Monthly Archives: July 2012

Casa Orinda, Orinda, California

Posted on by

Roundup of Bay Area old west style roadhouses – part three of three.

In earlier posts I visited Rancho Nicasio and the Hayward Ranch, two wonderful classic Western-style restaurants in the Bay Area. Tonight we’re visiting the historic roadhouse Casa Orinda, which opened in 1932 at what was just a crossroad at the time, on the corner of 2-lane California highway 24 and San Pablo Dam Road. The restaurant grew slowly and decor was added, from wagon-wheel chandeliers to large oil paintings of Western scenes, a fireplace, and an extensive historic gun collection. There was even gambling in the restaurant for a while. The gambling is long gone, but the restaurant miraculously survived expansion of the freeway and growth of the town of Orinda, and retains its classy Western decor (quite different from Hayward Ranch, which is more casual and cluttered).

Recently I dined there with friends to celebrate our great friend Karen Finlay’s birthday (she is a fabulous writer, check out her blog here).

I love the bar with lamps made from oxen yokes.

Step up to the bar and order a martini or Manhattan. They made it just the way I like it – stirred with lots of ice.

They are famous for their fried chicken, and rightly so. It’s crispy, hot, and juicy. Without a doubt the best fried chicken that I’ve had in the Bay Area. But I almost always order it, so this time I got prime rib, and it was excellent too.

Casa Orinda prime rib – notice they still use vintage Western themed china!

Here is part of the main dining room with and original wagon wheel chandelier and oil painting. They also decorate the dining rooms with gorgeous fresh flower displays.

Casa Orinda is a must in the Bay Area for great fried chicken and steaks in a historic Western style atmosphere with a touch of class. Be sure and check out the large gun collection!

Casa Orinda
20 Bryant Way, Orinda, CA 94563
(925) 254-2981
Open Mon-Sat 4pm-10pm; Sun 4pm-9pm (bar may stay open an hour later)
Valet parking is available

Related posts:

Val’s Restaurant, Daly City, California Marin Joe’s, Corte Madera, California – CLOSED Bob Taylor’s Original Ranch House, Las Vegas, Nevada Rancho Nicasio, Nicasio, California

The Cape Cod Room (CLOSED) and Coq d’Or cocktail lounge, Drake Hotel, Chicago, Illinois

Posted on by

UPDATE: The Cape Cod Room closed at the end of 2016 after 83 years in business. The Coq d’Or Cocktail Lounge is still open as of June, 2017.

 

Chicago, like New York City, has very few original, non-remodeled classic restaurants left. Perhaps because restaurants in thriving urban metropolises like Chicago, with so much restaurant competition for diners’ dollars, feel they need to stay contemporary to compete. There are still a few gems, however, and the Cape Cod Room at the Drake Hotel is one of them.

Vintage postcard of the Cape Cod Room from The Jab’s collection

The historic Drake Hotel opened in 1920, and is known as one of a trio of grand Chicago historic hotels, including the Palmer House (1875) and the Hilton Chicago (1927). Many celebrities, heads of state, and international diplomats have stayed at the Drake and dined at the Cape Cod Room, which opened in 1933. Gone are the checkered tablecloths, but the nautical restaurant and bar still looks much the same today.

Cape Cod Bar

Photo by The Drake Hotel Chicago

I last visited the Cape Cod Room in 2010, and I recall having their specialty Bookbinder soup, a tomato stock soup with red snapper and sherry, that came with a small carafe of sherry on the side to add as you wish. They have served Bookbinder soup this way at the Cape Cod since 1967, but the soup probably originated at Bookbinder’s Restaurant in Philadelphia (which sadly closed in 2009, after over 100 years in business), and was originally made with turtle. Download the Cape Cod’s recipe here.

Cape Cod

Photo by The Drake Hotel Chicago

No visit to the Drake would be complete without having a cocktail at the beautiful Coq d’Or cocktail lounge, which opened the day after prohibition ended, on December 6, 1933, receiving the city’s second liquor license (the Berghoff Restaurant got the first). The bar’s name came from the French title for the popular Russian opera of the early 20th century, The Golden Cockerel. The bar is mostly unchanged from this vintage postcard view, despite a recent restoration. There is piano entertainment on Friday and Saturday nights and a full menu is served during lunch and dinner.

Vintage postcard of the Coq d’Or from The Jab’s collection. From the postcard back: “Warm with Butternut wood paneling, it recalls the “gentleman’s drinking room of the early 1800’s”. Coq d’Or was opened one day after Congress repealed the Volstead Act. It is a favorite Gold Coast spot for cocktails and after the theater parties, featuring a special luncheon and late-night snack menu.”

The bar is still very much the same. I especially liked the rooster decorations visible in this recent photo.

Coq d'Or

Photo by The Drake Hotel Chicago

I had their Executive martini (gin, of course) and it was huge. I’m normally not a fan of jumbo cocktails because they don’t stay cold before you can finish them, but this one was served ice cold in a large snifter filled with ice so you could medicate at your own pace.

The Cape Cod Room and Coq d’Or
The Drake Hotel
140 East Walton Place, Chicago, IL 60611
phone 312.787.2200
Cape Cod Room hours: Wed-Sun 5:30pm-10pm, closed Mon-Tues
Coq d’Or hours: Mon-Sat 11am-2am, Sun 11am-1am

Related posts:

Gene & Georgetti, Chicago, Illinois Old Faithful Inn Dining Room & Bear Pit Lounge, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming The Big 4, Huntington Hotel, San Francisco Turquoise Room, La Posada Hotel, Winslow, Arizona

Peter Moruzzi’s new “Classic Dining” book is coming soon!

Link

Peter Moruzzi (author of “Havana Before Castro” and “Palm Springs Holiday”) just finished a new book called “Classic Dining: Discovering America’s Finest Mid-Century Restaurants” and it will be out on October 1st, 2012! In addition to gorgeous vintage graphics there will be stunning new photos by Sven Kirsten (author of “The Book of Tiki” and “Tiki Modern”). Here’s a sneak peek that will whet your appetite…

Moruzzi’s New “Classic Dining” Book Available for Pre-order | Peter Moruzzi’s America After Dark.

Related posts:

Pacific Dining Car original dining roomPacific Dining Car, Los Angeles, California – CLOSED Old Faithful Inn Dining Room & Bear Pit Lounge, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming Default ThumbnailPeter Moruzzi’s new book on classic dining is out now!