{"product_id":"paris-table-eugne-briffault-9780190842031","title":"Paris À Table: 1846","description":"Described by \u003cem\u003eLe Monde\u003c\/em\u003e as \"the richest view of Balzac's time seen from the table,\" \u003cem\u003eParis à Table: 1846\u003c\/em\u003e is an essential text in the history of gastronomy, along with Brillat-Savarin's \u003cem\u003eThe Physiology of Taste\u003c\/em\u003e and Dumas's \u003cem\u003eDictionary of Cuisine\u003c\/em\u003e. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eIts author, Eugène Briffault, was well-known in his day as a theater critic and chronicler of contemporary Paris, but also as a bon-vivant, celebrated for his ability to quaff a bell jar full of champagne in a single draft and well-qualified to write authoritatively about the culinary culture of Paris. Focusing on the manners and customs of the dining scene, Briffault takes readers from the opulence of a meal at the Rothschilds' through every social stratum down to the student on the Left Bank and the laborer eating on the streets. He surveys the restaurants of the previous generation and his own--from the most elegant to the lowest dive--along with the eating habits of the bourgeoisie, the importance and variety of banquets, the institutional meal, and even the plight of \"people who do not dine,\" artists and intellectuals who fell on hungry times. He records the specialties, the décor, the patrons, and the restaurateurs and their waiters. A fine storyteller, Briffault collected culinary anecdotes, from the tantrums of a king deprived of his spinach to the tragedy of \"the friendliest pig that was ever seen.\" The volume includes the humorous drawings of the caricaturist Bertall that cleverly reinforce the witty and ironic tone of the text. Along with J. Weintraub's introduction--which provides the first modern biography of the author and analyzes the place of \u003cem\u003eParis à Table\u003c\/em\u003e in the literary culture of the time--the text is copiously annotated, acquainting readers with the events and characters that enliven the narrative. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cem\u003eParis à Table\u003c\/em\u003e provides a delightful and delectable entryway to Briffault's Paris, the city Walter Benjamin characterized as \"the capital of the nineteenth century.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Eugène Briffault, J. Weintraub\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 0190842032\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780190842031\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Oxford University Press, USA\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 04\/10\/2018\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 272\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.90lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.30h x 5.80w x 0.80d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReview Citation(s): \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/i\u003e 03\/01\/2018 pg. 97\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e 03\/01\/2018 pg. 19","brand":"Eugène Briffault","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":44054625812735,"sku":"9780190842031","price":26.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_c3dcec1f-29b1-4dae-a78a-fd01a5cc3d77.jpg?v=1685031041","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/paris-table-eugne-briffault-9780190842031","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}