Historical Banqueting
CM226 Catering and Event Management
Chapter 1, pages 1-28
CHAPTER OBJECTIVES
• Explain the development of the
banquet menu.
• Explain the transformation of
the menu to the nine course
format
• Describe how European
banqueting is reflected in
American banqueting.
CHAPTER OBJECTIVES
• Discuss how Thomas Jefferson
aided in the development of
American banqueting.
• Explain how Jacqueline
Kennedy influenced American
banqueting.
Part I
INTRODUCTION / BANQUETING
The beginning of catering
profession started in ancient
civilizations
• Egyptians filled their tombs
with foodstuffs and cookware
to supply then in the next
world
• Egyptians also covered their
walls with murals depicting
food preparation and table
settings.
• Art records of Greeks and
Romans include depictions of
banqueting, table customs,
decorative arts and recipes
• Written records of the Greeks
and Romans focus on specific
types of food eaten rather than
the entire meals.
5th Century – Apicius
• Apicius is the title of a
collection of Roman cookery
recipes, usually thought to
have been compiled in the late
4th or early 5th century AD and
written in a language that is in
many ways closer to Vulgar
than Classical Latin.
“Cooking &Dining in Ancient Rome”
• Is a written collection of
recipes dating back to 42 BC
and AD 37.
• Greek banqueting featured
hors d’oeuvre trolley, and a
number of small portion
dishes.
Middle Ages
• The Middle Ages of European
history are a period in history
which lasted for roughly a
millennium, generally dated
from the fall of the Western
Roman Empire in the 5th
century to the beginning of the
Early Modern Period in the 16th
century.
Middle Ages (continued)
• This period is marked by the
division of Western
Christianity in the
Reformation, the rise of
humanism in the Italian
Renaissance, and the
beginnings of European
overseas expansion.
Part II
THE BANQUET HALL.
Medieval Period
• The roots of modern banqueting
extend from the Medieval period
• 13th century meal service
instructions for serving
• Food Preparation Methods
• The three course menu outline
Part III
RENAISSANCE EUROPEAN
BANQUETING.
• The Renaissance meaning
"rebirth” was a cultural
movement that spanned
roughly the 14th to the 17th
century, beginning in Italy in
the Late Middle Ages and later
spreading to the rest of Europe.
• As a cultural movement, it
encompassed a rebellion of
learning based on the classical
sources, the development of
linear perspective in painting,
and gradual but widespread
educational reform.
• The age of enlightenment.
• An intellectual
transformation
resulted in the
Renaissance
being viewed as
a bridge between
the Middle Ages
and the Modern
era.
• The Renaissance saw
revolutions in many
intellectual pursuits. As well
as social and political
upheaval, it is perhaps best
known for its artistic
developments and the
contributions of such
polymaths as Leonardo da
Vinci and Michelangelo, who
inspired the term "Renaissance
man".
Henry VI’s marriage to Jon of Navarre
• This menu featured a sotelte
with each course.
• Sotelte were food sculptures
and showpieces.
• Montees of he 18th and 19th
centuries were later versions of
sotelte.
Part IV
EIGHTEENTH-CENTURY
BANQUETING.
• By 1727, the banquet menu
had been abridged to two main
course settings.
• The third course was reduced
to fruits, nuts, etc.
• The menu changes in the 18th
century became the foundation
of the twentieth-century
banquet menu.
Part V
NINETEENTH-CENTURY
MENU REVISIONS.
• By 1867, the number of menu
items underwent a sharp
reduction and was separated
into menu categories.
19th Century Classic Nine Course Format
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First Course
second Course
Third Course
Fourth Course
Fifth Course
Sixth Course
Seventh Course
Eighth Course
Ninth Course
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Soup
Hot hors d’oeuvres
Cold hors d’oeuvres
Intermediate fish course
Intermediate meat, poultry or game
Entrée
Rotis
Salad
Entremets (dessert)
• Missing from this menu is the
traditional cheese course that,
when served, preceded the
sweet course.
• During this time, European
menu presentation continued
to heavily influence the United
States.
Part VI
NATIVE AMERICAN FEASTS.
• Feasts are an American tradition
dating back to social ceremonies of
the Native Americans.
• A ceremonial feast of the tribes in the
American Northwest is called a
potlatch.
• This ceremonial feast was used to
mark important occasions such as a
marriage, or the succession to
chieftainship.
• As a sign of conspicuous wealth,
the customs of a potlatch
required the host to provide the
best quality foods available in
quantities too great to be eaten by
the number of guests.
• The host of the potlatch was also
expected to give away a fortune
in gifts.
Part VII
THE COLONIAL PERIOD.
• Pre-revolutionary cuisine and
the patterns in which meals
were served primarily
followed English custom.
• The menu pattern for formal
meals was offered in two
courses, each a complete meal
in itself.
Part VIII
NINETEENTH-CENTURY
BANQUETING.
• The traditions of American
colonies were continued in menus.
• The menu continued to follow a
classic format.
• This included a variety of Native
American foods and traditional
New England cooking is apparent
during this time.
• The influence of the three-course menu is
still evident in the presence of the relish
course and the fruits and nuts in the
dessert course.
• There was, however, more emphasis on
heavy dessert section.
Part IX
AMERICAN PRESIDENTIAL
BANQUETING.
George Washington
• This was America’s first
opportunity to entertain the
world stage.
• Meal formats continued to
follow three-course patterns
still popular in Europe.
• The third course was offered
after the tablecloth was
removed.
• Decanters of port, cheeses, nuts
and fruit were placed on the
table.
• Menus from this period
indicated diversity and
availability of food products in
the mid-Atlantic region.
Thomas Jefferson
• Thomas Jefferson had a great
influence on the development
of banqueting styles in
America.
• As President, he established a
pattern of elegant banquets
featuring French cuisine an the
best wines available.
• The banqueting style Jefferson
brought to America was
cuisine bourgeois, a
simplification of the heavy,
three-course meals held over
from the Middle Ages and
used in Europe through eh
eighteenth century.
• Similar to the twentiethcentury modifications to
French cuisine, know as
novelle cuisine, these changes
were a reaction to the rich
stocks, sauces of the eighteenth
century.
• Jefferson's contributions to
American cuisine include inc
cream, vanilla, pasta and
tomatoes.
• Jefferson’s fascination
with French cuisine
extended to the
equipment used to
prepare and serve it, and
he purchased a large
quantity of cookware and
bake ware in Paris.
John Quincy Adams
• Adams was known more for
receptions that included coffee,
tea, variety of cakes, jellies, icecream, West Indian fruit, and
white and red wine, and
sometimes other cordials and
liquors.
• Everything was butlered by
servants (served on large trays).
John Tyler
• Similar to Jefferson,
Tyler favored
informality blended
with fine cuisine.
James Buchanan
• Buchanan is known
best for having
brought formal
elegance of European
society back into the
White House.
Abraham Lincoln
• Lincoln’s inaugural ball
reflected the diverse
cuisine styles of the first
100 years of the American
presidency, combining the
nation's bounty of foods
which had been present at
Washington’s table with
the influence of French
cuisine.
Ulysses S. Grant
• Grant’s menus embodied the
marriage of American cuisine and
traditional French dining customs.
• Grant often served a combination
of American foods in the classical
French format, accompanied by an
appropriate wine for each course.
Franklin Delano Roosevelt
• Roosevelt served
informal American
cuisine.
The Kennedy Era
• Next to Thomas Jefferson,
Jacqueline Kennedy had the most
significant influence on the style
of banqueting in the White
House.
• Her personal interest in the
quality and style of cuisine and
service for White House
functions changed the patterns
followed in previous
presidencies.
Mrs. Kennedy
dramatically changed
the menu format,
reducing the number
of courses from seven
to four or a maximum
of five.
• The change of simple
elegance reflected
contemporary dining
trends and reduced the
overall dining time,
allowing more time for
evening
entertainments that
became the hallmark
of the Kennedy
presidency.
Fini.