WHEN I WAS A STUDENT in London I was saving money so hard I would not spend anything on food.
I ate at the hostel. I rarely went to Lyons Corner House to buy a cup of tea or coffee; it was so awful anyway, but sometimes you needed to grab something on the way to class. So as I passed or read about all those wonderful restaurants in London, I hoped that one day I could afford to eat in them.
Rules, the Caprice, the Ivy, the Savoy Grill, Simpsons: oh, what heaven! Imagine: they serve the roast beef from a trolley with an enormous silver entree dish, with silver cover over it. At Simpsons in the Strand it takes two waiters to do it. Oh, how wonderful. Who will take me there?
Years later my husband did, luckily, and it triggered the idea for a book, A Theatrical Feast of London. I discovered a very old book in a second hand bookshop with personal recipes from famous actors. It was a godsend. Olivier, Gielgud, Noel Coward, Terence Rattigan had all signed the recipe below. So when the book came out it was reviewed in the Times.
A TV producer called me and wanted me on her show, to stand and watch their chef cooking Laurence Olivier's recipe. Then, when I wrote A Theatrical Feast of New York they asked me back, while he made a dish from Sardi's in New York. A barman set up a bar on the set, and proceeded to make Manhattans and Old Fashions on the show, so we all were terribly sloshed after the show. The Manhattans they serve at Sardi's are the best in New York and the most reasonable.
The King Cole Room at the St. Regis is the most expensive, something like $25 each at the last count.
Sardi was often seen walking around his restaurant, saying hello to regular customers. It was always a privilege to shake his hand. He really was a legend and when he died many famous actors wrote about how he had helped them when they were struggling, often running up a tab of hundreds of dollars to feed them.
Even today, he gives a discount to actors working on Broadway and on Wednesday matinee days he charges them a quarter of the price. Other stories about his generosity and love for actors have been written about in a number of books. I dedicated my book to him and to his grandson who is carrying on the business. It gives you a thrill when the Maitre'D recognizes you. My favorite dish is their onion soup, the best anywhere, including the long-gone Les Halles restaurants in Paris.
Later on, after visiting Cannes, the first visit being for the CBC, I loved the place so much I had to write about it.