Menu Design in America

Appetite for art? Gastronomy meets graphics in this comprehensive survey of printed restaurant menus. Showcasing some of the best examples of this culinary graphic art, this updated edition serves not only as an extraordinary collection of paper ephemera, but also as a history of restaurants and our evolving eating habits.

Until restaurants became commonplace in the late 1800s,

printed menus for meals were rare commodities reserved for special occasions. As restaurants proliferated, the menu became more than just a culinary listing: it was an integral part of eating out, a clever marketing tool, and a popular keepsake.

Menu Design is an omnibus showcasing the best examples of this graphic art.

Illustrated in vibrant color, this compact volume not only gathers an extraordinary collection of paper ephemera but serves as a history of restaurants and dining out in America. Featuring both covers and interiors, the menus offer an epicurean tour and insight to more than a hundred years of dining out.

An introduction on the history of menu design by graphic design writer Steven Heller and extended captions by culinary historian John Mariani accompany each piece throughout the book. Various photographs of restaurants round out this compendium that will appeal to anyone who enjoys dining out and its graphic and gastronomic history.

The editor

Jim Heimann is the Executive Editor for TASCHEN America. A cultural anthropologist, historian, and an avid collector, he has authored numerous titles on architecture, pop culture, and the history of Los Angeles and Hollywood, including TASCHEN’s Surfing, Los Angeles. Portrait of a City, California Crazy and the All American Ads series.

The contributing authors

Steven Heller is the co-chair of the School of Visual Arts MFA Designer as Author Program. For 33 years he was an art director for The New York Times, and currently writes the “Visuals” column for The New York Times Book Review. He is the author of 120 books on graphic design, illustration, and satiric art.

John Mariani is food and travel columnist for Esquire Magazine, wine columnist for Bloomberg International News, and author of The Encyclopedia of American Food & Drink, America Eats Out, The Dictionary of Italian Food and Drink, and How Italian Food Conquered the World.

Review

• “... a delicious history of menu creativity.”
• “Menu Design in America proves that food is sex you can look at.”
• “From the nation that brought us the supersized meal comes this elegant survey of gastronomic graphics.”
• “Indulge your appetite for art with this omnibus of dining and design.”
• “Whilst providing an extraordinary collection of paper ephemera – ranging from the weird to the wonderful – this publication also serves as a great history of restaurants and dining out in America.”
• “... a yummy ride through the history of food and restaurants in the United States”.

Menu Design in America