Every year, the Nobel Prize folks hold a banquet for those bestowed with an award for that given year--and tonight is that night for 2012. Here's where the Nobel Prize winner in physics-meets-the-winner-in-literature-meets-the-winner-in-chemistry-meets-the-winner-in-medicine-etc.-etc.-etc., while the Swedish royal family kills everyone's mellow by inviting 1,300 of their closest friends and acquaintances.
Because the Swedes are a bunch of foodies, an entire listing of menus for each annual banquet is posted online. Everyone in attendance receives the same meal--this isn't someone's wedding where you choose between the chicken or the fish--but there's usually a variety of wines available to keep everyone feeling quite nice as the evening unwinds.
Some of the menu items from decades past are obscure and/or Swedish-y. Nonetheless, here's a look at some select menus on years where various literary types won their own Nobel Prize (translated at points):
1907 Winner:
Rudyard Kipling
Menu:
Nothing. The banquet was cancelled because of King Oscar II's death a few days earlier.
Bummer.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1925 Winner:
George Bernard Shaw
Menu:
Turtle Soup
Supreme Perch Mornay
Nice Turkey (Ed.: Better than Okay Turkey.)
Artichoke Princess
Parfait Nelusko
Petits Fours
Fruits
Dessert
Various wines
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1936 Winner:
Eugene O'Neill
Menu:
Turtle Soup
Sole Fillets
Supreme Grouse à la Florida
Waldorf Salad
Ice in the Oven (Ed.: Eh?)
Assorted Fruits
Treats
Various wines
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1946 Winner:
Herman Hesse:
Menu:
Shellfish Consommé
Roasted Fillet of Reindeer with Lingon Berry Sauce
Parisian Apples
Fonds de Celery
Poached Pear with Ice Cream
Treats
Various wines
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1948 Winner:
T.S. Eliot
Menu:
Consommé Chesterfield
Helstekt oxfilé Polignac
(a beef tenderloin dish, in case you're wondering)
Glace päron Belle Hélène
(a fancy pear ice dessert)
Various wines
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1949 Winner:
William Faulkner
Menu:
Crème d´Argenteuil
(cream soup from a region in France)
Gosling with Swedish Red Cabbage
Horseradish sauce
Napoleon Cake
Only two kinds of wine
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1954 Winner:
Ernest Hemingway
Menu:
Smoked Brown Trout
Spinach Cream
Beef Tenderloin Roast
Artichoke Princess
Fresh Mushrooms in Porto
Parisian Apples
Pears Roberta
Various wines and after dinner liqueurs
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1962 Winner:
John Steinbeck
Menu:
Smoked River Trout à la Parisienne
Chicken Roasted Foie Gras with Madeira Sauce
Fried Potatoes
Seasonal Salad
Peach with Grand Marnier
Whipping Cream
Various wines and after dinner liqueurs
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1969 Winner:
Samuel Beckett
Menu:
Salmon Stuffed Avocados
Moscow gourmet sauce
Beef tenderloin Roast Périgourdine
Orange sorbet (Ed.: The low point on Nobel desserts.)
Various wines and after dinner liqueurs
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1971 Winner:
Pablo Neruda
Menu:
Cold Foam Stuffed Turbot
(Ed.: A kind of flatfish)
Champagne à l´Edlund
Roast chicken Christineberg
Salad
Grand Marnier Soufflé Ice à la Solliden
(Ed.: Solliden being the summer residence of the Swedish royal family.)
Various wines and after dinner liqueurs
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
There should be photos with the rest of these, but Blogger/Google is acting wonky today. It's changing fonts for no apparent reason, too. In short, formatting isn't just a nightmare...it's impossible today.
Thanks, Google!
1982 Winner:
Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Menu:
Marinated Reindeer Fillet
Dijon Sauce
Char braised in cream dill
Rice
Nobel Perfect Ice
Petit Fours
Various wines, liquor, and coffee
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1993 Winner:
Toni Morrison
Menu:
Marinated Char on a Bed of Radish Salmon Eggs
Honey Vinaigrette à la Raineri
Nobel Croissant
Sirloin with Chanterelle Reindeer Forests (Ed. O---kay?)
Butter Cabbage Terrine of Fresh Blackberries
Foam Potatoes and Sliced Salsify
Nobel Ice Sailing
Sorbet Strawberries and Vanilla Parfait
Various wines, liquor, and coffee
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2001 Winner:
V.S. Naipul
Menu:
Lobster on Mashed Cauliflower
Frozen prawns
Samphire Salad
Quail Stuffed with Foie Gras and Pan of Mushrooms and Dried Tomatoes
Asparagus and Mashed Chervil
Duo of Vanilla Ice Cream and Blackcurrant Perfect Meringue
Various wines, liquor, and coffee
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2009 Winner:
Herta Müller
Menu:
Truffle-stuffed Quail with Parsley Root
Brussels Sprouts and Port Wine Gravy
Lemon and Fresh Cheese Mousse with Sea-Buckthorn Sorbet
Various wines, liquor, and coffee
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2012 Winner:
Mo Yan
Menu:
Pheasant with Chanterelle Mushrooms
Poached Pear, Winter Vegetables
Almond Potato Purée and Red Wine Gravy
Trilogy of Cherries with Pistachio-Covered Mascarpone Cheese and Black Cherry Sorbet
Various wines, liquor, and coffee
Because the Swedes are a bunch of foodies, an entire listing of menus for each annual banquet is posted online. Everyone in attendance receives the same meal--this isn't someone's wedding where you choose between the chicken or the fish--but there's usually a variety of wines available to keep everyone feeling quite nice as the evening unwinds.
Some of the menu items from decades past are obscure and/or Swedish-y. Nonetheless, here's a look at some select menus on years where various literary types won their own Nobel Prize (translated at points):
 |
| Someone looks disappointed. |
1907 Winner:
Rudyard Kipling
Menu:
Nothing. The banquet was cancelled because of King Oscar II's death a few days earlier.
Bummer.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 |
| Has eaten worse things than turtle soup. |
George Bernard Shaw
Menu:
Turtle Soup
Supreme Perch Mornay
Nice Turkey (Ed.: Better than Okay Turkey.)
Artichoke Princess
Parfait Nelusko
Petits Fours
Fruits
Dessert
Various wines
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 |
| Damn well wants to know what Ice in the Oven is before he eats it. |
1936 Winner:
Eugene O'Neill
Menu:
Turtle Soup
Sole Fillets
Supreme Grouse à la Florida
Waldorf Salad
Ice in the Oven (Ed.: Eh?)
Assorted Fruits
Treats
Various wines
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 |
| Concerned he just ate Prancer. |
Herman Hesse:
Menu:
Shellfish Consommé
Roasted Fillet of Reindeer with Lingon Berry Sauce
Parisian Apples
Fonds de Celery
Poached Pear with Ice Cream
Treats
Various wines
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 |
| Can't pronounce anything on his menu. |
1948 Winner:
T.S. Eliot
Menu:
Consommé Chesterfield
Helstekt oxfilé Polignac
(a beef tenderloin dish, in case you're wondering)
Glace päron Belle Hélène
(a fancy pear ice dessert)
Various wines
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 |
| Is seriously peeved there's only two kinds of booze. |
1949 Winner:
William Faulkner
Menu:
Crème d´Argenteuil
(cream soup from a region in France)
Gosling with Swedish Red Cabbage
Horseradish sauce
Napoleon Cake
Only two kinds of wine
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 |
| Doesn't go for "Princess" anything. |
Ernest Hemingway
Menu:
Smoked Brown Trout
Spinach Cream
Beef Tenderloin Roast
Artichoke Princess
Fresh Mushrooms in Porto
Parisian Apples
Pears Roberta
Various wines and after dinner liqueurs
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 |
| Disappointed he got french fries. |
1962 Winner:
John Steinbeck
Menu:
Smoked River Trout à la Parisienne
Chicken Roasted Foie Gras with Madeira Sauce
Fried Potatoes
Seasonal Salad
Peach with Grand Marnier
Whipping Cream
Various wines and after dinner liqueurs
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 |
| Not sure avocados should ever be stuffed with salmon |
1969 Winner:
Samuel Beckett
Menu:
Salmon Stuffed Avocados
Moscow gourmet sauce
Beef tenderloin Roast Périgourdine
Orange sorbet (Ed.: The low point on Nobel desserts.)
Various wines and after dinner liqueurs
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 |
| Really ecstatic over the salad. |
1971 Winner:
Pablo Neruda
Menu:
Cold Foam Stuffed Turbot
(Ed.: A kind of flatfish)
Champagne à l´Edlund
Roast chicken Christineberg
Salad
Grand Marnier Soufflé Ice à la Solliden
(Ed.: Solliden being the summer residence of the Swedish royal family.)
Various wines and after dinner liqueurs
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
There should be photos with the rest of these, but Blogger/Google is acting wonky today. It's changing fonts for no apparent reason, too. In short, formatting isn't just a nightmare...it's impossible today.
Thanks, Google!
1982 Winner:
Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Menu:
Marinated Reindeer Fillet
Dijon Sauce
Char braised in cream dill
Rice
Nobel Perfect Ice
Petit Fours
Various wines, liquor, and coffee
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1993 Winner:
Toni Morrison
Menu:
Marinated Char on a Bed of Radish Salmon Eggs
Honey Vinaigrette à la Raineri
Nobel Croissant
Sirloin with Chanterelle Reindeer Forests (Ed. O---kay?)
Butter Cabbage Terrine of Fresh Blackberries
Foam Potatoes and Sliced Salsify
Nobel Ice Sailing
Sorbet Strawberries and Vanilla Parfait
Various wines, liquor, and coffee
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2001 Winner:
V.S. Naipul
Menu:
Lobster on Mashed Cauliflower
Frozen prawns
Samphire Salad
Quail Stuffed with Foie Gras and Pan of Mushrooms and Dried Tomatoes
Asparagus and Mashed Chervil
Duo of Vanilla Ice Cream and Blackcurrant Perfect Meringue
Various wines, liquor, and coffee
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2009 Winner:
Herta Müller
Menu:
Lobster Consommé with Shellfish Tartare
Lobster and Kalix Bleak Roe
Lobster and Kalix Bleak Roe
Truffle-stuffed Quail with Parsley Root
Brussels Sprouts and Port Wine Gravy
Lemon and Fresh Cheese Mousse with Sea-Buckthorn Sorbet
Various wines, liquor, and coffee
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2012 Winner:
Mo Yan
Menu:
Marinated Arctic Char with Cauliflower Terrine
Kalix Bleak Roe and Dill Mayonnaise
Kalix Bleak Roe and Dill Mayonnaise
Pheasant with Chanterelle Mushrooms
Poached Pear, Winter Vegetables
Almond Potato Purée and Red Wine Gravy
Trilogy of Cherries with Pistachio-Covered Mascarpone Cheese and Black Cherry Sorbet
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