Tip: Use a Luncheon Plate at Dinner

Dana Velden
Dana Velden
Dana Velden's first book, Finding Yourself in the Kitchen: Kitchen Meditations and Inspired Recipes from a Mindful Cook (Rodale Books) is available where ever books are sold. She lives in Oakland, CA.
published Sep 7, 2011
We independently select these products—if you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. All prices were accurate at the time of publishing.
Post Image
(Image credit: Apartment Therapy)

I recently bought a set of luncheon plates to use as my casual (daily use) dinner plates. It’s been about month now and I can safely say that, for me at least, this was the right choice. What are luncheon plates and why did I choose them?

Luncheon plates are sized somewhere between a regular dinner plate and a salad plate — typically around 8.75 – 9.5″, although that can vary depending on the manufacturer. The name is an obvious reveal to their purpose: to be used at a luncheon where presumably one is eating smaller portions or more classic lunch foods such as a sandwich.

I bought my set of luncheon plates for a number of reasons, mostly because my new kitchen is very (very) small and has limited storage space. So their smaller size and multi-purpose applications (lunch plate, dinner plate, salad plate) is very practical. But its also true that I don’t eat large dinners so much these days, so the size suits me perfectly.

It’s likely that I would not use my new plates in a more formal dinner party situation but my tiny kitchen comes with a tiny apartment, so I won’t be in that position for a while. Luncheon plates are a bit harder to find these days as we continue to move away from more formal place settings, but they’re out there. Sometimes a salad plate can stand in, but I find the extra inch or so that a luncheon plate offers is just perfect.

Rough guideline for plate sizes:
Dinner plate: 10″ – 10 3/4″
Luncheon plate 9″ – 9 1/2″
Salad plate 8″ – 8 3/4″
Bread and butter plate 5″ – 7 3/4″

Related:

Tip: Measure Your Cabinets Before You Buy New Dishes