Daily Yellowstone journal., 1886-05-05
THE FRENCH DINNER.
HOW ECONOMICAL HABITS INFlu-
eNcE A CoUNTRY'S CUISINE.

an improvement ea thc <A"ese'N SuShoha
Of Reclining at the Banquet Table-The
French Dejeuner-variety of Dishes
At an American Restaurant.
As regards position at meals 1t does not
appear that the ancient Greeks and
Romans showed good judgment in reclin-
ing at their banquets. The horizontal
attitude is not favorable to digestion, the
digestive organs being thrown out Of posi-
ton, and the attraction of gravitation not
IN any manner aiding the food to reach its
destination. How much better are our
present ways of placing ourselves at tablet
We place ourselves about what Is hospit-
ably called a "board," which may be either
round, oval, square OF oblong, seating our
selves in comfortable chairs, upholstered
In cloth or leather, and thrusting our feet
nonchalantly under our own or some one
slse's mahogany. So arranged, serving is
convenient, all the dinners are mutually
visible, conversation is easy, and all the
conditions favorable to the good digestion
which should, II it does not, always wait
on appetite.
In considering contemporary ways of
eating dinner it must be confessed that the
WOIlu OWtS u utbl VI kiotse'S w wiz
French for the great Improvements they
have made in the cuisine. But now did IL
happen that 1t fell to their lot to furnish
majority of the cooks OF the world as
well as to set standards OF tastes which
the majority of the civilized world gener-
ally followss Curiously enough IL grew
originally out of the economical habits OF
the people. France is a country in which
economy has alway been necessary, either
on account of a population larger than
the land could support generously, or be-
cause Of frequent wars that devastated
and impoverished the country, or oppres-
sive burdens borne by the people before
the French revolution
RESULTS OF THE ECONOMICAL HABIT.
The economical habit has therefore be-
come hereditary. When the best mate
rials Of which to prepare dinner were
wanting, IL was necessary to use the Dad.
When the best "cutsn Of an animal cost too
much, the less desirable parts-the heart,
liver, kidneys, giblets and bony portions
had to be used. II used at all they had to
be rendered appetizing; hence ingenious
methods Of cooking, and the invention OF
sauces 80 exquisite that served with an old
pair of boots they would render the dish
not only eatable, but excellent and digest
i've. II did not take long to discover In
this way that many things previously con-
sidered uneatable were really superior,
while articles of food hitherto un-
dreamed Of came gradually to be discov-
cred. But though the origin OF the French
dinner is mainly due to these causes, the
good taste Of the better class Of French
people and the luxury Of great mobiles and
royal courts had much to do with its de-
velopment and its present elaboration.
But the French dinner, with all its ex-
cellencies, has its disadvantages, In which
connection II may not be amiss to mention
the French breakfast, or dejeuner. 1t Is
the first substantial meal of the day, moth
ing having been previously taken except
coffee with bit of bread II comes from
II to /. It il meal with q most uncom-
msrcial aspect, for 1t can hardly consume
less than an hour and q half OF the best
business portion Of the day, II 1t is to be
eaten with decency and decorum. In the
provincial towns OF France business Is en-
tirely suspended during the time devoted
to 1t, and banks and many places OF busi-
ness are entirely closed, to the great incon-
venience Of foreigners and of all classes
of persons whose stay in the place Is nee
essarily limited. In Paris places Of busi-
ness are left open. Principals go home or
to restaurants 70 take their breakfast at
leisure, while the clerks manage the best
way they can with cold food or with soups
or ragouts prepared on the stove which
warns the office. An unpleasant feature
of the French breakfast is that it is too
much like the dinner The dishes are
much the same and 1t Is served In the same
manner, though the dishes are not 80 nu-
merous.
THE VARIETY OF FRENCH DISHES
It must be said in general of the French
dinner that il is remarkably absolute In
its rules. Il admits of great variety, but
is usually eaten with very little. Its fam
lily likeness the world over, whether in
America, the small towns OF France, In
Italy or Algiers, Egypt India, China, or on
shipboard, seems extraordinary to trav-
eler who is accustomed to think at all
about what he eats. There Is soup, a
fish, an entree, a vegetable, roast, salad
and desert. These different articles taste
the same everywhere. II they are good,
they have the same good qualities; II bad,
the same bad qualities. To all intents and
purposes they might have come out OF the
same oven, pots or saucepans. The same
rules OF resemblance extend to pastry,
which, good or bad, has the same appear
ance and the same at Paris, in the prov
inces and in the colonies, and wherever in
foreign countries q French cook presides
in the kitchen. Allowing for the great
variety and possibilities in the French
dinner, the number Of dishes seems, as
usually served. too small, and the likeness
in taste gives an unpleasant impression.
The hotels in America have undoubt-
edly adopted the best system. The gen
eral rules Of the French cuisine are fol-
lowed, but the service at table is alto
gether different, being precisely that Of
the best Paris restaurants. IL is combi-
nation of the table d'hote and restaurant
systems. The guest sits at the COM
mon table, but he selects his soup, fish,
meats and desserts from a variety Of each
printed on the bill of fare. instead OF hav-
ing them forced upon him. There is
always a profusion. He can never COM
plain that he has not had enough, nor IL he
understands the bill, that he has not had
what he desires. He can have national
dishes IL he prefers, for at every good Am
erican restaurant or hotel these are served
In greater or less variety. This system
perplexes or annoys captious Englishmen,
who either do not or will not see that at
the American hotel table they do pre-
cisely what they do at the best restaurants
on the continent Of Europe, are in every
way more generously served and pay much
less.-San Francisco Chronicle.