food (service) words

[Laurence Horn]

>From an article in Wednesday's N. Y. Times
(12/5/07, F1) Dining section on the endangered
status of the entree (that's the American-style
'main course' entree, not the French-style
'appetizer course' entrée), given the increased
tendency--in the age of global mix-and-match
dining (meze, dim sum, and sushi, as well as
tapas) and iPod playlists--for restaurants to
serve more and smaller (if not always cheaper)
dishes rather than serving up one big one as the
core of the meal.  ("It's like they want to date
their food instead of marry it", in the words of
one quoted S.F.-based restaurant consultant.)  So
we have from this article:

1)  the TAPAFICATION of American menus
(a candidate for WOTY, given that there are
exactly 6 google hits, all with the same sense,
and indeed several with the same collocation as
above)

2) COURSE as a verb:
'The movement has even given rise to a new verb.
After writing down a seemingly random list of
dishes, a waiter is apt ask, "Shall I course that
for you?".'

3) the SEGUE BAR:
At one restaurant, 'the computer system has been
redesigned to include something called a segue
bar. Waiters insert it electronically between
groups of dishes. Instead of indicating
traditional course breaks, which give waiters
time to remove plates and reset the table, the
segue bar simply slows down the flow from the
kitchen.'
(not a candidate for WOTY yet--this is the only
relevant google hit for "segue bar" so far)

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