French cuisine harvests occurred. Marie-Antoine Carême was born in 1784, five years before the Revolution. He spent his younger years working at a "pâtisserie" until he was discovered by Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord, who would later cook for Napoleon Bonaparte. Prior to his employment with Talleyrand, Carême had become known for his "pièces montées", which were extravagant constructions of pastry and sugar architecture. More important to Carême's career was his contribution to the refinement of French cuisine. The basis for his style of cooking was his sauces, which he named mother sauces. Often referred to as fonds, meaning "foundations", these base sauces,
L'Auberge Espagnole the meal; this suggests the English-language idea of a "potluck," earning the film this title in some English-speaking areas. A third meaning of "auberge espagnole" is a common resting area for travelers from a variety of different cultures and regions. The more direct translation as "The Spanish Apartment" is also playing on the French phrase because the main characters are all literally sharing an apartment in Spain. "L'Auberge Espagnole" features a diverse soundtrack, which includes: On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 77%, based on 91 reviews, with an average rating of 6.5/10.