How Do You Set a Dawat Table with a Wooden Hot Pot and a Tiered Stand?

Short answer: put the 12 inch wooden hot pot near the curries so rotis stay covered and warm, and set the three-tier sheesham stand at the centre of the table for fruit, sweets or cake. Both are handmade from sheesham with hand-laid brass inlay, so they sit well together. The hot pot costs PKR 2,300 and the stand PKR 2,850.

Why pair a hot pot with a tiered stand on one table?

A dawat table has two jobs. It has to keep the meal warm while everyone serves themselves, and it has to look generous. The hot pot looks after the first job: it keeps roti soft and warm from the first serving to the last. The tiered stand looks after the second, lifting fruit and mithai up where everyone can see and reach them.

Because both pieces are turned from sheesham and inlaid with brass, they look like they belong together rather than like two unrelated serving dishes.

Where does each piece go on the table?

• The hot pot goes beside the mains, so guests take a roti and replace the lid as they serve. Its lid is heavy and seats flush, which is what holds the heat in, and it lifts by a turned knob at the centre.
• The three-tier stand goes at the centre as the centrepiece. It stands about 16 inches tall, and the carved ring at the top lets you lift and move it without disturbing what is on the tiers.

Keep a little space around the stand so people can reach every tier from either side of the table.

What goes on each tier?

The product page suggests it suits cake and biscuits at a birthday, dry fruit and mithai at Eid, fruit on a dining table, or sandwiches and samosas at high tea. A simple layout:

• Bottom tier: the heaviest items, such as fruit or a cake.
• Middle tier: mithai or biscuits.
• Top tier: dry fruit or small sweets.

Use a plate or paper under anything oily, as the page recommends, so the wood stays clean.

How do the two pieces match?

Both are turned on the khraad, the lathe, from solid sheesham, and both carry brass that is set into the wood and polished flush rather than stuck on top. On the hot pot, the brass traces the rim of the lid and runs in bands around the body. The hot pot comes in two designs. On the stand, small brass flowers are inlaid into each tier.

Each piece is made by hand, so the grain and colour vary a little between pieces. That variation is normal.

How do you care for them after guests leave?

• Wipe clean with a dry or slightly damp cloth.
• Do not soak them, do not put them in a dishwasher and do not leave them standing in water.
• Keep them out of direct sunlight and standing heat so the wood does not dry or fade.
• A light food-safe mineral oil once or twice a year keeps plain serving pieces from drying out.

The stand also comes apart by hand, so it can be stored flat between occasions.

Do they work as a gift pair?

Yes. The product page notes that a name, a date or a line of calligraphy can be engraved on the hot pot lid, which makes it a common nikkah and housewarming gift. Paired with the stand, it gives a new household two pieces that come out every time guests visit.

For more on each piece, read our guides to the wooden hot pot and to fruit baskets and serving stands.

Wooden hot pot for roti→

Wooden fruit baskets and serving stands→

Shop the dawat table pieces

Wooden Hot Pot 12 Inch, Brass Inlay: PKR 2,300. https://sillanwalihandicrafts.com/products/wooden-hot-pot-brass-inlay

Shop now→

Three-Tier Wooden Cake and Fruit Stand: PKR 2,850. https://sillanwalihandicrafts.com/products/handcrafted-3-tiered-wooden-cake-and-fruit-stand

Shop now→