The story
Peach Melba was created in London by the French chef Auguste Escoffier. In 1892 or 1893 the Australian soprano Nellie Melba was singing in Wagner's Lohengrin at Covent Garden, and the Duke of Orléans gave a dinner for her at the Savoy Hotel, where Escoffier ran the kitchen. He served peaches on vanilla ice cream in a silver dish set on an ice sculpture of a swan, the bird from the opera. A few years later, after he and César Ritz had left the Savoy, he added a sauce of sweetened raspberry purée and renamed it Pêche Melba. In Barcelona it later inspired the Catalan dessert called pijama.
Also known as pêche Melba, pesca Melba.
On the Meridish menu
Peach Melba was the dessert course on menu No. 32 on November 1, 2026. Its clue in the game, which hints at the place without naming it:
Poached peaches with vanilla ice cream and raspberry sauce, named for an Australian soprano. A famous French chef created it at a grand hotel in this city in the 1890s.
In Meridish, every dish is pinned to the town or city most widely credited with creating it. A guess within 25 km scores all 100 points. How scoring works.
Sources
Food history is often disputed. Think we've pinned it in the wrong place? Tell us at hello@meridish.com, ideally with a source.
