The Ceylon Dinner, 1875.

Over the years I have posted quite a number of menus for late nineteenth century civic and other official dinners.  I think it is fair to say that, looked at with modern eyes and tastes, those formal menus appear drearily predictable and ponderous. They were, of course, also written in French, and I have no doubt that the guests knew exactly the ingredients and style of each dish,  even if they had no other skills with the French language.

The report of the dinner that I have for you today suggests that these guests may have not, however, have always taken the process quite as seriously as we tend to believe.

The tradition of London’s “Ceylon Dinners” continued for many decades in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, as a celebration of Britain’s imperial motives and achievements in the country we now call Sri Lanka. An article in the Hindu Organ, of 29^th January, 1908 briefly summarises the rationale for the tradition:

The Ceylon dinner in England brings together all Ceylonese young men who are at that time residents in the British Isles as also such Britishers, retired officials and others, as have the welfare of the Ceylonese at heart, and sympathise with their aspirations. The function affords an opportunity for the sons of Ceylon scattered over in different parts of Great Britain and Ireland not only to become acquainted with each other but also to ventilate the grievances of their country in England before the British public.

Hindu Organ, 29^th Jan. 1908.

The Ceylon dinner for which I am going to give you the menu details today took place on January 22, 1875, and was duly reported in the Ceylon Observer (Colombo) a few months later – because the British folk doing their colonial service in the far reaches of Her Majesty’s empire were ever keen to know what was happening “at home.”

The writer begins:

For, there was a Ceylon dinner at the Criterion last night. Thirty Ceylon men sat down to feed, in number two of the establishment at the corner of Piccadilly Circus, John Anderson, Esquire, in the Chair; and there were the Patriarch of Uva, the Patriarch of Dimbula, other Patriarchs and merchant Princes, and last, though not least, Mr. John Capper, Prince of Editors.  To begin with the beginning, this, what follows was the

MENU OF THE BILL OF FARE.

	(FREE TRANSLATION)
Hors d”oeuvre.	Over-worked horse.
Chablis	Stable liquor.
Potage	Pottage.
Tortue liée	Tortured lie.
Ponche à La Romaine.	Roman Punch.
Poissons.	Poisons
Saumon – sauce homard	Some one’s saucy Hoer with
Turbans de merlans piqué	Turban and a marlin spike.
Marcobrunn.	Mark and Burn.
Entrées.	Entries.
Suprême de volaille à la financière.	Supreme wool oily tal de ral de ral de rido.
Heydsieck.	Hide and Seek.
Ris de veaux piquéaux petits pois	Riddle and woe of picked clean and skinned planters.
Dry Monopole.	Dry mon and pale
Relevé	Relief.
Quartier d’agneau.	Hind quarter of Agent with
Salade.	aiyo salad and sauce.
Rots.
Faisans.	Raw Peasants.
Pluviers dorés.	The goose that lays the golden eggs.
Entremets.	Intermezzo
Savarins chaudes au curacoa	Savvery, hot, in curacao.
Charlotte à la Parisienne.	Parisian Charlottes.
Heidsieck.	Hide and Seek.
Dry monopole.	Dry mon and pale.
Ramequins au fromage parmesan.	Raman comes into the garden, Maud of age.
Boudins glacé au fruits	Buddha glazed and fired.
Liqueurs.	Liquors up.
Dessert.	Dessert.
Château Giscours 1864.	Port old and tawny.
Café	Coffee.

I have not come across such a “free translation” of a standard menu of the era before, and I do wonder at the motivation for it being provided. What do you think?

As for the recipe for the day, I have chosen from Savouries à la Mode (London, 1886) by Mrs. De Salis (Harriet Anne.)

Ramequins au Fromage.

Crumble a small stale roll and cover it with a breakfastcupful of milk, which must be quite boiling; after it has well soaked, strain and put it in the mortar with four ounces of Parmesan and four ounces of Gloucester cheese grated, four ounces of fresh butter, half a teaspoonful of made mustard, a little salt and pepper, and a saltspoonful of sifted sugar. These ingredients must be all well pounded together with the yolks of four eggs, adding the well-whipped whites of the eggs. Half fill the paper cases or china moulds with this, bake them in a quick oven about ten to fifteen minutes, and serve hot as possible.