Along with the books, the maps and the historical records, the New York Public Library keeps a good record of the city's culinary past. They have over 40,000 menus in their stacks, many of which will just depress you. It's not like we exactly remember the days of ten cent corned beef at Child's Lunch Rooms with millk "fresh from my own dairy," but couldn't we have been around for when the Flatiron Cafe advertised "all popular brands of cigarettes" right on the wine list?
The library is reportedly working on digitizing the collection. Ben Vershbow, the project's digital producer, told the Post, "With the public's help, we'll be able to generate an amazing, searchable database, where you can visualize neighborhood restaurants and prices of dishes over time." You can also check out what was popular before your time, because we're guessing not many places offer "Creamed Oyster on Toast" anymore. But now that it can be labeled "nostalgic" it should be on the menu somewhere in Williamsburg within a month.
