Around 200 years ago, Physiology of Taste (1825) was published in Paris. It was the last work of Jean-Anthelme Brillat-Savarin, who died two months after its completion. This famous essay was presented as “meditations of transcendent gastronomy”, a set of theoretical and historical reflections dedicated to Parisian gastronomes. Brillat-Savarin, a professor and member of various literary and scientific societies, left behind a work that would become a classic of gastronomic literature.
On a conceptual level, the book, titled in French as Physiologie du Goût, would become a canon of the style of European cuisine known as “Haute Cuisine”. After 1970, a paradigm shift in cooking styles took place, the result of a changing cultural landscape, an exploration of the limits of the gastronomic restaurant sector, and from various technological and conceptual innovations: “Classical culinary art” led to “Nouvelle Cuisine”.
Luis Racionero (1940-2020) was commissioned to reflect these changes in the restaurant sector, in the same way that Brillat-Savarin had done previously. Luis was the perfect choice for this role, being one of the last members of a venerable generation of gourmets who had feasted in the great European dining rooms.
Physiology of Taste for the 21st Century is a posthumous work that concludes through the pen of Alexis Racionero. A book written by two hands that follows the structure of the original version of Brillat-Savarin’s first edition. It is presented in the form of meditations filled with anecdotes from countless meals, a great celebration of gastronomy, good taste and the pleasure of the senses. A compendium of hedonism and freedom.
