Submission Guidelines
WHAT WE NEED. WHAT WE DON'T.
To submit an entry to The Final Table, provide the following:
The date of the meal.
Exact or approximate. If you remember the month and year but not the day, that is sufficient. If you only remember the year, that is sufficient. Memory is imprecise. The record accommodates this.
The location.
As specific or as vague as you are comfortable with. A city is enough. "A kitchen in a house that no longer belongs to the family" is enough. We do not require an address.
The number of participants.
Names are never published. A general description is acceptable: "four (family)," "two (colleagues)," "one." The number matters. The names do not.
The menu.
As precisely as you remember it. Imprecision is acceptable and often more honest. "Something with chicken" is a menu. "Leftover lasagna, reheated. Side salad from a bag. Tap water." is a menu. We do not verify. If you say it was lasagna, it was lasagna.
The context.
What transition followed the meal, and how soon after. This is the element that qualifies the entry. The meal itself need not have been significant. The transition is what makes it the final table.
Anything else you remember.
The detail you think doesn't matter is usually the one that does. The pudding was from a box. The lasagna had improved. The dishwasher brought a bottle of bourbon. Include it.
Memory is the only source we require.
Submissions are reviewed for clarity and filed as received. We do not edit the emotional content. We do not verify the menu. We do not contact other participants. If you were there, your account is the record.