Writer's resource: menus by year

[Bramblethorn]

Thanks to the New York Public Library, a collection of restaurant menus by year, going back to the 1850s. Ever wanted to figure out what your characters would be eating and how much they'd pay for it?

http://menus.nypl.org/menus/decade/1990s

 

[ElectricBlue]

I can picture the small side alley, and a shop with bay windows and a bell on a chain. By the door, there sits a small black cat. Above the door, on a hand-painted sign, one can read the name of the shop:

"Bramblethorn's Emporium of the Arcane and Unlikely, Knowledge Found and Wisdom Lost, Rare and Ancient Books."

Inside, at the back of the shop, Bramblethorn sits on a high stool, clad all in black. A small goblet stands nearby. It is not filled with wine...

 

[Handley_Page]

I can picture the small side alley, and a shop with bay windows and a bell on a chain. By the door, there sits a small black cat. Above the door, on a hand-painted sign, one can read the name of the shop:

"Bramblethorn's Emporium of the Arcane and Unlikely, Knowledge Found and Wisdom Lost, Rare and Ancient Books."

Inside, at the back of the shop, Bramblethorn sits on a high stool, clad all in black. A small goblet stands nearby. It is not filled with wine...

This sounds rather like something/someone from the pages of Harry Potter. . . . .

 

[ElectricBlue]

This sounds rather like something/someone from the pages of Harry Potter. . . . .

I always picture Mervyn Peake's Gormenghast whenever I picture ancient city places. Or the lanes in York.

Harry Potter, meh.

 

[Desiremakesmeweak]

That's an excellent idea, and excellent resource. Thanks Bram.

Even if you have a ton of experience this kind of list will always serve to prompt some ideas and memories.

A great find. And yeah, obviously especially for authors writing something set at some time in the past hundred years or so.

Personally, I happen to be a great fan of chicken frontonianum (Julius Caesar's favorite thing, apparently) and I can cook it too, so, mnn, for me there are menus that prolly need to go back a ways...

 

[SimonDoom]

Great find!

 

[GuessImJamie]

Just remember its NYC. For other locales divide price by 2.

 

[Voboy]

Thanks! Nice resource.

 

[KeithD]

Very useful. Thanks.

 

[Bramblethorn]

I can picture the small side alley, and a shop with bay windows and a bell on a chain. By the door, there sits a small black cat. Above the door, on a hand-painted sign, one can read the name of the shop:

"Bramblethorn's Emporium of the Arcane and Unlikely, Knowledge Found and Wisdom Lost, Rare and Ancient Books."

Inside, at the back of the shop, Bramblethorn sits on a high stool, clad all in black. A small goblet stands nearby. It is not filled with wine...

NYPD librarians are the true wizards here! I just yanked it off Twitter.

I will admit to the black cat and black wardrobe though.

 

[Bramblethorn]

Just remember its NYC. For other locales divide price by 2.

I would expect it to be skewed towards the posh/pricey end of the scale, yeah, especially for the older stuff. Needs to be a place that does printed menus in the first place, and then somebody needed to decide it was worth keeping before it could make it into this collection.

There is a fair bit of non-NYC content though. I couldn't find an option on the website to search by location, but from the "data" tab you can download a bunch of CSV files which are searchable. Skimming through the menu.csv file, I noticed places including London, Providence, Yokohama, Grosse Pointe, Melbourne (Australia), and many more. It also has some airline, train, and ocean liner menus.

 

[Hypoxia]

Any sit-down eatery with a menu was fairly posh. Working folks gobbled grub from street vendors. See the images at From oysters to falafel: The complete history of street vending in NYC. Yes, even oyster carts had posted 'menus', as do modern taco wagons. Do those make it into the NYPL list?

 

[Bramblethorn]

Any sit-down eatery with a menu was fairly posh. Working folks gobbled grub from street vendors. See the images at From oysters to falafel: The complete history of street vending in NYC. Yes, even oyster carts had posted 'menus', as do modern taco wagons. Do those make it into the NYPL list?

Not that I could see, alas.

 

[Jada59]

Cool! But the first one I looked at offered stale bread. I'll pass!

 

[JerseyGirlDownUnder]

Oh! Legal Seafood's New England Clam Chowder. Such memories. There are quite a few menus from Boston. Ruben's Deli. Kishka. I miss kishka. I can't imagine where I would find kishka in Australia.

I definitely miss the food of Boston.

 

[Voboy]

Oh! Legal Seafood's New England Clam Chowder. Such memories. There are quite a few menus from Boston. Ruben's Deli. Kishka. I miss kishka. I can't imagine where I would find kishka in Australia.

I definitely miss the food of Boston more than I miss why I spent too much time there.

Such a great food city. I’ve eaten many meals in that neck of the clam. In particular, it’s impossible to get a bad meal in Somerville.

 

[Rustyoznail]

Oh! Legal Seafood's New England Clam Chowder. Such memories. There are quite a few menus from Boston. Ruben's Deli. Kishka. I miss kishka. I can't imagine where I would find kishka in Australia.

Hi Jersey

Melbourne - specifically around Caulfield. A big Jewish community around there.

 

[PleasantlySurprised]

This is so neat. Thank you for sharing.

I know how I'm wasting time at work tomorrow.