THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, November 7, 1995 TAG: 9511070275
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY KRYS STEFANSKY, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 99 lines
Joshua Davis drank in the ambience.
``Nice wine rack,'' murmured the 13-year-old, smoothing down his tie.
Indeed. In the rear dining salon at elegant Tandom's Pine Tree Inn, a wine rack covers nearly one entire wall. The eighth-grader's eyes flickered over the coffered ceiling, the glow cast by four enormous chandeliers, the framed hunt prints.
He hadn't yet sampled the soup du jour, decided between chicken teriyaki or london broil bearnaise, or contemplated dessert. But, so far, lunch was turning out OK.
Forget milk in cartons, hamburgers and fries. Joshua and about 120 of his classmates at Bayside Middle School turned their backs on school food yesterday and got a lesson in fine dining.
Weeks ago, their teachers decided to broaden the students' horizons with a kind of Knife and Fork School.
Without it, the cafeteria crowd from Bayside Middle would hardly have been ready for luncheon in one of Virginia Beach's oldest restaurants.
Goofy behavior, loud laughter and a most indelicate use of dining implements had amazed and alarmed their teachers earlier this year
``After watching them, we decided they needed some help,'' said Miriam Mason, a teacher.
She and three colleagues groomed the unruly crowd by teaching the fine points of dining etiquette during Life Skills class, a topic covered every Friday during the students' 30-minute home base period.
The teachers devised a course unraveling the mystery of multiple utensils, proper napkin drape and the difference between bone china, crystal and their poorer cousins.
Many of the lessons had applications within the curriculum, like calculating tips or figuring calories.
They even covered the topic of acceptable table conversation, ``You do not want to talk about anything that you would not want to put in your mouth,'' admonished Jane Kimberley, a social studies teacher, during one pre-event lesson.
Teachers hoped the mini-course would go farther than simply improving the atmosphere in the cafeteria.
``Our students here at Bayside don't have these types of experiences,'' said Mason, who teaches math. ``We want to offer them something they're not used to and hopefully they'll strive for it.''
It would also help get them ready for social occasions coming up in high school, said assistant principal, LyVonnia Revels, who went along as a chaperone.
To help pay for their morning out, students washed cars and sold donuts.
Boys showed up at Tandom's in ties, suits and polished shoes. Girls wore hose, heels, dresses and hair crimped and primped.
They entered the restaurant on the arms of their companions with an eye toward getting the best table.
Sabrina Taylor and Terry Byerly snatched up the only two fireside seats, a choice the 13-year-olds would regret by the soup course.
``It's a little warm,'' admitted Terry, as flames flickered inches from his backside.
After all their preparation, some seemed disappointed lunch wasn't more of a challenge.
After all, they'd learned the difference between demi-tasse and coffee spoons and knew how use a seafood fork.
``Not crystal,'' said Jonathan Dunn, 13, tapping his water glass. Later he fretted over where to put his dinner roll, ``No bread and butter plates,'' he said, shaking his head.
They exercised their new knowledge where they could. Male diners bobbed up and down to let women leave and rejoin their tables. Sugar bowls and lemon slices were passed with excruciating correctness. And with the discreetest of waves, waiters were hailed . . . and hailed . . . and hailed. . . .
``They drink a lot more iced tea than adults,'' said Ruth Ballance, one of the restaurant's staff who works a lot of banquets. ``And they sure need a lot of sugar.''
The meal was as good, ``but nicer'' than Shoney's or Denny's, pronounced Shanna Collins, 14. And the experience may bring more sophisticated palates to the lunch line back at school.
``There's wine in this,'' said Jonathan, sampling his teriyaki.
``No, it all burns off when you cook it,''said Joshua, tasting his. ``That's the marination.'' ILLUSTRATION: Color photos by D. KEVIN ELLIOTT, The Virginian-Pilot
Bayside teacher Jane Kimberley worked on mealtime etiquette before
unleashing her charges on Tandom's. Her words to the wise: ``You do
not want to talk about anything that you would not want to put in
your mouth.''
Amanda Russell, 13, left, and Daniel Sorrells, 14, found reason to
smile even as they practiced noncafeteria behavior.
Photo by D. KEVIN ELLIOTT, The Virginian-Pilot
Dessert makes even a constricting tie and confining jacket bearable,
as Randall Henry, 13, discovered while dining at Tandom's Pine Tree
Inn in Virginia Beach Monday.
by CNB