The King Of Chefs And The Chef Of Kings: Georges-Auguste Escoffier

By | September 7, 2019

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Diners at the Savoy Restaurant, London, circa 1890. Source: (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

No person has had a greater impact on dining and hospitality than the celebrated French chef, Georges-Auguste Escoffier. From peach melba to the kitchen brigade system to using fresh ingredients, Escoffier’s recipes, methods, and philosophies pervade almost all aspects of modern cuisine; even fast food.

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Photograph of Auguste Escoffier. Source: (Wikipedia)

Auguste Escoffier was born on October 28, 1846, in what is now called Villeneuve-Loubet, a small village outside of Nice, France. His father, Jean-Baptiste, grew tobacco and was a blacksmith. His father also decided that since Auguste was slight of stature he would be of no use at the blacksmith forge. He sent him to work at age 13 in his uncle Francois’s establishment, Restaurant Français, in Nice in 1859.

It was in Nice that Escoffier was baptized into the culinary arts. Kitchens were largely disorganized, not necessarily sanitary, and incredibly hot since windows were kept closed so as not to allow dishes to cool. It was so hot that cooks often drank copious amounts of wine to stay hydrated. Wearing built-up shoes so that he could stand even with the stovetops, he was cuffed and bullied. But it was here that he recognized the importance of cooking and believed that cooks and chefs should receive some recognition. “...cooking is a science and an art, and the man that puts all his heart into satisfying his fellow man deserves consideration.”