COMMITTEE PLANNING GUIDE FOR CONDUCTING
DINING’S-IN AND DINING’S-OUT
This guide should give you enough information to successfully get you through the planning of this traditional Army event. Some
traditional customs and procedures may not be practical or desired, depending on local circumstances. One such tradition is the
reference to officers only in the planning guides. Currently most dinings-in include both officers and enlisted personnel. However,
some dinings-in have specifically been for officers or enlisted only. Commanders may modify the traditional approach as local
conditions dictate.
Introduction
Formal military dinners are a tradition in all branches of the United States Armed services. In the Air Force and Navy, it is the Dining-
in; in the Army, the Regimental Dinner; in the Marine Corps and Coast Guard, Mess Night.
The dining-in and dining-out represent the most formal aspects of U.S. Army social life. The dining-in is the traditional form, and the
term will be used throughout this section. However, most of the information applies equally to both "Combat" dinings-in and dinings-
out. The dining-in is a formal dinner for the members of a unit, or other organization. The "Combat dining-in" is far less formal
because of the dress requirements and more informal atmosphere, however, the basic rules and format of the dining-in apply. The
dining-out includes spouses and guests.
It is important for the success of a dining-in that members enjoy the evening, and that the ceremonies are done in a tasteful, dignified
manner. A dining-in should have a theme around which the decorations and ceremony are built.
Background
As with most ancient traditions, the origin of the dining-in is not clear. Formal dinners are rooted in antiquity. From pre-Christian
Roman legions, to second century Viking warlords, to King Arthur’s knights in the sixth century, feasts to honor military victories and
individual and unit achievements have been a custom.
Some trace the origins of the dining-in to the old English monasteries. The custom was then taken up by the early universities and
eventually adopted by the military with the advent of the officers' mess. With the adoption of the dining-in by the military, these
dinners became more formalized. British soldiers brought the custom to colonial America, where it was borrowed by George
Washington's continental army.
The dining-in has served the U.S. Army well as an occasion for officers to meet socially at a formal military function. It enhances the
esprit of units, lightens the load of demanding day-to-day work, gives the commander an opportunity to meet socially with his or her
subordinates and enables military members of all ranks to create bonds of friendship and better working relations through an
atmosphere of good fellowship.
For more details on the history of the origin of the dining-in see Expanded History of the Dining-in.
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