Tasting menu

A tasting menu is a collection of several dishes in small portions, served by a restaurant as a single meal.^[1] The French name for a tasting menu is menu dégustation.^[1] Some restaurants and chefs specialize in tasting menus, while in other cases, it is a special or a menu option. Tasting menus may be offered to provide a sample of a type of cuisine, a house specialty,^[1] or to take advantage of fresh seasonal ingredients.

Coming to the mainstream in the 1990s, tasting menus evolved into elaborate showcases highlighting the culinary artistry of the chef. The trend traces back centuries, but some trace the latest evolution to the mid-1990s and two highly lauded restaurants, Chef Ferran Adrià's El Bulli in Spain, and Chef Thomas Keller's French Laundry, in Napa Valley, north of San Francisco in the U.S., that offered tasting menus of 40 courses or more.^[2] Tasting menus have since become increasingly popular, to the point where, in 2013, New York Times food critic Pete Wells noted, "Across the country, expensive tasting-menu-only restaurants are spreading like an epidemic."^[3]

References

^ ^a ^b ^c Gisslen, Wayne (2006). Professional Cooking, College Version. John Wiley and Sons. p. 90.
^ Kummer, Corby. "Tyranny–It's What's for Dinner". Vanity Fair. Feb. 2015.
^ Wells, Pete (9 Oct 2012). "Nibbled to Death". New York Times. Retrieved 27 September 2015.

v t e Meals
Common meals	Suhur Breakfast Second breakfast Elevenses Coffee break Brunch Lunch Tea Merienda Tiffin Dinner Supper Iftar Siu yeh
Components and courses	Apéritif and digestif Hors d'oeuvre Amuse-bouche Soup Entrée Roast Main course Salad Side dish Entremets Dessert Savoury Meal replacement Snack
Table service	Buffet smörgåsbord Conveyor belt sushi Dish Finger food Full course dinner Platter Rodízio Service à la française Service à la russe Silver service Small plates Table reservation
Presentation	Al fresco Dining room Eating utensils Food presentation Garnish Nyotaimori Pièce montée Serving size Table setting Tablecloth Tableware
Dining	Dress code Table manners Eating utensil etiquette Toast Waiting staff
Regional styles	Anju Antipasto Cicchetti Banchan / Korean table d'hôte Bandeja paisa Dastarkhān Dim sum / Yum cha Fika Izakaya / Sakana Kaiseki Meat and three Meze Okazuya Plate lunch Pu pu platter Rice and three Rijsttafel Sadhya Smörgåsbord Tapas Thali Tiffin Zakuski
Packed	Airline meal Bento Convenience food Dosirak Ekiben Emergency rations Fast food Field ration Frozen meal Instant breakfast Jūbako Ninja diet Packed lunch Space food Take-out
Menus and meal deals	À la carte Blue-plate special Combination meal Free lunch Free refill Happy hour Kids' meal School meal Suspended meal Table d'hôte Tasting menu / Degustation Value meal Value menu
Communal meals	Banquet State banquet Barbecue Commercium Dining in Iftar Picnic Potluck Seder Sittning Soup kitchen Supra Tableround Tea party
Catering and food delivery	Food delivery Online food ordering Virtual restaurant
Places to eat	Café Cafeteria Dining room Food truck Inn Kitchen Mess Picnic table Restaurant Soup kitchen Street food Tavern Traiteur
Related	Coffee culture Cook Cookbook Cooking Culinary arts Cuisine outline Drink Eating Food Lists of food and beverage topics Meal preparation Outline of food preparation Salumeria Tea culture
Category Commons

See also

References

Further reading