The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-03-02
.0LD TINE RESTAURANT CONE
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how tp plspas Nlan John uptld ai'"
hta money
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T~rrtv y -,rnrd .trsrt nnd SiVth aven1"
rnd though the lrrntipr was rrrt'v Tar
uptoor lohu riotrrd un n Ne u likely SPIT
n Wa mat " riy foot Nv forty and there
John ct IN hts avn oyster bar, the Ells-
vorth- -ee,ug to- the necessary N capital.
.Iohu'a Ittle ptbr -iun prn~urted Char
10 pcImnntur wur among the first ~ tho
Cluh crowd ~ make II u calling place a
tho custom grew ~. with Capt Joe's hack
ing did the establishment ONeiIl first got
tho lot nm the rear ~ hun. and, tearing DOWN
tho won,ien shnuty. lrillt rho htnldinR "a u
stands to-day on IN" CORNER, fnur -tori" =
high. with hr- living rooInr abovethe large
dining room up-taIr.
Iohn had a wife now. who saved on her
own account ont ~ her pin money and house.
keeping allowance Ry and by, John set
h,s hearf on buying the strip north of hiS,
which Wis sold N auction. He nd s88 ,0O,
mad 10 Per cent. down. and old his wife
that night that h" would lCt the balance
stay on mortgage.
You readn't. John, -h" told hun. n
from y trunk she drew forth four big stock
Ings filled with ~greprlacks. her savings Of
NJ tecn wears. There was So ,g1 there
whcn they counted It.
Away in the rear of tho restaurant, with "A
private entrance from the bar, was a room
with \ his round table in It, thsA John had
sct apar for hiE special customers, who
came late and stayel early. John had his
fads. and didn't believe that gentlemen
should he bothered by the noise of every
man who uaironiEcd his bar. And these
favored dozen or more we're his gentle
men.
Another fad Of Johns concerned his
walters. No man could go To work for hum
until he had first zone down to the cellar
and had a bare knuokles mill with tho
boss" II he fought well and took his de-
fent gracefully, for JOIN was no mean
scrapper, he was hired. II any man ever
happened TO get the better OF John in these
bouts he kept it "A secret.
To that back room there came a varied
crowd. Besides Delmonico, who frankly
said that he came there to get good FOOD
away from the atmosphere OF society
there were Ned Harrigan, Billy Corwine'
Charlie Wilder, Willie Field, Jimmy Led
with, Alfred Pagelow and Dick Neville.
Field, VINO was chief steward OF the I'M
hria and spoke with a Pronounced English
accent, attained O'Neill's respect because
of his intimacy with a great parsonage
Indian service, and had often been called
Gn to look after tine comforts of royalty.
One day on his return from England he
told O'Neill casually of meeting the then
Prince Oh NdI"S' o"Nh "dA lh'eIeSteu
at once,
Where was IL" he asked.
at was Just as | was passing the Hotel
Cecil, John said Field.
"And what did ye do?" pursued John,
SOh, ! just tipped my hat to him, John,
and said Good afternoon, your Highness, '"
as that possible, MIR. Field2 And tell
me now, what did the Prince say"
why, John, he was delighted to see me.
Al H. IA1l .,n ~ ttn - fn an III him htA Hinh-
ness; 10 call him just plain Eddie, same as
he calls Inc Willie"
From that day forth Field was one of
Johns most distinguished guests. And
the story was true, according TO Field.
One of the weekly events was the brewing
OF a BOW of punch 10y Jimmy Ledwith.
1t was a big bowl, and fine punch, but no
man save jimmy knew what went into it.
Twelve ingredients there were, which Led
with procured and mixed himself in some
dark corner. And when it was brewed
all the gang gathered around the table
II was harmless, 10 Jimmy told them, and
they need have no fear. Tongues wagged
more loosely under that punch, but, Ledwith
notwithstanding, when the cold night air
war encountered afterward legs began to
wahble and heads to go round.
- Harrigan was fond Of reciting there
d singing his inimitRble parodles, But
on Avery man there fell the burden Of con-
trihuting in some way to the evenings
or rather the night entertainment. As
the years rolled by the crowd got too big
for the little back room, 40 a Welsh rabbit
club was organized, which held its meetings
in the dining room upstairs. There used
to come many of the big city ofioeholders
Of the day. O'Neill's business was at it's
prime then, and he had to give up his old
custom of going TO market himself at four
in the morning.
Oysters were Johns specially. but his
steaks and chops found many admirers
who pronounced them second to none.
Fifteen years ago, in O'Neills, you could
get a fine bone sirloin with n baked potato
for IS cents. The price compares faVorably
with the Broadway rates OF to-day, and
according to old O'Neillites the steak
compared favorablv too,
One Of his own inventions was the baked
soft shell clam. He got the biggest clans
in the market and baked them in an oven,
putting on the cooked clam IA slice OF bacon,
a pat OF butter and n liberal dash Of red
pepper.
Nor was he averse to improvements.
As soon as the electric broiler had been
brought to perfection, John threw out his
old fashioned open broiler and put in the new
tangled one. The huge oyster shells that
lay on the sidewalk outside, which often
caused comment from passersby, were
pTesented to him by q sea captain who
brought them all the way from the Ca lfornia