signed first edition
1961 · New York
by Robotti, Peter J.; with Frances Diane Robotti; introduction by Charles Collingwood
New York: Fountainhead Publisher's Inc, 1961. Large octavo (24 x 16 cm.), xii, 306 pages. Illustrated. FIRST EDITION, Deluxe Issue, one of an unspecified number of signed copies, this one numbered "H.F.F.". Each chapter describes an element of the fine dining restaurant experience: great chefs, dining room staff, the sommelier, tipping, restaurant guides, and a fairly long view of what at the time was an unbroken line of tradition. The author was a guest editor at Chef Magazine, the official periodical of the Escoffier Society. Fine in publisher's gold over black cloth; no dust jacket as issued (there was a dust jacket with the ordinary issue). In scuffed, black paper covered slipcase, with black-titled gold paper pastedowns. (Inventory #: 7314)