Hors d’Oeuvre/Amuse-Bouche

Alice Waters notes that the first food tasted in a meal “With the first bite, you want to help the diner feel happy that they’re there,” agrees Joachim Splichal. “The first bite should be amusing, like a corn blini with marinated salmon and caviar [an amuse Splichal sends out to Patina’s special customers]. Caviar is not cheap, so it’s a nice surprise to welcome the guest to the restaurant and say hello.”

The hors-d’oeuvre is the first magisterial movement of a culinary symphony that continues to the very end without a false note. Just when you’ve reached the ultimate with a particular course, another follows to surpass it. —Fernand Point