Cafeteria

A cafeteria is a type of restaurant in which there is no table service. Instead, there are food serving counters/stalls, either in a line or allowing arbitrary walking paths, and customers take food they require as they walk along, placing them on a tray, and pay at the check-out (buffet system). For some food items there may be the system that while at the counter one orders it and it is served by personnel behind the counter.

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Sometimes, for some food items and drinks, one collects an empty cup, glass, etc., pays at the check-out, then fills that after the check-out. This system may be combined with being allowed to take a free second serving. Due to the consumption pattern of people, this system is rarely or never used for alcoholic beverages.

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As cafeterias require few employees, they are often found within a larger institution, catering to the clientele of that institution. For example, schools, colleges and their halls of residence, department stores, museums, and office buildings often have cafeterias.

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At one time, cafeteria-style restaurants dominated the dining-out culture of the Southern United States, and there were several prominent chains of them: Morrison's, Blue Boar, and S & W among them. These institutions went into a decline in the 1960s with the rise of fast food and were largely finished off in the 1980s by the rise of "casual dining". However, newer chains, notably Luby's and Picadilly Cafeteria, have arisen to fill some of the gap left by the decline of the older chains.

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Restaurant: A restaurant is an establishment that serves prepared food and beverages to be consumed on the premises. The term covers a multiplicity of venues and a diversity of styles of cuisine....

Buffet: A buffet is a meal-serving system where patrons serve themselves. It is a popular method of feeding large numbers of people with minimal staff....

College: The term college (Latin collegium) is most often used today to denote an educational institution. The precise usage of the term varies among English-speaking countries. However, it can be the name of any group of colleagues; originally it meant a group of people living together under a common set o...

Cafeteria related Images and Photos (experimental)

LOST 'Dharma Cafeteria' Men's T-Shirt

LOST 'Dharma Cafeteria' Women's T-Shirt