Years ago glass makers produced two part ensembles to use for cheese and crackers. The bottom plate was big enough to hold many crackers and one put a cheese ball or spread in the raised center comport piece. Thus, a cheese and cracker set.
The one we show here is from Cambridge Glass, their etch 704 pattern in amber. The photo shows it bright and it is nowhere near garish. It is a deep warm rich color. The plate has the etched design and the comport is plain, quite a nice combination.
Etch 704 has fancy scrolls in mirror images of each other all around the rim. Gene Florence nicknamed this Windows Border because the edge treatment that you can just see looks like little windows. Personally I’d have called it Double Scroll or something related to the larger scroll / swag part of the pattern instead of the small rim edge design. (It took me a while to figure out why he called it that, but that’s a different story.)
The idea of cheese and cracker sets is one it’s time to resurrect. We all eat cheese and crackers; we all would like to have the food service look halfway decent, especially when we’re having a party. Personally I don’t care for the plastic deli trays and I don’t like my crackers sliding into the cheese like they do if you put everything on a serving platter. The separate little dish for the cheese is a brilliant way to keep the food looking good – and the cheese from getting all over the crackers before you are ready to eat it.