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The handle ends of all knives, forks and spoons are lined evenly with the bottom of the place plate. The butter knives are put on the butter plates any way you like as long as they are in the same position on all the plates at the table.
finger bowls-when necessary
Sometimes at a breakfast party you will serve a fruit course which is juicy and requires eating from the hand. In that case, you ought to have finger bowls on the table, above the plate on which the fruit is served. The butter plates go to the left of the place setting, just above the fork or forks; the water glass is on the right, above the tip of the knife.
where does the napkin go?
It is a matter of your
own choice where the napkins go. There are as many experts who say it should be to the left of the fork as there are those who say it should be to the right of the knife and spoons. There is only one rule in connection with the napkin about which I feel strongly: it should be simply folded, either in a triangle, with the longest side next to the silver and the point away from it, or in an oblong, with the fold toward the silver. If the first course is not on the table when guests come in, the napkin is usually put on the place plate.
for smokers
At each place there should be an individual ash tray and matches. If you have a glass or silver cigarette box or a couple of small cigarette holders, they are as appropriate to a breakfast party as to the most elegant dinner. If you have no such containers, put a couple of cigarettes across each ash tray.
pepper mills, please!
There must be salt and pepper on the table. The kind of containers depend on what you own and on your taste. If you really care about the flavor of your food, you will have whole peppers in grinders. In that case, you will probably hope some day to have some silver ones, but there are handsome wooden ones. The important point is that freshly ground pepper is superior to the prepared kinds, and it is almost infallibly a mark of a good table.
the centerpiece
The centerpiece for any meal is the focal point of the table. If you use gay, peasant pottery for breakfast meals, try filling a wooden bowl with vegetables, or vegetables and fruits together, as the centerpiece. The rich shining colors of eggplant, red and green peppers, purple cabbage and many others, belong with the tones of most potteries. A bowl of fruit is equally attractive.
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