I associate Lazy Susan revolving servers with Chinese restaurants, but they actually have been used in other settings for at least a hundred years. Here’s what a 1919 home economics textbook said:
The so-called “Lazy Susan” or servette finds favor with the homemaker who is her own maid. This is a revolving circular wooden or glass disk, supported on a stand placed in the center of the table. Food laid on the disk may be revolved to each person in turn, thus saving “passing,” or frequent rising. It also saves space on the the table by giving a place to bread and butter, sauces, condiments and other small dishes.
Household Engineering: Scientific Management in the Home by Mrs. Christine Frederick (1919)
A Hundred Years Ago 
Sometimes I love the internet. I found a photo of the very Lazy Susan that sat on our table at home. The colors and design are right; it was made by Hall China.
It’s amazing that you were able to find it on the internet. What fun colors! It’s a wonderful Lazy Susan.
I think I remember Tupperware having a lazy susan I had one years ago…many restaurants still have that revolving middle here …There are many cookery pots, pans and servers which have stood the test of time isn’t there?
It’s amazing how many kitchen tools, gadgets, pans and dishes have stood the test of time – though based on what I’ve seen in old magazines, there are also some that haven’t stood the test of time and have long vanished.
Always but it seems the cook in us sorts out the ones which really work and stand the test of time 🙂
How true. 🙂
I have a small wood one!
I bet that it’s pretty.
I still use one!
It’s awesome that you still use one.
I still like a Lazy Susan.
So do I – though I don’t own one (except for the Lazy Susan in one of my cupboards).
I have two beautiful hand-painted timber Lazy Susans.
Wow, they sound wonderful.
I have a small wooden one too….holds napkins, salt and pepper.
It sounds like the Lazy Susan serves a very useful role.
My mother had a small one on a wooden base with several small dishes. The large one that you showed would be useful for several people.
Lazy Susans can serve a variety of practical purposes.
Why is it called a ‘lazy susan’? I think a better name would be a ‘sensible susan’.
I like your suggestion. It’s a better description, and is much kinder to the “Susan” in the name.
We used to have a lazy Susan. And jolly useful it was too.
Lazy Susan’s are fun to use.
I must live in the wrong section of the country. I’ve never seen a Lazy Susan in a Chinese restaurant. We used a small one on the table to hold salt, pepper, and napkins, but it was needed more in a corner cabinet.
Around here, Lazy Susan’s are popular in Chinese restaurants- especially at the larger tables.
Never used a lazy Susan for serving food, they are nice in a corner cabinet . Come to think of it that would be a great way to serve taco salad with all its fixings.
I like your suggestion about using a Lazy Susan to serve taco salad. Whenever I serve tacos, I end up using all my cereal bowls to hold the various components, and it doesn’t really make a very good presentation.
Who doesn’t love a Lazy Susan? I have a small one in my pantry, but I think I’ll keep an eye out for a table-top version at yard sales. (I wonder who gave it that name? A man, or a very ironic, busy homemaker?)
If I was a betting person, I’d bet that a man came up with the name. It really isn’t very kind to the woman who is the namesake for this item.
The term “Household Engineering” in 1919 – who would have thought?
There was a lot of interest in the scientific management of factories and homes in the early 1900’s. The basic idea was that the work of men should be organized based on scientific principles, and similarly that women should use scientific principles when managing their homes.
That makes a ton of sense, of course. Efficiencies should cut the load and the feeling that one is mastering something should help one sing through what are still chores.
I’m still trying to learn how to sing while I do my chores. 🙂
I remember that those were popular some time in the seventies as well. Who knew they dated back over a hundred years ago?
It’s interesting how Lazy Susans are more popular during some time periods than others.