From the hors d'oeuvre trolley to mezze, tapas and antipasti

Whatever happened to the hors d'oeuvre trolley?

The stimulus for this post is my first course for this evening's dinner party - which is basically hors d'oeuvre. It's not really a dinner party in that posh way, just a gathering of six old friends at our place, but because they are old and very special friends I do want to serve them something really nice. I am going French because we have just come back from there - well it actually seems like a lifetime away. Hence hors d'oeuvre rather than antipasti or mezze or tapas. My husband really likes to eat little bits and pieces of this and that, so these days my first course is often of that kind. And in today's world, sharing plates of this and that has become very popular. You can often make a meal out of sharing small plates when you go out for dinner. The world has become very cosmopolitan, and Australia, perhaps more than many places on earth. And indeed, on Sunday, we are going out to the Yarra Valley for lunch with our friends, and it is very likely that we shall end up sharing platters of local produce - many of which will doubtless be inspired by foreign climes.

Anyway it got me to thinking about the hors d'oeuvre trolley that used to exist back in the 60s and 70s. Admittedly mostly in posh hotels - and they maybe still exist there, although these days I suspect they have expanded into buffets rather than a mere trolley. Writing in 1963 in his Great Dishes of the World, Robert Carrier gives a mini potted history of the hors d'oeuvre trolley.

"Most of the glamorous restaurants of the world serve a galaxy of titbits, both hot and cold, which fly under the banner of hors-d'oeuvre variés. These appetite stimulants are usually wheeled up to your table on a two or three tiered trolley, each tier of which can hold up to twenty small dishes or 'ravers' containing a colourful assortment of vegetables, marinated in olive oil and lemon juice and served à la vinaigrette, or prepared à la grècque with wine, olive oil, finely-chopped onion, carrot and herbs. These trolleys come to us via France from Russia where the hors d'oeuvre idea originated in the Russian zakouski table, set up in a room adjoining the reception room and wheeled in to satisfy far-travelling guests before dinner." Robert Carrier

But Robert Carrier was always into glamour. And I have to admit that some of his examples in his book are of the cocktail canapé variety and are a bit time consuming and fussy to prepare, rather than the more authentic and simple French hors d'oeuvre that his contemporary Elizabeth David talks about. Her view of the hors d'oeuvre trolley is very different (as you would expect).

"those trolleys loaded with a tray of sixty dishes which may look very varied but in fact all taste the same, and which almost certainly indicate that the rest of your meal is going to be indifferent." Elizabeth David

But that was a long time ago and now we have an absolute plethora of things to choose from - ready-made in lots of instances or easily put together in others. Writers such as Claudia Roden, Greg Malouf and Yotam Ottolenghi have introduced us to the mezze platters and the tapas, and as for the Italians - the shops and cafés are full of the things you need to serve an antipasti platter. I do not know if the trolley approach even exists any more. The last time I encountered a trolley in a restaurant was at Vue de Monde - and that was for cheese. I suspect that these days the buffet has replaced the trolley.

mezze

antipasti

"The real purpose of the hors d'oeuvre course is to stimulate the appetite and not to drown it." Robert Carrier

But back to my dinner party choice. I have tried to stick to Elizabeth David's dictum:

"I would say that a well composed mixed hors d'oeuvre consists, approximately, of something raw, something salt, something dry or meaty, something gentle and smooth and possibly something in the way of fresh fish." Elizabeth David

But I have no fresh fish - just a paté made from canned sardines - a sort of experiment that I hope will work, but well may not. I'm not sure I have the salt element either, although I suppose serrano ham (can't get French ham) is a little bit salty and the olives too. I could add some smoked salmon, but that's not really very French - though maybe if you marinated it or something ... If I've got time, I'll look into it. But then I've probably already got too much.

"One needs imagination and taste and a sense of moderation; one must be able to resist the temptation to overdo it and unbalance the whole meal by offering such a spread that the dishes to follow don't stand a chance." Elizabeth David

So I hope that's what I've done, though I'm not sure I have either imagination, taste or a sense of moderation. The last being the main danger I think.