OP: The '21' Cookbook
Doubleday, New York, 1995. Hardcover. Very Good Plus. First printing.
The 21 Club is one of the most storied restaurants in New York City—as well it should be after a 90-year run by the time of its closure in 2020. Immediately recognizable by its wrought iron gated façade adorned with jockey figurines, The 21 Club began as a speakeasy with elaborate systems to hide booze during police raids. Its secret wine cellar, under the neighboring property, could be accessed through a hidden door and, after Prohibition, housed the private collections of some of the restaurant’s most rich and famous patrons.
Chef Michael Lomonaco (1955– ), an alumnus of Le Cirque, led the kitchen at 21 from 1989 to 1996, publishing The ‘21’ Cookbook (1995) at the end of his tenure. Besides preserving decades-worth of recipes, the cookbook also documents the restaurant’s long life as supporting character to business deals and political moves, setting for see-and-be-seen meals for socialites and starlets, and stage to big moments on screen as in 1987’s Wall Street.
Black and white photos, brief anecdotes, and longer histories are interspersed between recipes, which are no afterthought, like the ‘21’ steak tartare, tequila-cured salmon, mustard seed-crusted rack of lamb, grilled pheasant, and poached pears in “phyllo overcoat” with zabaglione. Wine pairings and/or chef’s tips accompany every recipe.
Our copy is a Very Good Plus first printing, totally clean and unmarked. A remarkable souvenir which doubles as an excellent kitchen companion.
