Restaurants.

[MWB]

Where & when did the word "restaurant" come from in using it for a place to eat?

[Fibonacci]

from one online dictionary
[French, word for restorative soup,
restaurant, from present participle of restaurer, to restore, from Old French word restorer

[Quizmonster]

The use of 'restaurant' - to mean a place where one could sit and eat - originated in Paris in the 1760s. It found its way into English in this sense in the 1820s.

[VS Prasad]

1827, from Fr. restaurant "a restaurant" (said to have been used in Paris c.1765 by Boulanger), originally "food that restores," noun use of prp. of restaurer "to restore or refresh," from O.Fr. restorer (see restore). Restaurateur is 1796, from Fr. restaurateur, agent noun from restaurer "to restore," on model of L.L. restaurator "restorer."

http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=resta urant

The term restaurant (from the French restaurer, to restore) first appeared in the 16th century, meaning "a food which restores", and referred specifically to a rich, highly flavoured soup. It was first applied to an eating establishment in around 1765 founded by a Parisian soup-seller named Boulanger. The first restaurant in the form that became standard (customers sitting down with individual portions at individual tables, selecting food from menus, during fixed opening hours) was the Grand Taverne de Londres ("the Great Tavern of London"), founded in Paris in 1782.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Restaurant

A. Boulanger, a soup vendor who opened his business in Paris in 1765. The sign above his door advertised restoratives, or restaurants, referring to his soups and broths. By 1804 Paris had more than 500 restaurants, and France soon became internationally famous for its cuisine. Other European restaurants include the Italian trattorie, taverns featuring local specialties; the German Weinstuben, informal restaurants with a large wine selection; the Spanish tapas bars, which serve a wide variety of appetizers; and the public houses of England.

http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1B1-376772.htm l