Following White Star’s example, the Hamburg-America Line had also decided to quit the race for Atlantic speed records in favor of larger, more luxurious ships. In 1905, the legendary German shipping mogul Albert Ballin put a Ritz restaurant on his company’s newest liner, Amerika. Cesar Ritz, the next celebrity chef, adapted it for service in a new species of high-end restaurants and grand hotels. At about the same time, Georges Auguste Escoffier was revolutionizing the restaurant business and creating the concept of the modern “celebrity chef.” His “Le Guide Culinaire,” published in 1903, formalized the preparation of sauces and dishes into the classic French cuisine we know today. Competition between rival shipping lines intensified, and the great transatlantic liners became less like ships and more like ocean going hotels. The labor force that built America arrived on steamships, and a new generation of American millionaires proliferated with the profits. The early years of the twentieth century witnessed a confluence of new trends as an unprecedented flood of immigrants headed to the U.S. These were patrons of such extraordinary status that they didn’t even want to rub elbows with the ordinary swells in first class. While the ten course “last meal” of April 14 was no doubt an extravagant feast – with Consomme Olga, Poached Salmon with Mousseline Sauce, Filet Mignon Lili, Chicken Lyonnaise, lamb, and roast duckling – the White Star Line had to meet the needs of an elite clientele whose tastes were even more rarified. Despite what you might have seen in the movie “Titanic,” the Astors, Widners, Guegenheims, and other super rich patrons did not go trudging down three flights of stairs to the first class dinning saloon.

Titanic a la carte restaurant