History and Evolution of the

Restaurant Industry

What is a Restaurant?

The Earliest Restaurants

During the time of the Roman

Empire and Ancient China, the
need of public eateries grew
along with the progress of its
cities.

Peasants and merchants

travelled for days and often
stopped in the middle of the
countryside, thus inns served
meals at a common table.

There were no menus at the

time. Everyday it was the
chefs choice.

Restaurants in Medieval times

In Europe, taverns and

inns continued to be the
popular place to get a
prepared meal.

In Spain, they were called

bodegas, serving tapas.

In England, sausages and

shepherds pie were
popular. While in France,
soups and stews became
the staple of choice.

Restaurants in Medieval times

Coffee, tea and chocolate were

soon being served in public houses
alongside ale, wine and beer.

By the17th Century, moderately

well-to-do people would hire a
trattatorie (caterer) or take their
meals in a private salon, rather
than in the main dining room of a
public house.

The French Revolution and the Rise of Fine

Dining

In France throughout the Middle

Ages, guilds had monopolies on
many aspects of prepared foods.

Charcuterie were the guild who

prepared cooked meats for sale
therefore if you didnt belong to that
particular guild it was illegal to sell
cooked meat in any form.

In 1765, a man by the name of

Boulanger added cooked lamb to a
stew he sold in his shop, near the
Louvre.

The French Revolution and the Rise of Fine

Dining

Marie
Antoinette
When
Menus,
eitherprix
fixe and
or a

Many of these displaced workers

opened their own restaurants in
Paris, bringing with them a new
way of dining.

la carte were framed and at the end

Louis
XVI
went
to thewere
guillotine,
of the
meal
guests
presented with a check, tallying the
the
old ways
of French
amount
of their
bill. society
went with them.

The Rise of Fine Dining, Post Revolution

Many fortunes were made for these

professional chefs-turnedrestaurateurs. They catered to a
new class of provincialdeputesthat
came to Paris following the end of
the Revolution.

Before the Revolution, there were

less than 50 restaurants in Paris.
By 1814 3,000 restaurants were
listed in theAlmanach des
Gourmands

19 Century Progress
th

The 19th Century

marked the rise of Cafes,
a style of restaurant
which does not offer
table service.

Luxury tourism grew and with it a

new precedent of eating well
away from home.

Cesar Ritz

Inthe late 19th

CenturyCesar Ritz, a Swiss
developer, partnered with
a prominent French chef,
Auguste Escoffier and
operated the Grand hotel
of Monte Carlo, the first to
offer luxury
accommodations and
gourmet dining all under
one roof.

Cesar
Ritz

Auguste
Escoffier

19th Century Restaurants

The biggest change in the restaurant industry came with

The
rapid growth of travel through
McDonalds
when
it opened
in 1950.
the
19th Century
thanks
to railways
and steamships meant more people
began traveling greater distances

Rise of Family Casual Dining

By the 1990s, with many

families headed by two
working parents, shifting
consumer patterns brought
an increase in the number
of people eating out.

Casual Dining Restaurant

chains opened and catered
to the ever growing middle
class, offering moderately
priced meals and childrens
menus.

Advancements in Science and

Technology Influence Restaurants

Trends in the Restaurant Industry

Sources

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