Charles Ranhofer (Born November 7, 1836, St.-Denis, France. Died October 9, 1899, New York, United States. Buried at Woodlawn Cemetery, New York.) Chef at famous Delmonico's Restaurant in New York from 1862 to 1876 and 1879 to 1896. Author of The Epicurean, published in 1894, an encyclopedic cookbook of over 1,000 pages, similar in scope to Escoffier's Le Guide Culinaire. Located in The Bronx, Woodlawn Cemetery is one of the largest cemeteries in New York City. ... Cooks in training in Paris Chef is a term commonly used to refer to an individual who cooks professionally. ... Delmonicos Restaurant is said to have been the first restaurant in the United States. ... Georges Auguste Escoffier (28 October 1846 – 12 February 1935) was a French chef, restaurateur and culinary writer who popularized and updated traditional French cooking methods. ... Written in 1903, by Auguste Escoffier, Le Guide Culinaire is a historic book in the history of European haute cuisine. ...

Ranhofer was sent to Paris at the age of 12 to begin his training by studying pastry-making, and at 16 became the private chef for Prince Henin of Alsace. In 1856 he moved to New York to become the chef for the Russian consul, and later worked in Washington, D.C. and New Orleans. He returned to France in 1860 for a short time where he arranged balls for the court of Napoleon III at the Tuileries Palace, but then came back to New York to work at what was then a fashionable location, Maison Doree. In 1862, Lorenzo Delmonico hired him for Delmonico's, and it was there than Ranhofer made his real fame, though others say that he made the fame of the restaurant as well. At that time, Delmonico's was considered the finest restaurant in the United States. He was the chef at Delmonico's until his retirement in 1896. (Except for a short hiatus from 1876 and 1879 when he owned the "Hotel American" near Paris at Enghen-les-Bains.) Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte (20 April 1808, Paris, France - 9 January 1873, Chislehurst, Kent, England) was President of France from 1849 to 1852, and then Emperor of the French under the name Napoléon III from 1852 to 1870. ... Tuileries Palace before 1871 - View from the Louvre courtyard Up to 1871 the Tuileries Palace was a palace in Paris, France, on the right bank of the River Seine. ... Lorenzo Delmonico (1813-1881) was born in Marengo, Switzerland and went to New York in 1831 to join his uncles business, Delmonicos Restaurant. ...

Ranhofer invented or made famous a number of dishes that the restaurant was known for, such as Lobster Newberg, and had a talent for naming dishes after famous or prominent people--particularly those who dined at Delmonico's--as well as his friends, and events of the day. Examples include:

• "Lobster Duke Alexis," named for then Grand-Duke Alexis in 1871.
• "Sarah potatoes," named for Sarah Bernhardt.
• "Lobster Paul Bert," named for Paul Bert.
• "Chicken filets Sadi Carnot," named for Marie François Sadi Carnot.
• "Peach pudding à la Cleveland," named for President Grover Cleveland.
• "Veal pie à la Dickens" and " Beet fritters à la Dickens," named for Charles Dickens in honor of his 1867 visit to New York.
• "Salad à la Dumas," named in honor of Alexandre Dumas.
• "Lobster Newberg", named in honor of sea captain Ben Wenberg then renamed when Wenberg had a falling-out with the restaurant.
• "Marshal Ney", a dessert named in honor of Marshal Ney.

Many others may be found under list of foods named after people. Alexander (Aleksandr) III (Russian: Александр III Александрович) (b. ... Sarah Bernhardt (portrait by Nadar) Sarah Bernhardt (October 22, 1844 – March 26, 1923) was a French stage actress. ... Paul Bert (October 17, 1833 - November 11, 1886), French physiologist and politician, was born at Auxerre (Yonne). ... Marie François Sadi-Carnot, President of France Marie François Sadi Carnot (August 11, 1837 - June 24, 1894) was a French statesman, the fourth president of the third French Republic. ... Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837 – June 24, 1908) was the 22nd (1885–1889) and 24th (1893–1897) President of the United States, and the only President to serve two non-consecutive terms. ... Charles Dickens was a prolific writer who was almost always working on a new instalment for a story and rarely missed a deadline. ... Alexandre Dumas redirects here. ... Michel Ney (January 10, 1769 - December 7, 1815) called Le Rougeaud (the ruddy) and le Brave des Braves (the bravest of the brave) was a marshal of the French army who had fought in the French Revolutionary War and the Napoleonic Wars. ... This is a list of food items named after people. ...

Ranhofer did not invent baked Alaska, but he popularized it in 1876 when he named it in honor of the newly-acquired Alaskan territory. He also experimented with new foods, aquainting New Yorkers with the "alligator pear" (avocado) in 1895, among other things. Baked Alaska (also known as glace au four, omelette á la norvégienne, Norwegian omelette and omelette surprise) is a dessert made of ice cream, straight from the freezer placed in a pie dish lined with slices of sponge cake, Christmas pudding or similar and topped with meringue. ... Official language(s) English Capital Juneau Largest city Anchorage Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 1st 663,267 mi² / 1 717 854 km² 808 mi / 1300 km 1,479 mi / 2380 km 13. ... Binomial name Persea americana Mill. ...

Ranhofer and his wife Rose had five children: three sons and two daughters. He died at home of Bright's Disease in 1899. Brights disease is a historical classification of kidney diseases that would be described in modern medicine as acute or chronic nephritis. ...

References

• "Epicurean; Our own Escoffier; One of the 19th century's greatest chefs was American," by Russ Parsons. Los Angeles Times, December 15, 1999, Food Section, Part H, page 1.
• Charles Ranhofer: Delmonico's chef de cuisine, by Joe O'Connell.
• "Obituary: Charles Ranhofer Dead," New York Times, October 11, 1899, page 7.
• The Epicurean by Ranhofer. Feeding America: Historic American Cookbook Project (Michigan State University Library).