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GRIMOD DE LA REYNIÈRE, Alexandre Balthazar Laurent [1758-1838] & Jean François COSTE [1741-1819].. Almanach Des Gourmands, Ou Calendrier Nutritif, Servant De Guide Dans Les Moyens De Faire Excellent Chère. [Title Varies].

4 Volumes. 18mo. pp. 8 p.l., [v]-viii, viii, [9]-247, [1]; 2 p.l., xxii, [23]-318; xiv, 342; xx, 336. with half-titles. 4 engraved frontis. Vols. I-II in original bds., Vol. IV in contemporary half calf (some chipping to spines). Second Edition of Vols. I-II; First Editions of Vols. III-IV. The first four issues, of a total of eight published annually from 1803 to 1812 (none for 1809 and 1811). The French gourmand and littérateur Grimod de la Reynière established a culinary jury which held monthly sessions to decide on the merits of particular dishes with a view to promoting what Montaigne styled 'the science of the palate'. One of these sessions is depicted in the frontispiece to the third volume. Of special interest in Vols. I and III are the chapters entitled Itinéraire Nutritif, Ou Promenade D'Un Gourmand Dans Divers Quartiers De Paris, a review of the better restaurants and food shops in Paris. Bitting 201-02. cfSimon 795; Simon 797-98. Vicaire 424-25. cfCagle 224-25; Cagle 226-27. See Oberlé 133.

$1499 USD