Throughout history, the privileged classes have always endeavoured to outdo each other by flaunting their wealth and power, from financing armies to commissioning grand public works projects in honour of themselves and by throwing opulent feasts.
The ingredients for a triumphant banquet are relatively straightforward. Employ the best chefs. Invite a large number of influential dignitaries. Third, ensure that the location is richly decorated with an abundance of glitziness and luxurious tableware. Finally, serve gluttonous quantities of the most exotic rare delicacies imaginable, along with vintage wines. Generally, throw caution to the wind regarding the expense. After all, the whole point is to impress, to brag, to astonish people through excess. And lavish splurging has always been a spectator sport.
Undoubtedly, these rituals of excess began with tribal leaders looking to enhance their social status, celebrate victory in battle, or give thanks to the gods for a bountiful harvest. And no doubt, they were practised by the aristocracy of every society throughout the ancient world to demonstrate a dominant social status.
However, one ancient civilisation took banqueting and feasting to a different level of hedonism and extravagance. Besides being masters of an empire that stretched from Bagdad in the east to Scotland’s border in the west, Roman nobility were also the masters of decadence.
What did the Romans ever do for us?
A banquet, Roman style, was not about impressing guests with skilfully crafted gourmet dishes. It was more about the wealthy trying to outdo each other in offering the most outrageous, bizarre, and rare ingredients that could be sourced from all corners of the empire.
Sow’s udders, honeyed dormice and songbirds became par for the course. While increasingly bizarre dishes, such as the combs of cockerels, the heels of camels, jellyfish omelettes, livers of pike, and the spleen of lampreys became the order of the day.
No doubt, the tongues of peacocks and flamingos would also get the tongues of the dinner guests wagging as they would have described their experience with great enthusiasm. All of which was the intention.
Feasting became so prevalent and competitive that laws were passed against the serving of rare delicacies. But, as these indulgences were only consumed by the rich and powerful, the rules were treated with impunity.
One of the bigger culprits was Elagabalus, or Antonious as he was named after he was made Emperor in 218 CE. A teenage Caesar whose four-year reign was blighted by sexual scandals. In one of the young Emperor’s banquets, he was reputed to have served the brains of 600 ostriches, the heads of parrots, and conger eels fattened on Christian slaves!
When it came to extravagance, Elagabalus must have been influenced by his predecessor of 150 or so years earlier: Emperor Nero.
When Nero wanted to round off a banquet with something spectacular, he wasn’t scared to push the boundaries. So, he commanded his slaves to climb up to the glacier close to the summit of Gran Sasso d’Italia (the Great Rock of Italy) to collect snow. Even though it is 130kms (80 miles) away in the central Apennines mountains, the snow arrived in Rome still frozen. It was then mixed with fruit juices and served to the astonished guests as a sorbet. To be able to enjoy a frozen dessert any time in ancient Rome was an unprecedented luxury. But to serve such a dish during a blistering Roman summer was a remarkable example of Roman logistical ingenuity that would have showered Nero in prestige.
Banquets by Roman nobles could last for several hours, with entertainment provided by musicians, singers, dancers, acrobats, and jugglers in between courses.
Also, according to some historians writing a century ago, they stated that in between courses that guests would rush off to purge themselves with the aid of a feather shoved down their throats so that their stomachs could accommodate the next course. And that such practice took place in a room called a “vomitorium”.
But by more recent historical accounts, that was a myth. A vomitorium had nothing to do with throwing up; its true meaning is a passageway in an amphitheatre.
What indeed was not a myth was the copious amounts of wine that would have been consumed during a banquet. Of course, the most exclusive and expensive wines would have been served, which tended to be sweet white wine. And it was usually flavoured with herbs and diluted one part wine and two-parts water.
Middle Ages spread
Throughout the following centuries, alcohol took centre stage at banquets throughout Europe. Beer, ale, cider, and mead were served to commoners, who sat below the salt. (This was the term used to delineate the pecking order between nobility and those of lower rank. Salt, an expensive commodity, was always placed in the middle of the dining table, and whether you were wealthy or poor, you knew where you stood – or sat, as it were.)
The wine was always reserved for those fortunate enough to indulge at the high table. Then, like today, the Bordeaux region of France dominated the European market for the finest red wines or claret as it was referred to in England.
Mealtimes in the homes of nobility during medieval times were often large affairs. The more powerful the noble, the more retainers would likely be sharing his table.
For instance, at royal households during the 14th and 15th centuries, it wasn’t unusual for as many as four hundred people to sit for dinner on an ordinary night.
In the event of a special banquet, to celebrate an ecclesiastical feast day, or to commemorate a coronation, a wedding, or the coming of age of a young noble, that figure would have increased by several hundred, including the nobleman’s tenants.
Catering for them would be kitchen staff that would also number in the hundreds. Other than an army of cooks and their assistants, there were pantlers (who waited tables), bakers, waferers, sauciers, larderers, butchers, carvers, page boys, milkmaids, butlers and scullions (the lowest of the low in the kitchen hierarchy).
As for the food, roasted meat, fish and fowl such as dressed swan and peacock would have dominated the top table. Served in three courses, each of which would have consisted of up to 20 dishes or more. But not all these dishes were served to all the guests. A general rule was all three courses would be served to the royalty who sat on the high table, two courses for the nobility, and one course for the commoners.
Extravagance came in the guise of spices. Black pepper, cinnamon, cumin, nutmeg, ginger and cloves were exotic luxuries that were extremely expensive. And for any host wishing to boost their status, the meat dishes served would have been heavily spiced.
Another exotic ingredient that would have greatly impressed guests was sugar. The sweet treat was introduced to Europe by the Arab invasion of Spain in the ninth century. But it was during the 11th and 12th centuries when crusaders returned home from the Holy Land that cane sugar began to be grown in southern Europe in large quantities.
Sweet dishes that graced royal and noble tables included fresh fruit covered in sugar or syrup, cakes, crêpes, fruit pies, and sweet custards. Also popular was marzipan, which Arabs had also introduced. According to recipes from the 14th century, the European nobility was so addicted to sugar that it was even added to meat, bone marrow and fish.
Dished up between courses was some elaborate entertainment. A favoured diversion was to bake the crusts of massive pies, then wheel them into the feasting hall where the content would be exposed to the guests. Birds would fly out, choirs, troubadours, or jesters would leap out to the surprise and delight of everyone.
Thousands of banquets were held throughout the world’s royal and noble houses over the intervening centuries. And no doubt, a high proportion of them would have been extravagant affairs.
The most significant change that affected food was during the 15th and 16th centuries. Then, Portuguese, Spanish, English and Dutch explorers began returning home with their ships holds crammed with culinary treasures, along with the gold and silver they had liberated.
Much of these new ingredients - potatoes, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, chilli, maise, squash, avocados, peppers, and beans - became staples in Europe.
But it wasn’t only the Americas that were being discovered (and mercilessly exploited) by the royal houses of Europe. Far East Asia was also opening up.
The Chinese Emperor’s sweet and sour tale
The imperial rulers of China have always been associated with elaborate feasts that feature a wide array of exotic dishes, including the most obscure creatures. But in the 18th century, during the Qing dynasty, one banquet achieved legendary status: the Manch-Han imperial feast.
The purpose of the banquet was two-fold. First, to celebrate the 66th birthday of Emperor Kangxi, the absolute ruler. And second, as an attempt to resolve the bitter differences between the Han ethnic majority and the Manchurian rulers of China.
By all accounts, resentment built when the Manchus monopolised senior ministerial positions that the Han had always controlled.
Emperor Kangxi placed great faith in banquets as a means of fence-mending. Years earlier, he had used the tactic to defuse tensions along the northern border with neighbouring Mongolia.
In all, more than 2 800 senior officials from both ethnic groups sat down together to a three-day feast that featured a combination of Manchu and Han dishes. In all, 320 dishes were served, which included thirty-two of the most bizarre delicacies imaginable.
The menu included bear’s claw, bean curd with bird’s brains, camel’s hump, leopard foetus, rhinoceros tails, and ape’s lips. And some delicacies that still feature in today’s Chinese cuisine, such as shark’s fin soup, bird’s nest soup, and Peking duck. By all account, the banquet worked, and a reconciliation of sorts developed between the two ethnic groups of officials.
Of course, serving up exotic creatures wasn’t only done in Asia. At the heart of the world’s gastronomic capital, people also indulged at times.
During the Siege of Paris in 1870, during the Franco-Prussian War, when the invading Prussians starved Parisians into submission, one of the most celebrated banquets took place amidst the privations. In fact, it could be described as one of the most lavish and outlandish gastronomic events since the days of the Romans.
During the siege, the Prussians blocked all food supplies from entering the city, which forced the Parisians to eat their horses, dogs, and cats. But that did not stop the celebrated chef of the day, a certain Alexandre Étienne Choron, from preparing an exotic Christmas banquet.
For his guests, Choron prepared a starter of donkey head accompanied by sardines, followed by a consommé of elephant. The entrée courses included fried camel, kangaroo stew, wolf in deer sauce, and antelope with truffles.
So, in a city where the population was starving, what was the secret of Monsieur’s Choron’s decedent feast? It seemed he had the keys to the city’s last remaining source of meat: the Paris Zoo.
Culinary stars
More than 150 years later, along with a fully stocked zoo, you’ll also discover that Paris is home to the second-highest density of Michelin-starred restaurants in the world, behind Tokyo.
But, on a national level, France dominates by a wide margin. As the 2021 Michelin guide points out, twenty-nine French establishments currently hold the coveted three stars, seventy-four restaurants have two stars, and the remaining 529 have been awarded one-star, making a national total of 632. Japan is second with 413, and Italy third with 363.
As you can expect with such celebrated fine dining establishments, the prices reflect the exclusive quality and the impeccable reputation. In other words, the prices are through the roof. Here are what the top five most expensive Michelin restaurants charge.
A meal at the three-star Guy Savoy restaurant in Paris will set you back a cool $485. Mind you, that’s a bargain compared to others. Masa in New York City charges $595 per person. Dinner at the Kitcho Arashiyama restaurant in Kyoto, Japan, will set you back a minimum of $646. When you leave Ultraviolet in Shanghai, China, expect your bank balance to be lighter by $900. Then, there’s the ultimate Michelin experience: SubliMotion in Ibiza, Spain, charges an eye-watering $1 761 per person for a 20-dish tasting menu. Okay, but you do get twenty dishes, so it works out at just (just?) $88 a dish. It makes you wonder what they’ll charge if and when they get that third star.
All of which is ironic for an organisation that began as a restaurant guide for motorists. But then, it’s fair to say that as little as thirty years ago, many people would only have thought of the Michelin brand in terms of the cross-plys attached to their cars, as opposed to a guide to the most exclusive dining establishments in the world.
These days, we’re all far better informed. And it’s hardly surprising considering how interest in cooking has exploded on our TV screens over the last couple of decades.
What used to be an occasional humdrum daytime TV show has been transformed into TV channels dedicated to food culture.
Celebrity chefs have become household names. What started as a way of demonstrating new recipes has evolved into tension-filled reality series, big-budget competition shows, travel-related food documentaries, and profiles of international chefs – the three-starred elite of the kitchens.
So, how do these masters of the culinary arts extend the creative boundaries?
Nomu, the three-star establishment in Copenhagen and reputed to be one of the best and most eccentric restaurants globally, offers a duck leg, brain, and heart served with claw, feather, and beak. Reindeer penis in a sauce of the animal’s brain has also been on the menu.
The Fat Duck in London is famous for its snail porridge, plus bacon and egg ice cream. It’s also well known for a seafood dish accompanied with “sensory inputs” called “Sounds of the Sea”, which consists of seafood and eel served with a seafood foam next to a “beach” consisting of tapioca and breadcrumbs.
Quince in San Francisco serves a chestnut crisp and a celeriac, porcini and ricotta truffle’ dusted with porcini powder. Sounds delicious, but what makes this dish seriously peculiar is what it’s served on: an iPad on which a video plays that features a dog searching for truffles!
Deep in the mountains of the Faroe Islands, a restaurant called Koks serves its signature dish of Sea urchin with pickled parsley stems and fermented wind-dried leg of lamb served with reindeer lichen. As part of the tasting menu, Koks often serves mahogany clams, which are known to survive well past 250 years and are one of the longest living marine organisms on earth.
So, in getting the tongues wagging, it seems that the appetite for novelty and theatricality has gone full circle with ancient Rome. Okay, so we’re no longer carving up obscure bits of rare creatures. But the trend in presenting quicky, exotic experimental dishes that border on being outlandish is back in vogue for the wealthy.
Me? I’d go for the truffles on the iPad over a sow’s udder any day.
I hope you’ve enjoyed these few historical morsels. I would love to hear from you, so please drop me a line.
Rich food for rich people
Nice. Please do something on wine? Afterall , what is a meal without wine?
Very interesting.. we’ would all need a vomitorium eating some of the early foods