New York – Historic Hotels of America, by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, is a program that recognizes, celebrates, and promotes over 300 of the finest historic hotels in the United States, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. Many of these legendary hotels have made significant contributions to this country’s culinary heritage and traditions. The Omni Parker House, which opened in 1855, is famous for creating the original Boston Cream Pie, anointed as Massachusetts’s official state dessert in 1996. Tomato juice was the serendipitous invention of a chef at French Lick Spring Hotel, concocted when the kitchen ran out of oranges for juice during breakfast, and The Green Goddess Dressing was first made at the Palace Hotel in 1923.
Historic Hotels of America define culinary heritage as including a food or drink that was created, invented, or first served at a historic hotel and is still served today, and defines culinary tradition as including a food or drink that was perfected by the hotel’s chefs or has been offered to guests for at least 25 years regardless of its origins.
Here, we bring you the 2022 Top 25 Historic Hotels of America Most Unique Culinary Traditions List, offering a range of authentic food and drinks recipes first created at a historic hotel or that are an intricate part of their history. “What better way to experience a part of history than to taste the recipes created, invented, or perfected over the past two hundred years at Historic Hotels of America,” said Lawrence Horwitz, Executive Vice President, Historic Hotels of America and Historic Hotels Worldwide. “These tastes of history, many created for a special event for presidents, world leaders, celebrities, special guests, and local events and celebrations, are now part of our nation’s culinary heritage and culinary traditions. At Historic Hotels of America, learning about history can be fun, delicious, savory, sweet, and tasty.”