City Tavern Cookbook: Two Hundred Years Of Classic Recipes From America's First Gourmet Restaurant [Hardcover]

Walter Staib (Author), Beth D'addono (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 17, 1999

In May 1774, soon after City Tavern opened for business, Paul Revere arrived at its doors to announce Parliament’s closing the port of Boston. In 1777, the Tavern hosted America’s first official Fourth of July celebration. And in 1789, this landmark inn held a banquet for George Washington as he passed through Philadelphia en route to New York for his presidential inauguration.Through the Revolutionary period and the early republic, City Tavern was the center of American political and social life. More than a meeting place for prominent Americans, the Tavern also acquired a reputation as the best restaurant in North America, the setting for suppers, “as elegant as was ever laid on a table,” according to John Adams. Since Philadelphia’s seaport was the lively center of eighteenth-century commerce, it’s no surprise that it was here that the finest imported foodstuffs, Madeiras, clarets, and exotic fruits and spices met the bounty of the New World, giving the City Tavern chef an unlimited supply of ingredients.More than two hundred years later, the Tavern is still garnering high praise for its gourmet cuisine and elegant atmosphere. The fusion of classic European cookery, American game and produce, and exotic island spices enjoyed by early visitors to the Tavern is recreated every day by chef/proprietor Walter Staib.City Tavern Cookbook reveals the richness and diversity of the eighteenth-century table. Within these pages are 200 authentic recipes that capture the best of early American gourmet cuisine. These dishes, updated for modern tastes, include world-famous West Indies Pepper Pot Soup, Roasted Duckling with Peach Chutney, Lobster Potpie, Thomas Jefferson’s Sweet Potato Biscuits, plus Martha Washington’s Chocolate Mousse Cake. With fascinating historic tidbits and trivia that bring eighteenth-century American gastronomy to life, City Tavern Cookbook offers the reader a delicious lesson in culinary history.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Chef Walter Staib is the highly acclaimed chef and proprietor of Philadelphia’s celebrated City Tavern restaurant. He is the author of two other cookbooks: City Tavern Cookbook, and City Tavern Baking & Dessert Cookbook. He has been named the “Culinary Ambassador to the City of Philadelphia,” and has received numerous awards and recognition for his outstanding cuisine. Beth D'Addono, a food, travel, and lifestyle writer, has contributed to numerous national and regional newspapers, guides, and magazines including Gannett Newspapers, the Philadelphia Daily News, Atlantic City Magazine, Where Magazine, Birnbaum and Access Travel Guides, Modern Maturity, and Philadelphia Magazine. A resident of Philadelphia, she is a member of the Society of American Travel Writers.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Running Press (September 17, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0762405295
• ISBN-13: 978-0762405299
• Product Dimensions: 10.1 x 8.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #692,802 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

33 of 33 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Terrific American cookbook with interesting text and recipes November 8, 1999

By A Customer

Format:Hardcover

With its focus on the cuisine of a grand restaurant in Revolutionary-era Philadelphia (George Washington dined there!),this is a great book in which to find inspiration for Thankgsiving dinner. You MUST try the pepper-pot soup! It is spicy and sexy, and does not contain tripe as many old recipes for this dish do. I learned from the City Tavern Cookbook about the influence of Caribbean spices and flavors in 18th-century America--that's what makes this soup so good. I am a cookbook aficionado and keep current on all the top chefs, restaurants, and food trends.This is one I'll really use. The text has lots of interesting tidbits about the history of food in early America to make it worth reading, but it's also very lively. Most important, the recipes are wonderful, and they call for ingredients you can buy at the supermarket.

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Good "Olde" American Cuisine September 30, 2000

By Donna Lynn Biester

Format:Hardcover

I am a local resident of Philadelphia and had friends visiting from out of town. It's ashame that I have never been to City Tavern before, because it is a grand place. You forget all the history you have in your own city until you have people visit you and you take them on a tour. I thought City Tavern would be a perfect ending! The food was so good I had to buy the cookbook. The recipes are very well written, easy to understand and you purchase all the ingredients at your local grocery store! I reccommend this cookbook highly and it would make a great gift to anyone that enjoys something different!!

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Ye old excellent cookbook December 14, 1999

By A Customer

Format:Hardcover

Tis the season for a cookbook of this calibur. I have purchased a copy for myself, enjoyed it so much that I am giving copies to my entire family. The recipes are clear and concise. The instructions and recommendations are focused on a remarkable final product. The only thing to do now is visit Philadelphia and go to the City Tavern restaurant and see if thier versions are as good as mine. The historical theme is a welcomed element. Now I feel like I'm tasting history in my own home.