The modern fine dining establishment, with its staff hierarchy and attention to detail, is the brainchild of George Auguste Escoffier.
Born in France the middle of the 19 century, Escoffier was a chef, restaurateur and writer who codified many of the recipes that are considered classics today. He also changed the face of dining—before him, kitchens were loud and disorganized, run by workers who were often drunk. Escoffier, who’d spent nearly seven years in the army, brought military discipline to the kitchens of the London, Paris and Monte Carlo establishments where he worked. The result was an elevation of the dining experience, and a new status for restaurants.
Today, this “kitchen brigade” system remains a way to achieve coveted Michelin stars. But it’s also been condemned as the source of abuse and extreme pressure.
Many top restaurants were already re-thinking this system before the pandemic, but the pressure of the last two or so years have accelerated the change. Fine dining is now on the cusp of a revolution, which will upend everything from the way staffs are trained to the food itself.
Since its birth in 2017, ARENI has explored definitions of fine wine, and what they mean for both trade and consumers. This year, we asked contributors and interviewees to explore fine dining.
It became clear that definitions of “fine”, in both wine and cuisine, are changing.
The end of h hyper-intellectualisation
What’s common to everything “fine”, whether wine, dining, or art, is the determination of its makers to excel, and produce the very best they can do. This is never a finished process, but a lifelong journey and ongoing process of questioning how things are done.
But without denying the importance of technical know-how, chefs and restaurateurs now want to leave more room for emotions and a more intuitive approach to cooking; this movement is similar to that underway in the world of wine.
While they agree on the need for excellence, thought and creativity, a new generation of chefs and sommeliers now regards the hyper-intellectualization of recent years as having had a negative influence on restaurants.
“I have seen conviviality disappear in the last 20 years. Most fine dining restaurants are centred on the chef’s vision, and not the client’s pleasure. I understand why the chef wants the waiter to present the very complicated dish at length, but being exposed to long speeches on Nordic fermentation methods is not part of my definition of having a good time.”
Against excess
The word “fine” suggests excellence, and has never been thought by and for the people, but by and for the elite. Excellence is interpreted as the need to search for the extraordinary, and as a path to rise up (hautecuisine) from the base. Fine dining is exclusive.
By necessity or conviction, chefs and restaurant owners are shifting away from this idea towards a more down-to-earth approach.
In a conference organised by the National Museum of Natural History, French historian Patrick Rambourg drew a parallel between what happened after World War I and what is happening today. He sees end of the Great War as the end of the reigning aristocracy. “In the 20’s, it was the regional cuisines that contributed to the survival and renewal of French gastronomy,” he said. “The cuisine previously developed in the fine hotels and restaurants of Paris and London were seen as un-authentic and shallow. From then on, the regional specialties became a symbol of food diversity.”
This mirrors what is happening now—a moving away from sophisticated excess to the apparent simplicity and comfort of regional and popular food.
A dramatic divide between fine and popular
The definition of what defines excellence in hospitality is changing, at both the top and chain restaurant end.
“The fine dining restaurants have for too long considered that the guests were lucky to get in, to get access to their art and cuisine. Covid has helped many chefs realise that the cuisine matters, but it is nothing without the guests. It seems obvious, but it changed the perspectives of many.”
Fine dining guests can now look forward to hyper personalised service, where the guests are the star of the show. But this won’t necessarily be crushingly formal.
“Fine dining service doesn’t need to be formal to convey an unbelievable experience. It’s not about executing a piece of music perfectly; it’s about reading the room and thinking about all the little details that will make your guest’s experience unique.”
This could be as simple as removing extra chairs if a guest is dining alone, or asking at the booking if the guest has special dietary requirements. “It’s bringing extra bread to people that are amazed by the dish, so that they can eat every little drop of sauce. It’s making sure that regardless of who they are, people can feel that they are genuinely welcome.”
At the other end of the spectrum, customers can expect to see more technology. The pandemic pushed the fast-casual part of the industry to adopt more technology, from online ordering systems to contactless payment, delivery and collection, to automating orders and customer engagement.
This doesn’t necessarily mean dining dystopia is on its way, as many customers want both contact and no contact, depending on the situation and the meaning of the occasion.
The Michelin Guide Green Star
In 2020, the Michelin Guide revealed its latest initiative: the Etoile Verte, or Green Star, to highlight restaurants at the forefront of the industry when it comes to sustainable practices. Chefs and restaurants must hold themselves accountable for both their ethical and environmental standards. Though the guide underlines that there is no specific formula for awarding a Michelin Green Star, inspectors consider such elements as the provenance of the ingredients; the use of seasonal produce; the restaurant’s environmental footprint; food waste systems; general waste disposal and recycling; resource management; employees’ wellbeing, and the communication between the team and the guests about the restaurant’s sustainable approach.
“Not only are Green Star restaurants sustainable, but they make sustainability a big part of their customers’ experience,” said Elisabeth Boucher-Anslin, Communication Director, Michelin Food & Travel. “They teach, they talk, they share their vision and practice, in a way that consumers always leave the premises with a better vision of what sustainable gastronomy can be.”
At the time of writing, 348 restaurants across 27 countries hold a Green Star, including 31 of the current 134 3 Michelin-starred restaurants. “Ultimately, we would like to see all the Michelin-awarded restaurants receiving a Green Star,” said Boucher-Anslin, “and this distinction becoming irrelevant.”
What does this all mean for fine wine?
It is likely that the movement toward eating better—where “eating better” means more emphasis on ethics and sustainability—will continue to grow, reshaping fundamental ideas of excellence. The “good for you— good for the planet” movement is likely to accelerate, and have a greater impact on the buying decisions of sommeliers and wine directors; it may also cause wine lovers to question their own relationship with alcohol.
“The fine wine world has been ahead of the curve when it comes to protecting the environment, and we already have so many options available between all the wineries and domaines that are doing so much in term of sustainability,” said Watson Brown, the wine director at Eleven Madison Park restaurant in New York. “Through our wine menu, we need to tell stories of what is happening in the world right now, so I am choosing to pour the wines that help people understand that different value systems are possible.”
Dramatic changes are coming. Chefs, sommeliers and diners are coming together to find better, more sustainable ways to eat and offer one another hospitality. Escoffier would have approved.
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