6
GASTRONOMY
1 Traditions and trends
1.1 Recent trends
1.1.1 Haute cuisine
1.1.2 Nouvelle cuisine
1.1.3 World cuisine in the USA
1.1.4 Fusion cuisine
1.1.5 Fast food
1.1.6 Slow food
1.1.7 New trends and innovative concepts
2 Nutrients and Special Diets
2.1 Nutrients
2.2 Healthy eating
2.3 Traditions
2.4 Other dietary trends
3 Menu planning
3.1 Types of menu
4 Beverages
4.1 Types of beverages
4.1.1 Non-alcoholic drinks
4.1.2 Alcoholic drinks
4.2 Food and wine harmony
Questions and Topics for Discussion
1. What trends and fashions are reflected in our eating habits?
2. Discuss the effects of religion on the eating habits of certain cultures.
3. Why is a balanced diet desirable? What do you consider to be necessary to provide a balanced diet?
4. How has preparation of foods changed and why have these changes come about?
5. Specify the essential menu requirements and state your reasons for children, teenagers and senior citizens.
6. What are the essentials of menu design and construction?
7. What kinds of drinks are served before, during and after a meal?
8. Discuss how different dishes influence the choice of drinks that accompany a meal.
1 Traditions and trends
1.1 Recent trends
1.1.1 Haute cuisine
“Paris is the culinary centre of the world. All the great missionaries of good cookery have gone forth from it, and its cuisine was, is, and ever will be the supreme expression of one of the greatest arts of the world,” observed the English author of The Gourmet Guide to Europe in 1903. Even today, a sophisticated meal, expertly prepared and elegantly served, must almost by definition be French.
For a century and a half, fine dining the world over has meant French dishes and, above all, French chefs. Despite the growing popularity in the past decade of regional American and international cuisines, French terms like julienne, sauté, and chef de cuisine appear on restaurant menus from New Orleans to London to Tokyo, and culinary schools still consider the French methods essential for each new generation of chefs.
One of the first reference works for chefs, Ouverture de Cuisine, written by Lancelot de Casteau and published in 1604, set out rules for the preparation and presentation of food for the nobility. Beginning with this guide and the cookbooks that followed, French chefs of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries codified the cuisine of the French aristocracy. After the French Revolution, the chefs of France found it necessary to move from the homes of the nobility to the public domain, where they were able to build on this foundation of an aesthetic of cooking to make cuisine not only a respected profession but also to make it a French one. French cooks transformed themselves from household servants to masters of the art of fine dining, making the cuisine of the French aristocracy the international haute cuisine.
Eager to prove their “good taste”, the new elites of the Industrial Age and the bourgeoisie competed to hire French chefs in their homes, and to entertain at restaurants where French chefs presided over the kitchen. The French influence on the world of cuisine and culture is a story of food as a status symbol. “Tell me what you eat,” the great gastronome Brillat-Savarin wrote, “and I will tell you who you are”. Haute Cuisine shows us how our tastes, desires, and history come together at a common table of appreciation for the French empire of food. Bon appetit!
1.1.2 Nouvelle cuisine
A cuisine (from the French word for “kitchen”) is a specific set of cooking traditions and practices, often associated with a place of origin. By the mid-1960s a number of restaurants chef proprietors in France, had developed a variety of new cookery styles, which each differed in various ways from traditional cookery. These styles, although individual, shared a number of new cookery principles which established nouvelle cuisine. This style is often described as a picture on a plate but, although a high degree of decorative work is involved, consideration needs to be given to the full range of principles, e.g.: simplicity of methods and products; reduced cooking time for green vegetables, fish, seafood and veal; ingredients; fresh from markets (freshwater fish, wild mushrooms, snails, asparagus, fresh vegetables, seafood) as well as selecting pollution, additive-free commodities and artistic presentation.
1.1.3 World cuisine in the USA
It all began when the search for pepper and other spices brought the first Spaniards and other Europeans to the New World in the late 15th century. They did not find any pepper, but they discovered chiles, squash, corn, tomatoes, potatoes, turkey, chocolate and vanilla and took these foods back to Europe. These foods revolutionized Spanish cooking; in fact, many of the foods that we consider to be the very foundation of European cuisine were not known in Europe until after the discovery and exploration of the new world. Of course, what the Old World brought to the New World – apples, pears, peaches and livestock was extremely important also.
The Spanish empire also established colonies in the Caribbean, Colombia and Puerto Rico where they adapted their cuisine to a new environment which led to unique regional cuisines.
These island flavours were brought to the United States by immigrants during the 1960s and made a fresh and irresistible brand of American cuisine. The Southwestern food movement of the early 1980s familiarized Americans with the rich mix of unfamiliar flavours. It freed the imagination of classically trained chefs to mix and match traditional techniques with new world ingredients.
1.1.4 Fusion cuisine
Fusion cuisine combines elements of various culinary traditions whilst not fitting specifically into any. The term generally refers to the innovations in many contemporary restaurant cuisines since the 1970s. This type of restaurant’s success depends on a number of factors. Among these are: the clientele’s or prospective clientele’s cultural diversity, their travel patterns and experiences as well as their culinary sophistication and openness to new eating experiences. These factors have made this type of cuisine accepted and popular mainly in large metropolitan areas.
1.1.5 Fast food
Fast food is food prepared and served quickly at a fast-food restaurant or shop at low cost. Fast food is a multi-billion dollar industry which is continuing to grow at a rapid pace in the early 21st century in many countries as fewer people cook at home. Fast food is often highly processed and prepared in an industrial fashion, i.e. with standard ingredients and methodical cooking and production methods. It is usually served in cartons or bags in a rapid manner in order to minimize costs.
Fast food outlets often provide take-away or take-out food in addition to a sitdown service. Drive-ins allow food to be ordered and delivered without leaving the car to further speed up service. Fast food is usually finger food that can be eaten quickly and without cutlery. It often consists of fish and chips, sandwiches, pitas, hamburgers, breaded chicken, french fries, chicken nuggets, pizza or ice cream although many fast food restaurants offer some other less easily consumed choices like chili, mashed potatoes, or salads.
Chinese cuisine, although often served as take-away, is not always considered fast food. McDonalds supplies fast food. Multinational corporations generally modify their menus to local tastes. In addition, multinational fast food chains are not the only or even the primary source of fast food in most of the world. Most fast food in the developing world is provided by small individual mom and pop eateries. In the developing world, multinational chains are considerably more expensive, they are usually frequented because they are considered chic and somewhat glamorous and because they are usually much cleaner than local eateries.
Because of its convenience, fast food is popular and commercially successful in most modern societies, but it is often criticized for its poor nutritional value and its contribution to obesity. Exploitative advertising and marketing is used, especially directed at children, and reduces the diversity of local cuisines. The unhealthiness of fast food comes in part from cooking methods. Fast food tends to be deep fried which increases the amount of fats and calories. The need to limit the fast food option is increasingly being recognised in the early years of the 21st century. Some of the concerns have led to a ‘Slow Food’ alternative.
1.1.6 Slow food
The Slow Food movement preserves an ecoregion’s cuisine and the associated food plants and seeds, domestic animals, and farming methods of that region. It was begun by Carlo Petrini in Italy as a resistance movement to fast food but has expanded globally to 50 countries. It now describes itself as an eco-gastronomy faction within the ecology movement, and some consider it also the culinary wing of the anti-globalization movement. It announced the opening of a new University of Food at Pollenzo, in Piedmont, Italy in 2004. Carlo Petrini and Massimo Montanari are leading figures in the setting up of the University, whose goal is to promote awareness of good food and nutrition. Programs of the Slow Food movement include or have included the preservation and promotion of local and traditional food product knowhow, educating consumers about the hidden risks of fast food, lobbying against genetic modification of foodstuffs, lobbying for agricultural policy changes to support organic farms and lobbying against the use of pesticides.
1.1.7 New trends and innovative concepts
New trends are making headway today, thanks to the development of technologies, although traditional cooking is still very well established. These include molecular cuisine, also called ‘techno-emotional’ by some specialists, which consists of introducing practices from chemistry and physics into cooking. It is associated with so-called ‘innovative’ ingredients already used in the food processing industry such as gelling agents (agar - agar, gelatine), thickening agents, emulsifiers (soya lecithin), or fizzy sugar.
Another trend is ‘miniature’ cuisine, which blends tastes, colours and textures to satisfy consumers’ curiosity with small quantities.
Some innovative concepts reworked by certain great chefs have appeared with new lifestyles, such as snacking and street food, which they have made into chic, sophisticated or even luxury dishes (savoury Madeleine with truffles, slice of bread and caviar and pizza with caviar, sandwich with foie gras and cocoa, lobster sandwich, etc.). The development of technology has created efficient cooking appliances: portable hot plates, all-purpose, often computerized ovens (used for baking, roasting, barbecue, and grilling) using various techniques. ‘Sous vide’ cooking or vacuum boiling (created in 1973) is very commonly used by chefs and consists of cooking a food already hermetically sealed in a heat-resistant bag. It is done at low temperature (cooking at 55°C and frying at 80°C) and helps preserve or even improve the product’s nutritional qualities, colour and texture.
Among the old techniques, cooking in paper parcels (papillote) has been improved with new cling films that have a high heat resistance. It preserves the food’s flavour and creaminess and steam-cooks with no fats. Once used to make soda water, the siphon has now been diverted from its original use to become a trendy tool to make mousses, purées, cakes and creams (including Chantilly cream).
Home cooking has also become more poular as well as more international. Researches have proved that only 12% of the total adult population dislikes cooking at home. This means that over 50% enjoy cooking and over 58% watch food programs on TV. Many people read the food section of newspapers and magazines and visit food websites, read the blogs of famous chefs and ordinary housewives and food bloggers often publish their recipes in the form of cookery books. Many housewives are now trying out new ingredients and cooking methods and have grown more aware of the nutritional value of these. Although some of these programmes are not based on the principles of healthy eating, they play an important role in preserving or restoring the prestige of home cooking.
2 Nutrients and Special Diets
2.1 Nutrients
Food must supply the body with ingredients, needed for everyday function. These essential ingredients are the nutrients. Some are required in small amounts, others in larger quantities, but without any one of them the body cannot function.
Anyone who plans menus should have some basic knowledge of nutrition and the properties in food that contribute to the health of those who eat it. For the institutional foodservice this is so important that their staff often includes a dietitian to plan a menu with correct nutritional values. This is essential in hospitals where many patients are on special diets.
Foods are usually classified into five basic groups according to their nutritional values; the menu planner should have some knowledge of these groups.
- Proteins are the cell-building elements in foods. Meat and fish are rich in proteins; there are smaller quantities in grains such as wheat and rice, in nuts, and in some kinds of beans.
- Carbohydrates are compounds of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen that provide the body with heat and energy; grains have a high carbohydrate content, and so do potatoes and sugar.
- Fats are oily substances that are another source of heat and energy; they also form deposits of fatty tissue in the body. Vegetable oils are a liquid source of fat; other foods rich in fats are dairy products such as milk, butter, and cheese.
- Minerals and vitamins are substances necessary, in very small amounts, to regulate the functions of parts of the body such as nerves and glands; they are widely distributed through many different foods. Milk, for example, is rich in the mineral calcium, used in building bones; seafood is rich in iodine which is present in the thyroid gland. Vitamins abound in fresh vegetables, fruits, grains, fish and meat.
- Water, taken either as a fluid or as part of solid food, is also a nutritional necessity. It should be noted that many foods such as fresh fruits and vegetables contain a high percentage of water.
Good nutrition is eating a little of everything and not too much of anything. The body’s nutritional requirements vary from one individual to another, depending on age, occupation and physical condition.
2.2 Healthy eating
Most people agree that one of the bases of healthy eating is organic food. Organic farmers and food producers
- grow and produce food without using synthetic chemicals, such as pesticides or artificial fertilisers,
- do not use genetically modified (GM) components,
- respect animal welfare and environmental sustainability. The definition also includes animal produce, such as eggs, which are free range rather than caged (battery) hens,
- may treat animals with vaccines but do not use any growth-regulating drugs, steroids, hormones or antibiotics,
- protect the environment and work in harmony with existing ecosystems, for example, conserving water, soil and energy; and use renewable resources.
In a healthy diet it is essential to avoid food additives. Food additives are chemicals added to foods to keep them fresh or to enhance their colour, flavour or texture. Food additives are listed on the label, along with other ingredients. Sometimes, the additive is written in full; at other times it is represented by a number. Food additives include artificial colours, thickeners, preservatives and antioxidants.
2.3 Traditions
It is important for the caterer, who aims to satisfy all their customers whatever their religion or state of health, to be aware of the various diets and food customs of different races and religions. Hereby we will be outlining some of the most well-known ones.
- Muslims are forbidden to eat pork, bacon, ham or any foods containing pork. Nor may they eat shellfish or eels. For many Muslims, animals must be killed according to religious ritual and under strict religious supervision (Halal meat). People who practise the
- Hindu religion do not eat meat. They also avoid foods that may have caused pain to animals during manufacture. ‘Karma’ is believed to be the spiritual load we accumulate or relieve ourselves of during our lifetime. Animals are believed to have spiritual awareness. If a Hindu consumes animal flesh, they accumulate the Karma of that act – which will need to be balanced through good actions and learning in this life or the next. Depending on the level of adherence to this belief, in many cases beef is forbidden, while pork is sometimes restricted or avoided.
- „Kosher” (Jewish) means proper, i.e. foods which are prepared and served according to Jewish dietary laws. This involves Kosher butchery where the jugular vein of the animal is cut and the blood drained out while prayers are said. Jews are not allowto eat the meat of animals which do not have cloven hooves or do not chew the cud. Another prohibition is the use of milk and meat together. Meat and milk equipment must not be mixed either in the kitchen or the foodservice area. After eating meat Jews are not permitted foods containing milk for 4 hours.
- A Christian (Roman Catholic, Orthodox and Protestant) diet would consider the following issues: Roman Catholics fast for at least one hour prior to communion. Fasting is sometimes considered to be ‘praying with the body’. It is believed to improve spiritual discipline – by overcoming the sensations of the physical world and focussing on prayer and spiritual growth. It may serve as a way to respect those people around the world who regularly face starvation or malnutrition. Variations of fasting or abstinence are observed by some Roman Catholics on such occasions as Lent or Good Friday; for example, some may strictly avoid meat at this time. Most Protestants observe only Easter and Christmas as feast days, and do not follow ritualised fasting. Mormons avoid caffeinated and alcoholic beverages. The various faiths of Christianity include Roman Catholic, Orthodox and Protestant. Some faiths that do not advocate any restrictions.
2.4 Other dietary trends
Nowadays there is a tendency to look for health food, which could be lots of things. Often it refers to organically grown vegetables and fruits, which have not been treated with chemical substances. Also, some people prefer naturally-reared meat, that is the meat of animals that have not been treated with hormones or drugs. A growing number of people are vegetarians and vegans.
Reasons for becoming vegetarian:
- a. Health reasons.
People believe meat is bad for health due to its high fat content, hormones injected into livestock etc. Some “vegetarians” only refuse “red meats”, such as beef and pork (these are the fattiest). However, they’ll eat chicken and fish etc. (white meat).
- b. Moral reasons.
Many vegetarians believe eating meat is cruel. They do not believe in man’s right to take life from other animals. Most “moral” vegetarians will not eat meat of any kind. Some, however, refuse to eat the flesh of warm-blooded animals, since they feel pain, having a nervous system similar to ours. These people eat seafood, because these are cold-blooded animals which supposedly do not feel pain. Other vegetarians eat seafood because it is taken from a natural environment –the animal had a perfectly normal, natural life before. This is contrasted with the life of a pig, which is reared for the purpose of being slaughtered, and which spends its life in a cramped, artificial environment. Some people will also only eat chicken if the bird has lived with a degree of freedom, not in a battery farm. They will also only eat free-range eggs.
Strict vegetarians usually refuse to eat any products which have involved the slaughtering of an animal. This means that biscuits that contain animal fat, for example, cannot be consumed, since the animal had to die for that fat to be produced. Many cheeses also contain rennet, a substance obtained from cows’ stomachs that is used in curdling, making the cheese more solid. This entails the death of the cow, so many vegetarians only eat “vegetarian cheese”, cheeses made without rennet. Such cheeses are usually labelled in supermarkets.
Veganism
Vegans are “moral vegetarians” who believe it is wrong to exploit animals. This means they will not drink milk, eat butter or even cheese. This is because these products involve the exploitation of animals, even though they are not exactly killed. Some will not even drink in pubs, since the glasses used are cleaned with substances containing fish oil, which is obtained at the expense of the fish.
Fruitism
Fruitists are people who refuse to eat any product that entails death. Therefore they refuse to eat root vegetables, since eating a carrot means the death of the plant. However, they will eat apples, because you do not kill the plant by eating the fruit. These people are very rare!
Today’s cookery has to be suited to the needs and tempo of present day life. Eating sensibly is a great concern for most people. Healthy food is high in fibre, low in fat, salt, sugar and of course, there is no alcohol. It involves a lot of raw vegetables and fruit.
3 Menu planning
Several issues should be taken into consideration when planning a menu. Some concern the area where the catering is located alongside competition and target clientele. With regards the dishes offered modern trends in food fashions should be considered against popular traditional dishes. The range of dishes to be offered and the pricing structure are also of major importance in menu design. Space and equipment in the kitchens will influence the composition of the menu e.g. overloading use of deep frying pan, salamanders and steamers. The number and capability of staff also have a bearing on the menu. Availability of supplies and reliability of suppliers — seasonal foods and storage space are of primary importance. Food allergies and special requests should also be responded to. In menu planning the cost factor is crucial if an establishment is to be profitable. Costing is essential for the success of compiling any menu. Whatever level of catering is offered in financial considerations a golden rule should be ‘offer value for money’.
3.1 Types of menu
- Table d’hôte or set-price menu — a menu forming a meal usually of two or three courses at a set price. A choice of dishes may be offered at all courses.
- A la carte — a menu with all the dishes individually priced. The customers can therefore compile their own menu, which may be one, two or more courses. A true á la carte dish should be cooked to order and the customer should be prepared to wait.
- Special party or function menus — menus for banquets or functions of all kinds.
- Ethnic or speciality menus — these can be set price or dishes individually priced specialising in the food (or religion) of the country or in a specialised food itself: ethnic — Chinese, Indian, kosher, African Caribbean, Greek; speciality — steak, fish, pasta, vegetarian, pancakes.
- Hospital menus — these usually take the form of a menu card given to the patient the day beforeservice so that his or her preferences can be ticked. Both National Health Service and privatehospitals cater for vegetarians and to religious requirements.
- Menus for people at work — menus which are served to people at their place of work. Such menus vary in standard and extent from one employer to another due to company policy and the welfare of their staff and workforce. There may also be a call-order á la carte selection charged at a higher price. The food will usually be mainly British with some ethnic and vegetarian dishes.
- Menus for children — in schools there is an emphasis on healthy eating and a balanced diet particularly in boarding schools. Those areas with children of various cultural and religious backgrounds have appropriate items available on the menu. Many establishments provide special children’s menus which concentrate on favourite foods and offer suitably sized portions.
- Cyclical menus - These are menus which are compiled to cover a given period of time: one month, three months, etc. They consist of a number of set menus for a particular establishment, such as an industrial restaurant, cafeteria, canteen, director’s dining-room, hospital or college refectory. At each period the menus can be used again thus overcoming the need to keep compiling new ones. These menus must be monitored carefully to take account of changes in customer requirements and any variations in weather conditions which are likely to affect demand for certain dishes. They save time by removing the daily or weekly task of compiling menus, although they may require slight changes for the next period. When used in association with cook/freeze operations, it is possible to produce the entire number of portions of each item to last the whole cycle if the standardised recipes are correct. They give greater efficiency in time and labour. They can cut down on the number of commodities held in stock, and can assist in planning age requirements.
- Preplanned or predesigned menus enable the caterer to ensure that good menu planning is practised. Before selecting dishes that he or she prefers, the caterer should consider what the customer likes, and the effect of these dishes upon the meal as a whole.
4 Beverages
4.1 Types of beverages
Alcoholic beverages have been widely used by many civilizations around the world, as a component of the standard diet, for hygienic reasons, for their relaxing effects, for recreational purposes, or many other reasons. Some have been invested with symbolic or religious significance, e.g. in Christian Eucharist and Jewish Passover.
The use of alcoholic beverages can create dependency (alcoholism), which in many societies has become a major health problem, public as well as private. Alcoholism often leads to social and financial ruin, and sometimes to early death. Moreover, the psychological and neurological effects of alcohol have often been a cause of serious accidents and crimes. For these and other reasons, some religions — most notably Islam — ban the consumption of alcoholic beverages, and many governments regulate or restrict them in many ways. Alcoholic beverages include low-alcohol-content beverages produced by fermentation of starch-containing products, and high-alcohol-content beverages produced by distillation of the low-alcohol-content beverages. Sometimes, the alcohol content of low-alcohol beverages is increased by adding a distilled product, particularly in the case of wines. Such fortified wines include Port and Sherry. The concentration of alcohol in an alcoholic beverage may be specified in per cent alcohol by volume (ABV), in percentage by weight (sometimes abbreviated w/w for weight for weight), or in proof. Drinks do not only satisfy our thirst but play an important role in digestion too. Fruit juices have a refreshing effect, various beers, wines, cocktails and other mixed drinks make for good humour. Champagnes are indispensable at celebrations.
4.1.1 Non-alcoholic drinks
Non-alcoholic drinks include water, from the tap or bottle, juice, for example fruit juices, vegetable juices, which may be fresh or made from a concentrate. Carbonated drinks are generally called sodas, pop or cokes in the U.S. Squash is a fruit-flavoured syrup diluted with water. An infusion is a beverage made by steeping a flavouring substance in hot or boiling water. Infusions include coffee, tea and tisane.
Coffee
Coffee as a drink, usually served hot, is prepared from the roasted seeds (beans) of the coffee plant. Coffee can be brewed in several different ways but fall into three main groups depending on how the water is introduced to the ground coffee.
Coffee in all these forms is made with ground coffee (coffee beans that have been roasted and ground) and hot water, the grounds either remaining behind or being filtered out of the cup or jug after the main soluble compounds have been removed. The most popular brewing methods include the following:
Turkish (or ‘Greek’ or ‘Arab’) coffee is a very early method of making coffee, still used in the Middle East, North Africa, Turkey and Greece, is to add the hot water to very finely ground coffee in a narrow-topped pot and allow it to briefly come to the boil. It is sometimes drunk sweet, in which case sugar is added to the pot and boiled with the coffee or it also often flavoured with cardamom. The result is small cups of very strong coffee with a foam on the top and thick layer of sludgy powder at the bottom of the cup.
Espresso is made with pressurised hot water and is the basis for many coffee drinks, or can be served alone (often after an evening meal). It is one of the strongest forms of coffee regularly drunk and has a distinctive flavour. A percolator (or mocha pot) is a three-chamber design which boils water in the lower section and forces the boiling water through the separated coffee grounds in the middle section, the resultant strong, almost espresso strength coffee, is collected in the upper section.
Filter coffee is made by letting hot water drip onto coffee grounds held in a filter (paper or perforated metal). Strength varies according to the ratio of water to coffee, but is typically weaker than espresso. Instant and soluble coffee has been freeze dried into soluble powder or granules. It is distinct from fresh coffee and is prepared differently. Coffee may be served in a variety of different ways.
- Black coffee is drip brew, percolated or French press style coffee served without milk; sugar may be added.
- White coffee is coffee with milk added after preparation, perhaps with sugar.
- Cappuccino is an espresso with frothed milk and sometimes sugar and cocoa on top.
- Latte is a single shot of espresso with steamed (not frothed) milk.
- Café au lait is like a Latte except that drip-brewed coffee is used instead of espresso, with an equal amount of milk. Sugar is added to taste.
- Americano style coffee is made with espresso (normally several shots) and hot water to give a similar strength (but different flavour) from drip brewed coffee.
- Iced coffee is normally served with milk and sugar.
- Flavoured coffee: In some cultures, flavoured coffees are common. Chocolate is a common addition that is either sprinkled on top or added to the coffee. Other flavourings include spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom or Italian syrups. Irish coffee is hot brewed coffee spiked with whiskey and with a layer of cream on the top.
Tea preparation
The best way to prepare tea is usually thought to be with loose tea placed either directly in a teapot or contained in a tea infuser, rather than a teabag. However, perfectly acceptable tea can be made with teabags. The water for black teas should be added when boiled (100°C), except for very delicate Darjeeling teas, where slightly lower temperatures are recommended. This will have as large an effect on the final flavour as the type of tea used. The tea should not be allowed to steep for less than 30 seconds or more than about five minutes, longer steeping makes the tea bitter.
Water for green tea, according to most accounts, should be around 80 to 85°C – the higher the quality of the leaves, the lower the temperature. Preferably, the mug or teapot- in which the tea is steeped –– should also be warmed beforehand (usually by swirling a little hot water around it then pouring it out) so that the tea does not immediately cool down. Some teas, especially green teas and delicate Oolongs or Darjeeling teas, are steeped for shorter periods, sometimes less than 30 seconds. Using a tea strainer separates the leaves from the water at the end of the brewing time if a tea bag is not used.
Experienced tea-drinkers often insist that the tea should not be stirred around while it is steeping. Popular additives to tea include sugar or honey, lemon, milk, and fruit jams. Milk is thought to neutralize remaining tannins and reduce acidity.
Tea culture
Drinking tea is often a social event. Tea is also drunk throughout the day and especially in the morning to heighten alertness — it contains theophylline and bound caffeine (sometimes called “theine”). In China, at least as early as the Song Dynasty, formal tea-tasting parties were held, comparable to modern wine tastings. As much as in modern wine tastings, a proper vessel was important; the white tea used at that time called for a dark bowl in which the tea leaves and hot water were mixed and whisked. The best of these bowls are highly valued today. The rituals and the traditional dark pottery were adopted in Japan beginning in the 12th century, and gave rise to the Japanese tea ceremony, which took its final form in the 16th century.
There are more tea ceremonies which have arisen in different cultures, Japan complex, formal and serene being the most known. Other examples are the Korean tea ceremony or some traditional ways of brewing tea in Chinese tea culture. In India, the world’s second largest producer, tea is popular all over as a breakfast and evening drink. Popularly called chai, it is served hot with milk and sugar, and sometimes scented. Almost all the tea consumed is black Indian tea. In Britain and Ireland, “tea” is not only the name of the beverage, but of a late afternoon light meal. Frequently (outside the UK) this is referred to as “high tea”, however in the UK high tea is an evening meal. The term evidently comes from the meal being eaten at the “high” (main) table, rather than the smaller table common in living rooms. Tea is served with milk and sugar. There is a tradition of tea rooms in the UK which have declined in popularity since the Second World War but still exist in small village communities. They usually provide the traditional fare of cream teas and jam on scones. Ireland has, for a long time, been the biggest per capita consumer of tea in the world. The national average is four cups per person per day, with many people drinking six cups or more. In the United States, tea is often served iced; iced tea is a common meal-time beverage or hot weather treat in many parts of the country. It is sometimes served with a wedge of lemon, and may be sweetened or unsweetened, varying by region.
4.1.2 Alcoholic drinks
Apéritifs The word comes from the Latin aperitifs, meaning to open out. In the case of food and wine, this means to stimulate and open out the gastric juices to make an appetite for the meal to come. e.g. Champagne, Sherry, Dry white wine, Italian Vermouth, French Vermouth.
Spirits, any of various beverages of high alcohol content, produced by distillation, formerly called ardent spirits or aqua vitae. The earliest alcoholic beverages were products of simple fermentation that, at most, yielded about 12 per cent alcohol. At first only wine was distilled, but soon afterwards other fermented products were employed. The process of distillation not only concentrates the alcohol, but also removes a large portion of the unpleasant-tasting impurities. The flavouring material remaining in the finished beverage is less than half of 1 per cent; the remainder consists of water, and alcohol of between 38 and 45 per cent. Liqueurs, sweetened and flavoured spirits, are between 20 and 40 per cent alcohol.
Brandy, spirit distilled from wine and matured by ageing in wooden casks. The name is derived from the German brandtwein, meaning burnt wine, corrupted to brandy wine. Freshly distilled brandy is clear and colourless and will remain so if kept in glass containers. When placed in wooden casks, however, the spirits acquire a colouring matter from the wood and take on a light brownish tint, which dealers often deepen by adding burnt sugar. The distinctive aroma of brandy is due to the presence of traces of higher alcohols and volatile oils. The very high alcoholic content of the raw spirits is reduced somewhat by ageing and is usually between 37 and 44 per cent (usually around 40 per cent) alcohol by volume when the brandy is bottled for sale.
Cognac, named after a city in France, is a kind of brandy, which must be produced in the region around the town of Cognac and aged in oak barrels in order to be called cognac. The amber-hued cognac is made by distilling white wine, which is then aged in an oak cask. Armagnac is another well-known French brandy, from one of three areas: Bas-Armagnac, Haut-Armagnac, or Tenarcze. Other notable brandies are kirsch, produced in the Alsace area of France, in Switzerland, and in the Black Forest region of Germany, by distilling the fermented juice of the black morello cherry; calvados, made from the distillation of cider in the department of Calvados in France; and slivovitz, a dry, colourless plum brandy made in the Balkans.
Whisky/whiskey is spirit or liquor distilled from fermented mash of cereal grains, just as brandy is distilled from wine. Whisky is usually sold at between 40 and 50 per cent alcohol by volume (abv), equivalent to 80 to 100 per cent proof. The term whisky, also spelled whiskey in the United States and in Ireland, is derived from the Scottish Gaelic uisge beatha and the Irish Gaelic uisce beathadh, both meaning “water of life”. Irish whiskey was formerly known as usquebaugh in Ireland.
Whisky Types
The two main categories of whisky are straight (US), single (GB), or unblended whisky; and blended whisky. Straight whisky may either signify a whisky produced by a single distillery or distiller during a specified period, or a whisky produced from one grain alone, or from a mixture of grains provided the stated grain takes up at least 51 per cent of the whole. Blended whiskies may be sourced from a number of different distilleries, and produced from different grain types using various methods of distillation. In general, straight or single whiskies are intense and characterful in flavour, while blended whiskies are soft and smooth. Irish whiskey is much less diverse in style, and more concentrated, in production terms, than Scotch whisky. Its distinguishing features include triple distillation; and the use, for pot-still whiskey, of a proportion of unmalted barley. Peat is not used by Irish maltsters, which therefore means that Irish whiskey lacks the smoky note of Scotch; Irish pot stills are, moreover, larger than those used in Scotland. Cask-ageing practices are similar to Scotland’s. Pot-still and continuous still whiskeys are produced on the same premises, and most Irish whiskeys are blends of the two. Irish whiskey is smoother, softer, and rounder than Scotch whisky.
Whiskey from the United States is characterized by the fact that differences of flavour based on geographical origin (Kentucky and Tennessee are the two most important producer states) are modified to a large extent by the exact choice of grains, in particular the balance of rye, corn (the term bourbon indicates a straight corn-mash whiskey), barley, and occasionally wheat; and by the powerful vanillic flavours given to the whiskey during its ageing period in charred new-oak barrels. Tennessee whiskeys are charcoal-filtered before cask-ageing. Blended American whiskeys contain a proportion of neutral spirit, that is, rectified grain spirit.
Beer is a term for an alcoholic drink made by the fermentation of solutions derived from cereals and other starchy grains. Most beer is made from malted barley and flavoured with hops. In Japan, China, and Korea, rice is used to make beer (called sake, samshu, and suk respectively); millet, sorghum and other seeds are used in Africa; while Russian kvass is made from fermented rye bread.
Beer Types
In Europe, beers are enormously diverse in colour, flavour, and strength, and every stage of the brewing process is subject to alteration, modification, and creative intervention. Nonetheless, one basic distinction divides the beer family, founded on yeast type. Beers made with top-fermenting yeasts (that is, yeasts which float on top of the fermenting wort) are called ales; beers made with bottom-fermenting yeasts are called lagers. Ale may be served within days after the completion of fermentation; lagers, however, must be stored at 0°C for between three weeks and three months (it is this process which gives lager its name: Lager means “storehouse” in German, and Lagerbier originally signified beer for storing). Ale is customarily served warmer (12°C to 18°C) than is lager (7°C to 10°C).
Among these other types of beer bitter is the English term for often heavily hopped ale; India pale ale is the term used in the United Kingdom and among America’s small regional breweries to signify very heavily hopped, high-alcohol beer; mild ale is a lightly hopped, dark, low-alcohol (around 3 per cent) beer; stout is a dark beer made from heavily roasted malts, sometimes sweet and low in alcohol, but more commonly dry, bitter, and between 4 and 10 per cent; porter is a light stout; Scotch ale is a predominantly malty,sometimes sweet ale with low levels of hops; and barley wine is a very strong ale, usually bottled.
A number of cities have given their names to beers. The most famous of these is Pilsen in the Czech Republic, whose name (as Pilsener, Pilsner, or Pils) should signify a golden lager with a hoppy aroma and dry finish. Münchener (from Munich in Bavaria, Germany) signifies a dark brown lager, and Vienna an amber-red lager; Burton ales (from Burtonupon-Trent in Staffordshire, England) were the prototypes of modern hoppy English bitters.
Wine is a term for an alcoholic drink made by fermenting the juice, in fresh or concentrated form, of fruits or berries. Most wine, however, is made by fermenting the juice of fresh grapes alone, and wine as an unqualified term is commonly understood to meet this secondary definition. The alcoholic strength of wines varies from about 7 per cent alcohol by volume to about 16 per cent; most wines are bottled at between 10 and 14 per cent.
Production
The principle of winemaking is simple. Freshly harvested grapes are crushed to release their juice (known as must), which is rich in fermentable sugars. Airborne wild yeasts, or the addition of cultured yeasts to the must, cause fermentation. The main products of fermentation are ethyl alcohol and carbon dioxide, the latter being released from the fermenting must as a gas. Fermentation normally ceases when all the fermentable sugars have been converted to alcohol and carbon dioxide, or when the concentration of alcohol reaches a level too high for the yeasts to tolerate. The must is now wine.
There are, however, many variants of this process. The main variants come into play in order to produce white wine, red, and pink, or rosé wine, sparkling wine and fortified wine. Other variants are used to improve the quality of any of the above wines.
- The juice of most grapes, including most red grapes, is colourless. White grapes are quickly pressed after being harvested and the juice separated from the grape skins before fermentation to produce white wine.
- To make red wine, by contrast, red grapes are merely crushed before spending a part or the whole of their fermentation period, plus in many cases a period of pre-or post-fermentation, maceration, or soaking, in contact with the grape skins. All of the colouring matter, plus many flavour compounds and tannins, are stored in grape skins, and fermentation and maceration release these. Their release is often intensified by techniques of mechanical rousing, or stirring, during this period.
- Pink or rosé wine is generally made using red grapes which are left in contact with their skins for a short period only; it is less commonly made by blending red and white wine.
- Sparkling wine (which contains dissolved carbon dioxide, released as bubbles after the bottle is opened) is made by a number of different methods. The cheapest and simplest is carbonation, a technique widely used in soft-drink manufacture: carbon dioxide is pumped into wine, which is then bottled under pressure. All of the other methods of producing sparkling wine involve a secondary fermentation. Further yeast and sugar are added to a base wine to cause refermentation in some sort of sealed container. This may take place in a tank – the tank or Charmat method, the wine subsequently being bottled under pressure; or in a series of tanks – the continuous method. It may take place in a bottle, the contents subsequently being transferred to a tank and filtered before being rebottled – the transfer method. Most expensive of all is the champagne method – also known as the traditional or classic method, where the second fermentation takes place in a bottle, usually under cool conditions. The finest sparkling wines produced around the world, including all champagnes, are made by the champagne method.
- Fortified wines are made by adding a high-strength spirit, usually brandy, to must or to partially fermented wine. The spirit precludes or arrests fermentation, thereby stabilizing the wine. The resulting wine is very sweet; fortifying partially fermented wine – as for port – also produces a sweet finished wine. Fortifying fully fermented wine produces a dry wine, though one which may subsequently be sweetened by other methods.
- Cider, fermented apple juice, used as a beverage and for making vinegar. Most cider contains between 5 and 7 per cent alcohol, although in the United States the term sweet cider refers to unfermented apple juice that has no alcohol content. Alcoholic cider comes in sweet and dry varieties. France, especially Normandy and Brittany, is the world’s biggest cider producer. Some ciders are distilled to make apple brandy.
All wines alter in flavour with age. Most wines suffer a deterioration in flavour with age, and are best consumed as young as possible. More expensive wines, on the other hand, both white and more commonly red, improve with storage, generally in bottle. Ideal storage conditions are described in Wine Drinking below. Optimum storage periods are highly variable, but only a tiny minority of wines will improve with storage of more than ten years being bottled under pressure; or in a series of tanks – the continuous method.
- Aszú -According to the story, Máté Szepsi Lackó – court chaplain of Zsuzsanna Lorantffy – fearing aTurkish invasion, lead his people to vintage with a delay of several weeks in mid-November, 1630. The fruit of the Oremus strip had shrivelled and become dry by then. The clergyman produced an unequalled wine from this vintage. They say this was the first dessert wine produced by adding choice grapes dried on the vine. During the making of Aszú the dried grapes are separated from the whole berries, are collected in vats and processed into a paste resembling dough. From this so-called Aszú paste they add as many times 25 kilograms to 136 litres of fermenting must as the number of butts they want the ASZÚ wine to be. The vintage butts used at the time, in which they put the Aszú grapes, could hold 25 kgs, and the traditional wooden cask for fermenting Aszú held 136 litres. Only 3, 4, 5, and 6-butt Aszú wine is produced in Tokaj according to tradition of several centuries. After fermentation the Aszú grapes are removed from the new wine by a process of careful pressing and the wine is aged for at least 3 years in a wooden cask of a cellar at Tokaj-Hegyalja. The different butts of Aszú also mean distinction according to remaining sugar content.
Wine drinking
A great deal of ritual and mystery accompanies the storage, serving, and drinking of wine, despite the fact that it is a simple process.
The tiny minority of wines needing long storage should be stored horizontally in a dark, cool (5°C to 12°C) and moist (80 per cent relative humidity) area. Most wines, however, do not improve with storage and should be drunk as soon as possible. The best wine glasses are made of fine, uncut glass. A wine glass should be filled at most to half its capacity in order to allow appreciation of the wine’s aromas. The decanting of wine is necessary in those cases where there is a heavy sediment; the only wine to do this regularly is vintage port. Decanting is, however, also useful if fine red or white wines of comparative youthfulness are to be served.
Since much of the pleasure of wine lies in its aromatic character, care should be taken to sniff before sipping. Allowing the wine to rest a while in the mouth, in contact with all quarters of the tongue, maximizes the drinker’s perception of its qualities; the aftertaste, too, is a factor careful wine tasters will take into account. The question of wine and food partnerships is one about which very little can be stated with absolute certainty; an adventurous rather than legislative approach is likely to prove the most rewarding.
4.2 Food and wine harmony
The enjoyment of food and wine together is very much a matter of personal taste. Today there is a relaxed attitude. People have broken away from the very rigid approach to the relationship of food and wine. People tend to drink what they like, when they like and tend to be much more open and honest about their wine preferences. Customers should not feel intimidated by wine waiters when they order unconventional food and wine accompaniment. When selecting a wine to accompany a meal, it is important to understand the compatibility of flavours and textures. This can be perfected through trial and error. However, there are some general guidelines for the selection of wine to accompany food. Dry wines should be served before sweeter wines. White wines come before red wines. Lighter wines should be served before heavier wines. Good wines should appear before great wines. Wine can be difficult with certain foods like chocolate, salads with vinegar dressings, mint sauce and very hot and spicy foods such as curries. If an accompaniment is desired with these foods, then something inexpensive such as light beer, could be chosen. However, when contemplating possible food and wine partnerships, remember that no guidelines exist to which there are no exceptions. For example, although fish is usually served with white wine, some dishes, such as salmon served with a red wine sauce can be served with a slightly chilled red. The combinations that prove most successful are those that please the customer.
UNIT 6
Gastronomy
Gastronomy is the study of food and culture, with a particular focus on gourmet cuisine.
The word "gastronomy” means "the art or law of regulating the stomach." The term refers to cooking techniques, nutritional facts, food science, and everything that has to do with making and enjoying food. Gastronomy involves discovering, tasting, experiencing, researching, understanding and writing about food preparation and nutrition as a whole. It also studies how nutrition is part of the culture.
Cuisine (from French cuisine, "cooking; culinary art; kitchen";) is a characteristic style of cooking practices and traditions, often associated with a specific culture. It can be defined as the foods and methods of food preparation traditional to a region or population. The major factors shaping a cuisine are climate, which determines the ingredients: the native raw materials that are available, economic conditions, which affect trade and can affect food distribution, imports and exports and religious or other rules which allow the consumption of certain foods.
Climate affects the supply of fuel for cooking; a common Chinese food preparation method was cutting food into small pieces to cook foods quickly and conserve scarce firewood. In cold countries foods were preserved for winter consumption by smoking, curing, and pickling. Global cuisines are a cuisine that is practiced around the world, and can be categorized by various regions according to the common use of major foodstuffs, including grains, and cooking fats. Regional cuisines may vary based upon food availability and trade, cooking traditions and practices, and cultural differences. For example, in Central and South America, corn (maize), both fresh and dried, is a staple food. In Northern Europe, wheat, rye, and fats of animal origin predominate, while in southern Europe olive oil and rice are used. In Italy the cuisine of the north, featuring butter and rice, stands in contrast to that of the south, with its wheat pasta and olive oil. Throughout the Middle East and Mediterranean there is a common use of lamb, olive oil, lemons, peppers, and rice, whereas in Hungary pork, beef, poultry and spices like red pepper as well as herbs, e.g. marjoram, sage and parsley are used. The vegetarianism practiced in much of India has made pulses such as chickpeas and lentils as significant as wheat or rice.
Now the regional differences are disappearing as a result of globalisation: ingredients from all over the world can be found even in small shops, food bloggers and food writers share their recipes on the Internet, recipe books are published to cater for all needs and tastes. TV channels specialize in broadcasting cooking shows and TV chefs have become international celebrities.
The best TV chefs manage to balance the demands of entertainment and education – but, most importantly, inspire viewers to cook new recipes, think differently and more adventurously about food.
Vocabulary Practice
- Match an umbrella term from the box with a list of words.
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types of meat types of beer ways of cooking grains ways of cutting nutrients |
1 ………………… 2 ……………………. 3 ……………………
shellfish vintage ale
lobster fermentation lager
oyster vine stout
shrimp vineyard porter
4 ………………….. 5 …………………… 6 …………………….
carbohydrate bake dice
protein fry cube
fat roast shred
vitamins grill slice
7 …………………. 8 ……………………. 9 …………………….
spirits pork wheat
soft drinks mutton barley
squash beef rice
coke venison oat
- The word on the left can make word partnerships with two or all the three words in the same line.
1 ……… eggs a) machine b) free-range c) battery
2 food ……….. a) processor b) poisoning c) additives
3 genetically …. food a) modified b) engineered c) added
4 artificial ………. a) colouring b) sweetener c) flavouring
5 cookery. ………. a) book b) prescription c) course
- Choose a word from the box and match it with its definition. There are more words in the box than definitions.
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main course brew poultry seasoning recipe |
a) make beer
b) part of food especially in fruit and vegetables essential for maintaining healthy digestion
c) food that is a component of a mixture in cooking
d) a set of instructions for producing a certain dish
e) piece of meat or fish without bones
f) the principal dish of a meal
g) something used to add taste or flavour to food, such as herb or spice
h) flesh of chicken, turkey, duck or goose raised for food
- Fill in the gaps with the suitable form of the word at the end of the sentence.
1 Food grown ……………………… is produced and processed ORGANIC
using no synthetic fertilisers or pesticides.
2 ………………… tourism helps you experience local lifestyles GASTRONOMY
and cultures while on holiday.
3 ……………….. habits and choices play a significant role in health DIET
and mortality.
4 Kids should understand that a ……………… breakfast will NUTRITION
give them the energy to perform well at school.
5 ………………… is a lifestyle that seeks to exclude the use of VEGAN
animals for food, clothing or any other purpose.
Warm up
Pairwork
In pairs discuss what both of you like to/would like to /can eat for lunch on a busy week-day. Then having the relevant information, put together/suggest a light meal for your partner. Be as realistic as possible and consider the catering outlets in the area (i.e. within easy reach of the college) and their usual supply/menu as well. Then swap roles.
Language tips:
Asking about likes:
Formal: May I ask if you are fond of..? What are your feelings about..? How do you find….?
Informal: D’you go for?...Don’t you love? Isn’t………fantastic?
Suggesting:
Formal: May I suggest……(then)? Would you care to………? You might like..
Informal: What about……(then)? How about……..? Why don’t you……(then)? You could……I tell you what……you should……
Reading Comprehension
Just Desserts
by Helen Gaffney
par 1 The British repertoire of puddings - the steamed puds, pies, tarts, trifles and flans - is unequalled anywhere. From early times it seems the British nation had a sweet tooth and today even French gastronomes, normally so unfairly critical of British food, admit that our variety of puddings is probably greater than in any part of the world. Visitors to British homes always hope to get, for pudding at least, a crisp tart or apple pie with a dollop of incomparable British cream.
par 2 British puddings have a long and honourable pedigree. Almost all have descended from two ancient confections, 'the stately pye' or pudding, filled with dates and raisins, currants, flour, suet, nuts and almonds plus meat or fish finely shredded or minced, and a festival dish called frumenty - a soft jellied milk pudding.
par 3 In time eggs, cream and then sugar - this last more slowly because it was scarce and expensive - came to join the other ingredients. The puddings at this stage were often contained in a bag, an animal's stomach (haggis still is) - or in a great thick pastry crust.
par 4 This led to custard pies and custard pie jokes followed quickly after - good Queen Bess was one of the first to laugh when, after the custard had been brought on and her assembled guests had been served, her jester flew into the room and, leaping over the heads of the company, dived straight into the gooey mess, splattering the courtier's velvets.
par 5 The Queen's taste for confections had a notable effect on her teeth. These were remarkable black - according to one observer, who added that this seemed to be "a defect to which all the English seemed subject, owing to their too great use of sugar".
par 6 It was certainly true that puddings were served grandly in those days. There were on great occasions huge numbers of puddings on the table.
"Your breath is like the steam of apple-pie" was a nice compliment in those days, although in fact the surreptitious chewing of cloves, which sweetened the breath, was also a remedy for toothache.
par 7 The grander the occasion, the grander the sweetmeat course. In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries a banquet was not the feast itself but the sweet course that followed it, which was designed to provide entertainment as much as an opportunity to eat wonderful confections. Pies would be opened to release the well-known four-and-twenty blackbirds or even frogs, which in the words of one seventeenth century writer "made the ladies skip and shreek".
par 8 All good things have to come to an end and by the end of the seventeenth century fat pink Venuses were no longer required to appear from very large pies and the fountains of wine were still. However, the good old country dishes were still enjoyed throughout the countryside; the batter puddings and plate pies and steamed puddings. There is hardly a town in Britain that does not boast of a local pudding - or at least of a dish sold at local fairs, thus giving the name to yet another pudding which could be made on the spot with warm milk from the cow.
par 9 So the pudding is still a great favourite in Britain and a freshly made rhubarb flan is certainly hard to beat. Let us hope that the fashion for slimness will not lead us to give up our wonderful puddings. They may be too much for an ordinary working day, but are tremendous at weekends, when for once most of us can sit down and dedicate ourselves to the business of eating and pudding can have its pride of place.
1. Match the words with their definitions. There are more words than you need.
custard cloves suet crust sweetmeat tart
- a hard outer covering of something
- a small dark-brown dried flower of an evergreen tree, which is used as a spice, often used in the plural
- a pie (filled with vegetables or fruits) that has no top
- sweet yellow sauce made from milk, eggs and sugar
- a type of hard fat used in cooking which is taken from around the kidneys of such animals as sheep and cows
2. Decide whether the statements are True or False? (par 1-3)
6. Puddings were always part of the British diet.
7. French gastronomes believe that The British cuisine offers a thin variety of puddings.
8. The pie and the frumenty are the ancestors of the today’s pudding.
9. The ingredients: eggs, cream and sugar were always used to prepare a pudding dish.
3. Give an answer to the questions. (par 3-6)
- What were puddings made in?
- Why was it useful to chew cloves?
- Why would ladies skip when puddings were served at a banquet?
4. Fill in the sentences with the missing information. (par 7-9)
- In the 16th and 17th centuries banquets were good opportunities to …
- In the British countryside local sweet dishes such as ….. were prepared.
- …… threatens the consumption of puddings.
Listening
Food Intolerance Testing
You will be hearing part of a radio programme about food intolerance tests. A consumer organization called “Which” tested some companies which claim to be able to detect whether you have intolerance to some kind of food. The findings of the research were very interesting…
Before listening to the text, discuss the following questions:
1. What is the difference between food intolerance and food allergy?
2. What food allergies have you heard of?
3. What is a disclaimer? Why do companies have disclaimers?
Listen to the text, and answer the following questions in a maximum of 5 words.
1. What does consumer organization “Which” say about many food intolerance tests?
2. What kinds of foods are people usually intolerant to?
3. How many of the four researchers had some kind of an allergy or intolerance?
4. What do many companies say in their disclaimers?
5. How many of the four researchers were diagnosed with lactose intolerance?
6. What kind of medical specialists did “Which” work with?
7. How many types of food was a researcher advised to give up?
Role play (Situation)
Event catering
Role A Sales manager of Hungarian catering company
You are Antal/Anita Bakos, sales manager of SmartParty, a Hungarian corporate event caterer. Your company arranges all kinds of corporate events for companies and your clientele includes a number or foreign companies due to your regular advertisements in the Budapest Business Journal. A small British company contacts you to enquire about the services you provide. You meet B.B., the marketing manager of the company in your office. Use the data overleaf to provide details about your services.
During the discussion:
- briefly describe your scope of activity and introduce the type of services you provide
- enquire about the type of event they are planning to celebrate
- recommend your services and offer a package, based on the information overleaf, tailored to your client’s needs ( e.g. Greek evening with live music and dance instruction, murder mystery in a mansion etc.)
- the offer should include the following: venue, décor, catering and beverage services, entertainment
- offer to send sample menus suitable for the type of event you have agreed on
YOU START
Role B Marketing manager of British company
You are Tom/Tina Sherwood, marketing manager of a small British company operating in Hungary. You have read the advertisement of SmartParty, a corporate event caterer in the Budapest Business Journal and arranged to meet the sales manager in person in his/her Budapest office. You are planning to celebrate the 1st anniversary of the opening of your company’s Budapest office with your clients and their spouses. The birthday is in two months’ time and you would like to hold the party on a Friday evening.
During the discussion:
- describe your requirements: elegant but not extremely luxurious venue, superb food, entertainment for about 40 mostly young people,
- enquire about the possibilities of a themed party, something slightly extravagant but not shocking
- ask your partner to outline several options
- ask your partner to send you a price quotation
YOUR PARTNER STARTS
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Facilities |
|
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Venues |
Hotels - Conference Centres - Convention Centres - Banquet Centres - Halls -Museums - Outdoor Gardens - Boat – Labyrinth - Mansion |
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Audio/Visual Equipment |
Screens - Projectors - PowerPoint - DVD - VCR - Videowalls - Audio & Video Production Services |
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Catering & Beverage Services |
All types of food for any type of event Bartenders - Waiters |
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Food and Drinks |
Table service, Finger buffet, Buffet service, Hot and cold dishes |
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Decor - Decorations Party Themes - Ideas |
Theme Ideas - Ice Sculptures – Linen - Plants - Furniture - Scenery - Props |
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Entertainment |
|
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Live Bands for dancing, concerts or parades. |
Variety - Rock - 50's - Pop – Old-Time-Disco - Show bands - All Styles - Greek - German - Irish - all types of groups-nationwide. |
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Corporate Acts After dinner acts Stage Shows Entertainment Groups |
Comedians - Hypnotist Stage Shows - Magicians - Illusionists -Dance Shows Casino Theme Party Entertainment - Murder-Mystery Stage Shows usually 30-60 minutes |
Monologue questions
- Have you ever visited a brewery or distillery? What made the tour interesting?
- Have you ever attended a harvest or wine festival? If yes, describe one including timing, location, choice of drinks and snacks/foods, events, music, costs.
- What types of drinks are served chilled?
- What is meant by food and wine harmony? What are some of the rules and conventions of selecting wines to certain dishes?
- How do fast food restaurants keep up with ’healthy eating’?
- What are the arguments of the slow food movement?
- Which trend is associated with elegant cooking? Which trend is associated with fresh and light foodstuffs?
- Why is fusion cuisine spreading? Why should we feel happy or unhappy about it ?
- Do vegetarians have a healthy diet?
- Do you watch cooking shows on TV? If so, introduce one and persuade your audience to try it.
Writing task
Dealing with Complaints
The businessman’s attitude. There are three reasons why the businessman should be glad to hear from clients who are dissatisfied.
- He naturally wants to know when clients have cause to complain. He would rather receive complaints than have clients say nothing and take their business to the competition.
- It gives him the opportunity to explain, to rectify things, and to preserve his clients’ good will.
- It may suggest ways in which to improve his operation and his service.
Aim for appositive outlook. Even when the subject of your letter is unpleasant, it is important to remain courteous and tactful. Courtesy and tact are sometimes achieved by what is called a “ you approach ”.
Polite complaints and apologies
The following expressions and sentences may help you to phrase letters of complaint and their replies.
We should like to point out that…
We wish to call your attention to…
May we bring to your notice…
This is probably an oversight.
We would appreciate an explanation …..
Thank you for calling to my attention that…
We always welcome comments from our guests.
Please accept my apologies for any inconvenience this may have caused you.
Please accept our assurance that we will do everything to settle the matter immediately and to your satisfaction.
Task 1
Ön az Apollo Hotel menedzsere, válaszoljon egy elégedetlen vendég panaszlevelére.
A vendég a következők miatt élt panasszal:
1. Érkezésekor nem áll rendelkezésre személyzet, aki a poggyászával segített volna
2. Az egyik épületszárnyban zajos felújítási munkálatok folytak
3. Az ételek minősége nem felelet meg az elvárásainak
Írjon válaszlevelet a vendégnek, amelyben sajnálkozik és elnézést kér a történtek miatt és magyarázza meg azokat. Ajánljon fel kárpótlást.
Kövesse következő pontokat:
Para.1 : Köszönje meg a levelet. Fejezze ki sajnálatát.
Para.2 : Részletesen kérjen elnézést a fentiek miatt és adjon magyarázatot a történtekre.
Para.3 : Ajánljon fel kompenzációt. .
Para.4 : Ismételje meg az általános bocsánatkérést és zárja a levelet.
A levélíráshoz használhatja a következő kifejezéseket:
Thank you for….
I was disturbed to hear….
I would like to explain…
I can assure you…
As a sign of our concern, we would like to offer…
Please accept….-
Thank you very much for your comments.
Task 2 Egy szálloda éttermében gyakornok. Ebédidőről visszatérve a következő üzenetet találja az asztalán a főnökétől:
Ma délután házon kívül vagyok. Elfelejtettem a személyzetet tájékoztatni arról, hogy holnap az egészségügyi hatóságoktól ellenőrzést kapunk. MINDENT ellenőrizni kell!!!–
A munkaterületeket egyértelműen jelölni kell.
Minden eszköz és felület kifogástalanul tiszta legyen.
Mindenki tiszta egyenruhát és fejfedőt viseljen.
A Dohányozni tilos táblák mindenütt legyenek láthatóak- és senki ne dohányozzon!
Az emlékeztetőt küldje el minden osztályvezetőnek.
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Grammar Test 6
I. Choose A, B, C or D to complete the sentences.
1. The British read ……..as many newspapers as the French.
A) twice B) once C) two D) second
2. The price of dairy products………….. recently.
A) raising B) has been rising C) has rising D) has raised
3. You ………………the train if you had left earlier.
A) should catch B) had caught C) could have caught D) would catch
4. He didn’t call me as he promised. He …………about it.
A) must forgot B) must have forgotten C) can forget D) can be forgotten
5. Would you mind ……….. me with my suitcase, please?
A) helping B) if you helped C) to help D) if you help
II. Complete each of the following sentences in such a way that it means exactly the same as the sentence printed before it.
6. They put out the fire and then the fire brigade arrived.
They ………………………………before the fire brigade arrived.
7. The air-hostess said to the tourists: ‘Fasten your seatbelts, please.’
The air-hostess asked ………………………………seatbelts.
8. People expect that alternative energy will replace gas and oil.
Alternative energy is ………………………replace gas and oil.
9. The airline must adopt stricter regulations.
Stricter regulations …………………………by the airline.
10. If you happen to see the chambermaid, please tell her to come here immediately.
Should …………………… the chambermaid, please tell her to come here immediately.
III. Choose the correct linking words from the box to complete the following sentences. You will not need two linking phrases.
as but however so although and if in order to
11. There’s an ATM over there ….. we can use our bank cards to get some cash.
12. ……… most parents are against vending machines in schools, there are more and more machines installed every year.
13. You would be able to afford first-class service …… you had not lost your credit card.
14. It is natural to regard reception …… a centre of activity in the lobby.
15. The conference venue is in the hotel ….. unfortunately the exhibition is held somewhere else.
16. The script of the play was excellent …...all the actors were brilliant, too.
IV. Supply the missing preposition in each sentence.
17. Who does this key belong …?
18. Most countries spend millions of dollars …….oil.
19. I doubt whether the marketing manager will approve …..the campaign this way.
20. Could you wrap it …….for me, please?