Country Girl said:
We have individual tables. After I make the introductions the guests will usually chat back and forth and many times they linger long after breakfast is over. My dilema is when to clear the dishes away from the table. If they are having a great conversation I hate to break the momentum by stepping in to start clearing. If I do, they usually take that as a signal to leave the table. But I also hate to leave dirty dishes in front of them.
If the room is awkwardly quiet then I usually start in with a joke. My latest one starts, "An innkeeper, a CEO, and a missionary walk into a bar.." LOL
(Thanks Yellow Socks)
I usually do a quick stroll thru the room with the coffee pot in hand, doing refills. Then I go back for the plates. The guests have their coffee, so they 'get' that it's ok to hang out and talk. If they have maps or brochures spread out, I say, 'Let me get those dishes out of your way. If you need help planning your road trip, let me know.' A lot of guests read the paper to each other at breakfast and as soon as the papers come back out, I know it's ok to clear.
Now there are times when I do need the guests to get up as there are others waiting, but generally the other guests themselves make it quite clear they're ready to sit down.
That's where I have problems. When guests are obviously done but they think they bought the table for the morning. They could move to the sitting room or to the kitchen area to continue their coffee, but they don't. In that case, I set the next guests up in the living room.