Lobster Palaces

We’re going back to the turn of the century in New York city to learn about the scandalous Broadway Dining scene. Lobster palaces like Rector’s became the place for rich and powerful New York men to wine and dine Broadway chorus girls. Known as “stage door Johnnys” (essentially groupies)… these wealthy men in top hats lined the stage doors waiting to whisk starlets away in Hanson cabs to a lobster and champagne dinner. We’ll make a Rector’s restaurant specialty: lobster thermidor, which is appropriate for the theatre scene, actually getting it’s name from the French Belle Epoque Play, Thermidor. New York was changing around the turn of the century…electric lights lit up the great white way…skyscrapers were going up…way up. And we’ll discuss the crime of the century: the murder of Famous New York architect Stanford White. It’s quite a story: two stage door Johnnies who battled it out for the affections of the most famous showgirl, model and original it girl…Evelyn Nesbit.

Rector’s was by far the most famous Lobster Palace. Not as respectable as world famous Delmonico’s or rival Sherry’s where Mrs. Astor’s 400 dined… Rector’s was something else entirely. What it lacked in esteem, it more than made up for in drama. At Rector’s, which was actually ON broadway, you could catch a glimpse of a starlet making a grand entrance after a show just steps away from the theatre. Broadway plays were written about the risqué restaurant like “the girl from rectors” & “if a table at rectors could talk.” At Lobster palaces, men showered beautiful young women with gifts, champagne and ordered the most expensive dishes on the menu… It was not uncommon to see a woman open her napkin to find diamond trinkets tucked inside. The scandal to this was that many of these adoring men already had wives and families at home. A respectable courtship would not include a late night unchaperoned dinner at Rector’s.

Let’s cook! I’m using Rector’s authentic recipe for Lobster Thermidor. The recipe calls for a cooked lobster. We’ll cut it in half, reserve the cooked meat aside, make a cream sauce, fill it back up with lobster and mushrooms, top it with cheese and broil it.…obviously you’ll need a lobster. if you object to killing a live lobster, you can purchase one cooked from a local seafood shop. If you’re up for a little lobster execution yourself, you can freeze the live lobsters for 10 minutes before boiling, which apparently puts them in a sort of sleep. or for the really bold, plunge a knife into it’s head, killing it completely and cut it right in half and boil or broil. Choose your own adventure.  As with many famous dishes, there are disputed origin stories. One ties this dish to Napoleon. I choose to believe the story that links lobster Thermidor to Parisian restaurant Marie’s in the 1890’s in honor of the premiere of a play called Thermidor. Regardless of origin, it remained incredibly popular well into the Edwardian era. There are many variations, some with wine, mushrooms and shallots. Some have cheese and breadcrumbs, some without. I was thrilled to find Rector’s very own recipe.

We have dinner, now for a show. The murder of Stanford White took place on the rooftop theatre of Madison square garden… the very building Stanford designed. Harry thaw shot Stanford 3 times killing him instantly shouting  “you ruined my wife”…meaning Evelyn Nesbit. In a strange twist of irony, this happened at a performance of a musical called Mam’zelle Champagne…during a song titled “I Could Love a Thousand Girls”. The irony being that Stanford had taken advantage of many girls…using champagne. When Evelyn Nesbit was just 16, the shinest, most beautiful star on broadway, Stanford drugged her champagne and assaulted her. Years later, Evelyn married millionaire Harry Thaw, who had long hated Stanford even before Evelyn. When Harry had just moved to New York, Stanford had sabotaged a party Harry was throwing at Sherry’s for some of the chorus girls of a show called Floradora. Stanford invited the girls to his studio in the tower of Madison square garden instead and the gossip magazine Town Topics broadcasted his humiliation: “Floradora beauties sing for their supper in white’s studio while Thaw orchestra fiddles to an empty room at sherry’s”. Damn. Further back in 1895, White attended a dinner party with notable New York men catered by Sherry’s with endless champagne but the highlight of dinner was an enormous pie carried out by 6 waiters. A young lady named Suzy Johnson appeared scantily dressed out of the pie. Suzy went missing later that year...never to be seen again.

In a time when a full dinner at Delmonico’s only cost a few dollars, Harry Thaw was worth 40 million, the heir to a railroad & coal fortune. Though Harry was no angel either. Town Topics called him Mad Harry. Over the years he paid thousands in hush money after assaulting many girls. Stanford had just been better at hiding it. Although after his murder, dozens of women corroborated Evelyn’s story of being drugged by Stanford. Harry Thaw received sacks of letters to his jail cell from women all over the country labeling him a hero. At the criminal court building where he was held, nicknamed the Tombs….Harry was granted a brass bed and….this may be my favorite fact…even catered meals from Delmonico’s in his jail cell! Oh and where do you think Harry & Evelyn’s first date was? Rectors…It’s all connected. This became the trial of the century, drawing hundreds outside the courtroom. After 2 trials, Harry Thaw was found not guilty by reason of insanity.

If you’re still intrigued about this story, there are several books on the subject. My favorite is The Girl on the velvet swing by Simon Baatz.

Evelyn Nesbit

If you’ve read my Gilded Age Food post, you’ll recall Diamond Jim Brady, the man with the legendary appetite and stomach 6 times the normal size according to his autopsy. Diamond Jim was also a man about town on broadway and even dated actress Lillian Russel who was said to be his match (appetite wise)…Owner George Rector called him “the best 25 customers I ever had”.  Mr. Rector even went to great lengths to keep Diamind Jim happy by pulling his own son out of Cornell Law school to infiltrate a Parisian restaurant to get the secret recipe for their filets de sole that Jim loved. It took months but he brought the recipe back to Rectors. Diamond Jim ate 9 portions that night.

This Lobster Thermidor is seriously so good! You have to try this. I like Delmonico’s lobster Newberg better but check out my Gilded age Food post to get the recipe for that.

Thanks for reading and I’ll see you in the next era!

The Lobster Thermidor recipe is on the left column. The right side is another recipe so disregard it.

I purchased my lobster pre-cooked from a seafood shop but you can boil or broil your own if you’re not squeamish about preparing a live lobster. You can freeze them for 10 minutes to put them to sleep before boiling or plunge a knife into the head killing it instantly.

I broiled my lobster for about 5 minutes but keep an eye on yours as broilers can vary wildly.

I served mine on a bed of lemon slices and parsley and with champagne of course.