I don't know about you, Dungeon Meshi Maniacs, but I'm still a little logy from the eggs benedict that we ate last week. Talk about a rich dish! So much butter and eggs, so much trouble to make. 100% delicious. At least the effort it takes to make keeps me from making them every Saturday. Yes, yes. I could use pre-made English Muffins instead of biscuits but come on. I'm looking for reasons to not eat something everyday. Stop making it easier, DMMs! I don't want to go into a food coma after watching my weekend traditional Space Sheriff Gavan!
The more I thought about Eggs Benedict the more confused I became. What is this dish? Where did it come from? It's such an odd combination of foods to just wake up one day and serve. Poached egg over bread covered in Hollandaise sauce? Pretty random. And yes, DMMs, I got your messages via courier that traditional Eggs Benedict normally comes with a ham of some kind. But Senshi didn't use no ham so neither did I! So I put on my old fedora and did a little food history searches into the origins of Eggs Benedict. Let's all see how the upper crust of the 1800's ate!
Like any good recipe there is a little dispute over the origins of Eggs Benedict. There are multiple contenders for "the first". This is pretty common when it comes to famous recipes that AREN'T named after their creator. Please, to all the chefs that read this blog, I ask that you name all new recipes you create after yourself with a date in order to clear up ambiguity for future researchers. Joe Blow's Peanuts Under Pheasant 2026 would already tell me so much! As for Eggs Benedict, the main two contenders that I can see belong to the original restaurant to carry the Delmonico's name and the Waldorf Hotel both of New York City, New York! Let's journey from the dungeon and set sail to the Big Apple, DMMs!
Between Delmonico's and the Waldorf why don't we start with Delmonico's claim. Why? It's super old, DMMs! Founded in 1892 by the Delmonico brothers, what started as a small cafe soon grew to one of the most influential spots for both American and global cuisine. So many high rollers came to dine and be seen dining at Delmonico's. It's also the creator of dishes like Baked Alaska, Lobster Newberg and Delmonico Steak...SEE! We know for sure where that one was created! Enough puffery, what about the Eggs Benedict? This one is actually kinda of funny, DMMs. In the 1860's Mrs. LeGrand Benedict came into the restaurant hungry. But Mrs. Benedict had a problem. She was a very picky eater, DMMs, and had become bored with everything Delmonico's had on the menu. You'd think she could maybe to go another restaurant but NO, she demanded they bring her something new. Rather than toss her out in the ash bin the chef Charles Ranhofer crossed his arms and said, "You want new? I'll give you new. Choke on THIS!" as he threw the first Eggs Benedict in front of Mrs. Benedict. She happily ate it and would become part of history. Charles published a cookbook in the 1890's which included a recipe for Eggs a la Benedict. Which...not for nothing...Eggs LeGrand would have been a much better name. It's right there! So case closed, right DMMs? We have a weird story and eventual published evidence. "Eggs Benedict? More like Eggs Benedict Arnold. One taste and your stomach turns traitor!" guffaws the Waldorf Hotel.
Look, I don't know which one is Waldorf but I had to include the Muppet named for the hotel somewhere. The Waldorf Hotel is home to the super SUPER rich of the Gilded Age, DMMs. It's Astor territory. Long story short, in 1870 William Waldorf Astor was having a rich person argument with his aunt, Caroline Webster Schermerhorn Astor. To settle her hash he built a hotel right next door to her house. Rich people fight different then you or I, DMMs. The hotel eventually became a destination of the robber barons of the era so the hotel restaurant needed to keep up with expectation. Famous for putting its name on its creations the hotel is home to the Waldorf Salad and the Waldorf Cocktail. Also, maybe Thousand Island Dressing. But we are here to talk Eggs Benedict and the Waldorf claim is a hoot. It all starts with a drunk.
In 1894 a famous stock trader named Lemuel Benedict stumbled into the Waldorf Hotel restaurant with a death level hangover. Wanting to end his pain he asked for "toast, poached egg, bacon and a hooker of Hollandaise". I'm not buying it, DMMs. Nobody that hung over would be able to articulate an order that complicated. I think Lemuel just randomly pointed to words on the menu. Except for the "hooker of Hollandaise." He definitely said that out loud. Seeing how the recipe for Eggs Benedict does not include a prostitute he must have been referring to a measurement. Looks like a hooker of alcohol is a thing and it's a fairly large mouthful. Pretty unhelpful! One story I read had Lemuel ask for a whole pitcher of Hollandaise which I like better. Dude was so hungover he was going to literally drown in butter and eggs. But that's the Waldorf claim. A drunk did it!
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