Molière at the table

In the 17th century, meals were not served in successive courses as they are today, but in 'services': the table was covered with a multitude of dishes at once (soups, entrées, roasts, entremets, fruits), arranged symmetrically, and each person helped themselves to what was within reach. One began with soups, then 'relieved' with roasts, and finished with sweet entremets and fruits. For Molière, a comedian first poor then cherished by the king, this service ranged from the most frugal — a soup and bread — to the most sumptuous, during the festivities at Versailles where his troupe performed.

During Molière's lifetime, French cuisine abandoned the medieval deluge of spices. *Le Cuisinier françois* by La Varenne (1651) established butter, herbs tied in a bouquet (parsley, thyme, bay leaf), and coulis — reduced juices that concentrate flavor. This was the birth of 'à la française' cuisine, the very food served at the table of the Sun King.