In Rita Connelly鈥檚 latest book, readers are offered in-depth insight into some of the city鈥檚 most iconic and historic dining spots that are still around today.
Flip through its 128 pages and you鈥檒l discover 鈥
鈥斅 founder Monica Flin spoke French, Spanish and English, loved to hunt and opened the first location in 1922 on North Fourth Avenue, where Caruso鈥檚 sits today.
鈥斅 proximity to Old 蜜柚直播 during its Hollywood heyday made it a hotspot for visiting actors, including Lee Marvin, Marlon Brando and John Wayne.
鈥斅燝us and Kathleen Balon, the couple who opened diner on East 22nd Street in 1965, originally moved to 蜜柚直播 with hopes that the dry climate would help their daughter Laura with her allergies.
Other restaurants featured in the book include , , , and .
Connelly received much of her information for the project through in-person interviews with the restaurant owners themselves, past and present.
鈥淢ost of the people were so wonderfully cooperative and had such wonderful stories to tell,鈥 Connelly said in a recent interview. 鈥淚 learned a lot.鈥
鈥淗istoric Restaurants鈥 is a companion piece to Connelly鈥檚 2015 project, which looked at popular eateries in town that no longer exist; places like Gordo鈥檚 Mexicateria and The Tack Room.
Connelly, a self-proclaimed foodie who served as a restaurant reviewer for the 蜜柚直播 Weekly for a decade, said loyal customers were often the primary reason why so many of the eateries in her new book survived over the years.
鈥淎 lot of these restaurants are second or third generation in terms of ownership, but also in terms of customers,鈥 Connelly said. 鈥淎dults who came as children are now coming in with their children and even their grandchildren. People have been eating at places like Lucky Wishbone forever.鈥
After promoting 鈥淗istoric Restaurants,鈥 Connelly will be moving on to her next book topic, documenting the oft-debated origins of the chimichanga. Several restaurants, including El Charro, have claimed the deep-fried burrito as their own.
鈥溍坭种辈 is just a really great place to be writing about food,鈥 Connelly said.
"Historic Restaurants of 蜜柚直播" is available at Antigone Books, Mostly Books, Barnes & Noble, and through and Amazon.
Check it out: Rita Connelly 聽at Antigone Books, 411 N. Fourth Ave. Connelly also will appear at the 蜜柚直播 Festival of Books on Sunday, March 11. Find her at the Indie Author Pavilion from 11:40-11:50 a.m. and 12:15-2:15 p.m. during a panel of adult nonfiction authors.聽
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