The Mess Dinner

A mess dinner is one of the most valued traditions of the Canadian Armed Forces. It is a chance to enjoy the comradeship of fellow members and guests, and to share fine food in an elegant setting. The custom goes back about two hundred years, and its purpose is the same today as it was then: to give seniors and juniors the chance to meet on a friendly but formal occasion, and to let the Commanding Officer address the squadron as a group. The formality fosters a fellowship that less formal gatherings lack.

A mess dinner is treated as a parade. Attendance is expected, dress and timings are set, and conduct is overseen by the President of the Mess Committee so that a high standard of decorum is kept. Today's dinner evolved from the customs of former Royal Canadian Air Force officers' messes, adapted for cadets.

When the Commanding Officer or a senior guest arrives, everyone rises as a courtesy. Diners do not leave the table without the PMC's permission, so the pre-dinner period is the time to visit the washroom. When the head table enters, the PMC escorts the Guest of Honour, the CO escorts the next senior guest, and the rest follow to their places, each standing behind their chair.

Once everyone is in place, the Vice tells the PMC, "Mr. PMC, all diners are present." The PMC taps for silence and calls on a chaplain or a designated member for grace, a simple blessing such as "For what we are about to receive, thank God," answered with "Amen." Diners are then seated, pulling the chair out to the right and sitting from the left.

After the meal, when the table is cleared, the senior steward reports, "Table cleared." The PMC taps for silence and grace is said again: "For what we have received, thank God."

Passing the port. In the Air Force tradition the port is piped in, and the decanter never touches the table, a nod to flight. The PMC removes the stopper, pours and samples a little as one would wine, then passes the decanter to the left. The PMC and the Vice are the last to receive it. No one touches their port until the loyal toast.

The loyal toast. The PMC rises and says, "Mr/Madam Vice, the King of Canada." The Vice rises and says, "Ladies and Gentlemen, the King."

March pasts. Diners are recognized by their march past: the RCAF March Past for the Air Force, La Feuille d'Erable, and others. When your march past plays, you stand until the music ends.

Fallen comrades. A simple toast, "To Fallen Comrades," may be offered. Some messes also set a place in honour of the fallen, the Missing Aviator Table described below.

Following the toasts, the staff and cooks are recognized, and the PMC makes announcements and introduces the Official Host, who in turn introduces the Guest of Honour. Awards and promotions may follow. The floor may then open for diners to offer brief, sincere toasts.

Dismissal. The senior member stands to signal that the dinner is over; the others stand until the head table has left the room.

Seating. The CO sits at the centre of the head table with the senior guest on the right; the PMC sits at the right end and the Vice at the left. A small name card marks each place. (Place cards have a second life as a way to pass a note down the table to the PMC, which is why some diners quietly pocket their own.)

Rules of order. It is considered poor form to begin a dish before the PMC, to discuss politics or other controversial subjects, to act in a boisterous manner, to propose a toast out of turn, to talk once the PMC has called for attention, or to leave the table during the meal without permission.

Conversation. In the mess there are no ranks or titles; everyone is addressed as Mister, Miss, or Misses, except the PMC and the Vice, who are addressed by title. Speak only with those across, beside, and diagonal from you, never with the head table or the opposite table. Keep it tactful, kind, brief, and cheerful, and never with food in your mouth or utensils in your hand.