Author: Paul Freedman
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| via Amazon |
Paul Freedman's book is an ambitious project. As advertised, the author tells the stories of ten American restaurants: Le Pavillon, Chez Panisse, Antoine's, Howard Johnson's, Schrafft's, Mamma Leone's, The Mandarin, Demonico's, The Four Seasons and Sylvia's. I would argue that the restaurants have reflected American culture more than changed it - except for maybe one, because I know of the impact it's had on my own life. That said, maybe I'm underestimating the influence of the others. More on that in a bit.
The history goes back two centuries. Delmonico's is the earliest establishment documented in the book, opening initially as a pastry shop in 1827. The history of the industry offered is fascinating, along with the accompanying cultural histories of New York City, New Orleans, the Bay Area and the American highway. Freedman also presents thoughtful insights into the impact of Italian, Chinese and Black cultures on our nation's food. In this, there's a lot of crossover with Krishnendu Ray's The Ethnic Restaurateur (my reflection here).
As with Ray's book, Freedman's has changed my view of the restaurant world. A couple of specific revelations, both noted previously in this post (comments inclusive):
- Using actual train cars for diners is not the mere quaint cultural custom I'd always assumed. What we think of as "roadside diners" are the transplanting of an entire process of food preparation and service from the railroad industry.
- Fried chicken and waffles doesn't come from the South at all. The dish was invented at Sylvia's in Harlem.
The restaurant of the ten which I will concede has had an impact on my own life is Chez Panisse in Berkeley, California. No, I've never been to Chez Panisse. In fact, I've never even been to Berkeley. Owner Alice Waters was a pioneering force behind the locavore, farm-to-table and Slow Food movements which have changed the eating habits of thousands if not millions in the half-century since she first opened her restaurant. Among those profoundly influenced is my own wife who works hard to follow these principles with, I'm not shy to say, magnificent results.
I enjoyed the book tremendously and learned a great deal. It fuels a question I've pondered for a long time: what is American cuisine, really? Is there such a thing? Freedman doesn't answer the question but his book adds a lot to the discussion.
Interesting to see Howard Johnson on the list! I wondered why the Harvey Houses (or Fred Harvey restaurants) weren't included. Before trains had dining cars, Harvey had a series of restaurants along the tracks that could feed a train in a few minutes. Also, from changing our cultures, certainly McDonalds and KFC had a great influence, but don't fit in these establishments. This sounds like a good read.
ReplyDeleteI don't know about Harvey Houses! I'm intrigued. Restaurants on train platforms are a thing in Japan but I didn't know about restaurants actually on the tracks.
DeleteFast food has certainly had an impact and Freedman doesn't deny that. In fact, those restaurants were part of what ultimately drove HoJo's out of business.
I'm not much into food. I know, weird but true. I would say those grits and fried stuff belongs to the U.S. the fast food joints also belong to the States
ReplyDeleteMost of these places sound like restaurants I could not afford to eat at
Interesting, they are/were not all overly pricey. Chez Panisse, in particular, made a point of keeping the prices down for most of its history.
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