The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-08-28
IN a GUIDE BOOKS TOLLS.
An Americnn's Experience in a Paris
Restaurant.

disposed to- blame Ii haTshly now But it
was ms only break and Il seems plainly
gestion
We had got tired Of French cooking in
Faris, he said, "and a long course of ia
PIE dhotes had made us hungry for some
thlng like plain American cooking. 1t was
SUN TWO weeks before we were to reach
LONDON. One night al the hotel l tried to
break piece of the crust to a pate OF
sweetbread that one of the walters was
ldhdlnS around at dinner. He told me that
II was made Of paste board wax, and a
very httle flour and il was used regu-
idity every evening for pate of some kind
~ was not worth while to try to break il.
L nat settled the question. There was to be
no uilner Tor US at the hotel or at any
other French place the next night
wanted slice Of roast peef that COW
ered my whole plate and l was determined
TO get 1t If L mad TO devote the whole of the
next DAY TO finding the place 1 turned 10
the guide book in this predcament as l
had IN many others and it seemed as II
II had again helped me out. In a list OF
restaurants was one with an English
haihe. Following this was a parenthetical
statement that good English cooking could
be had there. SO ! went out 10 Versailles
and put in the day perfectly confident that
we would have good dinner at night.
1 was the only man of the party ex-
ceptlng a young cousin of my wife, and
fnoblHzed the expedition in the hall of
the hotel. L realized when 1 saw my two
daughters and my wife, her sister with
her daughter, my wife's aunt and her
cousin, that the party was one of consid-
cradle size for any one man. But l had
plioted half of them through Europe with
out any trouble and could look back to
only one painful feature of the trip. That
was the fondness of my wife's aunt for
hard-boled eggs a breakfast. To disturb
the economy of any continental hotel by
ordering anything but rolls and coffee was
serious enough, but to get hard boiled
egg was a struggle that usually required
me to be downstairs an hour before break
tast time. But got accustomed TO that
started my party toward the restau-
rant, which was in the Boulevard des
Capueines, not far from the hotel We
were an average lot of Americans, well
dressed and quiet looking, and not to be
mistaken for anything but Simon pure
American domesticity travelling through
europe. When We reached the place moth
ing about it seemed more striking than its
absolutely un-English look. 1t was like
all the rest of the cafes in that region with
the mirrors, white marble tables and red
velvet cushions. The woman who sat at
the cash desk was French to the roots of
her bichioride blond hair. I hesitated for
a second, but the infallibility of my guide
book, lured me on So l arranged the par
~ about two tables, with the assistance
OF waiter, who was the only person be-
SIDES my party and the cashier in the
room 1t was about half-past T. 1 was ac-
customed to the small numbers sometimes
found in the best known French restau-
rants, so the desertion of this one did not
impress me as much as 1t would other
wise nave done. But thought l had new
er seen such complete emptiness French
men could not be expected to patronize a
al toll
iish cooking, whispered the evil genius of
the guide book into my ear. OF course
there would be few of them here.
The waiter blushed in establishment
when l said / wanted to order dinner.
lie needed over to the cashier, who
asked him what 1 had said, and turned
10 look at our party with an expression
OF curiosity that died away in a second.
she gave some directions to the waiter,
who disappeared somewhere in the rear
OF the place. He was gone an unconscion-
ably long time. When he returned il was
with one bill of fare. 1t was written in
suspiciously fresh ink. Before it 20 to
our table the cashier glanced at it. Like
most menus Is first-class French restau-
rants, IL contained no prices Only one
thing on the bill that was the least bit
English was 'Rosbeef,' written in larger
letters than those on the bill anywhere
else. The outlook was not encouraging
nearly O'Clock, and day of sightseeing
had prepared us for nearly anything
The dinner came after some delay. IT
was good, and as French as any that we
had eaten in Paris. Only one dish was
bad. That was the vaunted 'rosbeef' 1t
was tough and stringy. But the fiIet Ge
sole au win blanc was delicious. So were
the potage a la refine and the cotellettes de
volatile But the English quality of the
dinner was difficult to detect
while We sat there not a soul entered
the place. Two walters served us. The
second came in rubbing his eyes and
wasn't awake by the time we had finish
ed. The alert dame au compton even
dozed at intervals, only to wake up sud
denly and resume her stare at the pass
ing figures on the street. The prices
were high. very high AS I paid the
check 1 said to the waiter:
There are not many here tonight
It's a little early for u.s. monsieur"
he answered. ours usually come later
THAT did not agree with all the pre-
vious ideas / had entertained on the sub
ject of English dining, but I let it pass.
AS we came out of the door, my wife and
her aunt leading the way, We met an old
friend of mine who lived in Paris. He
bowed, looked from the women to me with
a curious expression, and then passed on.
The next day / saw him at my bankers.
"'WM you tell me-, he asked after
few moments what in the world you
were doing last night at James?
why, eating my dinner
" Eating your own dinner there is q
strange enough thing he answered, but
why in the name of creation did you have
to drag your family along"
My family and I have made it habit
to dine together for some years, 1 replied.
with tone of sarcasm. l cannot see that
! should give that up merely because l
am in Paris
If were you, would adopt more
humble tone was the crushing answer.
Nobody but the ran1est greenhorn would
ever think of taking dinner in the place
that I saw you or would ever let any
woman Of his family go there il he knew
anything about the character of the
place. l wonder you got your dinner. 1
didn't even know they cooked 1t there.
never thought ii was opened before
o'clock in the morning. 1t certainly Is
never patrouized before two or three
hours earlier or later. That is the last
place on the circuit that Is reached. When