Buffet dining has been around for a long time; since the 16th Century to be precise. Originating in France, the style of buffet dining – where guests serve themselves from a variety of dishes set out on a table – has remained a popular serving style.
Today there are plenty of restaurants for us to choose from that provide a buffet concept, as they are an efficient way of feeding a large number of guests. But what are the different types of buffet for us to try?
These buffets offer plenty of food for your money. Customers at an all you can eat buffet pay a set price, and from there they can eat, well, all they can. Customers serve themselves from a range of hot items, salad bar, and dessert station.
You rarely find this style of self service in a restaurant; in this type of buffet you select your plate of food as they pass through a line. Plates contain pre-made sandwiches, a soup, a drinks fridge and coffee machine, and a sealed dessert are a few examples of the things you’d find.
It is popular for restaurants to hold special promotions on certain days in the form of a buffet. A restaurant might offer a roast carvery on a Sunday or a seafood buffet on a Wednesday for example. Some places put on a buffet for special occasions such as a Mother’s Day buffet.
Weddings, business meetings and holiday parties are perfect situations for a catered buffet. Some restaurants provide catering services that will travel to an event to provide food for large groups of people.
With the rise in health standards amongst the public, restaurants are now providing healthy buffet choices, in place of a heavy meat and dairy selection.
If you are in search of a great buffet, Royal Nawaab’s Halal restaurant in London provides a fantastic Pakistani cuisine buffet.
Today we will learn about different buffet style food and beverage services. According to the nature of service there are basically 3 types of buffet service provided in different hotels. Such as:
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Sit Down Buffet
Standing or Stands Up Buffet or Fork Buffet
Display Buffet or Finger Buffet
Training Video:
Click here to watch training video: Different Types of Buffet Service Provided at Restaurant
Sit Down Buffet
As it’s evident by the name itself, other factors like food display remain the same, the only difference is that after helping himself the guest sits down to have his meals. The table setting required in this case is just like any other occasion. If there is wine to be served along with the food, glasses are put in advance on the tables and wine is served by the waiter. A meal of this kind requires more than the usual number of waiters as they are required to clear the soiled items in time and to ensure that all the service that is to be given on the table itself i.e. wines, cigarettes, and toward the end tea/coffee, can be served. A sit down buffet is as good as any formal meal and it serves a more successful in infusing a certain lightness in the atmosphere and at the same time remaining ‘formal’ also.
Standing Buffet or Stands-up Buffet or Fork Buffet
As the name suggest, there is no provision of elaborate cutlery, hence the name ‘Fork Buffet’ since one can’t use a knife, so they use fork when one is eating while standing. Special care is taken in this kind of food. It must be made sure that it’s easy to eat and can be eaten with fork. Anything that would need a knife is avoided. Curry, casseroles with rice and noodles, fish and meat salads are basically desirable and common items in this buffet.
Display Buffet or Finger Buffet
The guests select their food and then eat at a table. Here the guests approach the buffet at its various service points to select their requirements course by course. Most ancillary items may also be collected, if needed, at the buffet. These might include rolls, butter, sauces, napkin, tableware etc. The guests then return to their tables to consume the different parts of the meal. The table layouts are similar to the standard banquet layouts. The clearing of the tables takes place in the same way as for formal Banquets.