Americans in Paris: The Roaring 20s

1920-1930 

The Roaring Twenties are remembered in France as les Années folles, “the crazy years,” when Paris was the hub of intellectual life and artistic innovation. Americans contributed their share of the craziness, considering the sheer number of expatriate authors, avant-garde artists, modern composers, jazz musicians, and wealthy socialites then living in Paris, as well as the throngs of tourists who descended on the city every summer. When the Americans returned home, they brought back enough memories to last a lifetime. Since their memories of Paris were entwined with its restaurants, they also carried back menus, souvenirs of their sojourn and of a cuisine that had all but vanished in the United States during Prohibition. A review of more than fifty menus reveals some of the bistros, brasseries, and temples of gastronomy where they dined.