Apples, Celery and Mayonnaise -
the History of the Waldorf Salad
(What, No Walnuts?)
The Waldorf Hotel, William
Waldorf Astor’s “Palace,” “the most splendid hotel in the world,” with a “magnificence
that has taxed the resources of the world,” the gilt-edge on the Gilded Age, officially
opened its doors on March 14, 1893. Everyone
who was anyone, including the richest man in the world, J. P. Morgan (the model
for the Monopoly character, Rich
Uncle Pennybags), attended the event, which raised all of $3,000 for St. Mary’s
Children’s Hospital.
The “Fashionable Set” were all
there. As the guests arrived in the shamelessly-named,
Marie Antoinette Room, a reporter for the New
York Sun breathlessly jotted down the details of the ladies’ gowns and
jewelry; but left out the Fashion Police-style
comments. Too bad; Joan Rivers would
have had a field-day (she might have joked that she DID have a field-day) dissing
their duds:
Mrs. William Burden wore an
attractive gown of black satin and moiré, with big puffed sleeves of emerald
green velvet and a tiara, necklace, and several star which studded the corsage,
of diamonds;
[So 1891.]
Mrs. J. Hood Wright was
in a rich gown of black brocade embroidered in rainbow colors.
[Oh, please!]
Mrs. Georg C. Boldt “was in
pink brocade, trimmed with mauve and lavender bows.
[Can we talk?.]
The Sun, March 15, 1893, page 2 (snarky asides added).
 |
| The Sun, March 15, 1893, page 2. |
A steady, dreary rain did not dampen
their spirits; nor did hotel maid, Katie McNeary’s, untimely death. The
edge of her dress got caught on the bottom of an elevator on the eleventh
floor. When the elevator boy stooped to free
the skirt, the elevator unexpectedly started upwards; she was pulled into the shaft and swung under
the elevator:
The garment was too weak to sustain
her weight. It tore and parted, and her
form went hustling down the shaft to the bottom of the well, 150 feet below.
. . . Her lifeless form was hastily
removed to the wine cellar, and the guests knew nothing of the tragedy.
The Evening World (New York), March 15, 1893, last edition, page 2.
The opening of the Waldorf Hotel
also paved the way for the “Waldorf Salad.”
The Salad
No one knows when the first “Waldorf
Salad” was served, when it was invented, or when it was first called “Waldorf.” Modern accounts tend to credit Maitre d’Hotel, Oscar Tschirky, known simply
as, “Oscar,” with the invention; a recipe for a “Waldorf Salad” appeared in
Tschirky’s 1896 cookbook.
But Oscar was
no chef and probably had no hand in inventing the salad; he said as much in his
biography:
“My job has always been connected
with the serving of food – never the
cooking. I have whipped up a salad or
two, such as the popular apple and celery mixture which has become known as
‘Waldorf Salad.’ And I have made sauces now and then, but after all those
chores come into the realm of a headwaiter’s duties.”
Karl Schriftgiesser, Oscar of the Waldorf, New York, E. P.
Dutton & Co., Inc., 1943, page 227. [i]
The “Waldorf Salad” was already known
by that name in January, 1895; nearly two years before the release of Tschirky’s
cookbook[ii]:
F. R. L., Watertown, N. Y., writes:
“Can you give me a recipe for salad containing apples and celery?”
Answer.
Waldorf Salad.
This salad is a very simple one, and
has become so popular merely through its name and use at the Waldorf in New
York. It is composed of equal quantities
of celery and chopped, raw, sour apples, dressed with mayonnaise dressing. At the hotel it is seldom served as a course,
being preferred with game, and is in reality what is called a game salad. It is a favorite custom, more often adopted
at “stag dinners” than elsewhere, to serve the salad with the game instead of
as a separate course.
Table Talk, Volume 10, number 1, January 1895, page 6.
The salad may also have been
served as early as 1894; it appears in a cookbook of recipes purportedly collected
between 1881 and 1894:
Waldorf Salad.
Take equal parts of celery cut fine
and raw sour apples cut fine, make a mayonnaise dressing, and after the celery
and apples are mixed well together pour the mayonnaise dressing over it and
serve at once. This is particularly nice
served with the game course at dinner.
E. T. Glover, The . .
. Warm Springs Receipt-Book, Compiled between the years 1881 and 1894,
Richmond, Virginia, B. F. Johnson Publishing Co., 1897, page 181.
According to The Old
Foodie, “tradition says” the salad was invented for the opening of the
hotel.[iii] At least one account from the period seems to
agree; suggesting that the salad was “introduced” when the hotel opened. But whenever the salad first appeared, it was
a big hit:
When a famous hotel was opened in
New York City a few years ago a new salad was introduced to society. It was a great success. Apples of a tart, firm quality were cut into
triangular pieces and combined with an equal quantity of white celery. Over them was thrown a mayonnaise dressing
made light by the addition of whipped cream.
The salad is very simple, and has the touch of art. Apples used in this way are wholesome and
refreshing, while the celery soothes the nerves. The mayonnaise is the palate tickler. Shortly after the appearance of this salad it
was added to the menu of nearly all the prominent hotels in New York.
Salt Lake Herald (Utah), March 20 1898, page 20.
Apples, celery, and mayonnaise;
where are the walnuts? A modern Waldorf
Salad generally includes walnuts. So what
about the walnuts?
Within a few years of the first
walnut-less Waldorf Salad (say that three times fast), some genius realized that
apples and walnuts also go together. In
late 1896, the food writer for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer (December 13, 1896, page 20) suggested serving “apple
and walnut salad” for desert.
The Boston Cooking School
magazine suggested that:
Blanched English walnuts, broken into bits,
may be used instead of the celery; but, in that case, the salad is no longer
“Waldorf Salad.”
The Boston Cooking School Magazine, Volume 1, Number 4, Spring
1897, page 271.
 |
| The Boston Cooking School Magazine, Volume 1, Number 4, Spring 1897, page 271. |
Hotels with salad envy joined the
salad wars. But what they had in salad-envy,
they lacked in imagination – they used the same ingredients – but changed the
name and cut them in different shapes:
When New York’s latest sensation in
the way of a hostelry was opened it was thought necessary to give to the world
another salad. Still it was found
difficult to improve upon the apples and celery, so Adolf, the wizard of salads
at the new place, used the old salad as a basis for the new one, which is
ordered under the name of Turquoise salad.[iv] The apples and celery are still combined in
equal proportions, only they are cut in long, thin pieces instead of triangular
shapes.
. . . The mystery of the Turquoise
salad is its name, which must have originated from a whim, as it cannot be
explained. If it had been called ruby
the interpretation would have been quite simple, but turquoise rather suggests its
not being what it appears.
Salt Lake Herald (Utah), March 20 1898, page 20.
 |
| Waldorf Menu, April 1896. |
Turquoise Salad could also be
served with an extra ingredient –
walnuts:
Other restaurants serve the
turquoise salad, and add to it English walnuts, which are broken in small
pieces and mixed throughout. At both
places the turquoise salad is the favorite of the winter.
Salt Lake Herald (Utah), March 20 1898, page 20.
By 1900, the Waldorf Salad was expressly
associated with walnuts:
Waldorf Salad. – The following is
the genuine: For Waldorf salad use two cups of celery cut fine, one dozen
walnut meats, blanched and chopped fine, grated rind of one orange, one cup of
apples cut in dice; served with mayonnaise dressing.
The Scranton Tribune, September 15, 1900, morning edition, page 5.
Waldorf Filling – Equal proportions
of tart apples, celery and walnuts chopped very fine and moistened with
mayonnaise.
The Semi-Weekly Messenger (Wilmington, North Carolina), February 2,
1906, page 7.
White grapes were a new twist in
1906; “apples, nuts and white grapes constitute the ever popular “Waldorf”
salad.”
By 1916, they were getting more
creative – I think I enjoyed (or at least was forced to eat) this one at
Norwegian-Lutheran[v]
pot-lucks in the Upper Midwest in the 1970s – the only thing missing is
shredded carrots:
Waldorf salad with gelatin.
½ cup chopped walnuts.
1 cup chopped apples.
1 cup chopped celery.
Mix these ingredients and season
slightly with salt.
Place in mold and pour over them one
pint of lemon jello. Serve with salad
dressing.
The Coconino Sun (Flagstaff, Arizona), March 24, 1916, page 5.
If you are surprised to see, “jello,”
by that name, in 1916, you are not alone; I was surprised too. But Jell-O was apparently invented in
1897, and was sold
under the name, Jell-O, by 1900:
 |
| The Taney County Republican (Forsyth, Missouri), October 18, 1900, page 7. |
 |
| Daily Press Newport News, October 25, 1905, page 4. |
Oscar Tschirky
Whether Oscar Tschirky “invented”
the Waldorf Salad or not, he did usher in the age of the Waldorf Salad. Astor offered Tschirky the position of Maitre d’Hotel more than a year before the
hotel opened. He joined the staff on
January 1, 1893, and was in charge of the final preparations for the opening on
March 14, 1893.
Perhaps it was his idea to hide
poor Katie McNeary’s body in the wine cellar.
Tschirky, who ran the hotel with
the efficiency of a Swiss watch, was born and raised in a watch-making village
in Switzerland. He moved to New York
with his mother at the age of 17, and soon took a job as a waiter at The
Hoffman House. He later worked at Delmonico’s. When Astor prospectively promised Tschirky a
job at The Waldorf, he left Delmonico’s, and returned to the Hoffman House;
where he asked to be assigned to a smaller, less-prestigious annex near Wall
Street. He used that time to develop
close relationships with men of influence and power. Those connections served him well
professionally, and financially; he reportedly became very wealthy, profiting
from insider-trading tips.[vi] He also earned a high salary for the period. In 1921, he signed a ten-year, $50,000-a-year
contract.
His high price may have been
worth it. As Maitre d’Hotel of the world’s most magnificent hotel, he
entertained every President from Cleveland to Franklin Roosevelt; he was
decorated by three foreign governments; and rubbed shoulders with most of the
major power-brokers and celebrities of his day.
His reputation and position today
are unmatched in hotel history. Not only
is he pre-eminent in the hotel field of the present day, but he was one of the
colorful figures of the Nineties. Oscar
has acted as official host during the past forty years to more celebrated
persons and world leaders than probably than other living man has ever
met. His solicitous and intelligent
supervision of the requirements of visiting royalty has resulted in his begin
decorated by three foreign governments.
In his capacity of host he has known and has extended the hotel’s
hospitality to every President of the United States from Cleveland to Franklin
D. Roosevelt. His name is permanently
coupled with the preparation of epicurean foods and the art of dining.
Henry B. Lent, Waldorf Astoria; A Brief Chronicle of a
Unique Institution Now Entering Its Fifth
Decade, New York, Private
Printing for the Waldorf-Astoria, 1934, page 39.
In addition to having a hand in
making the Waldorf Salad a success, he had rumored, tenuous connections to the “Lime
Rickey” (through his time at the Hoffman House), “Eggs Benedict” (by his association
with Delmonico’s) and Thousand Islands Dressing, which was popularized through
its use at The Waldorf (Tschirky’s boss, George Boldt, owned a home in the
Thousand Islands region of New York).
Conclusion
So enjoy your Waldorf Salad, with
apples, celery and mayonnaise; perhaps with walnuts; perhaps with whipped cream; perhaps some orange rind;
perhaps with paprika; perhaps with white grapes; perhaps with grated coconut; perhaps
encased within lime-flavored Jell-O.
[i] My
understanding of the passage is that he may have physically “whipped up” a
Waldorf Salad or two, in the sense of physically preparing the salad; but that
he disclaimed any share in its invention.
But it is ambiguous, I suppose; he may have “whipped up” the idea – but that’s
not the impression I get. You be the
judge.
[ii]
The publisher advertised for sales agents for the cookbook in December 1896
(The Evening Star (Washington DC), December 26, 1896, page 4); the cookbook was
reviewed in the Spring 1897 edition of the Boston
Cooking School Magazine (Volume 1, Number 4, page 287).
[iii] Authentic Waldorf Salad, The Old Foodie,
http://www.theoldfoodie.com/2007/03/authentic-waldorf-salad.html.
[iv] I
do not know what hotel was considered the “latest sensation” in 1898; but
curiously, the “Waldorf Salad” and the “Turquoise Salad” appear on the same
menu at The Waldorf. Menu
dated, April 9, 1896, New York Public Library menu collection. Perhaps the article was referring to the
Astoria, which opened in 1897, under the same management. The two hotels were eventually merged to form
the Waldorf-Astoria. Perhaps it wasn’t
salad envy after all; just good marketing?
[v] If
you are unfamiliar with the peculiar fascination of Norwegian-Lutherans for
Jell-O, I recommend the book, Lutheran
Church Basement Women: Lutefisk, Lefse & Jell-O, by Janet Letnes Martin
and Allen Todnem.
[vi] The Mixer and Server, volume 30, number 6,
June 15, 1921, page 31.
Great article, thankyou!
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