finger bowls
Post-meal washbasins
Finger bowls are small bowls of water, sometimes with a lemon slice or flower petal floating in them, placed at each setting during formal meals.
Diners dip their fingertips to rinse them between courses or after eating foods handled with the hands: The waiter brought finger bowls after the lobster course.
Rules of polite conduct
- place settingArranged utensils for dining
- banquetFormal celebratory meal
- silverwareMetal eating utensils
- porcelainTranslucent fired clay
crystal · formal dinner · multicourse · gourmet · haute cuisine · serviette · centerpiece · tablecloth
Wash without scrubbing
- waterClear essential liquid
- lemonAcidic yellow citrus
- dipBrief immersion or condiment
- freshenTo restore liveliness
scented · rosewater · citrus · warm · aromatic · cleanse · wash · palate cleanser
People received hospitably
- serviceAid or maintenance
- hostingReceiving guests socially
- graciousnessCourteous, kind demeanor
- receptionAct of receiving guests
welcome · entertaining · cordiality · catering · attentiveness · presentation · elegance · refinement
etiquette
Rules of polite conduct
- place settingArranged utensils for dining
- banquetFormal celebratory meal
- silverwareMetal eating utensils
porcelain · crystal · formal dinner · multicourse · gourmet · haute cuisine · serviette · centerpiece · tablecloth · napkin
rinse
Wash without scrubbing
freshen · scented · rosewater · citrus · warm · aromatic · cleanse · wash · palate cleanser · sticky hands
guests
People received hospitably
- serviceAid or maintenance
- hostingReceiving guests socially
- graciousnessCourteous, kind demeanor
reception · welcome · entertaining · cordiality · catering · attentiveness · presentation · elegance · refinement · consideration
custom
Habitual group practice
- ritualCeremonial set of actions
- ceremonyFormal event marking occasions
- heritageInherited cultural legacy
protocol · Victorian · Edwardian · ancestry · legacy · convention · practice · formal occasions · historic · old-world
- formal diningplace setting, dinner, porcelain, tablecloth, silverware
- glasswareglass cups, bottles, glassware, glass vases, jar
- table mannerstable manners, napkin folding, chewing quietly, elbows off table, proper posture
- fine dinnerwarefine china, bone china, china, crystal, crystal glasses
- Victorian etiquettecalling hours, visiting cards, chaperoning, propriety, decorum
finger bowlspaper plates
Single-use dining surfaces
fast food · TV dinners · picnic · grab-and-go · street food
finger, bowl, fingers, fingered, fingering, fingerless, fingertip, bowls, bowled