The Menu for a Formal Dinner
This is part of a series I've been wanting to do for a long time so I am
excited I am able to have Eugene do this for my blog. It is about
etiquette as was appropriate in the Victorian Era (1837–1901). During
that time, culturally there was a transition away from the rationalism
of the Georgian period and toward romanticism and mysticism with regard to religion, social values, and the arts. The era is popularly associated with the values of social restraint. What? Social restraint? What's that?!? So we move on....thank you for reading.
Love, George
The Menu for a Formal Dinner
MenuLove, George
The Menu for a Formal Dinner
1. soup or fresh fruit cup or melon or shellfish ( shrimp, oysters, clams )
2. fish course (or on rare occasions, a dish such as sweetbreads instead of fish )
3. the entrée, or main course ( usually roast meat or fowl )
4. salad
5. dessert
6. coffee, tea
Many menu's have an overwhelming variety so one should always try to choose a well-balanced menu; an especially rich dish is balanced by a simple one. Here is a great example of a well-balanced course: Fish timbale with thick creamed sauce, followed by spring lamb, roast meat, or filet mignon; broiled fish by an elaborate meat dish.
Some people enjoy highly flavored Spanish or Indian dishes, however, they are not appropriate for a formal dinner. Equally bad is a dinner of white sauces from beginning to end : a cream soup, boiled fish with white sauce or a vol-au-vent of creamed sweetbreads, followed by breast of chicken and mashed potatoes with cauliflower, palm-root salad, vanilla ice cream, and lady cake. The dish is good in itself but unappetizing in the monotony of its combination. In addition, remember to not eat a heavy dinner as it might not settle comfortably in your stomach, eat in small amounts and order what you crave in equally sized portions.
Posted by Eugene Vodovoz at 12 October 2011, 10:18 AM 
Categories: Etiquette
Tags: menu soup fish meat salad desert coffee tea
Categories: Etiquette
Tags: menu soup fish meat salad desert coffee tea
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