Service

The range of food service found in hotels and today is extensive. In the first category, there are restaurants offering the highest grade of service with a full a la carte .

This includes dishes served by the waiter from a trolley in the , and is known as Gueridon service. The Gueridon waiter must be highly skilled, for he has to carry out procedures such as filleting, carving, and speciality dishes at the guest’s table.

A second, less complicated type of service is silver service, where the menu can be either a la carte or table d’hote. In this type of service, the food is prepared in the and then put on to silver flats and presented to the guests in the dining room. A third form of table services used mainly with table d’hote menu, is plate service. Here the waiter receives the already plated from the service hotplate and only has to place it in front of the guest, and make sure that the correct cover is laid and the necessary accompaniments are on the table. Plate service is often offered where there is a rapid turnover and speedy service is necessary. It also demands less equipment for the service of the meal and is, therefore labour saving in such tasks as washing-up.

In a fourth type of service, called self-serving, a customer collects a tray from the service counter, chooses his dishes and selects the appropriate cutlery for the meal. This type is very helpful with large groups. Today with ever-increasing needs for economy, many establishments prefer a variety of types of service. Tourist hotels, for example, frequently offer a combination of self-service and plate service for and another combination of self-service and silver service for luncheon.

Comprehension : Write True (T) or False (F) in front of each sentence below:

1) This text is about modern hotels and their facilities and services. ( F ) 2) There are various types of food service offered in hotels and restaurants. ( T ) 3) Gueridon Service is offered in the first category hotels and restaurants.( T ) 4) A Gueridon waiter performs complicated service at guest’s table.( T ) 5) Silver service waiter has to prepare food in silver plates.( T ) 6) Silver service is used with table d’hote menu only.( F ) 7) Silver service is easier than Gueridon Service. ( T ) 8) Plate service is used with all types of .( F ) 9) Plate service waiter receives the order ready and plated from the service hotplate. ( T ) 10) Plate service waiter has to check that correct cover and accompaniments are provided.( T ) 11) For restaurants with rapid turnover, plate service is the most suitable type.( T ) 12) In self-serving , the customer collects the plates and cutlery himself.( T ) 13) The most suitable type of service for large groups is plate service. ( T ) 14) The most costly type of food service is self-service type.( F ) 15) Today, most hotels prefer to offer combination of food service types.( T )

Grammar: comparing

Comparative adjectives

We can use comparative adjectives to compare different things.

Max is taller than Judy. You're more patient than I am. His first book is less interesting than his second.

We can use as … as with an adjective to say that two things are the same, or not as … as to say that one thing is less than another.

Her hair is as long as mine. It's not as sunny as yesterday.

Superlative adjectives

We use the with superlative adjectives: It was the happiest day of my life. Everest is the highest mountain in the world. That’s the best film I have seen this year. I have three sisters: Jan is the oldest and Angela is the youngest.

Exercise (1) : Use the following adjectives in comparative, and superlative forms to compare between Gueridon service and other types of service. (helpful – speedy- skilled- expensive- economic- complicated- sophisticated- easy- crowded- mixed- suitable- large – small- medium- seasonal- heavy- costly)

Exercise (2) : Which type of service is best for hoteliers, staff, and clients? Why?