Auguste Escoffier facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Auguste Escoffier
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| Born |
Georges Auguste Escoffier
28 October 1846 Villeneuve-Loubet, France
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| Died | 12 February 1935 (aged 88) Monte Carlo, Monaco
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| Occupation | Chef, restaurateur, writer |
| Spouse(s) |
Delphine Daffis
(m. 1878; died 1935) |
| Children | Paul, Daniel, Germaine |
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Georges Auguste Escoffier (born October 28, 1846 – died February 12, 1935) was a famous French chef, restaurant owner, and writer about cooking. He made traditional French cooking methods popular and more modern.
Escoffier's cooking style was based on the work of Marie-Antoine Carême, another important French chef. Escoffier made Carême's fancy style simpler and easier to use. He also wrote down the recipes for the five main mother sauces. People called him the "king of chefs and chef of kings." Escoffier was a very important person in London and Paris in the late 1800s and early 1900s.
Besides creating recipes, Escoffier also made the job of a chef more respected. Back then, kitchens were often noisy and messy. Escoffier demanded that his staff be clean, disciplined, and quiet. He used his experience from the army to create the brigade de cuisine system. This system organizes kitchen staff into different roles, and it's still used in many restaurants today. He worked closely with hotel owner César Ritz. Together, they became very famous at the Savoy in London, serving important people. Later, they worked at the Ritz Hotel in Paris and the Carlton in London.
Escoffier wrote a famous cookbook called Le Guide Culinaire. This book is still used today as a major reference for cooking. Escoffier's recipes, cooking methods, and ways of managing a kitchen are still very important. Chefs and restaurants all over the world use his ideas.
Contents
Early Life of a Chef
Escoffier was born in a small village called Villeneuve-Loubet in France. The house where he was born is now a museum about cooking. Even though he showed talent as an artist, his father took him out of school at age twelve. He started working as an apprentice in his uncle's restaurant, Le Restaurant Français, in Nice.
As a young apprentice, Auguste faced challenges. He was short, which made it hard to open oven doors safely. He even wore special boots to help him reach! But Escoffier was very good at cooking and managing the kitchen. Soon, he was hired by the nearby Hôtel Bellevue. In 1865, at age 19, he got a job at a fancy Paris restaurant called Le Petit Moulin Rouge.
Just a few months after moving to Paris, Escoffier had to join the army. He became an army chef. He spent almost seven years in the army. This experience taught him about preserving food in cans. Before 1878, he opened his own restaurant in Cannes, called Le Faisan d'Or (The Golden Pheasant).
Working with César Ritz
In 1884, Escoffier and his wife moved to Monte Carlo. There, Escoffier started working for César Ritz. Ritz was the manager of the new Grand Hotel. Escoffier took charge of the kitchens. The French Riviera was a popular winter vacation spot. In the summers, Escoffier managed the kitchens at the Grand Hôtel National in Lucerne, which Ritz also managed.
In 1890, Ritz and Escoffier moved to London to work at the new Savoy Hotel. They brought their head waiter, Louis Echenard, with them. Ritz wanted to "conquer London" with his team of hotel experts. Escoffier hired French cooks and organized the kitchens. The Savoy quickly became very popular. It attracted important and wealthy guests, including the Prince of Wales, who later became King Edward VII.
Escoffier created many famous dishes at the Savoy. In 1893, he invented the pêche Melba for the Australian singer Nellie Melba. In 1897, he created Melba toast. Other dishes he made included bombe Néro (a flaming ice cream) and fraises à la Sarah Bernhardt (strawberries with pineapple and a special sorbet).
New Beginnings: The Ritz and The Carlton
After some disagreements, Ritz, Escoffier, and Echenard left the Savoy Hotel in 1898. They soon started their own company, the Ritz Hotel Development Company. Escoffier helped set up the kitchens and hire chefs for their new hotels. First, they opened the Paris Ritz in 1898. Then, they opened the new Carlton Hotel in London in 1899. These new hotels quickly attracted many of the same high-society guests who used to go to the Savoy.
Having afternoon tea at the Ritz became very fashionable in Paris and London. However, Escoffier himself wasn't a big fan of it. He wondered, "How can one eat jam, cakes and pastries, and enjoy a dinner – the king of meals – an hour or two later?"
In 1913, Escoffier met Kaiser Wilhelm II, the German Emperor. This happened on a large ocean liner called the SS Imperator. Escoffier was in charge of the kitchens during the Kaiser's visit. He prepared a huge meal for many German officials. The Kaiser was so impressed that he met Escoffier the next day. Legend says the Kaiser told him, "I am the Emperor of Germany, but you are the Emperor of Chefs." This quote became famous and helped Escoffier's reputation grow even more.
César Ritz slowly retired after opening The Ritz Hotel, London in 1906. Escoffier continued to be the main chef at the Carlton until he retired in 1920. He even managed the kitchens during World War I. One newspaper wrote that Escoffier loved colors in his food. They remembered a dinner at the Carlton where the table had white and pink roses. The food itself was also white and pink, with dishes like Borscht and Filets de poulet à la Paprika.
One of Escoffier's famous students was Akiyama Tokuzō, who later became the Japanese imperial chef. In 1928, Escoffier helped create the World Association of Chefs' Societies and became its first president.
Honors and Personal Life
In 1919, when he was 73 years old, Escoffier was given a special French award called the Knight of the Légion d'honneur. In 1928, he received an even higher honor, becoming an Officer of the Légion d'honneur.
Escoffier married Delphine Daffis on August 28, 1878. She was a French poet. They had three children: Paul, Daniel, and Germaine. Sadly, Daniel was killed in World War I. Delphine died on February 6, 1935.
Georges Auguste Escoffier passed away on February 12, 1935, at the age of 88. He is buried in his family's tomb in Villeneuve-Loubet.
Images for kids
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The Savoy Hotel, London
See also
In Spanish: Auguste Escoffier para niños
