Classic Dining: Discovering America’s Finest Mid-Century Restaurants

Posted on July 1, 2012 by Peter Moruzzi

I am excited to announce that my new book “Classic Dining: Discovering America’s Finest Mid-Century Restaurants” will be available November 1st!  

Click on the images for full-size blowups – New photography by Sven A. Kirsten

Journey to America’s finest mid-century restaurants – continental style fine dining establishments, historic steakhouses, lounge restaurants and Polynesian palaces – that persevere in U.S. cities large and small. Through exclusive new and vintage photography, “Classic Dining” celebrates culinary pioneers and multi-generation restaurateurs, uncovers authentic gems, and debunks the predicted demise of the white tablecloth restaurant. Includes a current directory of over 200 classic restaurants in cities from all 50 states.

“Classic Dining” Back Cover

To order from Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Classic-Dining-Discovering-Mid-Century-Restaurants/dp/1423607406/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1341072351&sr=1-1&keywords=classic+dining

A few pages from the book:

Continental-Style Fine Dining

Lawry’s The Prime Rib

Deciphering a Classic Dining Menu

Classic Dining in Chicago

Rex Room at Antoine’s Restaurant in New Orleans

The Mai Kai in Fort Lauderdale

The Dresden Room

Vaulted Arches of the Grand Central Oyster Bar in New York City

And this is the first two pages of the directory of 200+ classic restaurants from cities in all 50 states:

First two pages of the Classic Dining directory

About Peter Moruzzi

Author and historian Peter Moruzzi is passionate about the middle decades of the 20th century: its nightlife, classic dining, and architecture. Born in Concord, Massachusetts and raised in Hawaii, Moruzzi graduated from the University of California at Berkeley and later attended the American Film Institute in Los Angeles. In 1999, he founded the Palm Springs Modern Committee (PS ModCom) an architectural preservation group. He is the author of "Havana Before Castro: When Cuba Was a Tropical Playground," "Palm Springs Holiday: A Vintage Tour From Palm Springs to the Salton Sea," "Classic Dining:Discovering America's Finest Mid-Century Restaurants," "Palm Springs Paradise: Vintage Photographs from America's Desert Playground," and "Greetings from Los Angeles." His latest pictorial history, "Greetings from Las Vegas" will be available in September, 2019.
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9 Responses to Classic Dining: Discovering America’s Finest Mid-Century Restaurants

  1. Don Smith says:
    October 3, 2021 at 5:44 pm

    looking for a paperback copy, hard to find…

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  2. Amy (@ae5555) says:
    March 19, 2016 at 8:53 pm

    any way i can get a copy of this book? it’s sold out on amazon 😦

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  3. Amy (@ae5555) says:
    March 19, 2016 at 8:53 pm

    any way i can get a copy of this book? amazon is sold out 😦

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  4. stanshrm says:
    February 26, 2013 at 10:33 pm

    Must include The Steakhouse from the Harrah’s Reno. This restaurant has literally not changed since the 70’s, serves multiple meals tableside using traditional methods (and original waiters/captains). Steak Diane, Caesar’s Salad, Banana’s Foster done the right way… tableside.

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  5. Tiki Chris Pinto says:
    November 16, 2012 at 7:36 am

    Someone tweeted a link to a post about your book that had a link to your page here. As a big fan of the Mai Kai and mid-century pop culture, I’m hooked…buying it now!
    -Tiki Chris P.

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  6. Pingback: Peter Moruzzi’s new “Classic Dining” book is coming soon! | Le Continental

  7. The Jab says:
    July 2, 2012 at 4:28 pm

    I’m looking forward to getting your new book! The sample pages look gorgeous!

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