Dining a la russe, or service a la russe is a style of dining that is the precursor to our modern style of restaurant dining. Service a la russe is still practiced for formal dining, and while you may see it depicted in movies about upper-crust Victorians or uncomfortable clashes between social classes in the United States, this manner of serving a meal divided into individual courses featuring specific dishes while entertaining guests originated in Russia. Even more interesting, the French, whose culinary sensibilities have unarguably high standards, threw out their own style of dining in favor of the dining a la russe.
Prince Alexander Kurakin, a Russian diplomat in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, is reportedly the man responsible for introducing the Russian style of dining to the French. The French have had a long-standing curiosity and interest in all things Russian, and this fact coupled with their admiration for Kurakin’s personal opulence probably contributed to the change in mealtime fashion. However, service a la russe was also deemed more practical for a variety of reasons, but did not sacrifice the impression of abundance and luxury hosts desired their guests to take away from the table.
Before Kurakin introduced dining a la russe, the table was cluttered with dishes in great variety all at once. This “family-style dining” or even “buffet-style dining” was made popular in Western Europe during the middle ages, but it caused warm foods to go cold before consumed, dishes to languish uneaten in their own congealing sauces, and flavors to mix and clash with diners’ hungry indiscretion.
The Russian style of dining introduced a more “civilized” manner of serving foods to guests. Each dish was brought out separately, either already arranged on individual plates for guests or, in the case of meat dishes, carved and served to guests who would then take the cut of their choice. The place setting was also an integral aspect of dining a la russe – it kept utensils organized and clean and brought order to a previously chaotic social custom.
Not everyone could afford to dine this way in Russia, of course – even then, dining a la russe was relegated to upper classes. It’s no wonder that Faberge didn’t limit his business to objects d’art, but also did very well selling silver services to wealthy families. Dining a la russe not only required the best food, prepared beautifully and served according to a system, but it also demanded that hosts and hostesses have enough plates, glasses, utensils, serving dishes, and servants to carry off dining a la russe with propriety and elegance.
