Pepperpot city: Philadelphia and the foundation of American cuisine, a pictorial history

"In Pepperpot City, veteran food writer and Philadelphian William Woys Weaver explores the fascinating culinary history of Philadelphia. Writing with a combination of memoir, participant observation, and history, Weaver provides an engaging and accessible tour of Old Philadelphia cuisine. According to Weaver, the culinary touchstones of what it means to cook American first emerged in the hands of an array of Philadelphia cooks and caterers. The author highlights individual careers, such as the Black caterers Robert Bogle and Thomas Dorsey, the cooking school instructors Mary Newport and her niece Elizabeth Goodfellow, and Joseph Head, whose Mansion House Hotel produced some of the finest period menus in the country. The book also touches on the foods created locally that are now quintessential icons of American culture: lemon meringue pie, cream cheese, tomato catsup, the hamburger, and even bubblegum. For Weaver, though, it is pepperpot soup that evokes the dynamic at the center of Philadelphia's culinary history.