Setting the table isn’t as difficult as it may initially seem. The following diagram shows a full-blown table setting for a special dinner party. Adjust it as necessary to fit your menu.
We do not want to intimidate guests by being too formal, yet some rules do apply. Don’t put out utensils that won’t ever be used. If your menu doesn’t include anything that would be eaten with a teaspoon, don’t put teaspoons on the table. If you’re planning to serve coffee and dessert afterward, bring out the teaspoons then.
* For an informal meal, include the coffee cup and saucer with the table setting. Otherwise, bring them to the table with the dessert.
Remember to make your guests as comfortable as you can.
See more about how to decorate the table for the holidays.
About The Author
Catherine Boeckmann loves nature, stargazing, and gardening so it’s not surprising that she and The Old Farmer’s Almanac found each other. She leads digital content for the Almanac website, and is also a certified master gardener in the state of Indiana. Read More from Catherine Boeckmann
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Laurie (not verified)
5 years 8 months ago
Is the iced-beverage spoon placed furthest from the dinner knife when setting the table? Example: dinner knife, soup spoon and then Iced-beverage spoon
5 years 7 months ago
In reply to iced-beverage spoon by Laurie (not verified)
Hi, Laurie. If your iced-beverage spoon is what we are thinking—typically called an iced tea spoon (long handle)—then yes.
Theresa (not verified)
5 years 9 months ago
where would a steak knife go?
5 years 9 months ago
In reply to question by Theresa (not verified)
Hi, Theresa. If your meal required a steak knife, you could put that where the dinner knife goes.
NICHOLAS GOMES (not verified)
5 years 9 months ago
for dinner party, it looks really nice. now I need a menu.
Katy Thompson (not verified)
7 years 9 months ago
WHERE does the iced tea spoon go? And the iced tea glass??
7 years 9 months ago
In reply to Table Setting by Katy Thompson (not verified)
First of all, even in the South, iced tea is only served at informal meals or in the afternoon. According to Southern tradition, you would serve iced tea in a tall glass on a saucer with a doily. After you stir your iced tea with your long iced tea spoon, the spoon would be placed on the saucer (behind the glass). If there is not a saucer, then you keep the long spoon in the glass after you stir. You do not put the used spoon back down on the table. Yes, the southern ladies would say leave the spoon in the glass, hold it while you drink, and obsessively carry your glass wherever you go!
That said, drinking glasses of any kind — water, wine, juice, iced tea — are placed at the top right of the dinner plate, above the knives and spoons. This is true for a formal or informal dinner!
pheobesed (not verified)
9 years 3 months ago
There are many different options when it comes to setting a dinner table, but most importantly it depends on the situation or the occasion. A step-by-step guide to the basics for setting a proper table.
Mudea (not verified)
14 years 4 months ago
This is a great way to teach children of all ages how to set a proper table. My children used a diagram to learn to set a proper table. By learning to set them, they knew the proper way to use them. They thanked me when they went on to college or found themselves in formal dinner settings that would have otherwise been uncomfortable.
