Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1884-1886, 1885-02-08
AFTER THE FEAST.
WHAT BECOMES OF THE FRAGMENTS
WHICH ARE LEFT.
Remnants OF Fashionable Banquets Gath
cred Up and Sold Regular Bu>i-
ness-working the Restaurant,
and Free Lunch Places.

Thers had been some enter tainments at n
handsome house on Madison avenue the pre-
ceding evening, for the canopy still stretched
from the door To the curbstOnc. The hour
was a. m. A iilapidated wagon stood in
front of the house, drawn by an aged
horse. A belated reporter chance to pass by
and noticed two men hurrying from the
cart, with empty pans and pals, into the
basement OF the house, and returning speed
lily with the same filed to the brim. For a
moment it looked like burglary, but the
presence of a policeman on tine nearest cor
ner was assurance to the contrary. One OF
the men paused as il to rest for moment,
and the reporter accosted him:
What's the racket
THE same old thing Free lunches, cheap
restaurants. AMI Eyetalians.'
Il don't quits catch on. What are you do
Ing in the place.
"Why, don't you see, they've had party
there t. ni.h, and big supper. They've
left tare, time, as much as they've eaten,
ami we're buying it up from the steward.
Wen take it around to oar regular custom
ers and sell it all before O'Clock to-
morrow
Regular customers: Why, IS this regu-
lar trader
~Of course it j., and has been for over ten
years of my own knowledge. You see, there
are a hundred parties and over given every
night here in New York. Nearly all Of them
are supplied by regular caterers About
half are noicel in the daily papers. Now.
at these racketS they always put up a lot
more than they want They can't help
themselves, because it would never do To
have Just as much their guests
needed and no more. II would look
Just as il they were dead broke. Old fam
lilies order generally twice as much as
they're going to use, new families about
three or four times much, AMI shoddieS
five and ten times much. Why, last
week we took in a swell place where they
had fifty people, and they had enough grub
for 500 Now, what happens' The party
or welding is all over. and there's all that
stuff left untasted. All they can do Is to
throw il into the swirl barrel That's where
We come in We come along and buy IT up.
Sometimes We buy it from the caterer. Ii
saves him trouble ami time, rs we clean of
all the dishes and leave them ready for his
washers Sometimes we make the deal with
the cook OF the butler, and sometimes. but
not very often, with the old man Of the
house Anyway. we manage 10 connect and
get the stuff.
What do you pay!'
well. that depends With a reliable
caterer we can find our what viii be left
over, and can make fair bid. With cooks
and servants we generally stake him with a
50 or SIS note Almost always we come out
ahead but now and then we get left. Cooks
are getting two smart and want too much
With the head of the house, though, it
easy work. and Y Will satisfy him every
| time"
What do you do with the stuffi'
Sell ito our customers. There's first,
the cheap restaurants They're always
ready 10 take anything cheap Ii they can
| get chicken salad for s. that would coNt
them IS to make they'll take it every time.
| You see they can afford then TO sell IL at
| ~ cents a plate and make money. Why.
one time | sold lobster salad, thirty poun !
for g. p. /; cost the restaurant keeper rs cents
a plate. and he could sell If for 10 and make
money As matter Of fact. be sold II Mi
before o'clock for Is cents plate. Their
there's the free lunch saloons. They want
sandwiches. pickles bread, cheese, olives,
and ham. They don't pay much, but they Il
take all YOU bring. There's one place town
where they give fried oyster. a sandwich,
or something with every Grink That mar
| L ole ci III hcsA NN>A'AiiSAs
after you've worked the restaurants and
free lunches. YOU can always sell cut what's
left TO the E,etalians They'll buy anything
if its cheap enough. I've sold hem melted
ice cream of difereu; colors, half eaten
Charlotte RuSses. chicken bones. and broken
cakes At a street cleaners restauran; IN
Marion street last wear ! sid the leavings
| fror:l the plates OF big wedding reception
for ST. They made about three pailsfuls.
and had over fifty different things IN them
What do Won get mostly from parties.
First. leayings from plates, then melted
ice cream, next sandwicaeS, and then cake.
Occasionally We sc; Charlotte Russo and
candies In the old days We almost never
got salads, but since they'y uSe1 veal and
boiled bee. in making chicken salad. We get q
good deal On warm nights We cellar d
good many fried and picked oysters; %
cold nights almost none a al When they
put up cold ham, corn beef, turkey, and
| yeni>on people doa't eat a quarter Of IL, and
then We come in solid
But You see it al depends on the KIM Of
| partv il is liieraries are The worst Of all
they only have bouillon, coffee, sandwiches,
and salad. and there's nothing left over.
Musicals are almost sS hai. kettleirums
and afternoon rackets are not much good
either The best is a wedding They send
out 900 invites and set up for iOo, ami ,her
about $50 come Receptions q public me
are the next best Then come birthday
christening. and tin wedding parties Wakes
too ARE sometimes boss The only WAY {,
size them UP is 10 know the caterer and SCI
all the points from him
do YOU ever get any winei'
! sNa-ol The old msn Of the house alwsy
comes down and collars what's left II h
don't, the waters drink II, and they n
always helped out by the servants Nv
been in the business ten years. and neve
got even a half bottle That is / didn't sc
, the empty bottles They don't pay, though
unless You get more than fifty, and the
; they bring you in about sLoo But I've 80
to step, Is I'm of now to Washington marke
| for ur first customer