Beauvilliers, Restaurateur, Ci-devant Palais royal, no. 142 ; présentement rue de Richelieu, no. 26.

Broadsheet, on laid paper, 45,4 x 67,7 cm, orn. frame (worn foldings, sm. hole, repaired on verso, contemp. ms. notes in pen and ink).

Very rare dinner menu of the Grande Taverne de Londres, at 26 rue de Richelieu, the 2nd grand restaurant of Antoine B. Beauvilliers (1754-1817) who opened, on the eve of the French Revolution, in the Palais-Royal, under his own name, one of the most beautiful restaurants in the capital, and in fact the first grand restaurant in Paris. Beauvilliers was not only a gastronomic authority, he also became a leading culinary writer who wrote "L’Art du cuisinier" (1814), a cookbook that became a standard work on French culinary art. This menu listing ca. 300 dishes dates from shortly after the publication, given the engr. advertising strip “L’Art du Cuisinier, par. A. Beauvillers, 2 Vol. in-8°, Br. 15 fr., Rel. 18 fr." and a tax stamp of the Seine department at the bottom. Prices and extra meals were added in pen by a contemporary hand (Beauvilliers's own?). On the reverse, a ms. note by a visitor dates 1818. Beauvilliers's restaurant was intended for the wealthy, aristocratic clientele. It offered the visitor an elegant dining room, handsome well-trained waiters, a beautiful cellar and superior cuisine. Sophistication at its best.