Last Dinner On the Titanic: Menus and Recipes from the Great Liner - Hardcover

Rick Archbold; Dana McCauley

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 078686303X ISBN 13: 9780786863037

Publisher: Hachette / Hyperion, 1997

Synopsis

A cookbook designed to recreate the atmosphere of dining on the famous, doomed luxury liner serves up such recipes as Lobster Thermidor, Quail's Eggs in Aspic with Caviar, and Poached Salmon with Dilled Mousseline Sauce and Cucumber.

About this title

Review

It is impossible to read this book, which is as sumptuously appointed as the great ship itself, and not want to plan a Titanic dinner party immediately. Fortunately, the book provides--besides beautiful photos, delectable factoids, and fascinating quotes from the rich and vanished famous--clear, easy-to-follow instructions on how to plan such a party. You can use recipes for first-, second-, or third-class meals.

Remember, style is all. Try to equal the class evinced by Titanic survivor Renee Harris, who sued the steamship line for her husband's death in the sinking, put the $50,000 settlement into the first play by Moss Hart (who gives her credit in his popular autobiography, Act One), and lost all her cash in the 1929 crash. When Walter Lord, the dean of Titanic lore who wrote the introduction to this book, interviews the aged, broke Ms. Harris in her welfare hotel, he writes, "She had lost neither her sunny disposition nor her theatrical poise. One day I brought her a little jar of caviar in an attempt to give this gallant lady a taste of the good old days. She sampled it once, then pushed the jar politely aside. 'You call that caviar?' she asked." As Lord observes, "Reproducing the Titanic's marvelous food is surely one of the best ways to experience a bygone age of luxury and leisure."

Don't forget to set the mood with music: either Titanic: Music as Heard on the Fateful Voyage or Titanic: Music from the Motion Picture will do, depending on whether you're a classicist or a romantic. --Tim Appelo

From Library Journal

According to Walter Lord (A Night To Remember, LJ 10/15/55), April 14 finds many "sentimentalists" re-creating the Titanic's last meals. Now, with the help of research chef McCauley, Archbold (coauthor of The Discovery of the Titanic, LJ 1/88) reveals these menus to the population at large. A handsome gift book filled with photos, graphics, and Edwardian motifs, this work will appeal to foodies, Titanic buffs, and trend seekers. The recipes, taken from all five dining room menus, include delicacies like Quail Eggs and Caviar, Lobster Thermidor, and Oysters a la Russe; even the steerage "saloon" fare is formidable by present standards. There's also advice on how to host a Titanic dinner party complete with wardrobe and table-setting ideas, helping diners to feel like an Astor at the captain's table. With renewed interest and marketing of things Titanic in anticipation of the much-publicized film and Broadway musical (this year marks the 85th anniversary of the disaster), this book is surely the tip of the iceberg.?David Nudo, "Library Journal"
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Hachette / Hyperion
• Publication date: 1997
• ISBN 10: 078686303X
• ISBN 13: 9780786863037
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 144