Bistre (or bistre) can refer to two things: a very dark shade of grayish brown (the version shown directly at right); a shade of brown based on carbon black or the name of a color resembling tan pigment. The look of the Bistro is generally a dark gray with a yellowish tinge. Beech wood was burned to produce soot, which was boiled and diluted with water. Many Old Masters used bistre as the ink for their drawings. The first recorded use of bistre as a color name in English was in 1727; another name for the bistro color is sooty.