THE RESTAURANT

THE HOTEL RESTAURANT

One of the major requirements of a hotel is to offerfood and beverages to itsguests, and the reputation of a
hotel partlydepends on this. Therefore a high standard of cooking and service are
asimportantasaccommodation and otheramenities. Most hotels have full restaurant service and alsoprovide
room service for guestswantingfood and drinksserved in their rooms. Large and luxuryresort hotels usuallyoffer
a number of restaurants to choose from to cater for differentpriceranges, menus and ambience.
Nowadays the hospitalityindustryemploysmillions of workersworldwide, a high proportion in relation to the
number of clients they serve. Staff requirements in the various hotels differaccording to the style of service, the
type of menu offered and the pricerange. Ascorrect, prompt and polite service isessential, work in a
restaurantrequireseducation, training and experience.
Restaurant staff receive training and gain experiencebeforethey are givenresponsible positions. Theirskills are
acquired over a period of time, usuallyworkingatdifferentrestaurantjobs.
Some peopleeven take courses in restaurant work in special technicalschools. Undoubtedly a very high level of
service isprovided to clients by staff suchasheadwaiters, waiters and wine stewards, whoknowabout
appropriate tablesettings, food and beverages, techniques of service and theirobligations to their clients.

RESTAURANT EQUIPMENT

The furnitureischosen by interior designers according to the size and shape of

the premises and generallycombinesmaterials, designs, colours and finishes
whichprovide an atmosphere appropriate to customers' requirements.
The basicrestaurantfurnitureconsists of tables and chairs. Tables can be of
threedifferentshapes: round, square and rectangular. They must be large
enough for the necessarytableware to be set on them. Chairs must be
comfortablyupholstered. In addition, sufficientspacebetweencustomersis
needed to allow the free passage of waiters and trolleys.
The sideboardisanotherimportantpiece of furniture in a restaurant. Itisused
to hold ali the equipmentrequired by the members of staff during the service of
a meal, for instance service cutlery and oil and vinegarcruets.
The design and size of a sideboarddepends on the style of service and menu
offered, the number of tables to be served and the quantity of equipmentwhich
itisexpected to hold.

HEAVY EQUIPMENT

The mostimportantitemsused in a restaurant are:

the hors-d'oeuvre trolley
the serving trolley
the carving trolley
the battery piate warmer
the cheese trolley
the pastry or sweet trolley
the wine cooler and stand
the liqueur trolley
the guridon, a small wheeled side tablewhichhasnowbecome a trolley with a built-in lamp for
preparing flamb dishes.
Linenisone of the essentialitemsused in the food and beverage service areas. Itincludestablecloths for
differentshapedtables; top clothsused to cover a notverycleartablecloth; napkins; buffet, sideboard and trolley
cloths; waiters' or service cloths, used by ali waitersboth to protectthemagainstheat and to keepuniformsclean;
tea and glasscloths. Restaurantlinenisusually made of cotton or linen and the mostelegantisdecorated with
exclusive, speciallyprintedpatterns

China plays an important part in the presentation of the table. Itshouldblend in with the rest of the items on the table and
also with the style in which the restaurantisfurnished and designed. The china normally in use in restaurantsisbased on
earthenware, except in the mostluxuriousones, where bone china or porcelainisused. Foodisserved on severalsizes and
types of plates and containers. Here are the mostcommonlyusedones.

Glass alsocontributes to the appearance of the table and to the overallelegance of the restaurant and bar. Hotel
glasswareisusuallyplain, but in high class hotels and gourmet restaurants coloured or cutglassmay be used. Here are the
maintypes of glass:
glasses for beer, lager and cider
glasses for stili wines, sparklingwines and champagne
glasses for cocktails, fortifiedwines and brandies
glasses for general use
decanters and carafes

T YPES OF SERVICE

GUERIDON SERVICE - Itis a formai and eleganttype of service. The foodisbrought from the kitchen to the dining room
on heavy Silver plates and placed on a trolley called a guridon. A small spiritstove, the rchaud, isused to keep the
foodwarm. Specialitydishes are cookedat the table and foodisprepared by deboning, slicing and garnishingitasnecessary,
and served to the customers on heatedplates. The menu is la carte with ali thedishesindividuallypriced. This service
employstwowaitersworkingtogether to serve the meal and includes the head waiterwhoseats the customers and the wine
steward whoserves the wine. Guridon service is the most complete form of food service and requiresskilledwaitersable
to carry out procedures sudi asfilleting, carving and flambing.

ENGLISH SERVICE - Allfoodisprepared in the kitchen and arrangedeither on hot or cold Silver plates or dishesas
appropriate. Itisthentakeninto the dining room by the waiterwhoserves the foodonto the customers' plateswhich are
already on the table.

SILVER SERVICE - The meat or fishcontent of eachindividualdishisplated in the kitchen. The individuai dishes are
thentakeninto the dining room and put in front of the customers, while the vegetables are prepared on Silver or china
service dishes and servedat the table by the waiter.

PLATE SERVICE - Alldishes are prepared and plated in the kitchen, complete with ali accompanimentsaccording to the
ordergiven to the waiters by the customers.

FRENCH SERVICE - The plates are placedateach cover and the foodprepared on platesispresented to the customers in
turn, so thattheymay help themselves.

FAMILY SERVICE - Thistype of service isused in guest houses and simple hotels and issimilar to the French service.
Here the maincourseisplaced on the table on a piate warmer for the customers to help themselves.
PROCEDURE FOR SERVING THE MEAL: COVERS

Whenlaying a tablethere are a variety of placesettingsdepending on the type of meal and service offered. A
cover includes the china, cutlery, glassware and plinennecessary to lay a certaintype of placesetting for a
specificmeal. Atable d'hte cover is the placesettingnormallylaid in medium-sized hotel restaurants for either
lunch or dinner. Itconsists of a service piate and napkin, side piate with I knife, fishknife and fork, soupspoon,
tableknife and fork, dessert spoon and fork, and ! wineglass.
| An la carte cover is a placesettingusuallylaid in goodclassrestaurants and in medium levelrestaurants.
Itconsists of a side piate with knife, napkin, fish piate, fish I knife and fork and wineglass. The
servicewarerequired to complete the tablelay-up isthesame for bothcovers: salt and pepper, tablenumber,
ashtray, vase of flowers, and so on.

DAILY ROUTINE
The duties to be carried out beforestarting the service are many and varied to the type of
restaurantconcerned. The head waiterusuallyperformspreliminarytasksregardingcustomers'
reservations and the general organization of meals. The term mise en placeisused for ali the duties
to be carried out by waiters in order to have the dining room ready for service. During the service of
meals, waiters show a number of skillsacquiredthrough training and experience.
PRELIMINARY TASKS

Checking of the reservationdiary

Seating pian and allocation of customers
Pian of the stationswhere the staff will work
Checking of menu with the staff
WAITERS' TASKS BEFORE MEAL S
Layingtablecloths
Foldingnapkins
Layingcovers
Polishingglasses
Equipping the sideboard
Preparingbread, rolls, toast and butter for service
WAITERS' TASKS DURING MEAL S
Holding service cutlery
Servingsoup
Servingmaincourses of meat or fish
Servingvegetables and sauces
Servingcheese
Servingdesserts
Serving coffee
Clearing dishes
Changingdirtyashtrays