Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-03-04
ANGL0-GALLIC CUISINE
HOW PARIsIANS AND LoNDoNERs
REGARD RESTAURANTS.
Difference of Opinion of English and
French as to Preparation
of Food.

Paris correspondence OF the London bloife
1t is one of the amusements of my life to
foist strange dishes on people, and / don't
know which Is the more obstinate with re-
gard to them, the Englishman the
Frenehman. l have tanned several French
men to eat bread sauce. and they like it
now. They have been told that English
people habitualiy sit in fog drinking tea
and eating vegetables boiled in water: but
once their mind Is rid of these fittie preju-
dices they take to the English cuisine like
duck does to water. And for very good
reason. They are born "gourmets," and
the English cuisine when properly done is
bad to beat So is the real cuisine
FRANCHISE which IL, alas. disappearing
with rapidity. En- attendant the age OF
food pellets. for which all dyspeptics pray
earnestly and daily. we are passing through
transition period of ornamental cookery.
the excellence of which is judged not by its
taste. which is usually that of boiled string.
but by its name and its highly colored and
usually UNBEATABLE trimmings
The perfection of this cuisine is. | have
observed, attained in London, where if you
want to eat something fit for human food
You must go to q grill room for it.
As It is in Paris.
In Paris the class of persons who can at
ford to go to good restaurant does not
accept menu as does the Londoner If he
cannot get something simple and well
cooked he makes fuss But il is only in
the very expensive restaurants, and If YOU
happen to be well known in those restau
tants' that you can get simple cooking well
uone- otherwise you have to eat amy old
thing, Just like one does In London per-
maps this "exigence'' on the part of the
Fafisian comes from the fact that he dimes
more frequently at restaurants and re-
CARDS the Chef as. for the time being HE
servant whereas. even in these enlisht-
ened days. the Londoner-there are excen-
,ions TO the rule-is inclined somewhat to
look upon restaurant dinner as something
tnat must be good because IL is ont of the
common. and. therefore. forgets to criticise
the cook. ~ Ni'o
English Cooking.
10 me the fact that English peonIa do
not go IN for English cooking. and English
cooking alone. is incomprehensible II ia
the pest IN the world when 1t is properlv
done, and the most nourishing into tho
bargain. rich Englishman who had been
accustomed all his life to have the best or
everything once said to me that in HE
Opihion the most perfect chef was !,
rrencnman who had passed two years In
england From his point of view he was
lignt, Tor ne liked certain French dishes:
ou. IN my opinion no one can give CULINARY
points to the Mary Jane or Amelia Anne
VINO lives with ones comfortably situated
iIdiueh aunt somewhere in the English
provinces, and by her Judicious arrange
ment OF the good things of this life keens
the Old lady alive. 1 once had an aunt of
TINS description, and when went to stay
with her always became very fat Break
iast was at 8. and there was a coffee sery
Ice at one end of the table and a tea sery-
Ice at the other-I possess both of them
nov; ana am very careful not to make
fiDaid remarks before inanimate objects of
such responsibility. All over the table
were 9oited little plates Of the most deli
clous not cakes-buttered cakes-and they
were hot, and they We're buttered That il
where their excellence came in and II is a
KIND or excellence which you could never
induce French cook to attain IL YOU
spent lifetime on the process. Between
the cakes there were silver dishes with
not water under them. containing all sorts
or good things, kidneys and bacon, kedp-
s sree, eggs. and so on. And on the side
French cooking is not to be mentioned in
the same breath with such a breakfast.
every detail OF which was perfection.
Substantial Meals.
And the luncheons and the dinners were
to match, and besides, before the two fat
horses and ponderous coachman and foot
man came to take you for a solemn drive
In the morning. at about IL 30 you re-
iieved exhausted nature with little port
wine that was port wine and piece of
cake that was cake Really. in a country
where these things possible why do
people banker after foreign cookery? And
II they do so banker, why do they not have
it of the best instead of having it of the
worst, as they do in London?
wonder II any readers of the Globe have
suffered from ''soles demi-deuil' or entrees
that are made to look like a hand at
bridge or boiled outlets with a pink and
white sauce over them. L have. An Eng
lish lady living in Paris went over to Lon
don some two years ago. taking with her
a maid who was known to a certain family
of her friends. One evening she went to
dine with them, and they said: Bring
Marie too she can dine with the servants"
The dinner, in honor of the guest from
Paris. of the colored entree variety.
and. thinking to please the French girl. tho
servants served her with the same success
sion of mesSes. OF course she could only
play with them. poor thing; but this would
not have been so bitter had not a splendid
roast of beef with potatoes been served up
to the other servants. while the hungry
girl. who was too polite TO ask for any. was
looking on. Her feelings were, / fancy.
somewhat similar to those of Parsians of
another class who when visiting / oncon,
find all their gastronomic delights at
grill rooms where IA cuisine Anglaise
fIourSheS