Published September 1, 2008. From Cook's Illustrated.
Tabletop food tents claim to protect outdoor meals from flies. We put them to the test.
We love to entertain outside in summer, but fighting off insects can force the party indoors. One solution is to pop open a food tent. We tested a variety of these mesh shelters, including dome-shaped models, a large model meant to cover a full table, and a cylindrical set that covered plates up to 16 inches.
All were large enough for most standard serving platters, and all were collapsible for storage and transportation. We preferred the set that offered a range of sizes and finer, sturdier mesh.
