At informal dinners the roast may be carved at the table if the hostess prefers this plan and if the host can be persuaded to do the carving and is able to do it skilfully and quietly. This plan, which is English in its origin, seems more hospitable in a way than the more formal custom of serving everything from side-tables, a la Russe. Undoubtedly there is a flavor of the hotel and restaurant about the Russian style that is less agreeable, though simpler and more expeditious. It may be remarked, however, that while it is of first importance that a dinner service should move promptly and that it should not at the outside take up more than two hours, anything that actually suggests haste is contrary to the spirit of the occasion.
When the meats are carved at the table the vegetables should be passed by the maid, as the guests may have a choice. For the person at the head of the table to serve both meat and vegetables is permissible only at a family dinner. In some households the host or hostess makes a specialty of salad dressing, and this course, also, is served at the table. As the salad bowl may be so arranged as to present a beautiful, as well as a delicious sight, the custom has more than one reason to recommend it.
WHO IS SERVED FIRST
As to who is served first there has been considerable discussion. The plan has recently come into favor in some houses to hand the first plate in each instance to the hostess in the thought that if there is anything wrong with the dish she may detect it before the guests are served. The usual plan, however, is to serve first the lady sitting at the host’s right hand, then all the other ladies, and lastly the men. Or, if two maids are serving, one may take one side of the table and one the other. The maid should hand the dishes on the left side of the guest. A clever maid can wait on eight people, provided the dinner is not too elaborate.
DRESS OF BUTLER AND MAID
The dress of a maid waiting at dinner should be in winter of a plain black stuff, in summer of plain white. Over this is worn a white bib apron with bands going over the shoulders. The skirt of the apron should be large so that the front of the dress is protected. A plain white collar and white cuffs and a white cap without strings or crown complete this costume. No ornaments of any sort are permissible.
A butler should wear the ordinary dress suit with a white tie. It is a matter of wonder to the thoughtful why society has not yet found a way to clothe her butlers and waiters in some manner that shall prevent strangers from taking them for guests, but as yet no such way seems to have been found. In default of a butler many families keep what is known as a house-man, who performs the duties of both butler and footman; that is to say, he opens the door and also assists at table. Such a servant has a white linen jacket and dark trousers, though some women who have negro house-men and a taste for the picturesque prefer that they shall wear dark colored coats with brass buttons and a scarlet or other bright colored waistcoat. While one sees in certain nice houses white gloves on the hands of a house-man when he is waiting at table, the best taste is against their use, as they undeniably suggest that they are worn to hide dirty hands.