Thanksgiving, as a holiday centered on a family meal, is known for large amounts of food. For travelers staying at the Hotel Manhattan (and, I assume, some native New Yorkers looking for a restaurant meal), the Thanksgiving lunch menu in 1900 was a bit overwhelming.
The most notable thing about the menu is that it caters to every taste in meat, with no particular emphasis on turkey. If anything, they seem to be pushing the lamb. There are the traditional New York clams and oysters to start, soup, and pea-heavy vegetable selections. The pumpkin and mince pies among the desserts are perhaps closest to a modern Thanksgiving menu.
As always with a historic menu, there a few moments that stop you in your tracks. Fresh mackerel au vin blanc? Turtle? Tunisian jelly? Tom and Jerry ice cream? Crackers and milk? I’m sure the first two made sense at the time and I’m sure there’s a good explanation for the others, but they’re not something I’d expect to see on any menu, let alone a holiday special menu.
