First Viennese culinary art exhibition in 1884

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The first Viennese culinary art exhibition took place from January 5th to January 10th 1884 in the halls of the kk horticultural society in Vienna .

Eduard Sacher was the driving force behind the exhibition and became its president.

Exhibitions of this kind had already been carried out with great success in other European cities, but a group around Eduard Sacher and the innkeepers' cooperative were now also involved in organizing such an undertaking in Vienna. With the powerful support of numerous industrialists, the authorities and the press, this first culinary art exhibition, the proceeds of which were dedicated to charitable purposes, was a success. This was the first numerous meeting of various representatives of the Viennese culinary guilds, on whose legacy our internationally respected, traditional Viennese cuisine is built.

Exhibition profile

Two floors of the horticultural society were occupied for the show. The centerpiece was the main department with around 30 Viennese hoteliers and restaurants as exhibitors, who presented a show of ready-made dishes from the gourmet kitchen. A lavishly decorated festive table was also arranged here, on which the dishes were displayed. In an extension to the central hall on the ground floor, the Wiener Eiswerke built a spectacular ice grotto, which was supposed to keep raw meat and fish products fresh at the same time. A forest thicket was built in a winter garden, in which game meat as well as dairy and cheese products were presented. Furthermore, a water basin was installed in which fish from alpine waters swam.

In general, this show included culinary delicacies of all kinds, such as meat, pâté, poultry, game, canned food, fish, fruit, vegetables, spices, products from confectioners and confectionery, cereals, oils and vinegar. The dignified dishes in the remaining departments were mostly fully cooked, in a cold state, presented in a representative manner. Table linen made of damask and linen, table services, decorative objects made of metal, porcelain or glass, kitchen utensils and stoves were also part of the show. There was also a separate department for drinks. Exhibitors were domestic and foreign hoteliers, restaurants, master chefs and private individuals. The sale of food or prepared dishes was not permitted in the exhibition halls, but a food hall was set up on the ground floor for tastings.

In the glass house there were exhibitors with wines, beers, liqueurs and mineral water. Numerous Lower Austrian and Tyrolean wine producers joined them here, among the beer producers were the companies Liesinger and Klein-Schwechater.

The exhibitors tried to create an artistic arrangement of their dishes or products and presented their works to the public like works of art. The confectioner Henri Lombard, for example, exhibited his model of the New Town Hall made from sugar ice cream. Other companies in the confectioner's guild created amazement with their works of art made from baked goods, such as Victor Schmidt & Sons , Küfferle & Comp., Charles Cabos , A. Schmidt or Christian Petersen. The Viennese Bakers 'Cooperative organized a collective exhibition of the Viennese Bakers' Cooperative that shone with the diversity of its products. Here you could also marvel at historical Viennese pastries from the 15th to 18th centuries. The baker Anton Mayer showed off his giant Gugelhupf , Ignaz Kantor showed his egg stripes and fruit bread . In previous years, this Viennese branch of industry had not only succeeded in pushing back the confectionery products imported on a large scale, but also in successfully positioning and exporting Viennese products abroad.

It is worth mentioning that the dishes artfully arranged on the plates by the exhibitors, as well as the confectionery with their cake architecture and rich decorations, were described in the historical media as "old Viennese culinary delights" and rated as "antiquated". It corresponded to a fashionable trend wave to let the table decorations made of porcelain or glass speak as table decorations. The presentation of the dishes played a minor role.

As usual at exhibitions during this time, honorary diplomas and medals were awarded for special achievements. The end of the exhibition was rounded off by a raffle for donated exhibits. The dishes on display were also made available to the needy inmates of the supply house in Vienna. The company's net profit was dedicated to humanitarian purposes and distributed among associations such as the Vienna Voluntary Rescue Society or the Club of United Cooks.

Awards

Stollwerck Gold Medal Vienna 1884

The " KuK Hofchocoladenfabrik Gebr. Stollwerck " was awarded a gold medal for the outstanding product presentations by Ludwig Stollwerck .

Conclusion of this exhibition

The opening times were from four in the afternoon to midnight, which also contributed significantly to the surprising interest and attracted many tourists to Vienna. The rush of visitors was so huge and there were tumultuous scenes, since leaving the exhibition was only possible through the corridor where the cash desk was located. Police chief von Jaden appeared on the morning of the penultimate day of the exhibition and issued new organizational orders for visitor handling. The visitors sometimes had to wait hours in front of the entrance door in unfavorable weather conditions, since only a limited number of people were allowed to stay in the house. The chief of police turned off the cloakroom requirement, he also had additional doors and stairs opened in the premises, which were supposed to facilitate the flow of visitors between the floors and, above all, the exit of the building. These events meant that the cloakroom requirement was also abolished for future exhibitions.

Despite the immense success of this exhibition, it would take 14 years before another culinary art exhibition was held in Vienna.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ The Viennese culinary art exhibition. In:  Neue Freie Presse , January 6, 1884, p. 5 (online at ANNO ).Template: ANNO / Maintenance / nfp

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