What are the courses in a seven-course meal? What are the courses in a five-course meal? What would typically be served at each of the courses?
Whatever you like. Typical courses (not necessarily in order of serving) are: appetizer, soup, salad, fish, fowl, meat, dessert, sorbet (to clear the palate between heavier courses) and/or vegetables. Depends on the meal organizers, the tradition/s of the chef/s, and other factors.
The dinner “club” that I belong to does 7-course dinners (in order of serving) that consist of: appetizer, soup, fish/fowl with vegetables, salad, meat with vegetables, dessert, and cheese & fruit (although there is some discussion over the last two - sweet (dessert) last, or savoury (cheese & fruit) last?
According to Gary Rhodes, 7 course meal usually consists of: Soup, Fish, Sorbet, Meat & Fowl, Salad, Dessert, Coffee.
I don’t know about five. My brief search found a mention of a nine course meal!.
Here is a link to a post by Green Bean with an example of a seven course meal. I remembered it, because it is the most appropriate use of the rolleyes smilie I’ve ever seen.
The post following hers gives an example of a ten course meal.
The last 7 course meal I had consisted of:
Eggplant salad & hummus
Chicken pastry
Chicken
Lamb
Couscous
Baklava & mint tea
Fresh fruit
… and I didn’t need to eat at all the following day. 
Two all beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions, on a sesame seed bun.
I once worked a wedding where they were serving a 9 course meal - to nearly 300 people in a space that really only holds about 250 comfortably. It was NOT FUN! And the damn (incompetent) chefs kept pressuring us waitresses to work faster - apparently the idea of waiting for the guests to FINISH THEIR PLATES was lost on them! :rolleyes:
I think the cheese platter should be before the sweet dessert, because the first often goes with port or wine, while the latter is usually served with coffee. Few people want to return to wines after they’ve had coffee, but switching to port after the wine of the main couse is easier, and more pleasureable. Of course, the chefs didn’t get that, either. And apparently a cheese platter is defined as “White cheddar, orange cheddar, marble cheddar and swiss”. :rolleyes:
Sorry - I’m just having bad memories!
TEXAS 7 course meal:
A pot of chili and a six-pack
unclviny
Can someone answer a related question? At a black tie dinner the other week, there were several courses. However, after the tarte tatin (first dessert) we were served a salty course – called Croute Baron, from what the menu card said. I’d never heard of having salty after the sweet like this, and certainly never heard of a “croute baron” (it was essentially a meat & melted cheese on a flaky cracker).
Any idea what this course is called, after dessert but before the fruit and port came out?