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• Accompaniment


  Food offered with a certain dish to improve flavor or counteract richness
• Afters


  Food served after the main course
• A la carte


  Food completely prepared, plated, sauced, and garnished in the kitchen
• American service


  Usually called Plated Service where food is placed on a plate in the kitchen, and is ready to be served to the guest without additional tableside preparation
• Banquet


  A large public meal or feast, complete with main courses and desserts used in special occasions or gatherings
• Beverages


  Hot or cold drinks
• Brigade


  Refers to the service team in a French style of service
• Centerpiece


  Something in a central position, particularly a decorative object or arrangement placed at the center of the table
• Decanting


  The act of pouring or filling wine
• Degustation


  A culinary term which means careful, appreciative tasting of various foods and drinks focusing on the senses and high culinary arts
• Embellish


  To make beautiful with ornamentation; decorate
• Flamboyant


  Someone or something that is extravagant
• Guacamole


  A dip of mashed avocado mixed with tomato, onion, and seasonings
• Hors D' Oeuvres


  Small portions of highly seasoned foods; a combination of canapés, olives, stuffed celery, pickled radishes, and fish
• Intoxication


  The state of being drunk
• Main Course


  Consist mostly of protein dishes
• Menu


  A list of all food and drink that is offered at an establishment (restaurant, cafe, bar)
• Mouthwatering


  Arousing the appetite; delicious
• Relevé


  The main roasts or other larger joints of meat
• Starters


  Food served before the main course like appetizers, soups, or pasta
• Service


  The manner and method by which food is served to guests
• Skirting


  Refers to the specialized linen used for draping buffet, conference, and other tables
• Sommelier


  A wine steward
• Sorbet

  Sometimes called 'granites' which is served to give pause within a meal
• Suggestive Selling


  Act of giving suggestions and ideas to increase the dining guests' original orders
• Upselling


  A marketing strategy in a restaurant to suggest slow-moving but profitable items
• The menu is the most important controlling element in the servicing process of any restaurant type or establishment, which is figuratively referred to as the "authorized representative" of a restaurant because it creates a constant link between the establishment and the guests.
• Menu


  A list of all the food and drink offered in an establishment (e.g. restaurant, cafe, bar) during its operation and is arranged in a particular order.
• Suggested dish structure when making a menu

  • Specialties/Signature Dishes
  • Snacks (cold and hot)
  • Soups
  • Main Courses (Fish, Meat and Vegetarian separately)
  • Desserts
  • Drinks (Alcoholic, Non-alcoholic, Hot and Cold Beverages)

  
• In the event of a large quantity of drinks being available, it is advised to have these on a separate menu. The drinks offered are of importance when it comes to the success of any food and beverage establishment. Therefore, it is critical to bring the correct drinks selection to the menu while factoring in the guests' wishes as much as possible.
• Alcoholic drinks


  • Wines (Domestic White, Domestic Red, Imported White, Imported Red, Sparkling wine, Southern wine, White Vermouth, Red Vermouth)
  • Aperitifs (Bitter Aperitifs and Aniseed Aperitifs)
  • Spirits and liquors (Vodka, Whiskey (Scotch, Irish Bourbon, Canadian), Gin, Rum, Brandy, cognac, calvados)
  • Beer (domestic and imported)
  • Mixed drinks and cocktails
• Non-alcoholic drinks


  • Soft drinks, mineral water, soft drinks, juices
  • Hot drinks, Coffee, Tea, Milk
• In recent years, people have come to think that mineral water is an integral part of a good meal. This should be included when offering water.
• Types of mineral water

  • Local mineral water
  • National mineral water
  • Imported mineral water (Perrier, Evian)
  • Still mineral water (without gas)
  • Spring water table water (Bonaqua)
• Menu Familiarization


  • A restaurant server must learn information about the menu like cooking method, serving portions, tastes and flavors, ingredients including food allergens, cooking time and side dishes.
  • It is also important to know the nutrient content of the dishes because some guests would want to know and ask.
  • The server should have the opportunity to taste several items on the menu before serving. This way, he/she can describe in a more detailed way the flavor of particular dishes.
  • Guests will not be impressed if you tell them that a particular dish is not spicy and then they find that it burns their mouth.
  • In many cases, guests will be relying on the server to help them with their menu selection, thus his advice must always be accurate. Some customers might have special dietary considerations and will be relying on the server to give accurate information.
  • The server must never place himself in the position where a guest does not enjoy his/her meal or develops an allergy because incorrect information was given about the menu.
• Important information to point out to customers

  • Dishes that take a long time to prepare or those which might suit someone in a hurry
  • Dishes available for vegetarians or those customers with special dietary considerations (e.g. no dairy products or allergies to certain foods like nuts)
  • Vegetables, salads, or other accompaniments that will be served with the meal
  • Whether it is possible to vary the dish, e.g. replacing vegetables with salad
  • Prices of dishes not on the menu
  • Ingredients used to prepare the dish
  • Methods of cooking used for the dish
• Reasons why customers may have difficulty interpreting the menu

  • They might have difficulty understanding the language. This may be particularly true if the customer is a foreigner and does not have a sound understanding of the written language used on the menu. In this case, the server should try to explain each dish clearly and slowly, pointing to pictures where appropriate.
  • The menu might contain terms that are unfamiliar to the customer because there are terms that are derived from the French language and are used worldwide to describe a dish or the type of cooking method used.
• Classic Menu Sequence


  • Starters (Hors d'oeuvres, Soups, Egg Dish, Pasta and rice)
  • Main Courses (Fish, Entrée, Relevé, Roast, Vegetables, Salad, Cold buffet)
  • Sorbet
  • Afters (Cheese, Sweets, Savoury, Fruit)
  • Beverages

  
• Starters


  Hors d'oeuvres (traditionally consisted of a variety of compound salads but now includes items such as pâtàs, mousses, fruit, charcuterie, and smoked fish), Soups (includes all soups, both hot and cold), Egg Dish, Pasta and rice (can be referred to as farinaceous dishes)
• Main Courses


  Fish (a fish dish, both hot and cold), Entrée (generally small, well garnished dishes which come from the kitchen ready for service), Relevé (main roasts or other larger joints of meat), Roast (traditionally refers to roasted game or poultry dishes), Vegetables (vegetables, apart from vegetables served with the Releve or roast courses), Salad (a small plate of salad that is taken after a main course), Cold buffet (a variety of cold meats and fish, cheese and egg items together with a range of salads and dressings)