Service à la Française

From the late Middle Ages to the middle of the 19th century the structure of a formal meal was not by ‘courses’ (as the term is now understood) but by services. Each service could comprise a choice of dishes from which each guest could select what appealed to him or her most. These services often mixed sweet and savoury dishes, and a large party would see repeats of the various dishes (though not usually of the large roast joint or the soup tureen) at intervals down the table so that guests could have a fair crack at what was available. There were many gradations of elaboration, depending on the occasion, the wealth of the dinner-giver, and the nature of the meal—some 18th-century dinners had no more dishes than a meal served today. However, the broad structure of this style of service was as follows:

• The first service could include soups, hors d’œuvres (somewhat different from what now bear that name), things to replace the soups (e.g. meat dishes), and things in the category of entrée (e.g. more meat dishes).

• The second service would include roast game and meats and any particularly impressive savoury dishes, e.g. a whole roast sturgeon.

• The third service called entremets (see entrée) would include a wide-ranging mixture of vegetable and other dishes (different from entremets in the more recent sense of sweet dishes).

• The fourth service would be dessert: fruits, compotes, pastries, and finally ices and cheeses (if served), and see also banquet.