À la carte

9  - Winns San Francsco c.1853.jpg

Creator

Winn's Fountain Head

Title

À la carte

Coverage

San Francisco

Date

ca. 1853

Description

Winn’s Fountain Head was located near the Central Wharf that accommodated the large vessels. It was a temperance restaurant, reflecting a social movement then gaining national momentum even in a hard-drinking town like San Francisco. The cartoon illustration shows a well-dressed gentleman at Winn’s and a disheveled man entering a bar labeled “Not Winn’s.” The antebellum era is conveyed by the puddings named “Aunt Sally” and “Cousin Jane.” Restaurateur M. L. Winn claimed to have sold 125 dozen eggs per day in 1853. While the local “fresh eggs” on this menu are 25 cents each, the price of three “Boston eggs” is 37 cents, or 12⅓ cents each.