Restaurant history quiz

1. A restaurant at the Panama-Pacific Exposition in San Francisco in 1915 served Pearly Eyebrow and Lobster Eye. What were they?
A. Teas served at the Chinese Food and Tea Parlor
B. French pastries served at The Pantry
C. Soups served at The Hearth Stone
D. Oysters served at The Pacific Hut

2. The architecture of Howard Johnson’s second restaurant, in Middleboro MA, imitated that of which other chain?
A. White Castle
B. Dutchland Farms
C. Simple Simon’s drive-ins
D. Orange Julius

3. What is an ordinary?
A. A cheap lunchroom of the 1890s
B. The original name for the railroad dining car
C. A fixed-price meal in taverns and coffee houses in early America
D. Supper of meat, potatoes, and vegetable

4. Food that is not found on the bills of fare of the Revolutionary period:
A. Turtle
B. Steak
C. Shrimp
D. Ice Cream

5. Which would cost you the least at a tavern around 1790?
A. Hay for your horse
B. A bed for the night
C. A complete dinner
D. A bottle of champagne

6. What does this sentence from 1900 mean: “They find no kickshaws on the bill.”
A. The total charged for the meal is correct
B. The restaurant has no frills or fancy dishes on its menu
C. It is a clean eating place
D. The menu does not mention extra charges

7. What is a box stew?
A. A prepared stew made of dry ingredients to which water is added
B. An oyster stew made with box oysters from Fulton Market in NY
C. Humorous kitchen slang for a takeaway meal in a styrofoam box
D. Misspelling of Bach’s stew, a German pork dish

8. Which year did coffee shift from 5 to 10 cents in most restaurants?
A. 1910
B. 1860
C. 1895
D. 1950

9. Which type of restaurant has been called “a bar with a dining room attached”?
A. Steak house
B. Roadhouse
C. Polynesian restaurant
D. All of the above

10. Chefs didn’t like to use them ca. 1960 because they take too long to chop, don’t store well, are only available seasonally, and can be expensive. What are they?
A. Fresh herbs and spices
B. Leaf lettuces
C. Mushrooms
D. Kumquats

ANSWERS

© Jan Whitaker, 2009