  I BEG to present to my Readers a copy of the Bill-of-fare of the most recherchÉ dinner I ever dressed, which the liberality and epicurean taste of the gentleman who gave it, to a select party of connoiseurs, enabled me to procure; he wishing me to get him a first-rate dinner, and spare no expense in procuring the most novel, luxurious, and rare edibles to be obtained at this extravagant season of the year; I, therefore, much to his satisfaction, placed before him and his guests the following: (see p. 609). I had also proposed the following dish to the party, which was accepted, but which I was unable to obtain from Paris on account of a change in the weather preventing their arrival, the articles being two dozen of ortolans; having already procured twelve of the largest and finest truffles I could obtain, it was my intention to have dug a hole in each, into which I should have placed one of the birds, and covered each with a piece of lamb’s or calf’s caul, then to have braised them half an hour in good stock made from fowl and veal, with half a pint of Lachryma Christi added; then to have drained them upon a cloth, placed a border of poached forcemeat upon the dish, built the truffles in pyramid, made a purÉe with the truffle dug from the interior, using the stock reduced to a demi-glace and poured over, roasted the twelve remaining ortolans before a sharp fire, with which I should have garnished the whole round, and served very hot. [Note. The tradespeople received their orders a week previous to the dinner. The finest mullets I ever saw, as well as the Severn salmon, were obtained at Grove’s, in Bond Street; the remainder of the fish was from Jay’s, Hungerford Market. At seven o’clock the live Severn salmon was brought to me, it having just arrived direct from Gloucester, and was boiled immediately, being just ten minutes before the dinner was placed upon the table, and was eaten in its greatest possible perfection. The finest of the poultry came from Bailey’s, Davis Street, Grosvenor Square, and Townsend’s, Charles Street, Haymarket. The foies gras and some very fine fresh French truffles came from Morel’s; the hors-d’-oeuvres, from Edges and Butler’s, Regent Street. The saddleback of lamb came from Newland’s, Air Street, Piccadilly, the Welsh mutton from Skier’s, and the young green peas and a very expensive dessert came from Solomon’s, Covent Garden. My being so minute in mentioning the name of the above tradespeople is not to advertise their fame in their different specialities, as that I believe they have already acquired, but merely to prove the trouble a real gourmet will take to furnish his table, Mr. S. having called many times upon several of them himself, previous to this party taking place, to ascertain what his dinner was to be composed of. The most expensive dishes were the mullets, the salmon, poulardes À la Nelson, and, above all, the crawfish which, when dressed, cost upwards of seven guineas.] |
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