2. Originally the bill of fare (English) or menu (French) was not
presented at the table. Banquets generally consisted of two
courses, each made up of a variety of dishes, anything from
10 to 40 in number. The first set of dishes were placed on the
table before the diners entered – hence the word ‘entrée’ –
and, when consumed, these dishes were removed or
relieved by another set of dishes – hence the words ‘relevés’
or ‘removes’. This style of service was referred to as service à
la française
3. • Modern menus first appeared during the early nineteenth
century, in the Parisian restaurants of the Palais-Royal.
• France, and later other countries, adopted the style of service
referred to as service à la russe. In this system of service one
course is served after another throughout the meal.
• The menu is primarily a selling aid. The design of the menu
should be appealing and interesting to the customer so it
encourages them to view its contents.
• Clear information that is easily found and followed will make
the customer feel more at home and will assist in selling the
menu.
4. Design considerations of the menu include:
• size and shape
• artwork/color
• ease of handling
• logical flow of information.
5. Other considerations are:
• providing a clear and accurate description of the
dishes
• clear indication of pricing
• stating whether a service charge is included or
not
• the inclusion of dietary information.
6. Menus can be presented in a variety of ways. These
include:
• single laminated cards
• fold out cards with inserts from the size A5 and above
• iPads
• chalk boards
• white boards
• printed signs, sometimes illuminated from behind
• projections onto table tops.
7. Over the last 100 or so years the sequence of the
European menu has taken on a classical format or
order of dishes. This format is used to lay out menus
as well as to indicate the order of the various courses.
Although the actual number of courses on a menu,
and dishes within each course, will depend on the size
and class of the establishment, most follow the classic
sequence.
8. 1. Hors d’oeuvres: Traditionally this course consisted of a variety of
compound salads, but now includes such items as pâtés, mousses, fruit,
charcuterie and smoked fish.
2. Soups (potages): Includes all soups, both hot and cold.
3. Egg dishes (oeufs): There are a great number of egg dishes beyond the
usual omelettes, but these have not retained their popularity on modern
menus.
4. Pasta and rice (farineux): Includes all pasta and rice dishes. May be
referred to as farinaceous dishes.
5 .Fish (poisson): This course consists of fish dishes, both hot and cold. Fish
dishes such as smoked salmon or seafood cocktails are mainly considered
to be hors d’oeuvres dishes and therefore would be served earlier in a
meal.
9. 6. Entrée: Entrées are generally small, well garnished dishes which
come from the kitchen ready for service. They are usually
accompanied by a rich sauce or gravy.
7. Sorbet: Traditionally sorbets (sometimes now called granites)
were served to give a pause within a meal, allowing the palate to
be refreshed. They are lightly frozen water ices, often based on
unsweetened fruit juice, and may be served with a spirit, liqueur
or even Champagne poured over. Russian cigarettes also used to
be offered at this stage of a meal.
8.Relevé: This refers to the main roasts or other larger joints of
meat which would be served together with potatoes and
vegetables
10. 9. Roast (rôti): This term traditionally refers to roasted
game or poultry dishes.
10. Vegetables (légumes): Apart from vegetables served
with the Relevé or Roast courses, certain vegetables (e.g.
asparagus and artichokes) may be served as a separate
course, although these types of dishes are now more
commonly served as starters.
11. Salad (salade): Often refers to a small plate of salad
that is taken after a main course (or courses) and is quite
often simply a green salad and dressing.
11. 13. Cheese (fromage): Includes a range of cheeses
and various accompaniments, including biscuits
(water, Ryvita, digestive, cream crackers), breads,
celery, grapes, apples and chutneys. This course can
also refer to cheese-based dishes such as soufflés.
14. Sweets (entremets): Refers to both hot and cold
puddings.
15. Savoury (savoureux): Sometimes simple savouries,
such as
12. 16 Fruit (dessert): Fresh fruit, nuts and sometimes
candied fruits.
17 Beverages: Traditionally this referred to coffee
but nowadays includes a much wider range of
beverages, including tea, coffee (in both standard
and de-caffeinated versions) as well as other
beverages such as tisanes, milk drinks (hot or cold)
and proprietary drinks such as Bovril, Horlicks or
Ovaltine.
13. Classes of menu
Menus may be divided into two classes,
traditionally called table d’hôte (table of
the host) and à la carte (from the card)
14. Table d’hôte menu:
Set menu at a set price.
The key characteristics of the table d’hôte menu
are:
• the menu has a fixed number of courses
• there is a limited choice within each course
• the selling price is fixed
• the food is usually available at a set time.
15. À la carte menu
Individually priced menu
• The key characteristics of the à la carte menu
are: the choice is generally more extensive
• each dish is priced separately
• there may be longer waiting times as some
dishes are cooked or finished to order.
16. Sometimes the term ‘menu du jour’ is used instead of the
term ‘table d’hôte menu’.
Another menu term used is ‘carte du jour’ (literally ‘card
of the day’) or ‘menu of the day’, which can also be a
fixed meal with one or more courses for a set price.
A ‘prix fixe’ (fixed price) menu is similar.
17. A ‘tasting menu’ (‘menu degustation’)
is a set meal with a range of courses (often between 6 and
10). These tasting menus are offered in restaurants where
the chef provides a sample of the range of dishes available
on the main menu.
21. Other types of menus
There are many other types of menu found in the
various sectors of the hospitality industry. Examples of
these are:
• Breakfast menus and afternoon tea menus
• Floor/room service menus,
• lounge service menus,
• hospital tray service menus,
• airline tray service menus and rail service menus
• Event menus
26. Dietary requirements
Customers may have a range of dietary requirements based
on medical and/or on lifestyle choices. There are a variety of
medical conditions, including allergies, which are more
common than was previously understood.
29. Menu and service knowledge
This knowledge enables the server to advise the customer of
the content of dishes, the methods used in making the
dishes and to ensure that the customer is provided with an
appropriate service lay-up and the correct accompaniments.
30. Main cooking methods
• Baking: cooking in either a fan oven or conventional oven. Often
referred to as ‘dry’ cooking.
• Boiling: cooking food in a simmering liquid.
• Braising: slow cooking in minimum liquid in a casserole dish with
a lid.
• Deep frying: cooking by placing into deep fat held at a
temperature of about 175–190 °C (350–375 °F).
• Grilling: quick and dry method of cooking food by radiant heat,
either over heated charcoal or under electric or gas salamanders.
• Microwave: cooking or re-heating food using high frequency
power in a microwave oven powered by electricity.
31. • Poaching: cooking in a minimum amount of liquid held at
simmering point. l Roasting: cooking with convected dry heat in
the oven.
• Shallow frying: cooking in the minimum amount of heated fat or
oil.
• Steaming: cooking heat is transferred from the water vapour
(steam) to the food being cooked.
• Stewing: Very slow cooking of food items in their own juices and
using the minimum amount of liquid, such as stock, in the process.
• Water bath: technique of vacuum packing ingredients and cooking
them at low temperatures in a water bath. This is a slow and
gentle process where moisture is not expelled and flavour is
retained.
33. These sauces provide the base for other sauces, by adding
a variety of different ingredients.
For example:
cheese to a béchamel sauce to create a Mornay sauce
whipped cream to a Hollandaise sauce to create sauce
Mousseline
tarragon and other herbs added to Hollandaise to make
Béarnaise
gherkins, capers, and fines herbes to mayonnaise to form
tartare sauce.
