Famous Personalities Behind Your Meals
Many foods sitting on restaurant menus worldwide carry the names of real people who once lived fascinating lives. Behind those dishes lies a remarkable human story waiting to be told. Some of those incidents represent the backgrounds of actual individuals who left their mark on history through food and status. Want to know if your favorite dish is named after a person? Here are 20 examples with surprising namesakes that will tell you the story of your next meal.
1. Waldorf Salad
Oscar Tschirky knew how to make a statement at New York's fancy Waldorf Hotel in 1893. His simple but elegant combination of apple, celery, and mayonnaise became a status symbol that told everyone you had arrived in high society.
2. Bananas Foster
In 1951, at Brennan’s Restaurant in New Orleans, chef Paul Blangé created this flambéed dessert of bananas, butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, and rum. It was named after Richard Foster, a friend of the restaurant’s owner and chairman of the New Orleans Crime Commission.
Kimberly Vardeman on Wikimedia
3. Reuben Sandwich
The Reuben's history is a tasty tug-of-war. In the 1920s, Omaha grocer Reuben Kulakofsky often ordered corned beef, Swiss cheese, and sauerkraut during late-night poker games at the Blackstone Hotel—backed by a 1937 menu. But New York insists Arnold Reuben created it earlier, supported by a 1940s cookbook naming his deli.
4. Fettuccine Alfredo
Love can make you do incredible things. Roman chef Alfredo di Lelio was worried about his pregnant wife in 1908 because she'd lost her appetite. So he whipped up this buttery, creamy pasta masterpiece to tempt her taste buds. Later, Hollywood stars discovered it in Rome and made it famous in America.
5. Eggs Benedict
Sometimes, the best ideas come from hangovers. In 1894, New York stockbroker Lemuel Benedict stumbled into a restaurant feeling pretty rough and ordered the weirdest combination: toast, bacon, poached eggs, and hollandaise sauce. A smart Waldorf maître d' saw the potential and turned Benedict's hangover cure into this brunch MVP.
6. Oysters Rockefeller
In 1889’s New Orleans, if you wanted to name a dish after wealth and luxury, you picked John D. Rockefeller—America's richest man at the time. The chefs at Antoine's crafted these ridiculously rich, buttery baked oysters and figured they deserved to be named after someone with serious money.
7. Sacher Torte
Being a teenage apprentice in 1832 Vienna was no joke, but 16-year-old Franz Sacher rose to the challenge when he had to create a dessert for Prince Metternich. His rich chocolate cake layered with apricot jam is still Austria's most celebrated dessert. You can even get the original recipe at Hotel Sacher today.
8. Caesar Salad
It was the Fourth of July 1924 in Tijuana, and Italian-American chef Caesar Cardini was absolutely slammed with customers. His kitchen was running low on ingredients, so he did what any good chef would do—he improvised. That’s how this bold, tangy salad was born.
9. Graham Bread
In the 1830s, minister Sylvester Graham became famous for preaching a strict diet built around whole grains. Admirers began baking "Graham bread" with coarsely ground wheat flour in his honor. Long before it was sweetened into crackers by big companies, it was a reformer's health staple.
© Ra Boe / Wikipedia on Wikimedia
10. Tarte Tatin
This is the story of how the Tatin sisters got lucky. Stéphanie and Caroline were running their French hotel kitchen when they accidentally baked some apples upside down. They served it anyway. People loved it, and soon, started asking for their upside-down tart by name.
11. Margherita Pizza
In 1889, Neapolitan pizza maker Raffaele Esposito had the honor of cooking for Queen Margherita of Savoy. He went all out with patriotic flair, using tomato, mozzarella, and basil to recreate the colors of Italy's flag. The queen was so delighted that the pizza is now forever linked to her name.
12. Delmonico Steak
This steak is named after the Delmonico brothers, who founded Delmonico's in New York, America's first fine-dining institution. Though the exact cut has varied over time, the Delmonico steak is traditionally thick, boneless, and seared to perfection.
13. Granny Smith Apple
Back in 1868, an Australian woman named Maria Ann Smith was just composting some crab apples when she stumbled upon something amazing. This tart green apple sprouted from her compost pile and turned out to have incredible staying power that made grocers everywhere happy. People started calling her "Granny," and the rest is fruit history.
14. Pavlova
The 1920s were all about celebrating talent, and Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova was the epitome of grace and artistry. Food lovers in Australia or New Zealand (they're still fighting over who did it first) wanted to capture her ethereal lightness in dessert form. The result? This cloud-like meringue, topped with whipped cream and fresh fruit.
15. Cobb Salad
Late-night kitchen raids can also lead to greatness. Robert Cobb owned Hollywood's Brown Derby restaurant and found himself hungry after hours in 1937. He just started tossing together whatever leftovers he could find—greens, bacon, egg, avocado—and accidentally created this salad.
16. Lane Cake
Emma Rylander Lane of Alabama crafted this bourbon-soaked layer cake in the late 1800s and published the recipe in her cookbook. It gained national fame after being mentioned in To Kill a Mockingbird, and quickly became a Southern classic.
17. Nachos
In 1940, Ignacio “Nocho” Anaya improvised a snack for hungry shoppers in Piedras Negras, Mexico. His quick fix—tortilla chips topped with melted cheese and jalapeños—is now a global staple. The dish is honored every year with a Google Doodle on his birthday.
18. Kossuth Kifli
Kossuth Kifli is named after Lajos Kossuth, a Hungarian revolutionary who toured the U.S. in the 1850s and was hailed as a hero for his fight against Habsburg rule. This nut-filled pastry is served at events celebrating him, especially in immigrant communities in the Midwest.
Kossuth kifli | Mindmegette.hu by Mindmegette.hu
19. Peach Melba
When you're a world-famous soprano like Nellie Melba, legendary chefs create desserts in your honor. Chef Auguste Escoffier was so impressed by her performance that he crafted this elegant combination of poached peaches, raspberry sauce, and vanilla ice cream.
20. Garibaldi biscuits
London's Peek Freans biscuit company created Garibaldi biscuits in 1861 to honor Italian general Giuseppe Garibaldi. These currant-filled treats became a British classic and, while less common today, they still turn up in specialty U.S. shops and in collections celebrating historic foods.
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