A traiteur (; ) is a French food-seller, whose places of business were arguably the precursors of the modern restaurant.Jim Chevallier, ''A History of the Food of Paris: From Roast Mammoth to Steak Frites'', 2018, , pp. 75–80 Prior to the late 18th century, diners who wished to "dine out" could dine at a traiteur's, or order meals to go. The cooks and caterers guild - informally known as the ''traiteurs'' - progressively claimed the right to make any sophisticated meals, leaving inns and taverns to mainly make roast or grilled meat. As of the late seventeenth century, many offered a

table d'hôte In restaurant terminology, a ''table d'hôte'' (; ) menu is a menu where multi-course meals with only a few choices are charged at a fixed total price. Such a menu may be called ''prix fixe'' ("fixed price"; ). The terms set meal and set menu ...

, a meal offered at a set price with no choice of dishes. However both

cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music, song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, a casino, a hotel, a restaurant, or a nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining o ...

s and traiteurs could also offer individual choice of dishes, despite claims to the contrary. In modern France, the word often refers to a

caterer Catering is the business of providing food service at a remote site or a site such as a hotel, hospital, pub, aircraft, cruise ship, park, festival, filming location or film studio. History of catering The earliest account of major services b ...

. ''Traiteur'' is an agent noun formed from the verb ''traiter'' ("treat"), which literally refers to the action of "treating" someone to something (for instance, a meal). The root of the verb is

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

''tractare'' ("manage, handle"), a

frequentative In grammar, a frequentative form ( abbreviated or ) of a word is one that indicates repeated action but is not to be confused with iterative aspect. The frequentative form can be considered a separate but not completely independent word called a ...

of ''trahere'' ("pull, draw"): in ancient times, for example, Latins used the expression ''littera tractoria'' (roughly rendered as "treatment letter") to indicate a document the envoys of a prince would be given to receive food, accommodation and means of transport in the lands they would pass by, so to get a full treatment along their way. This Latin root originated both French ''traiteur'' and

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

trattoria A ''trattoria'' (plural: ''trattorie'') is an Italian-style eating establishment that is generally much less formal than a '' ristorante'', but more formal than an '' osteria''. A ''trattoria'' rooted in tradition may typically provide no pr ...

''.

Present-day traiteurs

Today in France, a ''traiteur'' is a catering business devoted to

take-out A take-out or takeout (U.S., Canada, and the Philippines); carry-out or to-go (Scotland and some dialects in the U.S. and Canada); takeaway (England, Wales, Australia, Lebanon, South Africa, Northern Ireland, Ireland, and occasionally in Nort ...

food and service of banquets. Many traiteurs also undertake home delivery. Generally there is no seating on the business premises; a few traiteurs may have very limited seating. Especially in market towns where there is competition, traiteurs take great pride in the beauty of their window displays. Traiteur 'departments' are now common in ''supermarchés'', the equivalent of the US/UK

delicatessen Traditionally, a delicatessen or deli is a retail establishment that sells a selection of fine, exotic, or foreign prepared foods. Delicatessen originated in Germany (original: ) during the 18th century and spread to the United States in the m ...

. The staple of this type of business is an array of

salad A salad is a dish consisting of mixed, mostly natural ingredients with at least one raw ingredient. They are typically served at room temperature or chilled, though some can be served warm. Condiments and salad dressings, which exist in a va ...

s, cold meat and seafood dishes. In 2018, 10,090 traiteurs operated in France.

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* * * Chefs {{Food-stub

Present-day traiteurs

See also

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General references