At the table of a Margrave of Brandenburg around 1720, the meal does not follow the starter/main/dessert pattern but the ceremonial of service à la française: the table is covered with several 'Gänge' (services) where soups, roast game, freshwater fish, and jellied preparations arrive together, placed on damask linen and silverware bearing the house coat of arms. Then comes the sweet and spicy 'Konfekt', accompanied by fashionable drinks — French wine and chocolate. Everything is about symmetry, visible abundance, and rank.

Brandenburg court cuisine derives its nobility from the hunt: deer and wild boar from the Oder forests, perfumed with juniper berries from the Northern heathlands and bound with wines imported from Burgundy, mark the table of a music-loving prince who models his luxury on Versailles.