Etiquette and Flatware Placement

What’s wrong with this illustration? The cocktail, or oyster fork, on the left makes four forks — there should be no more than three. It would be easy to encroach on the next place setting, and better to place the cocktail fork to the right of the soup spoon. — “Place settings should be orderly and symmetrical, with convenient room on either side for each person’s comfort. The basic minimum place setting in flatware include six pieces: knife, fork, teaspoon, soup spoon, salad fork, and butter knife or spreader.”

Whatever the menu calls for, no more than three forks should be set at the left and three knives and the oyster fork at the right. If more pieces are required, they can be brought in as needed. This will avoid a cluttered appearance. Desert flatware, except at family meals, when it is placed with the rest of the utensils, is brought with the dessert service and finger bowl. The finger bowl is set on the dessert plate, with or without a doily, and the desert fork on the left and the desert spoon on the right.

The diner, following the hostess, should remove the flatware to the table, and place the finger bowl above the fork on the left. Spoons for coffee served with the dessert, come with the service at that time. Otherwise, when this service is set up in another room, to be served at the end of the meal, they are placed on each individual saucer.

The cutting edges of all knife should be turned toward the plate. Lay all flatware one inch from the edge of the table, inline with the service plate and napkin, making a neat, parallel row. The exception would be at a round table; there the row of utensils would start at the table edge, on the outside, but the last piece to be used should be one inch in, and next to the plate. Place them far enough apart for convenience, yet sufficiently close to avoid and untidy or careless appearance.

Place settings should be orderly and symmetrical, with convenient room on either side for each person’s comfort. The basic minimum place setting in flatware include six pieces: knife, fork, teaspoon, soup spoon, salad fork, and butter knife or spreader.— Patricia Easterbrook Roberts, 1960

Etiquette Enthusiast, Maura J. Graber, is the Site Editor for the Etiquipedia© Etiquette Encyclopedia