Practical "Tableware" (ie Not All Over the Deck Ware) when Underway

[KompetentKrew]

What are your favourite feeding-troughs when underway? Anyone found a range with a non-slip base? That's what's really needed.

I spent a few hours looking at this before equipping my boat a year ago and can inform you that at least three of the major suppliers of camping / caravanning tableware make melamine with nonslip bases - Brunner, Flamefield and Kampa.

They tend to be the manufacturer's "premium" range of melamine tableware, in a more limited range of colours / patterns. I ended up with Kampa's "classic white" set, but wished Brunner did more non-slip as they have an amazing range of regular melamine - for many of their sets they have matching butter dishes, milk jugs, salad bowls and egg holders. But not with the non-slip bases.

Brunner's full range: Melamine Collection - Brunner s.r.l.

This set has good illustrations: 12Pce Non-Slip Melamine Dinner Set

The crockery sticks to a surface amazingly well, but it's a bit pointless because their contents do not.

 

[wully1]

For hot drinks we use steel screw top vacuum mugs. Tea stays hot for hours so it’s now standard practice to make a brew before departure and have it handy in the cockpit ready for use. Various colours available so you don’t poison yourself by mistakenly sipping the Mrs herbal tea..

 

[Spirit (of Glenans)]

Self-tacking soup bowls are extra but you can find them in the same department along with fully gimbled fondue sets.

For anyone who doesn't believe such a thing exists, here's a nice vintage one that was taken from a Swiss trawler.

I wasn't aware that there was a Swiss fishing fleet?

 

[RupertW]

Fascinating. We use proper glasses, mugs, bowls and plates on board as I‘m not fond of even the nicest non breakables.

Glasses and mugs go into cup holders (two attached to the binnacle and two which are basically just holes in the cockpit table).

Tend to use bowls for lunch and dinner underway with less blowable salad as it gets rougher but in bouncy conditions they are handed by cook to crew through the hatch and hold onto the bowl until finished and dropped into the cockpit table storage.

Things very very rarely break and when they do, meh, if we wouldn’t chose that crockery at home then no reason to put up with worse on our floating home.

 

[johnalison]

Fascinating. We use proper glasses, mugs, bowls and plates on board as I‘m not fond of even the nicest non breakables.

Glasses and mugs go into cup holders (two attached to the binnacle and two which are basically just holes in the cockpit table).

Tend to use bowls for lunch and dinner underway with less blowable salad as it gets rougher but in bouncy conditions they are handed by cook to crew through the hatch and hold onto the bowl until finished and dropped into the cockpit table storage.

Things very very rarely break and when they do, meh, if we wouldn’t chose that crockery at home then no reason to put up with worse on our floating home.

We are much the same. I remember being a teatime guest on a German boat and being impressed by our host’s bone china, which she had had for twenty years or so. We use those tough glass plates and mugs widely sold and which are almost unbreakable, and non-slip mats. We have had a few glass breakages, but none while under way that I recall. A friend had a neat way of handing mugs out from the galley while under way; she put them in a saucepan and held it where it could be reached.

 

[RichardS]

We use ordinary household glassware and crockery. There's always a few long-stemmed glasses of wine sitting on the table whilst underway.

Richard

 

[rotrax]

'Galleyware' is OE on Island Packet yachts.

Early design has rubber buttons for non slip, later stuff a rubber band in a annular groove with enough protruding for non slip.

Alladin made a proper mug, wide base, narrow top, non slip, insulated and with a lid. They are so good we deep sixed the lids.

We have four.

Never seen or found anything better.

 

[Hallberg-Rassy]

I wasn't aware that there was a Swiss fishing fleet?

Yeah, you know what the Swiss are like. Each of the 26 cantons has it's own government sponsored seamen's union too. They operate like clockwork and have a great line in chocolate survival bars.

 

[anoccasionalyachtsman]

A friend had a neat way of handing mugs out from the galley while under way; she put them in a saucepan and held it where it could be reached.

S'what I do, but also do the pouring while the mugs are in the pan atop the oven. They're then gimballed and slop proof.

 

[michael_w]

Another vote for dog bowls. Cheap plastic ones with a handy cut out so they are easier to hold on to.

 

[Boathook]

We use ordinary household glassware and crockery. There's always a few long-stemmed glasses of wine sitting on the table whilst underway.

Richard

I've given up with long stemmed wine glasses on board. They didn't hold enough and kept getting knocked over when reaching for the wine box !!

 

[ryanroberts]

I am getting flashbacks to that Griff Rhys Jones sketch thinking about offering normal people I somehow convince to come sailing with me a dog bowl.

 

[Hallberg-Rassy]

There's always someone who is willing to go one step too far.

Especially on curry night.

 

[johnalison]

S'what I do, but also do the pouring while the mugs are in the pan atop the oven. They're then gimballed and slop proof.

Much easier to hold the pourer and receptacle, one in each hand. As you sway they both move together and you get fewer spills.

 

[anoccasionalyachtsman]

Much easier to hold the pourer and receptacle, one in each hand. As you sway they both move together and you get fewer spills.

I've only got two hands, and I'm hanging on with one of them!

(You, presumably, have a sensible strap - I've never got round to fitting one...).

 

[Hydrozoan]

Much easier to hold the pourer and receptacle, one in each hand. As you sway they both move together and you get fewer spills.

That does, however, preclude the trick of pouring down a rod - in my case, the stem of a wooden spoon (some bartenders' spoons have twisted stems as a further refinement). I guess which approach is best depends on the motion, how well the hands are coordinated and the pouring qualities of the pan.

 

[Channel Sailor]

We use ordinary household glassware and crockery. There's always a few long-stemmed glasses of wine sitting on the table whilst underway.

Richard

Ah, yes. I remember that kind of sailing. The wine glasses being left in the table along with the children’s jigsaw puzzles. Unfortunately I am without a catamaran now.

 

[Roberto]

I would not use bowls with handles, they are a pain to stow; I even shortened all pans handle, otherwise when the boat heels they touch the wooden protection bar in front and the content spills.
With bad weather I use this thermal bowl, in particular when I must eat in the cockpit, it keeps food hot whereas with normal bowls it takes just a few seconds to cool everything to ambient temperature.

 

[NotBirdseye]

I would not use bowls with handles, they are a pain to stow; I even shortened all pans handle, otherwise when the boat heels they touch the wooden protection bar in front and the content spills.
With bad weather I use this thermal bowl, in particular when I must eat in the cockpit, it keeps food hot whereas with normal bowls it takes just a few seconds to cool everything to ambient temperature.
View attachment 103670

pan handles should always be turned to the sides... they should never stick out into the galley... ?

That said thermal bowls are awesome and you can get them such that they have wide bottoms and narrow mouths similar to cups.

 

[Roberto]

pan handles should always be turned to the sides... they should never stick out into the galley... ?

Unfortunately my stove is a bit recessed vertically, on one side there is a bulkhead, on the other a vertical gap of 15-20cm with the working plan, long handles can only protrude from the front. I eventually replaced everything with two short handle pans, but worst of all I had to cut the long wooden handle of a traditional Chinese wok

The worst stove I have seen, hear hear, was on a 58' Swan I delivered, boats supposedly "born to sail". I am not particularly tall but 1.80m anyway, when the boat heeled the upper face of the stove became level with the eyes, difficult to see if the flame was on, impossible to see any contents of the pans