Here is one which he gave to ten people, in
1660, which he proudly terms "a very fine dinner." "A dish of
marrow-bones; a leg of mutton; a loin of veal; a dish of fowl;
three pullets, and two dozen of larks, all in a dish; a great
tart; a neat's tongue; a dish of anchovies; a dish of prawns, and
cheese." On another occasion, in 1662, Pepys having four guests
only, merely gave them what he modestly describes as "a pretty
dinner." "A brace of stewed carps; six roasted chickens; a jowl of
salmon; a tanzy; two neats' tongues, and cheese." For six
distinguished guests in 1663 he provided "a noble dinner." (I like
this careful grading of epithets.) "Oysters; a hash of rabbits; a
lamb, and a rare chine of beef, Next a great dish of roasted fowl
cost me about thirty shillings; a tart, fruit and cheese." Pepys
anxiously hopes that this was enough! One is pleased to learn that
on all three occasions his guests enjoyed themselves, and that
they were "very merry," but however did they manage to hold one
quarter of this prodigious amount of food?
The curious idea that hospitality entailed the proffering of four
times the amount of food that an average person could assimilate,
persisted throughout the eighteenth century and well into the
"seventies" of the nineteenth century.
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