Three Emperors Dinner
Encyclopedia
The Dîner des trois empereurs or Three Emperors Dinner was a banquet
held at Café Anglais
in Paris
, France
on 7 June 1867.
It was prepared by chef Adolphe Dugléré
at the request of King William I of Prussia
who frequented the cafe during the Exposition Universelle
. He requested a meal to be remembered and at which no expense was to be spared for himself and his guests, Tsar Alexander II of Russia, plus his son the tsarevitch (who later became Tsar Alexander III), and Prince Otto von Bismarck
. The cellar master, Claudius Burdel, was instructed to accompany the dishes with the greatest wines in the world, including a Roederer champagne
in a special crystal bottle, so Tsar Alexander could admire the bubbles and golden colour.
The banquet consisted of 16 courses with eight wines served over eight hours. The cost of the meal was 400 francs per person (about €
8,800 in prices).
At 1 o'clock in the morning, Tsar Alexander is reported to have complained that the meal had not contained foie gras
. Burdel explained that it was not the custom in French cuisine to eat foie gras in June. The Tsar was satisfied with the answer. Each emperor was sent a terrine
of foie gras as a gift the following October.
The table used for the banquet and a copy of the menu are on display at La Tour d'Argent.
Potage impératrice consists of a chicken stock thickened with tapioca and finished with egg yolks and cream to which poached rounds of chicken forcemeat, cockscombs, cocks' kidneys and green peas are added.
Potage fontanges is a purée of fresh peas diluted with consommé with the addition of a chiffonade
of sorrel and sprigs of chervil.
Soufflé à la reine is a chicken soufflé with truffles
Sauce vénitienne
is a sauce of white wine, tarragon vinegar, shallots and chervil, mounted with butter and finished with chopped chervil and tarragon.
Selle de mouton purée Bretonne is saddle of mutton with a purée of broad beans bound with Breton sauce
.
Poulet à la portugaise is whole chicken roasted with a covering of adobo
paste consisting of tomato, red bell pepper, garlic, origanum, paprika, cayenne, brown sugar, lemon juice, white wine, chicken stock and olive oil, stuffed with tomato flavoured rice.
Pâté chaud de cailles is warm pâté of quail
.
Homard à la parisienne is lobster cooked in court bouillon
, cut into slices and glazed with aspic, with a garnish of tomatoes stuffed with a macédoine of vegetables, dressed with a mixture of mayonnaise and aspic and garnished with sliced truffle.
Canetons à la rouennaise is a dish of roast duckling stuffed with forcemeat
. The legs and breasts are removed, the legs are grilled and the breasts are thinly sliced and arranged around the stuffing. The remaining carcass is pressed in a poultry press to extract all the juices and this is added to a Rouennaise sauce
which is poured over the sliced duck. (This dish is today the speciality of the house at La Tour d'Argent.)
Ortolans sur canapés, Ortolans
(now a protected species) on toast.
Aubergines à l'espagnole is a dish of aubergine
shells filled with chopped aubergine, tomato and ham, gratin
éed with gruyère
.
Cassolette princesse, (a.k.a. Cassolette argenteuil), A cassolette
with a border of duchesse potatoes and an asparagus filling in cream sauce.
Bombe glacée
is an ice-cream dessert.
n chef Shannon Bennett attempted to recreate the banquet in 2002. It took six months to plan and required some changes due to key ingredients and wines no longer being available. Even using the nearest modern equivalent ingredients and wines, the cost of the meal was $
7,500 per person. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation
broadcast the documentary Three Emperors Dinner about the original banquet and the modern recreation in 2003.
Banquet
A banquet is a large meal or feast, complete with main courses and desserts. It usually serves a purpose such as a charitable gathering, a ceremony, or a celebration, and is often preceded or followed by speeches in honour of someone....
held at Café Anglais
Café Anglais (Paris)
The Café Anglais was a famous French restaurant located at the corner of the Boulevard des Italiens and the Rue de Marivaux in Paris, France.- History :...
in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
on 7 June 1867.
It was prepared by chef Adolphe Dugléré
Adolphe Dugléré
Adolphe Dugléré was a French chef and a pupil of Carême.- Les Frères Provençaux :Dugléré was a chef de cuisine to the Rothschild family until 1848, and was manager at the restaurant Les Frères Provençaux at the Palais-Royal from 1848 to 1866 which was owned by three men from Provence named...
at the request of King William I of Prussia
William I, German Emperor
William I, also known as Wilhelm I , of the House of Hohenzollern was the King of Prussia and the first German Emperor .Under the leadership of William and his Chancellor Otto von Bismarck, Prussia achieved the unification of Germany and the...
who frequented the cafe during the Exposition Universelle
Exposition Universelle (1867)
The Exposition Universelle of 1867 was a World Exposition held in Paris, France, in 1867.-Conception:In 1864, Emperor Napoleon III decreed that an international exposition should be held in Paris in 1867. A commission was appointed with Prince Jerome Napoleon as president, under whose direction...
. He requested a meal to be remembered and at which no expense was to be spared for himself and his guests, Tsar Alexander II of Russia, plus his son the tsarevitch (who later became Tsar Alexander III), and Prince Otto von Bismarck
Otto von Bismarck
Otto Eduard Leopold, Prince of Bismarck, Duke of Lauenburg , simply known as Otto von Bismarck, was a Prussian-German statesman whose actions unified Germany, made it a major player in world affairs, and created a balance of power that kept Europe at peace after 1871.As Minister President of...
. The cellar master, Claudius Burdel, was instructed to accompany the dishes with the greatest wines in the world, including a Roederer champagne
Louis Roederer
Louis Roederer is a producer of champagne based in Reims, France. Founded in 1776, it was inherited and renamed by Louis Roederer in 1833, and is noted as the producer of the luxury champagne Cristal.-History:...
in a special crystal bottle, so Tsar Alexander could admire the bubbles and golden colour.
The banquet consisted of 16 courses with eight wines served over eight hours. The cost of the meal was 400 francs per person (about €
Euro
The euro is the official currency of the eurozone: 17 of the 27 member states of the European Union. It is also the currency used by the Institutions of the European Union. The eurozone consists of Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg,...
8,800 in prices).
At 1 o'clock in the morning, Tsar Alexander is reported to have complained that the meal had not contained foie gras
Foie gras
Foie gras ; French for "fat liver") is a food product made of the liver of a duck or goose that has been specially fattened. This fattening is typically achieved through gavage corn, according to French law, though outside of France it is occasionally produced using natural feeding...
. Burdel explained that it was not the custom in French cuisine to eat foie gras in June. The Tsar was satisfied with the answer. Each emperor was sent a terrine
Terrine (food)
A terrine is a French forcemeat loaf similar to a pâté, made with more coarsely chopped ingredients. Terrines are usually served cold or at room temperature.- See also :* Terrine , the cooking vessel* Pâté* Galantine* Mousseline...
of foie gras as a gift the following October.
The table used for the banquet and a copy of the menu are on display at La Tour d'Argent.
Menu
The menu included the following, among the 16 courses:| MENU Potages Impératrice Fontanges Relevés Soufflé à la reine Filets de sole à la vénitienne Escalope de turbot au gratin Selle de mouton purée Bretonne Entrées Poulet à la portugaise Pâté chaud de cailles Homard à la parisienne Digérer Sorbets au champagne Rôts Canetons à la rouennaise Ortolans sur canapés Entremets Aubergines à l'espagnole Asperges en branches Cassolette princesse Dessert Bombe glacée Fruit VINS Madère retour de l'Inde 1810 Xérès 1821 Châteaux d'Yquem 1847 Chambertin 1846 Châteaux Margaux 1847 Château Latour 1847 Châteaux Lafite 1848 Champagne Roederer frappé |
Potage impératrice consists of a chicken stock thickened with tapioca and finished with egg yolks and cream to which poached rounds of chicken forcemeat, cockscombs, cocks' kidneys and green peas are added.
Potage fontanges is a purée of fresh peas diluted with consommé with the addition of a chiffonade
Chiffonade
Chiffonade is a cooking technique in which herbs or leafy green vegetables are cut into long, thin strips. This is generally accomplished by stacking leaves, rolling them tightly, then cutting across the rolled leaves with a sharp knife, producing fine ribbons."Chiffon" is French for "rag"...
of sorrel and sprigs of chervil.
Soufflé à la reine is a chicken soufflé with truffles
Sauce vénitienne
Venetian sauce
Venetian sauce is a classical French herb sauce used to accompany fish. It consists of:* a velouté and fish fumet base* equal quantities of tarragon vinegar and white wine reduced with:* chopped shallots and chervil...
is a sauce of white wine, tarragon vinegar, shallots and chervil, mounted with butter and finished with chopped chervil and tarragon.
Selle de mouton purée Bretonne is saddle of mutton with a purée of broad beans bound with Breton sauce
Breton sauce
Breton sauce, is a compound sauce consisting of a velouté base with julienned onion, leeks, celery heart and mushrooms, mounted with butter and cream. It has been referred to as a brown version of Sauce soubise which has as its base a béchamel sauce....
.
Poulet à la portugaise is whole chicken roasted with a covering of adobo
Adobo
Adobo is the immersion of raw food into a preparation, in the form of a stock , of different components, including paprika , oregano, salt, garlic, and vinegar — mixed according to the place of origin and the food with which it is intended to be used—primarily to preserve and enhance the flavor of...
paste consisting of tomato, red bell pepper, garlic, origanum, paprika, cayenne, brown sugar, lemon juice, white wine, chicken stock and olive oil, stuffed with tomato flavoured rice.
Pâté chaud de cailles is warm pâté of quail
Quail
Quail is a collective name for several genera of mid-sized birds generally considered in the order Galliformes. Old World quail are found in the family Phasianidae, while New World quail are found in the family Odontophoridae...
.
Homard à la parisienne is lobster cooked in court bouillon
Court bouillon
Court-bouillon or court bouillon is a flavored liquid for poaching or quick-cooking foods. Traditional uses include poaching fish and seafood, but it is also used for poaching vegetables, eggs, sweetbreads, cockscombs, and delicate meats.-Background:...
, cut into slices and glazed with aspic, with a garnish of tomatoes stuffed with a macédoine of vegetables, dressed with a mixture of mayonnaise and aspic and garnished with sliced truffle.
Canetons à la rouennaise is a dish of roast duckling stuffed with forcemeat
Forcemeat
Forcemeat is a mixture of ground, lean meat emulsified with fat. The emulsification can be accomplished by either grinding, sieving, or pureeing the ingredients. The emulsification may either be smooth or coarse, depending on the desired consistency of the final product...
. The legs and breasts are removed, the legs are grilled and the breasts are thinly sliced and arranged around the stuffing. The remaining carcass is pressed in a poultry press to extract all the juices and this is added to a Rouennaise sauce
Rouennaise sauce
Rouennaise sauce is a Bordelaise sauce with the addition of puréed duck liver. This sauce is served with Canetons à la Rouennaise, which was one of the dishes served at the famous "Dinner of the Three Emperors"....
which is poured over the sliced duck. (This dish is today the speciality of the house at La Tour d'Argent.)
Ortolans sur canapés, Ortolans
Ortolan Bunting
The Ortolan, or Ortolan Bunting, Emberiza hortulana, is a bird in the bunting family Emberizidae, a passerine family now separated by most modern authors from the finches, Fringillidae...
(now a protected species) on toast.
Aubergines à l'espagnole is a dish of aubergine
Aubergine
The eggplant, aubergine, melongene, brinjal or guinea squash is a plant of the family Solanaceae and genus Solanum. It bears a fruit of the same name, commonly used in cooking...
shells filled with chopped aubergine, tomato and ham, gratin
Gratin
Gratin is a widespread culinary technique in food preparation in which an ingredient is topped with a browned crust, often using breadcrumbs, grated cheese, egg and/or butter. Gratin originated in French cuisine and is usually prepared in a shallow dish of some kind...
éed with gruyère
Gruyère (cheese)
Gruyère is a hard yellow cheese, named after the town of Gruyères in Switzerland, and originated in the cantons of Fribourg, Vaud, Neuchâtel, Jura, and Berne...
.
Cassolette princesse, (a.k.a. Cassolette argenteuil), A cassolette
Cassolette
Cassolette may refer to:A small porcelain, glass or metal container used for the cooking and serving of individual dishes...
with a border of duchesse potatoes and an asparagus filling in cream sauce.
Bombe glacée
Bombe glacée
A bombe glacée or simply a bombe in English, is an ice-cream dessert frozen in a spherical mould so as to resemble a cannonball, hence the name. Escoffier gives over sixty recipes for bombes in Le Guide culinaire. The dessert appeared on restaurant menus as early as 1882....
is an ice-cream dessert.
Recreation
AustraliaAustralia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n chef Shannon Bennett attempted to recreate the banquet in 2002. It took six months to plan and required some changes due to key ingredients and wines no longer being available. Even using the nearest modern equivalent ingredients and wines, the cost of the meal was $
Australian dollar
The Australian dollar is the currency of the Commonwealth of Australia, including Christmas Island, Cocos Islands, and Norfolk Island, as well as the independent Pacific Island states of Kiribati, Nauru and Tuvalu...
7,500 per person. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...
broadcast the documentary Three Emperors Dinner about the original banquet and the modern recreation in 2003.