Café Chatter
Indigenous Eats
The Northeast
Corridor serves up
some great food
that’s all its own
BY WENDY G. RAMUNNO
PHOTOGRAPHY BY MIKE TAFT
When the Giants beat the Patriots in the
Super Bowl, New York City Mayor Michael
Bloomberg got more than just bragging
rights. He collected on his bet with Boston
Mayor Thomas Menino—a truckload of
Boston’s signature delicacies, including
100 cups of New England clam chowder,
42 pounds of Dunkin’ Donuts coffee and
12 dozen Boston cream pies (the bounty
was donated to charity). Not unlike their
passion for their sports teams, Northeast
cities cherish their local eats.
Sure, you can order chowder at a restaurant almost anywhere in the United
States, but there’s nothing like having a
bowl while sitting in JFK’s favorite booth
in a landmark building along Boston’s
Freedom Trail. Somewhere across the
country, a shop sells black and white
cookies, but you can’t take them on a
picnic in Central Park. Here, a look at
five of the Corridor’s best indigenous
foods—from Maine to the District of
Columbia—and where to get them.
New England Clam Chowder
When it comes to clam chowder in New
England, varying the thickness or tweaking
a seasoning or two is OK. There are probably as many distinct recipes as there are
cooks in the region. But don’t even think of
adding tomatoes, Manhattan style.
“I don’t even know the nearest place
you can find Manhattan-style clam chowder,” says Katie Breslin, a manager at
Bob’s Clam Hut in Kittery, Maine.
“Indeed, if there is any regional theme
that unites New England chowder commentators, it is a delight in heaping abuse
on the poor tomato,” says food writer
John Thorne in his book Serious Pig.
The word chowder is linked to the
French chaudière, a cauldron used by
fishermen for stews, but the dish itself is
distinctly American, dating back to the
18th century, though the exact origins are
unclear. The historical building blocks
of a clam chowder—salt pork, onion, a
milky clam broth, clams and potatoes—
are plain and practical. Tomatoes, some
say, are a superfluous addition.
“Everything, ingredients-wise, is
so indigenous of New England,” says
Joe Milano of the recipe at his family’s
Union Oyster House in Boston, the oldest continuously operating restaurant in
the United States. A good chowder, he
says, “certainly has the taste of what the
ingredients should be, and should not be
distorted or distracted from being what
it is.”
The Union Oyster House is known for
a thicker concoction, but at Bob’s Clam
Hut on U.S. Route 1 the chowder is a bit
thinner, with clams and diced potatoes
bobbing in a flavorful broth. That’s how
the original owner, Bob Kraft, liked it.
“He’s the one who came up with the
recipe [in 1956], and it’s been the same
ever since,” says Breslin.
Any way you like it, New England
has a clam chowder for you. That is, of
course, unless you prefer tomatoes. In
that case, you’ll have to head south.
New York City
Black and White Cookies
If you’re not from New York and you’re
familiar with black and whites, chances
are you’re a Seinfeld fan. In an episode
from Season 5, Jerry marvels at the
