Combined dining and cooking table

Claim 1

A combined dining and cooking table comprising, a stationary outer annular horizontal tabletop for dining purposes, said tabletop having a major annular portion and a front portion, said tabletop having a central opening, an annular metal plate having a flattop surface, with said plate stationarily positioned within the central opening and with the top surface of the plate being substantially on the same plane as the top of the tabletop, said metal plate forming the cooking and heating unit, electrical heating elements positioned below the top surface of said metal plate for heating said annular metal plate so that a food product placed directly on the plate may be heated or cooked on said plate, a centrally positioned hollow upright member positioned between a floor and the tabletop and on which said tabletop is supported, said centrally positioned hollow upright member positioned inwardly of the perimeter of said annular tabletop to permit persons to be sated around the major annular portion of the tabletop equidistant from the center of the tabletop without the persons'' feet being interferred with by said hollow upright member, electrical control means for controlling said heating elements, said control means being positioned adjacent the front portion of the tabletop, said metal plate having an opening, a receptacle positioned within said hollow upright member in alignment with said opening for receiving fat and cooking residue accumulated on the metal plate during the heating and cooking process.