The American Diner: A History
Taught by Sarah Lohman
Sarah Lohman is a culinary historian and the author of the bestselling and critically acclaimed book Eight Flavors: The Untold Story of American Cuisine. She focuses on the history of American food as a way to access stories of women, immigrants, and people of color, and to address issues of racism, sexism, and xenophobia. Her work has been featured inTheWall Street Journal andThe New York Times, as well as onAll Things Considered; and she has presented across the country, from the Smithsonian Museum of American History in Washington, DC to The Culinary Historians of Southern California. She is also 1/2 of the Masters of Social Gastronomy, a monthly food science and history talk at Caveat NYC, with Brainery co-founder Jonathan Soma.
Location: Online Class
From the Edward Hopper's painting Nighthawks to the sitcom Seinfeld, diners are an intrinsic part of American pop culture. And it’s likely you have a diner that’s special to you: whether it’s a 24-hour spot where you drank coffee and smoked cigarettes as a teen, or a corner diner where you stopped for breakfast at the end of long night shift.
But where did these chrome and neon, 24-hour establishments originate? We’re going to trace diner dining from “Nite Owl” wagons in the late 19th century to “Have a Nice Day” take out cups – and talk about how diner culture might disappear.
