INDEPENDENCE DAY DINNER MENU.
Of the American Society in London. July 4th, 1927. (a thin line) MENU, PROGRAMME, LIST OF GUESTS, AND PLAN OF TABLES (another thin line) The American Ambassador ......... Chairman. SAVOY HOTEL. Headed by a slightly embossed vignette of the American flag.
123 x 164 mm. An 18 page very detailed menu. Verso of front cover is a cartoon with drawings of all the upper management. We seee that Chef Latry is Maitre des Cuisines of the Savoy Restuarant and Chef Virlogeux was the Maitre des Cuisines of the Savoy Grill. With the Menu and Toasts, seating plan and the names of all invitee's, this is one of the most comprehensively detailed menus I have ever seen. On the verso of the back cover is a fine-drawn portrait of Mons.Latry. The whole menu in thick cream-coloured cardboard. Held together with a red, white and blue twisted string tassle. Housed in a slip folder bound in thick yellow handmade paper with a large label. A very clean and handsome item.
- This is an unusual menu, not only the pages of details but that it also has the tipped in cartoons of the Catering and Hotel Managers. At 'Cook's Info' online, there is a fine biographical article, detailing the key points of Francois Latry's life, pertaining to his career as a famous French Chef in London. Born in Gex. France in 1889 He was Maître Chef des Cuisines at the Savoy Hotel Restaurant in London for 23 years, from 1919 to 1942. His life has not yet been well-documented but what we know of him comes just from newspaper coverage of the time. Fortunately, he was somewhat similar to Alexis Soyer, being frequently in the media and the press, as well as a writer of letters to the editor of the Times of London. François’s mother began to teach him to cook when he was very young. He was only seven when he started doing little things in the kitchen under her direction. At 12 years old, he went off to work in a hotel in Bourgen-Bresse, whence the best French poultry comes. Then he went to Lyons for ten years before he migrated to Paris to get his apprenticeship finished off, but not the learning. Something a great cook does all his life. Latry started with the Savoy in London in 1911 when he was approximately 22 years old. Two years later he was chef of its Café Parisien, which he left to go to Claridge’s for five years, a service interrupted by a year at the front, where his leg was so badly injured that he was discharged as unfit for further service. After the Armistice, he returned to the Savoy as Maître Chef des Cuisines. On 31 May 1928, he was named to the Board of Directors of the “Société des Grands Hôtels de la route Paris-Nice” in France. His position at the time was given as “directeur des cuisines du Savoy-Hotel” with his home address curiously given out as 132 Cromwell Road, South Kensingston, London. Also in 1934, he was admitted to the French Legion of Honour: The first being Auguste Escoffier similarly admitted on March 22nd 1928. Latry retired in March of 1942. Marius Dutrey, c.1888 – 1975, was appointed his successor.” Latry died in August 1966 in France. Marius Dutrey stayed until January 1946. In January 1946, Camille Payard was awarded the post, but occupied it only shortly as he died in October of that same year. August Laplanche, was then Maître Chef des Cuisines from 1946 to 1965. A well documented history of the Kitchen of am equally documented grand old hotel that has managed to keep its excellent reputation since its inception by Richard D’Oyly Carte in August 1889.
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Ephemera category
ref number:
11273