Plate (dishware)

Shape

A plate is typically composed of:

• The well, the bottom of the plate, where food is placed.
• The lip, the flattish raised outer part of the plate (sometimes wrongly called the rim). Its width in proportion to the well can vary greatly. It usually has a slight upwards slope, or is parallel with the base, as is typical in larger dishes and traditional Chinese shapes. Not all plates have a distinct lip.
• The rim, the outer edge of the piece; often decorated, for example with gilding.
• The base, the underside.

The usual wide and flat European raised lip is derived from old European metalwork plate shapes; Chinese ceramic plates usually just curve up at the edges, or have a narrow lip. A completely flat serving plate, only practical for dry foods, may be called a trencher, especially if in wood.

Materials

Plates are commonly made from ceramic materials such as bone china, porcelain, earthenware, and stoneware, as well as other traditional materials like glass, wood, or metal; occasionally, stone has been used. Despite a range of plastics and other modern materials, ceramics and other traditional materials remain the most common, except for specialized uses such as plates for young children. Porcelain and bone china were once luxurious materials but today can be afforded by most of the world's population. Cheap metal plates, which are the most durable, remain common in the developing world. Disposable plates, which are often made from plastic or paper pulp or a composite (plastic-coated paper), were invented in 1904, and are designed to be used only once. Also melamine resin or tempered glass such as Corelle can be used.

Size and type

As food availability increased, so did plate sizes. The increase in the diameter of a typical dinner plate is estimated as 65% since 1000 AD.^[2]

Modern plates for serving food come in a variety of sizes and types, such as:^[3]

• Dinner plate (also full plate, meat plate, joint plate): large, 9–13 inches (23–33 cm) in diameter;^[4] only buffet/serving plates are larger. This is the main (at times only) individual plate. During its disappearance in Europe that happened with the fall of the Roman Empire, trencher plates made of bread (or wood) were used. Regular plates returned to fashion at the French court under Francis I of France around 1536.^[5]
• Entrée plate (also half plate, dessert plate, fish plate) has a diameter of 8.5 inches (22 cm) and is used for hors d'oeuvre, fish, entrée, or a dessert.
• Dessert plate (also sweet plate, half plate, fruit plate) has a diameter of 8 inches (20 cm), usually is substituted by an entrée plate
• Side plate (also bread and butter plate, B&B plate, quarter plate, cheese plate) has a diameter of 7 inches (18 cm), also used as an underplate for soup bowl
• Salad plate can be either round, 7 to 8.5 inches (18 to 22 cm) in diameter,^[6] or intended to be positioned snugly to the right of a full plate, the latter usually has a crescent shape (hence another name, a crescent plate).^[6]
• Tea saucer is a small plate with an indentation for a cup and a diameter of 6 inches (15 cm). A demi-tasse saucer, or coffee saucer is 4.5 inches (11 cm) in diameter.
• Soup plate has a diameter of 9 inches (23 cm),^[7] a much deeper well and wide rim ("lip"). If the lip is lacking, as often seen in contemporary tableware, it is a "soup bowl". May also be used for desserts.
• Cereal bowl (also oatmeal bowl, cereal plate), at 7.5 inches (19 cm) in diameter, used for porridge and breakfast cereal, as well as milk pudding, compote, apple pie with custard sauce
• Luncheon plate, typically 9–9.5 inches (23–24 cm) in diameter, fell out of popularity at the end of 19th century, together with the luncheons for ladies.^[8]
• Platters (US English) or serving plates: oversized dishes from which food for several people may be distributed at table
• Decorative plates: for display rather than used for food. Commemorative plates have designs reflecting a particular theme.
• Charger (also a buffet plate, cover plate, lay plate, place plate, all names are due to the various uses of this large plate in the past and in the present^[9]): a plate typically placed under a separate plate used to hold food, largest and therefore most expensive plate in the set at 11–14 inches (28–36 cm) in diameter with an 8–9 inches (20–23 cm) well. The antique service plates were smaller, with 9 inches (23 cm) size and a 6–6.5 inches (15–17 cm) well,^[10] due to different use: modern etiquette allows the use of the service plates for the main course in an informal dining arrangement (thus the larger well), while in the old times (and the modern formal dining) the service plate is only used as a base for the appetizer and soup.^[11]

Plates can be any shape, but almost all have a rim to prevent food from falling off the edge. They are often white or off-white, but can be any color, including patterns and artistic designs. Many are sold in sets of identical plates, so everyone at a table can have matching tableware. Styles include:

• Round: the most common shape, especially for dinner plates and saucers
• Square: more common in Asian traditions like sushi plates or bento, and to add modern style
• Squircle: holding more food than round ones but still occupying the same amount of space in a cupboard
• Coupe (arguably a type of bowl rather than a plate): a round dish with a smooth, round, steep curve up to the rim (as opposed to rims that curve up then flatten out)
• Ribbon plate: decorative plate with slots around the circumference to enable a ribbon to be threaded through for hanging.