OP: The Conduct of the Kitchen
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William Heinemann Ltd., London, 1925. Hardcover. Very Good. First printing.
Popular and prolific cookbook author Xavier Marcel Boulestin (1877–1943) was born and raised in France but settled in England, where by the late 1920s he had become a successful restaurateur and a colorful man-about-town. He wrote nearly a dozen cookbooks that helped open the door to the French cuisine long resisted by his new countrymen. Elizabeth David, in fact, counts him as a strong influence on her own work.
In its introduction The Conduct of the Kitchen (1925), subtitled How to Keep a Good Table for Sixteen Shillings a Week, laments the dying craft of cooking and kitchen management after the 1880s. Boulestin, employing humorous fictional anecdotes, makes it clear that cooking is an essential skill for maintaining a happy and peaceful household.
This is not just a recipe book but also philosophical and practical guidance for the would-be hostess. Boulestin makes a point to say clearly that even with, or especially with, unlimited means, a magnificent dinner may land soullessly without the deliberate and thoughtful conduct of the hosts. Therefore, it is entirely practical and reasonable to be both frugal and hospitable. His advice is friendly and casually conversational, inviting approachability.
Our copy is a Very Good first printing, printed on sturdy stock, which is heavily foxed. 66 pages, 5.25” x 7.25”. Pleasant reading.
