NewYorkFirst.com: The Old Waldorf-Astoria Bar Book

Weekend at the Waldorf.

The roots of this New York institution go back to 1893, when millionaire William Waldorf Astor opened the 13-story Waldorf Hotel on the former site of his mansion at Fifth Avenue and 33rd Street. A private bathroom in every guest chamber and electricity throughout were two on a long list of Waldorf firsts. Four years later, the Waldorf was joined by the 17-story Astoria Hotel, erected on an adjacent site by Waldorf's cousin, John Jacob Astor IV.

Prohibition destroyed the bartending profession as achieved with distinction at the Old Waldorf-Astoria Bar. Even this hallmark of fine mixing failed to make it through the drought unscathed. In 1929, without the vitality of its famous bar, the Waldorf-Astoria closed quietly, claiming that the construction of the Empire State Building was taking up too much space. Although the establishment reopened on Park Avenue in 1931, the bar was gone, though there were plenty of stations at which soda and water were served.

The Old Waldorf-Astoria Bar Book, according to alchemist Paul Harrington, is the bible of the Old School of American Bartending, whose heyday lasted from 1897 until 1919. Its collection of pre-Prohibition drink recipes is based on the bar manual of the legendary Waldorf-Astoria bar. For each drink, you are treated with a delightful and humorous anecdote that makes great cocktail conversation. For historians, there is a brief explanation of the origin and meaning of names given to each drink. Originally published in 1935 by Albert Stevens Crockett.

Who’s Who at the Waldorf
If the walls themselves could sing, you would hear from kings and queens, business tycoons, Hollywood stars, and U.S. Presidents who have stayed there. The guest list of permanent residents have included President Hoover, the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, Frank Sinatra, and Cole Porter, who penned many famous melodies in his Waldorf Tower suite. One remarkable book celebrates the Waldorf like no other. Only five thousand copies of The Unofficial Palace of New York were printed from type for the friends of the hotel. A rare previously-owned edition of the 1939 souvenir-record of the Waldorf-Astoria. Serious collectors only, pls.

View from the 1950s.
Author Horace Sutton, world traveler, freelance writer, and travel editor of The Saturday Review, has written a lively book with the nostalgic story of the great hotel, the undeniable unofficial palace of New York and the shahs, rajahs, and poohbahs of the world who stay here. They're all in CONFESSIONS OF A GRAND HOTEL, a rare First Edition.