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A buffet can be either a sideboard (a flat-topped piece of furniture with cupboards and drawers, used for storing crockery, glasses, and table linen) or a system of serving meals in which food is placed in a public area where the diners serve themselves. A form of '' service à la française'', buffets are offered at various places including hotels,
restaurant A restaurant is a business that prepares and serves food and drinks to customers. Meals are generally served and eaten on the premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services. Restaurants vary greatly in appearan ...
s, and many social events. Buffet restaurants normally offer all-you-can-eat food for a set price, but some measure prices by weight or by number of dishes. Buffets usually have some hot dishes, so the term cold buffet (see Smörgåsbord) has been developed to describe formats lacking hot food. Hot or cold buffets usually involve dishware and utensils, but a finger buffet is an array of foods that are designed to be small and easily consumed only by hand, such as cupcakes, slices of pizza, foods on cocktail sticks, etc. The essential feature of the various buffet formats is that the diners can directly view the food and immediately select which dishes they wish to consume, and usually also can decide how much food they take. Buffets are effective for serving large numbers of people at once, and are often seen in institutional settings, business conventions, or large parties.


Home entertaining

Since a buffet involves diners serving themselves, it has in the past been considered an informal form of dining, less formal than table service. In recent years, however, buffet meals are increasingly popular among hosts of home dinner parties, especially in homes where limited space complicates the serving of individual table places.


Origins

In the 19th century, supper, a lighter meal some hours after the main dinner, was sometimes served as a buffet (and so called), especially late at night at grand balls, where not everyone present eats at the same time, or in the same quantity. Even in a very large building, at a large ball there might not be enough space to seat all guests at the same time, or servants to serve them in the manner required by the prevailing customs. A large cooked
English breakfast A full breakfast is a substantial cooked breakfast meal, often served in the United Kingdom and Ireland, that typically includes back bacon, sausages, eggs, black pudding, baked beans, some form of potato, tomatoes, mushrooms, toast, and a ...
with various choices was also very often routinely served this way, for similar reasons. Even when many servants were on hand, there might be an element of self-service. The term ''buffet'' originally referred to the French sideboard furniture where the food was placed, but eventually became applied to the serving format. At balls, the "buffet" was also where drinks were obtained, either by circulating footmen supplying orders from guests, but often by the male guests. During the Victorian period, it became usual for guests to have to eat standing up. In fact John Conrade Cooke's cookbook ''Cookery and Confectionery'', (London: 1824) says it was already "the present fashion". In a report on a ball in 1904, a departure from "the usual stand-up buffet supper", with parties being able to reserve tables, was praised. Scandinavians like to claim that the buffet table originates from the '' brännvinsbord'' (Swedish schnapps, or shot of alcoholic beverage) table from the middle of 16th century. This custom had its prime during the early 18th century. The '' smörgåsbord'' buffet did not increase in popularity until the expansion of the railroads throughout Europe. The ''smörgåsbord'' table was originally a meal where guests gathered before dinner for a pre-dinner drink, and was not part of the formal dinner that followed. The ''smörgåsbord'' buffet was often held in separate rooms for men and women before the dinner was served. ''Smörgåsbord'' became internationally known as "smorgasbord" at the
1939 New York World's Fair The 1939–40 New York World's Fair was a world's fair held at Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in Queens, New York, United States. It was the second-most expensive American world's fair of all time, exceeded only by St. Louis's Louisiana Purchas ...
exhibition, as the Swedes had to invent a new way of showcasing the best of Swedish food to large numbers of visitors.


As displays of wealth

While the possession of gold and silver has been a measure of solvency of a regime, the display of it, in the form of plates and vessels, is more a political act and a gesture of
conspicuous consumption In sociology and in economics, the term conspicuous consumption describes and explains the consumer practice of buying and using goods of a higher quality, price, or in greater quantity than practical. In 1899, the sociologist Thorstein Veblen co ...
. The 16th-century French term ''buffet'' applied both to the display itself and to the furniture on which it was mounted, often draped with rich textiles, but more often as the century advanced the word described an elaborately carved cupboard surmounted by tiers of shelves. In England, such a buffet was called a court cupboard. Prodigal displays of plate were probably first revived at the fashionable court of
Burgundy Burgundy (; french: link=no, Bourgogne ) is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. The c ...
and adopted in France. The
Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...
displays of silver and gold that were affected by Louis XIV of France were immortalized in paintings by Alexandre-François Desportes and others, before Louis' plate and his silver furniture had to be sent to the mint to pay for the wars at the end of his reign. During the 18th century, more subtle demonstrations of wealth were preferred. The buffet was revived in England and France at the end of the century, when new ideals of privacy made a modicum of self-service at breakfast-time appealing, even among those who could have had a footman servant behind each chair. In ''The Cabinet Dictionary'' of 1803, Thomas Sheraton presented a neoclassical design and observed that "a buffet may, with some propriety, be restored to modern use, and prove ornamental to a modern breakfast-room, answering as the china cabinet/repository of a tea equipage."


20th century

In a 1922 housekeeping book entitled ''How to Prepare and Serve a Meal,'' Lillian B. Lansdown wrote: The informal luncheon at small tables calls for service by a number of maids, hence the "buffet" plan is preferable.


Variations

There are many different ways of offering diners a selection of foods that are called "buffet" style meals. Some buffets are "single pass only", but most buffets allow a diner to first take small samples of unfamiliar foods, and then to return for more servings if desired. To avoid misunderstandings in commercial eating establishments, the rules and charges are often posted on signs near the buffet serving tables. * One form of buffet is to have a display counter or table filled with plates containing fixed portions of food; customers select plates containing whichever dishes they want as they walk along. The food display may either be staffed, or the customers may pick up the food plates themselves. This form is most commonly seen in
cafeteria A cafeteria, sometimes called a canteen outside the U.S., is a type of food service location in which there is little or no waiting staff table service, whether a restaurant or within an institution such as a large office building or school ...
s. Another derivative of this type of buffet occurs where patrons choose food from a buffet style layout and then pay based on what was chosen (sometimes based on the weight of the food, or color-coded plates). * A variation occurs in a
dim sum Dim sum () is a large range of small Chinese dishes that are traditionally enjoyed in restaurants for brunch. Most modern dim sum dishes are commonly associated with Cantonese cuisine, although dim sum dishes also exist in other Chinese cuis ...
house, where seated patrons make their selections from wheeled carts containing different plates of food which the staff circulate through the restaurant. Another variation is a conveyor belt sushi restaurant, where seated patrons select dishes from a continuously moving conveyor belt carrying a variety of foods. In another variation, Brazilian '' rodízio'' style buffets feature roving waiters serving '' churrascaria'' barbecued meats from large skewers directly onto the seated diners' plates. * The "all-you-can-eat" buffet is more free-form; customers pay a fixed fee and then can help themselves to as much food as they wish to eat in a single meal. This form is found often in restaurants, especially in hotels. In some countries, this format is popular for "Sunday brunch" buffets. * A so-called Mongolian barbecue buffet format allows diners to collect various thinly-sliced raw foods and add flavorings, which are then stir-fried on a large griddle by a restaurant cook. * Some hot pot restaurants offer all-you-can-eat buffets, in which diners order plates of thinly-sliced raw foods and flavorings, and cook them in boiling pots of soup at their tables. * A salad bar is commonly offered in delicatessens and
supermarket A supermarket is a self-service Retail#Types of outlets, shop offering a wide variety of food, Drink, beverages and Household goods, household products, organized into sections. This kind of store is larger and has a wider selection than earli ...
s, in which customers help themselves to lettuce and other salad ingredients, then pay by weight. Sometimes only cold foods are offered, but often warmed or hot foods are available at a "hot foods bar", possibly at a different price by weight. * Open buffets are often associated with a celebration of some sort, and there may be no explicit charge or the cost may be included in an admission fee to the entire event. Art show openings at galleries and museums are often accompanied by a modest buffet for invited guests. As a compromise between self-service and full table service, a staffed buffet may be offered: diners carry their own plate or tray along the buffet line and are given a portion by a server at each station, which may be selected or skipped by the diner. This method is prevalent at catered meetings where diners are not paying specifically for their meal. Alternatively, diners may serve themselves for most prepared selections, but a
carvery A carvery is a pub or a restaurant where cooked meat is freshly sliced to order for customers, sometimes offering unlimited servings in a buffet style for a fixed price. The term is most commonly used in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Cyprus, and ...
station for roasted meats is staffed. Some buffet formats also feature staffed stations where crepes, omelettes, noodle soups, barbecued meats, or sushi are custom prepared at the request of individual diners.


All-you-can-eat

The all-you-can-eat restaurant was introduced in Las Vegas by Herbert "Herb" Cobb McDonald in 1946. The buffet was advertised in flyers for only one dollar, and a patron could eat "every possible variety of hot and cold entrees to appease the howling coyote in your innards". Many
boarding school A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of "room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. As they have existed for many centuries, and now exten ...
s, colleges, and universities offer optional or mandatory "meal plans", especially in connection with dormitories for students. These are often in an "all-you-can-eat" buffet format, sometimes called "all-you-care-to-eat" to encourage dietary moderation. The format may also be used in other institutional settings, such as military bases, large factories, cruise ships, or medium-security prisons. In 2007, the first all-you-can-eat seating section in Major League Baseball was introduced at Dodger Stadium. The trend spread to 19 of the 30 major league parks by 2010, and numerous minor league parks by 2012. The basic menu includes traditional ballpark food such as hot dogs, nachos, peanuts,
popcorn Popcorn (also called popped corn, popcorns or pop-corn) is a variety of corn kernel which expands and puffs up when heated; the same names also refer to the foodstuff produced by the expansion. A popcorn kernel's strong hull contains the se ...
, and
soft drink A soft drink (see § Terminology for other names) is a drink that usually contains water (often carbonated), a sweetener, and a natural and/or artificial flavoring. The sweetener may be a sugar, high-fructose corn syrup, fruit juice, a su ...
s. In 2008, all-you-can-eat seats were also inaugurated in numerous
NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...
and
NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...
arenas.


Restaurant buffets

In Australia, buffet chains such as Sizzler serve a large number of patrons with carvery meats, seafood, salads and desserts. Cruise operators in Sydney, conduct Sydney Harbour sightseeing cruises with continental buffets having multiple seafood options. Buffets are also common in Returned and Services League of Australia (RSL) clubs and some motel restaurants. In Brazil, ''comida a quilo'' or ''comida por quilo''—literally, "food by hekilo"—restaurants are common. This is a cafeteria style buffet in which diners are billed by the weight of the food selected, excluding the tare weight of the plate.
Brazilian cuisine Brazilian cuisine is the set of cooking practices and traditions of Brazil, and is characterized by European, Amerindian, African, and Asian ( Lebanese, Chinese and, most recently, Japanese) influences. It varies greatly by region, reflecting t ...
's '' rodízio'' style is all-you-can-eat, having both non-self-service and self-service variations. In Hong Kong, the ''
cha chaan teng buffet Cha chaan teng buffet is a concept of buffet of cha chaan teng dishes in Hong Kong. It has become part of the Hong Kong's food culture. Cha Chaan Teng buffet is originated in a tea restaurant located in Tsuen Wan. The motive for this buffet was t ...
'' is a relatively new variation on traditional low-cost Chinese snack and coffee shops. In Japan, a buffet or smorgasbord is known as a ''viking'' (バイキング - ''baikingu''). It is said that this originated from the restaurant "Imperial Viking" in the Imperial Hotel, Tokyo, which was the first restaurant in Japan to serve buffet-style meals. Dessert Vikings are very popular in Japan, where one can eat from a buffet full of desserts. In Sweden, a traditional form of buffet is the '' smörgåsbord'', which literally means "table of sandwiches".


United States

In the United States, there are numerous
Chinese-American cuisine American Chinese cuisine is a cuisine derived from Chinese cuisine that was developed by Chinese Americans. The dishes served in many North American Chinese restaurants are adapted to American tastes and often differ significantly from those ...
-inspired buffet restaurants, as well as those serving primarily traditional American fare. Also, South Asian cuisine (notably in
Indian restaurants Indian cuisine consists of a variety of regional and traditional cuisines native to India. Given the diversity in soil, climate, culture, ethnic groups, and occupations, these cuisines vary substantially and use locally available spices, her ...
), pan-Asian cuisine, and Mediterranean cuisine are increasingly available in the buffet format, and sushi has also become more popular at buffets. In some regions of the US, Brazilian-style '' churrascaria'' barbecue buffets served '' rodízio'' style are becoming popular. Las Vegas and
Atlantic City Atlantic City, often known by its initials A.C., is a coastal resort city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. The city is known for its casinos, Boardwalk (entertainment district), boardwalk, and beaches. In 2020 United States censu ...
are famous for all-you-can-eat buffets with a very wide range of foods on offer, and similar ones have also become common in casinos elsewhere in the United States. For 2019, buffet food sales in the US were estimated at $5 billion, approximately 1% of the total restaurant business that year.


Gallery

File:Buffet Germany.jpg, Ham and cheese in a German breakfast buffet File:Hot Buffet line aboard Celebrity Equinox.jpg, Staffed hot buffet line aboard the '' Celebrity Equinox'' cruise ship File:Crayfish buffet at Tukkutorin kala.jpg, A
crayfish Crayfish are freshwater crustaceans belonging to the clade Astacidea, which also contains lobsters. In some locations, they are also known as crawfish, craydids, crawdaddies, crawdads, freshwater lobsters, mountain lobsters, rock lobsters, mu ...
buffet at restaurant Tukkutorin kala in Kalasatama, Helsinki, Finland File:Buffet brekafast (5078306699).jpg, Breakfast buffet File:Sveas brunch.jpg, Brunch buffet File:Cheese and cold cut station in clipper lounge.jpg, Cheese, coldcuts, and bread station in brunch buffet File:Slovenia (15068507911).jpg, A platter of lunch meat and cheeses in Slovenia File:Buffet-2.jpg, German-style dinner buffet File:Man at chain buffet restaurant.jpg, alt=A customer gets food from a buffet in a restaurant., Customer getting food from a buffet File:Prasmanan 1.JPG, ''Prasmanan'', Indonesian-style buffet


See also

* All-you-can-eat restaurant * Buffet car * Catering *
Food safety Food safety (or food hygiene) is used as a scientific method/discipline describing handling, preparation, and storage of food in ways that prevent food-borne illness. The occurrence of two or more cases of a similar illness resulting from t ...
* Food warmer * Free lunch *
List of buffet restaurants This is a list of notable buffet restaurants. A buffet is a system of serving meals in which food is placed in a public area where the diners generally serve themselves. Buffets are offered at various places including hotels and many social events ...
*
List of cafeterias This is a list of cafeterias. A cafeteria is a type of food service location in which there is little or no waiting staff table service, whether a restaurant or within an institution such as a large office building or school; a school dining loca ...
* Potluck


References


Further reading

* * *


External links

* * {{Authority control Bundled products or services Eating parties Food combinations Serving and dining