FOOD SERVICE, the preparation and serving of food to large numbers of people over a continuous period, usually through a chain or a group organization with highly standardized methods. Such quantity food service, since the World War, has been a factor of great importance in effecting changes in the restaurant business. This article is intended to complement the articles in this volume describing the mass production and marketing of food supplies and deals with food distribution and consumption in mass. For a study of restaurants of the typical English, con tinental or early American type see RESTAURANT.
Food service has undergone the most significant change in the United States where "mass feeding" has more than doubled since 1918. This branch of the food business sells about 15% of all meals served to the literate, white population of the United States. A recent survey shows one restaurant for each 75o per sons residing in American cities. In New York, Chicago and San Francisco from 25% to 35% of meals served are eaten in hotels and restaurants. Population considered, this percentage is greater than that in any other nation. Switzerland ranks second, closely followed by Canada, England, Sweden, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy and Spain. Switzerland leads in food service in schools and hospitals. There are also in Switzerland several excellent hotel and restaurant schools.
In the order of their importance the three main divisions of the food-serving industry are (I) large commercial establish ments, (2) non-commercial or semi-commercial groups and (3 ) small commercial operatives.
The commercial branch of food service business in the United States is made up of about 90,00o restaurants, 25,000 of which serve more than Soo meals a day each, and 20,00o hotels equipped for food sales, about 8,500 of which serve more than 50o meals a day each. The groups serve a total of about 53,500,00o meals daily. Owing to the fact that the terms "hotel" or "restaurant" do not in all countries always mean complete food service, it is impossible to make an accurate comparison of food service in the United States and the rest of the world. It is estimated that out side of the United States there are approximately 500,00o food service units. These include hotels, restaurants, pensions, schools, hospitals, railway diners and steamships. The growth in food service has been constant ever since the close of the World War. Tourists have materially increased the number of hotels and restaurants in Europe, Asia, South America and parts of North and South Africa, and steamships and railroads food service facili ties have been greatly expanded. In Europe and parts of Asia, the trend toward urban life has brought about an increase in com mercial food service units. Institutional food service subjects are being taught in colleges in most important countries of the world. The non-commercial or semi-commercial branches of food serv ing so termed because they sell food to the public or because they do not compete with other establishments, constitute all kinds of social, charitable, or non-profit institutions, dining cars, steam ships, construction camps, circuses, army and navy headquarters. This miscellany totals at least 50,000 units in the United States. Small commercial establishments include boarding houses, street lunch carts and road-side stands. Estimating conservatively, there are 550,000 such food outlets. Thus there is a total of about 310,000 places in the United States serving food to persons out side their homes. The world total is approximately 800,000.
Numerous factors have influenced the trend from individual to group food service. Some of these factors have been women in business, smaller families, shortage of servants, the general public's increased earning power, demand for more leisure, trans port problems, automobiles, shorter working hours, the popularity of small apartments, improved catering facilities and in the United States, prohibition. Before the World War, both factory and office employees carried home-made lunches. In 1928 this was rarely done. As a result thousands of restaurants serve only the mid day meal, five days a week, merely to fill this need. The unusually large turnover from I I A.M. to 2 P.M. makes this profitable. A very large percentage of modern schools and colleges have food serving facilities. The number of resort hotels, camps, clubs and road-side stands has materially increased due to greatly increased automobile travel, shorter business weeks and educational work to promote outdoor life. Automobile travel in 1929 was so general that in America many commercial hotels claim that 75% of guests use motor cars. Naturally the number of inns, wayside tea rooms and road-side stands has increased. Most of these changes oc curred between 1922 and 1927, and the men and women con cerned in the business anticipated the development. Colleges added courses on quantity cooking dietetics, hotel, restaurant and institutional management. Next came books and magazines on the same problems. The chain or group grew until there were about Boo restaurant and hotel chains in the United States. (See