I've been thinking about the pros and cons of each style. I grew up with a mother who always plated at the stove. When I set up our kitchen, I dedicated a strip of counter space to plating up dinner plates every night. It's something that feels ingrained in my approach to meals. But even old habits can be changed, if warranted.
So, I wanted to think through the pros and cons of each style of serving meals.
Family-style
Pros
Ease of serving supper, especially if cooking vessels can go stove to table.
Everyone takes however much they are hungry for. Presumably less waste, combined with opportunity for "seconds" if someone's hunger is greater.
Everything can come to the table hot.
Family-style could serve as incentive for stragglers to get to the table on time.
Cons
If cooking vessels can't go to the table (amount of space on table in relation to size of pot/pan/casserole dish), then foods must be transferred to serving dishes, negating some of the time savings of family-style.
For me, I have a motley collection of hand-me-down pots and pans. They wouldn't be attractive on the table in their current state.
Potential for more scraps of leftovers to deal with.
Some individuals might not take the proper-sized portions (whether too large or too small), or take unbalanced meals (more starches, fewer veggies, or mostly meat and nothing else, or to the other extreme, only salad).
Restaurant-style
Pros
The total amount of food can be divided between all the plates, as the cook deems appropriate.
Leftovers can be minimized, or purposefully reserved for lunches or a future meal (important when trying to cook for two meals, and save enough for the latter meal).
The table can look more visually appealing and less cluttered.
If not everyone eats at the same time, individual plates can be filled, and kept warm in the oven for late-comers, meaning no one gets stuck with just the leftover bits.
Cons
It takes time to serve each individual plate, time that is mostly performed in isolation by the cook. Whereas, time spent serving selves could be considered part of "family time".
Serving all of the plates at the stove requires a "station" for plating. Kitchen counter space could possibly be put to better use, particularly in small kitchens.
The hybrid approach
Serving meals doesn't have to be one style or the other. There are hybrids. For example, my grandmother often set up a buffet, on her kitchen counter. We would file through her narrow, galley kitchen and each fill our own plates. My own mother filled dinner plates with the main entree at the stove, but we passed a salad bowl at the table. And of course, one day, meals could be served restaurant-style, but the next be served family-style. There's no rule that says things must always be done the same way.
Does one serving style reduce food waste, and therefore save money? It could be argued that serving oneself at the table lessens waste, as individuals only take what they feel hungry for. But then again, by my plating each person's supper, I can make just exactly how much I feel we will all eat, then divide it all up fairly. So, maybe neither method is superior in reducing food waste.
Does one method save time over the other? Well, it would appear that serving family-style would save my time, up front. But if extra serving dishes had to be used (other than the cooking vessels), than that saved time in plating meals would be used in cleaning up extra dishes.
How about the happiness factor in mealtimes? It does make a person feel taken care of, to have their plate served to them. But then again, it is such a cheerful image, a family gathered around a table, sharing their stories of their day, as they pass the food items around the table.
Does one serving style reduce food waste, and therefore save money? It could be argued that serving oneself at the table lessens waste, as individuals only take what they feel hungry for. But then again, by my plating each person's supper, I can make just exactly how much I feel we will all eat, then divide it all up fairly. So, maybe neither method is superior in reducing food waste.
Does one method save time over the other? Well, it would appear that serving family-style would save my time, up front. But if extra serving dishes had to be used (other than the cooking vessels), than that saved time in plating meals would be used in cleaning up extra dishes.
How about the happiness factor in mealtimes? It does make a person feel taken care of, to have their plate served to them. But then again, it is such a cheerful image, a family gathered around a table, sharing their stories of their day, as they pass the food items around the table.
I guess the answer is which method fills the most pertinent needs, in general, and at the moment. What pros and con have I overlooked? If you prefer one method over the other, why?
