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THE ELEGANT ART OF DINING
Fish in Their Variety
Probably the most frequent question asked us by those who come to San
Francisco is: "Where can we get the best fish?" With San Francisco's
wonderful natural advantages as a fish market one is sometimes surprised
that more attention is not given to preparing fish as a specialty. But
one restaurant in the city deals exclusively with sea food, and even
there one is astonished at an overlooked opportunity.
Darbee & Immel have catered to San Francisco in oysters for many years
and after the fire they opened the Shell Fish Grotto, in O'Farrell
street, between Powell and Mason streets, and this is one of the very
few distinctive fish restaurants of the country. It is when one
considers the possibilities that a shock comes from the environing
decorations. White and gold pillars, with twining ivy reaching to the
old gold and rose mural and ceiling embellishments seem out of place in
a restaurant that is devoted entirely to catering to lovers of fish.
Nothing in the place indicates its character except the big lobster in
front of the building. Not even so much as a picture to bring a
sentiment of the ocean to the mind.
We are going to take a liberty, and possibly Darbee & Immel may call it
an impertinence, and give them a bit of advice. It costs them nothing
consequently they can act on it or not and it will make no difference.
This is our suggestion:
Change the interior of the place entirely by having around the walls a
series of large glass aquaria, with as many different kinds of fish
swimming about as it is possible to get; something on the order of the
interior of the aquarium in Battery Park in New York. Paint the ceiling
to represent the surface of the water as seen from below. Have seaweed
and kelp in place of ivy, and a fish net or two caught up in the corners
of the room, with here and there a starfish or a crab--not too many, for
profuseness in this sort of decoration is an abomination. Then you will
have a restaurant that will be talked about wherever people sit at meat.
But to get back to our talk about fish, and where to get it prepared and
cooked the best. We must say that the finest fish we have eaten in San
Francisco was not in the high-priced restaurants at all, but in a
little, dingy back room, down at Fishermen's Wharf, where there was sand
on the floor and all the sounds of the kitchen were audible in the
dining room. The place was patronized almost solely by the Italian
fishermen who not only know how to catch a fish but how it ought to be
cooked. One may always rest assured that when he gets a fish in one of
the Italian restaurants it is perfectly fresh, for there are two things
that an Italian demands in eating, and they are fresh fish and fresh
vegetables.
At the Gianduja at Union and Stockton streets, one is certain to get
fish cooked well and that it is perfectly fresh. The variety is not so
good as at the Shell Fish Grotto, but otherwise it is just as good in
every respect. At the Grotto there is a wonderful variety but the
quantity is at the minimum because there, too, they will have no fish
that has been twenty-four hours out of the water.
One wonders how a full course dinner entirely of fish can be prepared,
but if you will go to the Shell Fish Grotto you will find that it is
done, and done well at that. Here you can get a good dinner for one
dollar, or if you prefer it they have a Fish Dinner de Luxe for which
they charge two dollars. Both are good, the latter having additional
wines and delicacies.
Down in Washington street, just off Columbus avenue, is the Vesuvius, an
Italian restaurant of low price, but excellent cooking. A specialty
there is fish which is always brought fresh from the nearby Clay street
market as ordered, consequently is perfect. When you give your order a
messenger is dispatched to the market and usually he brings the fish
alive and the chef prepares it in one of his many ways, for he is said
to have more secrets about the cooking of fish than one would think it
possible for one brain to contain. The trouble about this restaurant is
that the rest of the menu does not come up to the fish standard, but if
you desire a simple luncheon of fish there is no better place to get it.
There are three things in which an Easterner will be disappointed in San
Francisco, and these are oysters. Pacific Coast oysters fail in size,
flavor and cooking, when compared with the luscious bivalve of the
Atlantic, so far as the ordinary forms of preparation is concerned. Even
fancy dishes, such as Oysters Kirkpatrick, would be better if made of
the eastern oyster, not what they call the eastern oyster here, for that
is a misnomer, but the oysters that grow in the Atlantic Ocean.
Of the Pacific oysters the best is the Toke Point, that comes from
Oregon. They are similar in size to the Blue Point, but lack the flavor.
When, in a San Francisco restaurant, you are asked what sort of oyster
you will have, and you see the familiar names on the menu card, remember
that these are transplanted oysters, and have lost much of their flavor
in the transplanting, or else they are oysters that have been shipped
across the continent and have thereby lost their freshness.
The California oyster proper, is very small, and it has a peculiar
coppery taste, which bon vivants declare adds to its piquancy. Instead
of ordering these by the dozen you order them by the hundred, it being
no difficult task to eat an hundred at a meal, especially when prepared
in a pepper roast.
Everyone knows the staple ways of preparing oysters, and every chef
looks upon the oyster as the source of new flavors in many dishes, but
to our mind the best way we have found in San Francisco was at a little
restaurant down in Washington street before the fire. It was the Buon
Gusto. where they served fish and oysters better than anything else
because the owners were the chefs, and they were from the island of
Catalan, off the coast of Italy. Their specialty was called "Oysters a
la Catalan," and their recipe, which is given, can be prepared
excellently in a chafing dish:
Oysters a la Catalan
Take one tablespoonful of butter, two teaspoonfuls grated Edam or
Parmesan cheese, four tablespoonfuls catsup, one-half teaspoonful
Worcestershire sauce, two tablespoonfuls cream, meat of one good-sized
crab cut fine and two dozen oysters. Put the cheese and butter into a
double boiler and when melted smooth add the catsup and Worcestershire
sauce. Mix well and add the cream and then the crab meat. When creamy
and boiling hot drop in the oysters. As soon as the oysters are crinkled
serve on hot buttered toast on hot plates.
In the days before the fire when you went to a restaurant and ordered
fish or oysters the waiter invariably put before you either a plate of
crab salad or a dish of shrimps, with which you were supposed to amuse
yourself while the meal was being prepared. Shrimps and crabs were then
so plentiful that their price was never considered. Under our new
conditions these always appear on the bill when ordered, and if they be
not ordered they do not appear for they now are made to increase the
income.
To the uninitiated visitor the shrimps so served were always something
of a mystery, and after a few futile efforts to get at the meat they
generally gave it up as too much work for the little good derived. The
Old Timer, however, cracked the shrimp's neck, pinched its tail, and out
popped a delicious bonne bouche which added to the joy of the meal and
increased the appetite. But there are many other ways of serving
shrimps, and they are also much used to give flavor to certain fish
sauces. One of the most delicious ways of preparing shrimp is what is
known as "Shrimp Creole, a la Antoine," so named after the famous New
Orleans Antoine by a chef in San Francisco who had regard for the New
Orleans caterer. We doubt if it can be had anywhere in San Francisco now
unless you are well enough known to have it prepared according to the
recipe. This recipe, by the way, is a good one to use in a chafing dish
supper. This is the way it was prepared at the old Pup restaurant, one
of the noted restaurants before the fire and earthquake changed
conditions:
Shrimp Creole
Take three pints of unshelled shrimps and shell them, one-half pint of
cream, two tablespoonfuls of butter, two tablespoonfuls of flour, two
tablespoonfuls of catsup, one wine glass of sherry, paprika, chili
powder and parsley. Brown the flour in the butter and add the milk until
it is thickened. Color with the catsup and season with paprika and chili
powder. Stir in the sherry and make a pink cream which is to be mixed
through the shrimps and not cooked. Sprinkle with chopped parsley and
serve with squares of toast or crackers.
Lobsters and Lobsters
When is a lobster not a lobster? When it is a crayfish. This question
and answer might well go into the primer of information for those who
come to San Francisco from the East, for what is called a lobster in San
Francisco is not a lobster at all but a crayfish. The true lobster is
not found in the Pacific along the California coast, and so far efforts
at transplanting have not been successful. The Pacific crayfish,
however, serves every purpose, and while many contend that its meat is
not so delicate in flavor as that of its eastern cousin, the Californian
will as strenuously insist that it is better, but, of course, something
must always be allowed for the patriotism of the Californian.
Lobster, served cold with mayonnaise, or broiled live lobster are most
frequently called for, and while they are both excellent, we find so
many other ways of preparing this crustacean that we rarely take the
common variety of lobster dishes into consideration. Probably nowhere in
San Francisco could one get lobster better served than in the Old
Delmonico restaurant of the days before the fire. A book could be
written about this restaurant and then all would not be told for all its
secrets can never be known.
In New York City they have what they are pleased to call "Lobster
Palaces," but there is not a restaurant in that great metropolis that
could approach the Delmonico of San Francisco in its splendid service
and its cuisine arrangements; neither could they approach the romance
that always surrounded the O'Farrell street restaurant. It was here that
most magnificent dinners were arranged; it was here that extraordinary
dishes were concocted by chefs of world-wide fame; it was here that
Lobster a la Newberg reached its highest perfection, and this is the
recipe that was followed when it was prepared in the Delmonico:
Lobster a la Newberg
One pound of lobster meat, one teaspoonful of butter, one-half pint of
cream, yolks of four eggs, one wine glass of sherry, lobster fat. Three
hours before cooking pour the sherry over the lobster meat and let it
stand until ready to cook. Heat the butter and stir in with the lobster
and wine, then place this in a stewpan, or chafing dish, and cook for
eight minutes. Have the yolks of eggs well beaten and add to them the
cream and lobster fat, stir well and then stir in a teaspoonful of
flour. Put this in a double boiler and let cook until thick, stirring
constantly. When this is cooked pour it over the lobster and let all
cook together for three minutes. Serve in a chafing dish with thin
slices of dry toast.
King of Shell Fish
One has to come to San Francisco to partake of the king of shell fish--
the mammoth Pacific crab. I say "come to San Francisco" advisedly, for
while the crab is found all along the coast it is prepared nowhere so
deliciously as in San Francisco. Of course our friends in Portland will
take exception to this, but the fact remains that nowhere except in San
Francisco have so many restaurants become famous because of the way they
prepare the crab. The Pacific crab is peculiar, and while it has not the
gigantic claws such as are to be seen on those in the Parisian and
London markets, its meat is much more delicate in flavor, and the dishes
of crab prepared by artists of the gastronomic profession in San
Francisco are more savory than those found elsewhere.
In the pre-fire days there were many places which paid especial
attention to the cooking of the crab, among them being the Cobweb
Palace, previously mentioned, and Gobey's. Gobey ran one of those places
which was not in good repute, consequently when ladies went there they
were usually veiled and slipped in through an alley, but the enticement
of Gobey's crab stew was too much for conventionality and his little
private rooms were always full.
Gobey's passed with the fire, and the little restaurant bearing his
name, and in charge of his widow, in Union Square avenue, has not
attained the fame of the old place. It is possible that she knows the
secret of preparing crab as it was prepared in the Gobey's of before the
fire, but his prestige did not descend to her.
Almost all of the Italian restaurants will give you crab in many forms,
and all of them are good; many restaurants use crab meat for flavoring
other, dishes, but of all the recipes for cooking crab we have found
none that we consider so good as that of Gobey's. It is as follows:
Gobey's Crab Stew
Take the meat of one large crab, scraping out all of the fat from the
shell. One good-sized onion, one tomato, one sweet pepper, one
teaspoonful of butter, one teaspoonful of flour, half a glass of sherry,
a pinch of rosemary, one clove of garlic, paprika, salt and minionette
pepper. Soak the crab meat in the sherry two hours before cooking. Chop
fine the onion, sweet pepper and tomato with the rosemary. Mash the
clove of garlic, rubbing thoroughly in a mortar and on this put the
butter and flour, mixing well together, and gradually adding the salt
and minionette pepper, and stir in two tablespoonfuls of cream. Heat
this in a stewpan and when simmering add the sherry and crab meat and
let all cook together with a slow fire for eight minutes. Serve in a
chafing dish with toasted crackers or thin slices of toasted bread. A
dash of Worcestershire sauce just before it is taken up adds to the
flavor.
Lobster in Miniature
Crawfish, or ecravisse, has never been very popular in San Francisco,
probably because there are so many other delicate crustaceans that are
more easily handled, yet the crawfish grows to perfection in Pacific
waters, and importation's of them from Portland, Oregon, are becoming
quite an industry. So far it has been used mostly for garnishment of
other dishes, and it is only recently that the Hof Brau has been making
a specialty of them. All of the better class restaurants, however, will
serve them if you order them.
The full flavor of the crawfish is best obtained in a bisque, and the
best recipe for this is by the famous chef Francatelli, who boasts
having been the head of the cuisine of Queen Victoria. His recipe is
long, and its preparation requires much patience, but the result is such
a gastronomic marvel that one never regrets the time spent in its
accomplishment. This is the recipe for eight people, and it is well
worth trying if you are giving a dinner of importance:
Bisque of Crawfish
Take thirty crawfish, from which remove the gut containing the gall in
the following manner: Take firm hold of the crawfish with the left hand
so as to avoid being pinched by its claws; with the thumb and forefinger
of the right hand pinch the extreme end of the central fin of the tail,
and, with a sudden jerk, the gut will be withdrawn.
Mince or cut into small dice a carrot, an onion, one head of celery and
a few parsley roots, and to these add a bay leaf, a sprig of thyme, a
little minionette pepper and two ounces of butter. Put these ingredients
into a stewpan and fry them ten minutes, then throw in the crawfish and
pour on them half a bottle of French white wine. Allow this to boil and
then add a quart of strong consomme and let all continue boiling for
half an hour. Pick out the crawfish and strain the broth through a
napkin by pressure into a basin in order to extract all the essence from
the vegetables.
Pick the shells off twenty-five of the crawfish tails, trim them neatly
and set them aside until wanted. Reserve some of the spawn, also half of
the body shells with which to make the crawfish butter to finish the
soup. This butter is made as follows: Place the shells on a baking sheet
in the oven to dry; let the shells cool and then pound them in a mortar
with a little lobster coral and four ounces of fresh butter, thoroughly
bruising the whole together so as to make a fine paste. Put this in a
stewpan and set it over a slow fire to simmer for about five minutes,
then rub it through a sieve with considerable pressure into a basin
containing ice water. As soon as the colored crawfish butter is become
firmly set, through the coldness of the water, take it out and put it
into a small basin and set in the refrigerator until wanted.
Reverting to the original recipe: Take the remainder of the crawfish and
add thereto three anchovies, washed for the purpose, and also the crusts
of French rolls, fried to a light brown color in butter. Pound all these
thoroughly together and then put them into a stewpan with the broth that
has been reserved in a basin, and having warmed the bisque thus prepared
rub it through a sieve into a fine puree. Put this puree into a soup pot
and finish by incorporating therewith the crawfish butter and season
with a little cayenne pepper and the juice of half a lemon. Pour the
bisque quite hot into the tureen in which have been placed the crawfish
tails, and send to the table.
This is not so difficult as it appears when you are reading it and if
you wish to have something extra fine take the necessary time and
patience and prepare it.
Clams and Abalone's
We cannot dispose of the shell fish of San Francisco without a word or
two about clams, for certainly there is no place where they are in
greater variety and better flavor. In fact the clam is the only bivalve
of this part of the coast that has a distinctive and good flavor.
Several varieties are to be found in the markets, the best and rarest
being the little rock clams that come from around Drake's Bay, just
above the entrance to Golden Gate. These are most delicious in flavor
and should never be eaten otherwise than raw. The sand, or hard shell,
or as they are sometimes called little necks, are next in choiceness,
and then come the Pismo beach clams, noted for their flavor and enormous
size. The mud clam is good for chowder but not so good as either of the
other varieties mentioned.
The Bohemian way to have your clams is to go to the shore of Bolinas Bay
or some other equally retired spot, and have a clam bake, or else take a
pot along with the other ingredients and have a good clam chowder. This,
however, may be prepared at any time and is always a good meal.
Clam fritters when prepared according to the recipe given herein, is one
of the best methods of preparing the clam, and it has the peculiarity of
being so tasty that one feels that there is never enough cooked.
Of all the ways of cooking clams chowder takes precedence as a rule, and
it is good when made properly. By that we do not mean the thin, watery
stuff that is served in most of the restaurants and called clam chowder
just because it happens to be made every Friday. That is fairly good as
a clam soup but it is no more chowder than a Mexican soup approaches a
crawfish bisque. There is but one right way to make clam chowder, and
that is either to make it yourself or closely superintend the making,
and this is the way to make it:
Clam Chowder
Take one quart of shelled sand clams, two large potatoes, two large
onions, one clove of garlic, one sweet pepper, one thick slice of salt
pork, one-half pound small oyster crackers, one-half glass sherry, one
tablespoonful Worcestershire sauce, one tomato, salt, and pepper. In a
large stewpan place the salt pork cut into small dice, and let this fry
slightly over a slow fire until the bottom of the stewpan is well
greased. Take this off the fire and put in a layer of potatoes sliced
thin, on top of the salt pork, then a layer of onions sliced thin, and a
layer of clams. Put on this salt and pepper and sprinkle with a little
flour and then a layer of crackers. Chop the sweet pepper and tomato
fine and mix with them the bruised and mashed garlic. On top of each
succession of layers put a little of the mixture. Continue making these
layers until all the ingredients are placed in the stewpan, and then
pour on the top sufficient water to just show. Cover tightly and let
cook gently for half an hour. Pour on the Worcestershire sauce and
sherry just before serving. Do not stir this while cooking, and in order
to prevent its burning it should be cooked over an asbestos cover.
When done this should be thick enough to be eaten with a fork.
Among the good Bohemians who lived in San Francisco as a child when it
was in the post-pioneer days, and who has enjoyed the good things of all
the famous restaurants is Mrs. Emma Sterett, who has given us the
following recipe for clam fritters which we consider the most delicious
of all we have ever eaten, and when you try them you will agree with us:
Clam Fritters
Take two dozen clams, washed thoroughly and drained. Put in chopping
bowl and chop, not too fine. Add to these one clove of garlic mashed,
one medium-sized onion chopped fine, add bread crumbs sufficient to
stiffen the mass, chopped parsley, celery and herbs to taste. Beat two
eggs separately and add to the clams. If too stiff to drop from a spoon
add the strained liquor of clams. Drop tablespoonfuls of this mixture
into hot fat, turn and cook for sufficient time to cook through, then
drain on brown paper and serve.
Abalone's are a univalve that has been much in vogue among the Chinese
but has seldom found place on the tables of restaurants owing to the
difficulty in preparing them, as they are tough and insipid under
ordinary circumstances. When made tender either by the Chinese method of
pounding, or by steeping in vinegar, they serve the purpose of clams but
have not the fine flavor. The Hof Brau restaurant is now making a
specialty of abalone's, but it takes sentiment to say that one really
finds anything extra good in them.
Another shell fish much in vogue among the Italian restaurants is
mussels, which are found to perfection along the coast. These are
usually served Bordelaise, and make quite a pleasant change when one is
surfeited with other shell fish, but the best recipe is:
Mussels Mariniere
Thoroughly clean the mussels and then put them in a deep pan and pour
over them half a glass of white wine. Chop an onion, a clove of garlic
and some parsley fine and put in the pan, together with a tablespoonful
of butter. Let these boil very quick for twelve minutes, keeping the pan
tightly covered. Take off half shells and place the mussels in a chafing
dish and pour over them Bechamel sauce and then add sufficient milk
gravy to cover. Serve hot from chafing dish.
The Elegant Art of Dining
Contents
Foreword
The Good Gray City
The Land of Bohemia
When the Gringo Came
Early Italian Impression
Birth of the French Restaurant
At the Cliff House
Some Italian Restaurants
Impress of Mexico
On the Barbary Coast
The City That Was Passes
Bohemia of the Present
As it is in Germany
In the Heart of Italy
A Breath of the Orient
Artistic Japan
Old and New Palace
At the Hotel St. Francis
Amid the Bright Lights
Around Little Italy
Where Fish Come In
Fish in Their Variety
Where Fish Abound
Some Food Variants
About Dining
Something About Cooking
Told in A Whisper
Out of Nothing
Paste Makes Waist
Tips and Tipping
The Mythical Land
A Good Bohemian Dinner
Restaurant Famous Recipes
Appendix (How to Serve Wines, Recipes)
Art of Dining Index
Mailing Lists
Forums
Webrings
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