French Onion Soup

Few dishes from the French kitchen have found such widespread acceptance among American eaters as French onion soup. It got popular in the 1960s as part of a general growing interest in French cuisine, and it has remained a favorite at every level of dining, from diners to swank hotel dining rooms. Ideally, it is an elegant dish; but some restaurants use it as an opportunity to show just how generous they are, loading it with massive amounts of cheese, creating a great, unwieldy clump of rubbery goo at the top of the bowl. In proper equilibrium, there never seems to be quite enough cheese or bread, making their presence a special treat.