The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1910-12-18
INFORMAL LUNCH CLUBS
" HOSE MEETING PLACES IRE
REST ttRtNr TABLES
discovery sf n Man who soESht a Nrw
Place To Eat and Found hin's-IT an
Interioprr clubs without Hr.
gani,ati0n, hut some Have Name,

rant noted for its good wines Ard 600,
food and determined 10 eat th"r" Pc. .-
larly. The first day he dropped 49,
seat at a tail" who's" wait"- h. thuugir
he would like. ordered "A cocktail tnd a
tempting soup and settled down :" '.rl,v
himself
" was rather early. and men who We're
evidently regular patrons Of m. pI,ra
wer. just bS Winning tn come in IHa
Ilace filed up fast as all places downtown
do soon after II O'Clock. and before tho
waiter had brought the soup the man No.
ticed that there was only one seat left
vacant AZ his table
He also noticed that all tn. men VIII r..i
taken the other seats seemed 70 know
each other and hrd begun an anlma-et
di-cl-..iun on a wide rang" of TOM
Pretty soon IN. last seat was taken hy
man whom the others all greeted with
warmth and an exchange Of jokes M
aitempt bad h' made IN turn down 'ha
last vacant chair TO reserve II. nor MAS
there any nI gn that the table had been g.
served for a special party.
Pafor" the soup IVES finished the man
=. ho had taken his seat Pt this particular
.bl. for m. first time saw still another
man w..iCnsn.d hv the others AZ III" 'ah"
Too bad old man Won cant get y seat
TODAY. Was one remark made to him
Ought TO have been a little earlier
was another.
The man TO whom these remarks ware
addressed look ed ut the man Just finishing
his soup. exchanged whispered word
with the waiter and then took n seat ~ an
opposit. table while the others condolNd
with him II was evident TO the man who
, had hoped ro .nioy his meal that he was IN
the wrong pew He resolved that next
time h. would give that particular tall"
wide berth.
The next dav ne picked out another
tabl.. with The same result. only this time
h.. found he had a companion in misery,
Two of the regulars AT that table had
TO go without seats or wait until he fin.
shed After he had tried - Al another
rahl" with tn. same result he went 10 The
proprie'o or. g.nia' Frenchman.
Look he's" = This n club or res-au.
rant h. asked with some warmth.
due 1" h. ndice-t ion resulting from his
experiences
I he PROPRIETOR IN turn explained that
IL was = restaurant and that h" was de-
lrgh'.d u have his patronage
Won 500. ~ said. most Of our patrons
arr t''l lfnt'T~. 'fs-n a'lUllHE I''F I'I
v-a-,. and nave formed HABITS here. hut
IN trv 20 G.- Won fN.d M
In. r..,,Il. was that tn. man was PLACED
at a tahl" ",iderrlv WITHOUT is lunch
,.'lb. end h. nanaC"d hereafter 10 "njo,
he, meals Today n" l. a member ri
a club which -l'- a. 'ha; tabl" and regret
'h.' presence 81 AN lnr.rlop"r
trl.k. ~" regular lunch clubs. som"
A., H., Ht.Aspr, TAr
mrnal Building. hay" handsome qusr.
ter. IN" Informal lunch club has no dua-.
hr' rh..~" ~" certain qualiticatI ions for
membership Generally IN. mrmhe--
shin Of H.. informal lunch cub IL lImIt~
to m. ~" Of the table around whi"h
i, daily gr'h"r~ II here are extra mem.
hers II - only 10 hll The seats Of the an
sent All would h" we'll with such clun.
II 1t wasn't for IN" inr.roper. the man
who insists upon "lf lnE everyw here and
anyy here and fit~ from table n table
Thu. truly informal lunch club down
town n"v.,r las afahl" reserved for ~ h.-
catis" then it would q, as. % be- an Informal
lunch club and ou,d los" iis charm ~
-pcu'an.Ity. which il Distinguishing
feature. Of such clubs Then. too So grea'
j. -br rush al the. well known RESTAURANTS
in the. lunch hour that none Of them will
r. serve. "A tghl" unless "A certain number
OF diners j. positively guaranteed
Tn. member Of strictly informal
lunch club never knows whether he -
going to lunch alone or IN company The
club NAV turn oui strong on" dav and the
a. r"ndauCa NAV 10 very light the n"Ni.
depending upon rh" whim- Of rs mem
n.ar~ and sometimes on the in'erlOn"rs
who have taken the seats AZ the club
table To IN" exclusion Of real club mem
h.rs Consequently f'Ili meeting Of such
a club IL a matter 81 uncertainty
R,lf 1t IL th.-.. very viCissitudes that
max" th.-. clubs what they are, ana
full meeting IL such "A club. when u do"S
tai" place. means an hour 81 unalloyei
pleasure for Its members New stories
ar. exchanged. old Jokes laid away. rh"
ncW- Of IN" dav discussed II l. ahIl'v
to ContrIbut. something 10 IN" intellectual
f.asr which accompanies III" Wand that
generally gets one into such club
Whit. IA" informal lunch club Is De.
light to its members. II doesn't alSays
x i've JOY 10 the non-m.mh"i In fact
dysreptic person might call the club into
which he has unconsciously thrust him
self nuisance. interfering sadly with the
enjoy ment Of he lunch.
He may cling -enaciously 20 his char
and under his breath he may tell the club
and the late member casting covetou-
glanc.s at his seat that he has az much
rieh- there anybody. but just III" same
he ~ exactly unComfortab. In tact
even Ih. waiter seems bit bruSqu" "i'h
him II he daw,iie- over his coffee. although
in th. beginning h" may have seated MN
az his iab. with great urbanity
Al on. cetaurant IN th" downtown
"A. H..
lucarInr for many wears almost AT ~"
tables hay. such clubs Though lnf"r-'a.
they hav" their names Their" = ne
swiss club Tor example. mad" ny h'-"F
" watrhnak.r- II that nHtIr'A.'F
Most " th. pf-mh.rs have been "i'I'E
AZ the .gn,. t1hi. for twenty year Nt'l
vet . stranger could ea-Ilv seat h''-'N
AZ 'hr- .ahi" and order meal
knights ii the Round .labl" j. D." '"n"
~ annth her II ~ mad" up II "" eng n'"'1
IN a city department. four lawyer i'H
"A barker The Jewellers hav" hfr'N"r
table som" DAYS the T"ml"r1 81 me-