from
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Table d'hote \Ta"ble d'h[^o]te"\ (t[.a]"bl' d[=o]t`); pl.
{Tables d'h[^o]te}. [F., literally, table of the landlord.]
1. A common table for guests at a hotel; an ordinary.
[1913 Webster]
2. Now, commonly, a meal, usually of several preselected and
fixed courses, in a restaurant, hotel, or the like, for
which one pays a fixed price. Sometimes, a meal with
optional courses for which one pays a fixed price
irrespective of what one orders; but the latter is
usuallyt referred to as a {pris fixe} meal or a {a la
carte} meal. Often used adjectively; as, a table-d'h[^o]te
meal.
[Webster 1913 Suppl.]