Silverware for the fish course

[andiesenji]

I always understood it was vulgar to have the cutlery for more than three courses on the table at once. If you have more than three courses the silveware is brought in with the course, or the table turned for desert.

Miss Manners (Judith Martin) says it better than I can

http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/0393058743...%3D#reader-page

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The Victorians were "conspicuous consumers" to the Nth degree. The aristocracy and upper classes set the fashion - it was the middle classes imitating them to excess that was considered vulgar. (By the upper classes.)

This book

has a great deal of illustration and explanation of how the Victorians justified having all these diverse and unusual table utensils.

Here in the US the latter part of the Victorian era and the Edwardian era was referred to as "The Guilded Age" - according to some writers, Mark Twain coined this term.

[Daniel Rogov]

I can see high-end restaurants serving specific breads (or brioche etc) with each course especially to harmonise with and mop up the sauce...

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Jackal, Hi.....

Try Alain Ducasse in Monte Carlo where they feel that matching breads with courses is as important as matching wines.

[Bill Miller]

I can see high-end restaurants serving specific breads (or brioche etc) with each course especially to harmonise with and mop up the sauce...

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Jackal, Hi.....

Try Alain Ducasse in Monte Carlo where they feel that matching breads with courses is as important as matching wines.

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In a little different direction---I never cease to be amazed at the quality Italian restaurants, serving excellent osso buco that do not offer a marrow spoon. The marrow is a major part of the meal.

[Shalmanese]

I just suck out the marrow and then use the marrow bone as a straw to suck up the sauce... It's nature's utensil.

[jackal10]

I regret the decline in the use of creme brulee hammers...

[Jon Tseng]

Bottoms up?

Historically (i.e. in the olden days) cutlery laid out with the backs facing upwards.

More modern practice is to haev it bottoms down, ostensibly to save the tablecloth from wear from the tines of forks

ta

J

[jackal10]

Jon: What is your source for this statement?

Forks are a comparatively recent invention - 17th century.

[Jon Tseng]

Jon: What is your source for this statement?

Forks are a comparatively recent invention - 17th century.

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Its an old waiters textbook I have lying around. "Modern Restaurant Service" I think

Lots of useful stuff like how to tie napkins and which side of the punter to serve from yaddayaddayadda

By "olden" days meant Victorian/preware rather than medieval or anything

ta

J

[chefboy24]

actually in france these days many restaurants still keep the backs of silverware facing up. i think the idea is that there is less contact between tablecloth and silver this way. (altho if the backs are facing down towards the table, the points of the silver (points of fork tines and the tip of the spoon) are not touching the table.....and this i imagine is preferable, in theory)

my $.02

[Corinna Dunne]

I regret the decline in the use of creme brulee hammers...

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GSOH!

[rjwong]

Here's the link to the LA Times Food Section Digest (28 Sept. 2005)

A letter was written in response to an LA Times article:

Here's the scoop on sauce spoon

I thought you might enjoy some history on the creation of the sauce spoon ["Sauce Spoon Sighting!" Aug. 24].