Place Setting

A place setting is a complete or incomplete set of eating utensils needed for each person at an event based upon the type of food that will be served. The place setting can already be at the person’s seat when they sit down or could be presented to them when needed. A place setting can be made of china, glass, porcelain, paper, Styrofoam or plastic depending on the type of event that is being thrown. Formal occasions call for china, glass or porcelain while informal occasions rely on a place setting that can be thrown away such as Styrofoam and paper. If you are throwing an extravagant wedding, then you would use china, glass or porcelain but if you are throwing a summer picnic/pool party then something such as plastic or Styrofoam would be more appropriate.

If the event is informal and the planner is still in a quandary about what material to use for their place setting, they should consider what types of food are being served. Do the menu items have a lot of grease or sauce or are they dry items such as turkey sandwiches and chips? If you have items such as lasagna or baked beans you might want to consider plastic or Styrofoam so that the food will not soak through the plate. This will cause a sticky unsanitary mess otherwise. China, glass and porcelain will cost the client more but looks better on a table. It is not a good idea however to allow breakable items in an outdoor arena or around a lot of children. That is why china, glass and porcelain are typically used at more formal events. Items that are usually a part of an individual’s place setting are:

• Plate
• Salad plate
• Fork
• Salad fork
• Knife
• Butter knife
• Spoon
• Bread and bread plate
• Appetizer plate
• Water goblet
• Wine Glass/Champagne glass
• Dessert plate
• Dessert spoon

The type of food being served is directly indicative of the place setting needed. If the guests are being served soup instead of a salad, then the place setting would include a bowl and not a salad plate. If every single course is being served then you would of course need the entire place setting.