stainless boards and bowls, attractive casserole dishes. And, if outdoors, I will use plastic plates and utensils but I hate using them inside. Unless it is a very large crowd, I will usually put out some stainless utensils even outside. (Plastic forks, faugh!) But I do like to use those clear plastic cups that don't break if they hit the patio.

I enjoy shopping for these things in consignment and antique shops and may even begin checking out the auctions. Much of my tableware is inherited, much of the rest of it has be foraged in shops but not new as such. I like using tableware and furniture that has some history, even when I don't know that history. I'm in the processes of expanding my kitchen storage space, soooo...

[Anna N]

Since our dishwasher died and I opted not to replace it - it was a portable and a pain in the neck - we enjoy using all our "best" dinnerware every day. Except for four dinner plates and four salad plates in plain white Wedgewood, it doesn't amount to anything in the least expensive but I treasure what I have - some square plates from a Japanese outlet, odds and sods picked up at HomeSense, our Corelle ware which we have had for nigh on 25 years and still looks new! Assorted glassware from fragile to utilitarian but no longer do I face the awful question of what can and cannot survive a dishwasher! Yes, it can be a bit tedious doing the dishes but I've adjusted - I keep an extra large empty peanut butter jar on the counter filled with soapy water and dump all my cutlery in there, rinse off the plates as I clear the table and then put on a Food TV video to keep me distracted while I deal with the dishes! Life could be a lot worse!

[Liza]

Liza, I'll ask my m-in-law what she has in the way of vintage 3-tinerie.  We could organize an eGullet field trip to Philadelphia...

Cathydahlink, please count me in on any trip to Philadelphia. Or any trip involving you and mileage and automobiles and cutlery.

[Celine]

[QUWhen you arrange food on a plate, do you have aesthetic considerations in mind or do you just do whatever fits or seems intuitive? Do you garnish your plates, create designs with sauce, or anything like that?

If you own fine china, silver, and crystal, how often do you use it and for what kinds of occasions? And what kind of stuff do you own?

How often do you use a tablecloth? Placemats? Nothing?

What kind of napkins do you use?

OTE]

I like for food that I serve to look good but that isn't always first and foremost. I use garnishes if it's something I've been cooking with and have left over but ordinarily never go out of my way to garnish with the day to day family stuff.

I do own china, stemware, and gold/silver ware, but most of it is still stored at my parents home. Strangely enough, I did go on Ebay tonight to see what it would cost me to finish out my china set (Fitz & Floyd Black Peony) and stemware(Mikasa black & gold) for 12. I don't want to save it anymore, I want to use it.

Napkins? Bounty, of course.

Celine

[Kouign Aman]

Oh my. How many people are still setting their tables now the way they did the first time they posted on this topic?

We use inexpensive china, stainless flatwear and brightly colored cloth napkins for daily. Dinner is served family style. The last time I set a fancy table was..... oh never mind.

[malarkey]

Daily Stuff:

China: Woodland Spode. Simple el-cheapo stainless flatware. Speigelau stems, bordeaux or burgundy. Cloth napkins, always.

Arranging food on the plate or platter?? Only when company comes.