Cynthia Van Ness is searching for what she believes to be an illuminating segment of Western New York's past. As Director of Library and Archives at the Buffalo History Museum, her research is examining menus and amateur cookbooks for a look at what our forbears ate and how it has changed with the community.
Numerous culinary guides are going into the Buffalo History Museum as a history written on paper which will last long after software changes mean those important bytes of information are no longer readable.
"We're hoping that menus and cookbooks show church history, ethnic histories, business histories, social history," Van Ness said while serving up some specific examples.
"Maybe a restaurant would have served mock turtle soup or real turtle soup. Today, we don't even know what that is. I don't know what mock turtle soup is. Today, it might be a pizzeria or a sushi joint."
Van Ness says the menus show how what people eat has broadened as new immigrants have brought the cuisine of the world to tables across Western New York. There are also quirks, with a mid-19th Century menu showing fried chicken wings, long before they went across the counter at the Anchor Bar.
