Cafeteria
The examples and perspective in this article deal primarily with the United States and do not represent a worldwide view of the subject. (July 2021) |
A cafeteria, sometimes called a canteen outside the U.S. and Canada, is a type of food service location in which there is little or no waiting staff table service, whether in a restaurant or within an institution such as a large office building or school; a school dining location is also referred to as a dining hall or lunchroom (in American English).[1] Cafeterias are different from coffeehouses, although the English term came from the Spanish term cafetería, which carries the same meaning.
Instead of table service, there are food-serving counters/stalls or booths, either in a line or allowing arbitrary walking paths. Customers take the food that they desire as they walk along, placing it on a
Customers are either charged a flat rate for admission (as in a
As cafeterias require few employees, they are often found within a larger institution, catering to the employees or clientele of that institution. For example,
At one time, upscale cafeteria-style restaurants dominated the culture of the
History
Perhaps the first self-service restaurant (not necessarily a cafeteria) in the U.S. was the Exchange Buffet in New York City, which opened September 4, 1885, and catered to an exclusively male clientele. Food was purchased at a counter and patrons ate standing up.[3] This represents the predecessor of two formats: the cafeteria, described below, and the automat.
During the 1893
Meanwhile, in the mid-scale United States, the chain of Childs Restaurants quickly grew from about 10 locations in New York City in 1890 to hundreds across the U.S. and Canada by 1920. Childs is credited with the innovation of adding trays and a "tray line" to the self-service format, introduced in 1898 at their 130 Broadway location.[4][5] Childs did not change its format of sit-down dining, however. This was soon the standard design for most Childs Restaurants, and many ultimately the dominant method for cafeterias.
It has been conjectured that the 'cafeteria craze' started in May 1905, when Helen Mosher opened a downtown L.A. restaurant where people chose their food at a long counter and carried their trays to their tables.[6] California has a long history in the cafeteria format - notably the Boos Brothers Cafeterias, and the Clifton's and Schaber's. The earliest cafeterias in California were opened at least 12 years after Kruger's Cafeteria, and Childs already had many locations around the country. Horn & Hardart, an automat format chain (different from cafeterias), was well established in the mid-Atlantic region before 1900.
Between 1960 and 1981, the popularity of cafeterias was overcome by fast food restaurants and fast casual restaurant formats.
Outside the United States, the development of cafeterias can be observed in France as early as 1881 with the passing of the Ferry Law. This law mandated that public school education be available to all children. Accordingly, the government also encouraged schools to provide meals for students in need, thus resulting in the conception of cafeterias or cantine (in French). According to Abramson, before the creation of cafeterias, only some students could bring home-cooked meals and be properly fed in schools.
As cafeterias in France became more popular, their use spread beyond schools and into the workforce. Thus, due to pressure from workers and eventually new labor laws, sizable businesses had to, at minimum, provide established eating areas for their workers. Support for this practice was also reinforced by the effects of World War II when the importance of national health and nutrition came under great attention.[7]
Other names
A cafeteria in a
Cafeterias serving university dormitories are sometimes called dining halls or dining commons. A food court is a type of cafeteria found in many shopping malls and airports featuring multiple food vendors or concessions. However, a food court could equally be styled as a type of restaurant as well, being more aligned with the public, rather than institutionalized, dining. Some institutions, especially schools, have food courts with stations offering different types of food served by the institution itself (self-operation) or a single contract management company, rather than leasing space to numerous businesses.[8][9] Some monasteries, boarding schools, and older universities refer to their cafeteria as a refectory. Modern-day British cathedrals and abbeys, notably in the Church of England, often use the phrase refectory to describe a cafeteria open to the public. Historically, the refectory was generally only used by monks and priests. For example, although the original 800-year-old refectory at Gloucester Cathedral (the stage setting for dining scenes in the Harry Potter movies) is now mostly used as a choir practice area, the relatively modern 300-year-old extension, now used as a cafeteria by staff and public alike, is today referred to as the refectory.[10]
A cafeteria located within a movie or TV studio complex is often called a commissary.
College cafeteria
In American English, a college cafeteria is a cafeteria intended for college students. In British English, it is often called the refectory. These cafeterias can be a part of a residence hall or in a separate building. [citation needed] Many of these colleges employ their students to work in the cafeteria. [citation needed] The number of meals served to students varies from school to school but is normally around 21 meals per week. [citation needed] Like normal cafeterias, a person will have a tray to select the food that they want, but (at some campuses) instead of paying money, pays beforehand by purchasing a meal plan. [citation needed]
The method of payment for college cafeterias is commonly in the form of a meal plan, whereby the patron pays a certain amount at the start of the semester and details of the plan are stored on a computer system. Student ID cards are then used to access the meal plan. Meal plans can vary widely in their details and are often not necessary to eat at a college cafeteria. Typically, the college tracks students' plan usage by counting the number of predefined meal servings, points, dollars, or buffet dinners. The plan may give the student a certain number of any of the above per week or semester and they may or may not roll over to the next week or semester.[11]
Many schools offer several different options for using their meal plans. The main cafeteria is usually where most of the meal plan is used but smaller cafeterias, cafés, restaurants, bars, or even fast food chains located on campus, on nearby streets, or in the surrounding town or city may accept meal plans. A college cafeteria system often has a virtual monopoly on the students due to an isolated location or a requirement that residence contracts include a full meal plan. [citation needed]
Taiwanese cafeteria
There are many self-service bento shops in Taiwan. The store puts the dishes in the self-service area for the customers to pick them up by themselves. After the customers choose, they go to the cashier to check out; many stores use the staff to visually check the amount of food when assessing the price, and some stores use the method of weighing.
See also
- Automat
- Coffee service
- Coffeehouse
- Food court
- Hawker centre
- List of cafeterias
- Mess
- Refectory
- Food portal
- Companies portal
References
- ^ "Lunchroom". Merriam Webster. Retrieved September 12, 2019.
- ^ "Top 50 Contract Companies". Food Management Magazine. Penton. March 28, 2017. Retrieved July 4, 2017.
- ISBN 978-0-688-09996-1
- ^ a b Amy Zuber, "Samuel & William Childs", Nations Restaurant News, February 1996
- ^ a b "A Restaurant Timeline", CuisineNet Diner's Digest, retrieved April 28, 2009
- ^ Charles Perry, "The cafeteria: an L.A. original", The Los Angeles Times, November 5, 2003,
- ^ Abramson, Julia Luisa. Food culture in France. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 2007. 122-23. Print.
- ISSN 1045-3970.
- ^ Stoiber, Tiffany (August 23, 2017). "New food court-style Waukesha South High School cafeteria will make lunch time quicker for students". Journal Sentinel. Waukesha, Wisconsin: USA Today. Retrieved November 23, 2017.
- ^ "Gloucester Cathedral". Fcm.org.uk. Archived from the original on July 13, 2008. Retrieved September 16, 2013.
- ^ "Helping Your College Student Select a Meal Plan". collegeparents. Archived from the original on July 15, 2011.