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Short answer: table linen par depends on how many covers you serve between laundry deliveries. Stock = daily use x days between deliveries x 2, plus a small reserve. For a 60-seat restaurant serving 100 covers a day with laundry twice a week, that is about 880 napkins and 350 tablecloths.
The formula
Daily use = covers per day (napkins), or table turns per day (cloths)
Stock = daily use x days between laundry deliveries x 2 + 10 percent
The "x 2" covers the set that is at the laundry while you use the other.
A worked example
60 seats, 20 tables, 100 covers a day, cloths changed after every party, laundry delivered every 4 days.
| Napkins | Tablecloths | |
|---|---|---|
| Daily use | 100 | 40 table turns |
| Days between deliveries | 4 | 4 |
| In use between deliveries | 400 | 160 |
| Times 2 | 800 | 320 |
| Plus 10 percent | 880 | 352 |
If you use a top cloth over a base cloth and change only the top, the base cloths are counted separately at a much lower rate.
Daily laundry cuts the stock sharply. Daily use x 1 x 2 plus 10 percent gives 220 napkins and 88 cloths.
Sizing a cloth to a table
Cloth size = table size + (2 x drop)
A drop of 20 to 30 cm suits casual dining. Fine dining often uses 30 to 40 cm. To the floor is for banquets.
| Table | Cloth for a 25 cm drop |
|---|---|
| 70 x 70 cm square | 120 x 120 cm |
| 90 x 90 cm square | 140 x 140 cm |
| 120 x 80 cm rectangle | 170 x 130 cm |
| 90 cm round | 140 cm round |
| 150 cm round | 200 cm round |
The tablecloth size calculator works this for any table.
Napkin sizes
| Use | Size |
|---|---|
| Cocktail | 25 x 25 cm |
| Lunch and casual | 40 x 40 cm |
| Dinner | 50 x 50 cm |
| Fine dining | 55 x 55 cm or larger |
Fabric
| Fabric | Feel | Laundry | Suits |
|---|---|---|---|
| 100% cotton | Best. Absorbent | Needs pressing, can shrink | Fine dining |
| Poly-cotton | Good | Easier, less creasing | Most restaurants |
| Polyester | Smooth, not absorbent | Easiest, keeps colour | Banquets, high volume |
A napkin has to absorb. Pure polyester napkins look sharp and push spills around. Cotton or cotton-rich is the usual choice for napkins even where the cloths are polyester.
Colour
White shows it is clean and can be bleached. Dark colours hide marks but show lint and fade with repeated hot washing. If you choose a colour, keep a retained piece so reorders match.
Cutting linen cost
- Top cloths or runners over a base cloth mean a smaller piece to wash per turn.
- Bare tables with good napkins are common now. The napkin then carries the whole impression.
- Count weekly. Napkins vanish into kitchens as cleaning cloths. Give the kitchen its own cloths in a different colour.
Rent or own
Many restaurants rent table linen from a laundry. Owning makes sense if you want your own colour, size or fabric and have a wash-only price. The comparison in owning vs renting works the same way.
Ordering from us
Table linen is made to order in your sizes and fabric. We don't publish a price or minimum for it yet, so ask and we'll quote your quantities directly.
See our page for restaurant table linen. To get a quote, send us table sizes, covers per day and laundry frequency.
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Written by
Dr Abin Babu
Founder & Chairman, Anabyn Global Ventures
Anabyn exports hotel and home linen from Kerala, India. These guides come from the questions buyers ask our desk. About the team
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