The Buffet Standard

Forty-five minutes before opening, switch on the hot wells and the chilled counters. Twenty minutes later, probe each one: hot at 63 °C or above, cold at 5 °C or below. Log the readings.

Put a clean card in front of every dish, all on the same house design: the name of the dish, a short description and its allergens. Check each card against the chef’s list for today.

Give every dish its own serving spoon or tongs on an underplate. Stack at least 20 warm plates at the hot section, 20 chilled plates at the cold section and 20 dessert plates at the sweets.

Serve sauces, dressings and condiments in small bowls or jugs, each with its own spoon, or in individual pots. Never in kitchen bottles or the supplier’s packaging.

Outdoors, cover every dish with a lid, a cloche or a glass hood, keep the buffet in shade, and check the insect screens before the first guest arrives.

Ten minutes before opening, the head waiter and the chef walk the buffet together, fix what is missing, and take a photo of the full display. Every refill tonight must match that photo.

Check yourself against The Presence Standard before the doors open: uniform, name badge, hands, and the occasions and allergies on today’s list in mind.

Greet and seat guests as The First Two Minutes Standard sets out. Drinks are offered and served as The Table Drinks Standard sets out.

To a guest on their first visit, explain the buffet in under 30 seconds at the table: where each section is, which stations cook to order, and that the chefs will help with any allergy.

“The starters are on your left, hot dishes in the centre and desserts by the window. At the grill, the chef cooks fish or meat for you to order.”

Name tonight’s cooking stations and one dish from each. A guest who does not know the pasta is made to order will take it from the tray.

If a guest has an allergy, offer a plate prepared in the kitchen, away from shared spoons, and follow The Allergy Standard. A buffet spoon moved from one dish to the next carries allergens.

“With a nut allergy, Mr Al-Harbi, the chef can prepare a plate for you in the kitchen. Shall I ask the chef to come over?”

One named attendant owns the buffet. Every 15 minutes they walk the whole line, starters to desserts, and write the time on the log.

Refill a dish before it has lost a quarter. Swap in a full, fresh dish from the kitchen, never pour new food on top of old, and arrange it to match the opening photo.

Wipe drips and spills at once. Replace any spoon that has fallen into the food or lies on the cloth, and wipe the rims of the dishes on every round.

Probe the hot and cold food on every round and log it. A hot dish under 63 °C or a cold one above 5 °C is replaced from the kitchen, never reheated on the buffet.

Keep at least 10 plates in each stack. Bring warm plates from the hot cabinet before the stack runs low, and never let a guest stand waiting at an empty stack.

Write the time each dish went out on the back of its card. Hot food on display for two hours is taken away and thrown out, even if it looks untouched.

In the last 30 minutes, keep every section open and full. Use smaller dishes rather than fewer dishes, so the last guest has the same choice as the first.

A chef stays at each cooking station for the whole service. If the chef must leave, a colleague takes over first. An empty station tells the guest nobody is cooking.

Greet the guest at the station, say what you are cooking tonight, and ask how they would like it and whether they have an allergy.

“Good evening. Tonight it’s sea bass or lamb, cooked as you like. How would you like yours, Ms Rossi?”

Hand the dish on a warm, clean plate, rim wiped, garnish placed, and name it as you hand it over. Cold dishes go on a chilled plate.

If the dish takes more than 3 minutes, offer to send it to the table. Take the table number and give it to a runner, who brings it covered and names it.

“It will be about eight minutes. Go and sit down, and we’ll bring it to your table.”

Keep the station clean in front of the guest: change the board and cloths as needed, keep raw and cooked food apart, and wipe the counter after every plate.

While the guest is at the buffet, clear their used plate and cutlery, lay fresh cutlery for the next course, and refold the napkin as The Table Maintenance Standard sets out.

Within 5 minutes of the guest starting the first plate, pass by the table once and ask one question about the food. Pass any comment to the chef the same service.

“How are you finding the buffet tonight? Is there anything I can bring from the kitchen?”

Offer to carry plates for a guest who uses a stick, holds a child, or has trouble with steps. Ask what they would like, fill the plate at the buffet, and bring it to the table.

When the guest returns to the buffet, a clean plate is waiting at the stack. Never let a guest carry a used plate back to the line.

Fifteen minutes before closing, tell each table in person, quietly, that the buffet closes soon, and offer dessert, coffee or tea at the table. No announcements across the room.

“The buffet closes in 15 minutes, Mrs Laurent. May I bring you anything else, or a coffee?”

Take the buffet down only after the last guest has finished choosing. Start with the sections furthest from the tables, and never clear dishes while guests are eating beside them.

Throw away food that has been on display, and log what came back full and what ran out. The chef uses the log to set tomorrow’s quantities.

The head waiter signs the temperature log and stores the cards in order for the next service. Faults go to the handover: a weak hot well, a broken lid, a missing card.