We quote from that staid depository of learning, The Quarterly Review, from an article published in 1835 and written by Abraham Hayward:—
“It seems allowed on all hands that a first-rate dinner in England is out of all comparison better than a dinner of the same class in any other country; for we get the best cooks, as we get the best singers and dancers, by bidding highest for them, and we have cultivated certain national dishes to a point which makes them the envy of the world. In proof of this bold assertion, which is backed, moreover, by the unqualified admission of Ude, we request attention to the menu of the dinner given in May last to Lord Chesterfield, on his quitting the office of Master of the Buckhounds, at the Clarendon. The party consisted of thirty; the price was six guineas a head; and the dinner was ordered by Comte d’Orsay, who stands without a rival amongst connoisseurs in this department of art:—
“‘PREMIER SERVICE.
“‘Potages.—Printanier: à la reine: turtle (two tureens).
“‘Poissons.—Turbot (lobster and Dutch sauces): saumon à la Tartare: rougets à la cardinal: friture de morue: white-bait.
“‘Relévés.—Filet de bœuf à la Napolitaine: dindon à la chipolate: timballe de macaroni: haunch of venison.
“‘Entrées.—Croquettes de volaille: petits pâtés aux huîtres: côtelettes d’agneau: purée de champignons: côtelettes d’agneau aux pointes d’asperges: fricandeau de veau à l’oseille: ris de veau piqué aux tomates: côtelettes de pigeons à la Dusselle: chartreuse de légumes aux faisans: filets de cannetons à la Bigarrade: boudins à la Richelieu: sauté de volaille aux truffes: pâté de mouton monté.
“‘Coté.—Bœuf rôti: jambon: salade.
“‘SECOND SERVICE.
“‘Rots.—Chapons, and quails, turkey poults, green goose.