intrepid one, for in the preface to his "Maître d'Hôtel Français" he says, "I have proved incontestably that all the books, down to the present time, on our cuisine, are full of errors ;" and he then proceeds to give evidence of his own superior breeding, with his natural and acquired qualifications for the art. We have to thank himself and Lady Morgan, who prides herself on a personal acquaintance with him, for most of the leading particulars of his life. Carème is a lineal descendant of that celebrated chef of Leo X. who received the name of Jean de Carème (Jack of Lent), for a soup-maigre which he invented for the Pope. It is remarkable that the first decisive proof of genius given by our Carème was a sauce for fast-dinners. He began his studies. by attending a regular course of roasting under some of the leading roasters of the day; although it is a favourite belief amongst gastronomers that poets and roasters belong to one and the same category;on se fait cuisinier, mais on est né rôtisseur — poëta nascitur, non fit. He next placed himself under M. Richaut, "fameux saucier de la maison de Condé," as Carème terms him, to learn the mystery of sauces; then under M. Asne, with a peculiar view to the belles parties des froids; and took his finishing degree under Robert l'Ainé, a professor of l'élégance moderne. The competition for the services of an artist thus accomplished was of course unparalleled. Half the sovereigns of Europe were suitors to him. He became by turns chef to the Emperor Alexander, Talleyrand, the late Lord Londonderry, the Princess Bagration, &c. Early in his career, he was induced by persevering solicitations and the promise of a salary of 1000l., to become chef to George IV., then Regent, but left him at the end of a few months. We have heard that, whilst he condescended to stay at Carlton House, immense prices were given by aldermen for his secondhand pâtés, after they had made their appearance at the Regent's table. The most tempting offers to return were subsequently made to him, but in vain; - mon âme (says he), toute française ne peut vivre qu'en France; - and he ended by accepting an engagement with Baron James Rothschild, of Paris, who, in common with the English branches of the same distinguished family, nobly sustains the characteristic reputation of a financier. Having spoken of Beauvillers and Carème as chiefs of two rival schools of art, we may naturally enough be expected to distinguish them; yet how are we to fix by words such a Cynthia of the minute as the evanescent delicacy, the light, airy, volatile aroma of a dish? nequeo narrare, et sentio tantum. But if compelled to draw distinctions between these two masters, we should say, that Beauvilliers was more remarkable for judgment, and Carème for invention, - that Beauvilliers exhausted the old world of art, and Carème discovered a new one, that Beauvilliers rigidly adhered to the unities, and Carème snatched a grace beyond them, that there was more aplomb in the touch of Beauvilliers, more curious felicity in Carème's that Beauvilliers was great in an entrée, and Carème sublime in an entremet, that we would bet Beauvilliers against the world for a rot, but should wish Carème to prepare the sauce were we under the necessity of eating up an elephant or our grandfather.* - As example is always better than precept, we subjoin Lady Morgan's animated sketch of a dinner by Carème at the Baron Rothschild's villa: "I did not hear the announcement of Madame est servie * 66 Lorsque cette sauce est bien traitée, elle ferait manger son grandpère ou un éléphant.". Almanach des Gourmands. without emotion. We proceeded to the dining-room, not as in England by the printed orders of the red-book, but by the law of the courtesy of nations, whose only distinctions are made in favour of the greatest strangers. The evening was extremely sultry, and in spite of Venetian blinds and open verandas, the apartments through which we passed were exceedingly close. A dinner in the largest of them threatened much inconvenience from the heat; but on this score there was no ground for apprehension. The dining-room stood apart from the house, in the midst of orange-trees: it was an elegant oblong pavilion of Grecian marble, refreshed by fountains that shot in air through scintillating streams, and the table, covered with the beautiful and picturesque dessert, emitted no odour that was not in perfect conformity with the freshness of the scene and fervour of the season. No burnished gold reflected the glaring sunset, no brilliant silver dazzled the eyes; porcelain, beyond the price of all precious metals by its beauty and its fragility, every plate a picture, consorted with the general character of sumptuous simplicity which reigned over the whole, and showed how well the masters of the feast had consulted the genius of the place in all. "To do justice to the science and research of a dinner so served would require a knowledge of the art equal to that which produced it; its character, however, was, that it was in season, that it was up to its time, that it was in the spirit of the age, that there was no perruque in its composition, no trace of the wisdom of our ancestors in a single dish, no high-spiced sauces, no dark-brown gravies, no flavour of cayenne and allspice, no tincture of catsup and walnut pickle, no visible agency of those vulgar elements of cooking of the good old times, fire and water. Distillations of the most delicate viands, extracted in silver dews, with chemical precision 'On tepid clouds of rising steam'— formed the fond all. EVERY MEAT PRESENTED ITS OWN NATURAL AROMA-EVERY VEGETABLE ITS OWN SHADE OF VERDURE: the mayonnaise was fried in ice (like Ninon's description of Sévigné's heart),* and the tempered chill of the plombiere (which held the place of the eternal fondu and soufflet of our English tables) anticipated the stronger shock, and broke it, of the exquisite avalanche, which, with the hue and odour of fresh-gathered nectarines, satisfied every sense and dissipated every coarser flavour. "With less genius than went to the composition of this dinner, men have written epic poems; and if crowns were distributed to cooks, as to actors, the wreaths of Pasta or Sontag (divine as they are) were never more fairly won than the laurel which should have graced the brow of Carème for this specimen of the intellectual perfection of an art, the standard and gauge of modern civilisation. Cruelty, violence, and barbarism were the characteristics of the men who fed upon the tough fibres of half-dressed oxen ; humanity, knowledge, and refinement belong to the living generation, whose tastes and temperance are regulated by the science of such philosophers as Carème, and such Amphitryons as his employers!"-France in 1829-30, vol. ii. p. 414. We have been at considerable pains to learn the history, as well as to ascertain the precise merits, of the principal restaurants of Paris at the present time; but what we may have to say regarding them is always subject to one preliminary remark. In the preface to his "Agricultural Chemistry," Sir Humphry Davy described science as "extending with such rapidity, that, even while he was preparing his manuscript for the press, some alterations became necessary." Now, not only does cookery advance and vary upon the same principle, but its professors are subject to changes from which the professors of other sciences are happily exempt. The fame of a restaurateur is always, in some sort, dependent upon fashion,-for a plat's prosperity lies in the mouth of him who eats it; and the merit of a restaurateur is similarly dependent upon his fame. his fame. Confidence gives firm * Ninon's comparison was to "une citrouille frite à la neige.” ness, and a quick eye and steady hand are no less. necessary to seize the exact moment of projection and infuse the last soupçon of piquancy, than to mark the changing fortunes of a battle, or to execute a critical winning hazard at the billiard-table. Besides, few will be public-spirited enough to keep a choice of rare things in readiness, unless the demand be both constant and discriminating. We must, therefore, be held blameless in case of any disappointment resulting from changes subsequently to the commencement of 1852. We must also pause to commemorate one defunct establishment, the far-famed Rocher de Cancale, which has been broken up since the Revolution of 1848. It first grew into reputation by its oysters, which, about the year 1804, M. Baleine, its founder, contrived the means of bringing to Paris fresh and in the best possible order at all seasons alike; thus giving a direct practical refutation of the prejudice, that oysters are good in those months only which include the canine letter.* He next applied himself with equal and well-merited success to fish and game; and at length, taking courage to generalise his exertions, he aspired to and attained the eminence which, for more than forty years, the Rocher enjoyed without dispute. To form a just notion of his enterprising spirit, it is necessary to bear in mind the state of the French roads, and the difficulties of transport, in 1804. His fullness of reputation dates from November 28th, 1809, when he served a dinner of twenty-four covers in a style which made it the sole topic of conversation to gastronomic Paris for a month. The bill of fare, a most appetising document, preserved in the "Almanach," exhibits the harmonious and rich array of four potages, four relevés, twelve entrées, four grosses * Apicius is said to have supplied Trajan with fresh oysters at all seasons of the year. |