February 17, 2026
Soup Wars: 1790 Edition
The Professor of the Lower Senses
Ruby Tandoh revives Brillat-Savarin; the internet fights about soup, quail, and food snobbery
TLDR: Ruby Tandoh’s tribute to Brillat-Savarin, the 19th‑century pioneer of food writing, reignites debate over his legacy and infamous anti-broth stance. Commenters split between celebrating his influence and dunking on food snobbery—while a side skirmish erupts over buying Vittles’ “Bad Food” print issue versus reading on phones.
Two centuries after gourmand legend Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin died, Ruby Tandoh drops a lavish long read on Vittles and instantly detonates the food internet. Fans cheer the “OG food writer” love-fest and the juicy 1790 tale of quails, hare, and flirtation that saved his neck, while skeptics roll their eyes at another canonization of “a pompous French guy who hated broth.” The biggest flashpoint? Brillat-Savarin’s broth beef. Team Soup calls his anti-broth stance “culinary slander,” while Team Roast posts memes reading “Let Them Eat Mutton.” One top comment: “Soup is hot tea with snacks—respect it.” Another: “Broth is just food’s voicemail.”
The vibe whiplashes between reverence and roast. Some praise Ruby’s piece as a fun, critical tribute to the man who basically invented modern food writing; others call him “the problematic uncle of gastronomy,” accusing foodie culture of inherited snobbery. Carnivores drool over the quail-and-hare feast; veg folks wince at the liver lust, dubbing it “quailcore.” Meanwhile, print news drops: Vittles’ “Bad Food” magazine issue is still on sale, which sparks a side-brawl—paper romantics vs. screen-scrollers. “Ink smudges taste like nostalgia,” swoons one; “I read on my phone in the supermarket queue,” snaps another.
Through it all, the community agrees on one thing: the man lived to dine, and the comments live to drag—and adore—him in equal measure.
Key Points
- •Vittles is marking the 200th anniversary of Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin’s death with a special long read by Ruby Tandoh.
- •An 1790 anecdote recounts Brillat-Savarin’s journey through the Jura to Dole amid revolutionary tensions and a memorable inn meal.
- •The Physiology of Taste was published in December 1825, shortly before Brillat-Savarin’s death, and includes the anecdote.
- •The book has remained in print in France for nearly 200 years and has been available in English since 1854.
- •M.F.K. Fisher’s translation and broader literary engagement helped cement Brillat-Savarin’s status as a founder of modern food writing.