Springfield globe-republic. (Springfield, Ohio) 1884-1887, 1885-02-01
AFTER THE FEAST.
WHAT BECOMES OF THE FRAGMENTS
WHICH ARE LEFT.
Remnants Of Fashionable BanQuets Gath
cred Up and Sold - . Kegula' Busi-
nsss-working the Restaurants
and Free Lunch Places-

New York Sun.
There had been some enter tainments at
handsome house on Madison avenue the pre-
ceding evening" for the canopy still stretched
from the door to the curbstone. The hour
was g. m A dilapidated 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 fillsd to the brim. For
moment it looked like q burglary, but the
presence of policeman on the nearest cor
ner was assurance to the contrary. One Of
the men paused as II TO rest for . moment
and the reporter accosted him:
"What's the racketP
"The same old thing. Free lunches, CHEAP
restaurants, and Eyetalians."
Il don't quite catch on. What are you do
ing in the placer
"Why, don't you See, they'vs had party
there tonight and q big supper. They've
left three times as much as they've eaten,
and we're buying it up from the steward
Wen take it around to our regular custom
ers and sell it all before 0 o'clock to
morrow"
Regular customersi Why, Is this a rsgu-
lar tradef"
"Of course it "a, and has been for over ten
years Of my own knowledge. You see, there
are hundred parties and over given every
night here in New York Nearly all Of them
are supplied by regular caterers About
half are noticed in the daily papers. Now,
at these racksts they always put up . LOT
more than they want They can't hslp
themselves, because it would never do to
have Just as much as their guesz
needed and no more. It would look
just as if they were dead broke. Old fam
lilies order generally twice as much -
they're going to use, new families about
three or four times as much, and shoddiss
five and ten times as much. Why, last
week we took in swell place where they
had fifty people, and they had enough grnt
for 500. Now, what happsnsi The party
OF wedding is all over, and there's all that
stuff left untasted. All they can do is to
throw it into the swill barrel That's where
we come in. We come along and buy itup.
Sometimes we buy it from the caterer. 1t
saves him trouble and time, as We clean of
all the dishes and leave them ready for his
washers. Sometimes we make the deal with
the cook or the butler, and sometimes, but
not very often, with the olu man OF the
house. Anyway, we manage to connect and
get the stuff
"What do you payr
"WeIl, that depends With reliable
caterer We can find out what will be left
over, and can make fair bid With cooks
and servants We generally stake him with
S2 or IS note. Almost always We come out
ahead, but now and then We get left Cook,
are getting two smart and want too much.
, With the head Of the house, though, it's
easy work, and V viii satisfy him every
time"
what do you do With the stuffr
GSell 1t to our custsmera There's, first,
the cheap restaurants They're always
ready to take anything cheap L they can
get chicken salad for - that would cOst
them IS to make they'll take 1t every time.
You see they can afford then to sell 1t al
20 cents plato and make money. Why,
one time sold lobster salad, thirty pounds
for 81. 25. 1t cost the restaurant keeper cent?
plate, and he could sell it for 10 and make
money As matter Of fact, he sold it all
before o'clock for is cents . plate. Then
there's the free lunch saloona They want
sandwiches, pickles, bread, cheese, olives,
and ham They don't pay much, but they'll
take all you bring. There's one placs town
where they give fried oyster, q sandwich,
or something with every drink. That mar
is one of my best customerA
"After you've worked the restaurants and
free lunches, you can always sell out what's
left to the Eyetalians. They'll buy anything
If it's cheap enough I've sold them melted
ice cream Of different colors, half eaten
| Charlotte Russes, chicken bones, and broker
cakes. At a street cleaners restaurant in
Marion street last year I sold the leaving.
from the plates Of big wedding reception
for 81. They made about three pailsfuls,
and had over fifty different things in them
What do you get mostly from parties!"
First, leavings from plates; then melted
ice cream; next sandwiches, and then cake.
| Occasionally We get Charlotte Russo and
candies In the old days We almost never
| got salads; but since they've used veal and
boiled beef in making chicken salad. We get
good deal On warm nights We collar o
good many fried and picked oysters; on
| cold nights almost none at all When they
put up cold ham, corn beef, turkey, and
venison, people don't eat quarter Of 1t, and
then We come in solid.
4But you see it all depends on the kind of
party it is Literaries are the worst of all;
they only have bouillon, coffee, sand wiches,
and salad and there's nothing left over.
Musicals are almost as bad. Kettledrums
and afternoon rackets are not much good
| either The best Is a wedding. They send
out !, 900 invites and set up for 100, and then
about $50 come Receptions to public men
are the next best. Then come birthday,
christening, and tin wedding parties. Wakes,
too, arr sometimes boss The only way to
size tb I'm up is To know the caterer and get
| all tho points from him"
do you ever get any winel"
.Na-ol The old man Of the house always
comes down and collars what's left. II he
don't, the walters drink 1t, and they're
! always helped out by the servants I've
been in the business ten years, and never
got even a half bottle. That Is, didn't get
the empty bottles. They don't pay, though,
unless you get moro than fifty, and then
they bring you in about $LOo But I've got
| to stop, as I'm of now to Washington market