Cups on Plates for Tea?

“… if you have a set of the regular English tea plates and cups this is a different matter. Notice please, that each plate has a deep well to keep the cup from slipping and the shape of the plate is usually oval, more spacious and easier to hold in the hand. It is a fashion that however has never really taken hold in this country.” – Most early British cups had no handles and there were no rings inside the deep, bowl-like saucers, like this old set above. Though examples of tea cups with handles can be found from centuries earlier in the V&A Museum in England, handles weren’t truly common place throughout England until the early 19th century.

Cups Directly on the Plates?

This is answer to that frequently asked question about the advisability and good usage of putting the tea cup directly on the tea plate and omitting the saucer entirely. The answer is an emphatic NO. It is neither practical nor attractive, it is uncomfortable for the guest, and thoughtful and discriminating hostesses do not do it. The well of a saucer holds a cup more securely than any plate, thereby cutting down the hazard of spilling the tea. Since they were not designed for each other the plate and the cup look very awkward together. It is a makeshift combination which always gives the impression that the hostess has broken the saucer that belongs with the cup or is trying to cut down on dish-washing, the latter probably true.

At a large or formal tea there should be only bite-size portions of sandwiches and cakes which can easily fit on the edge of a saucer. If the tea fare is more extensive, as it might be with a small informal gathering of friends, and you were serving cake to be eaten with a fork or hot muffins to be spread with honey or jam for which a plate with a fork or small knife would be required, then seat your guests around the dining-room table or provide them with small tables.

At a church affair or a club meeting not in a home, where large numbers are to be served and dish-washing may be a factor, there might be some excuse for placing a tea cup without its accompanying saucer directly on a small plate but it is no less awkward. In a home, it is a provincial way of serving tea and inexcusable for a hostess who would be considered discriminating and tasteful.

Of course if you have a set of the regular English tea plates and cups this is a different matter. Notice please, that each plate has a deep well to keep the cup from slipping and the shape of the plate is usually oval, more spacious and easier to hold in the hand. It is a fashion that however has never really taken hold in this country. – Helen Sprackling, 1960

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