Home Front: How to master the art of fine dining

Cate Burren of Angel + Blume Interior Design takes a non-culinary look at the art of eating and drinking well

In my defence, I do think that there is a lot to be said for good tableware. Whilst the platter that a good dish is served on, or the glass that a great wine is drunk from, doesn’t change the flavour, I do really believe that presentation significantly adds to the experience and should be taken seriously. It is rare that you visit a good bar or restaurant that hasn’t taken time to not only consider the surroundings that its visitors enjoy but also how they present their culinary fare.

So what do you need to think about when selecting tableware for your own home? I think you need to get a balance between what makes your food and drink look good and also what fits with the interior style that you favour. A plate can be very beautifully decorated and look lovely when unused but how does it look with your Friday night takeaway on it? At the other end of the spectrum, a plain white plate doesn’t clash with the food that is served on it, but it can feel a tiny bit uninspiring. Just to ensure the decision-making process is as tricky as possible, remember that you don’t have to have a matching set. It is often nice to have a bit of a mismatch between the plates you have and the bowls. You may want the style to be similar but the colours to be different. Of course, you might favour a complete mismatch of crockery but this really only works well if you stick to a particular style and blend the pieces you select so that your table doesn’t look like you are at a car boot sale.

There are also various functional considerations you need to be aware of. There are the obvious things like do the plates go in the dishwasher, does the jug pour well without dripping and is the cup handle comfortable to use when the tea is steaming hot – you would have thought these would all have been addressed before the item was sold but I wouldn’t bank on it.

There are also some less obvious things that often only come to light when you start using your crockery. For example, a plate or bowl may not seem heavy on its own but a stack of them may be another matter and importantly, remember to check that your dishwasher proof plates and wine glasses do actually fit in your dishwasher.

It is worth considering where your tableware will be stored when it is not gracing your table. Previous generations often had an everyday set of crockery and another one for ‘best’ and whilst there is nothing wrong with this, I would argue that you probably want to use your nicest crockery regularly rather than keeping it for special occasions and additionally you could probably use the storage space more productively. Having said that, there will always be the items you really do use every day and others that have more sporadic outings. These might include a gravy jug, a cake stand, champagne glasses or serving platters. All are good to have for times when you need them but they don’t need to be stored within as easy reach as your dinner plates, water glasses and cutlery.

It can be a nice feature in a kitchen or dining room to have some crockery or glassware on display on a shelf or in a glass cabinet. On a practical level, it seems sensible to have the things you use most often on display, simply because it is probably easy to get to and also, things do tend to get dusty if they are rarely used and left out on a shelf. However, you probably also want the things that are on view to look nice which is often about not overloading shelves and mixing in the odd item that is there more for decorative reasons.

You also need to consider how many of each item (plates, bowls, glasses, forks etc) you need. There will be a minimum number to allow for usage by each member of the household with a few spare for when the dishwasher is full and there will be high days and holidays when you need quite a bit more. I wouldn’t try to cater for the biggest party you will ever have – crockery can be hired or better still borrowed from those coming to your gathering – but having a few extras is always useful for when you have just a handful of guests over.

There are also some items of tableware that I think are not only useful but appealing and it will depend on your own preferences and ways of living as to which of these work for you. For me, I really like using a butter dish, I love a table napkin (they are a pain to wash but I think they are worth it) and I will always own a teapot (and I hope to start using it soon) but I have personally never really seen the point of fish knives.

I know that there will be people who entirely disagree with me and that is fine. If you care to get in touch, I have a very nice set of fish knives you can have, although I should warn you that they aren’t dishwasher proof.
For more see angelandblume.com

Images:
Top: A cleverly placed kitchen shelf allows everyday plates and glasses to be in easy reach when needed. Kitchen by Naked Kitchens: nakedkitchens.com

Middle: Beautifully presented food on the perfect plate by Soho Home: sohohome.com