Creator
Hotel Pennysylvania
Title
À la carte - Fountain Room.
Coverage
New York City
Date
June 18, 1924
Description
The firm of McKim, Mead & White designed the original Pennsylvania Station and later the Hotel Pennsylvania across Seventh Avenue. The hotel was the largest in the world when it opened on January 25, 1919, a few days before the ratification of the Eighteenth Amendment was certified. When Prohibition went into effect the following year, many restaurants were squeezed into insolvency, while hotels were able to use other revenue sources to keep their dining rooms open. Some hotel bars were turned into soda fountains that served soft drinks, ice cream desserts, and a few soups, salads, and sandwiches.