The Joseph Baum Archives

(Newarker Menu. Rare Book Division)

Last week, the Joseph Baum papers were made available to researchers at the New York Public Library's Manuscript and Archives Reading Room.

Joe Baum was the executive and president of Restaurant Associates, and the man behind such iconic New York restaurants as the Four Seasons, La Fonda del Sol, Forum of the Twelve Caesars, and Windows on the World, bringing an over-the-top theatricality to a quality dining experience. As William Grimes wrote in Baum's obituary in 1999, "More than any other restaurateur, [Baum] operated in the conceptual territory where food and theater overlapped."

Born in 1920 in Saratoga Springs, NY, Baum graduated from high school in New Jersey and worked at various hotels in New York and Florida before attending Cornell University's Hotel Administration School.

In 1949, after working in accounting firms for hotels and restaurants, he was hired by Restaurants Associates to help open the Newarker, a restaurant located in the Newark Airport. Despite its rough start and less than appealing location, the Newarker was a great success. Baum invested money in what he knew could make or break the restaurant, including a well-designed menu (indeed, it's one of my favorites in the collection) and delicious food prepared by Swiss chef Albert Stockli.

(La Fonda del Sol. Rare Book Division)

More restaurants followed, including La Fonda del Sol (1960). Baum's papers include later menus from La Fonda (the gorgeous sun example above is from the Rare Book collection), and wonderful black and white photographs of the interior.

(Photographs of La Fonda del Sol. Manuscript and Archives Division)

But according to Grimes, the Four Seasons was the Baum restaurant that really represented his lasting legacy. The restaurant cost $4.5 million to open, featuring art work by Picasso and Miro and was one of the first restaurants to place seasonality at center stage, changing its menu and color scheme with each season.

(Four Seasons Menu. Rare Book Division)

Valerie Wingfield, the archivist who had the enviable job of processing the Baum papers told me she was struck by the how much she was both moved by the Window on the World menus (which Baum opened in the 1976) and how much she enjoyed the fun and whimsy of the Rainbow & Stars files. Rainbow & Stars was a caberet club which opened in 1989, and was part of the Rainbow Room complex. Included in those files are wonderful photographs of the many celebrities (and some song lists) of those who performed at Rainbow & Stars, such as Cybill Shephard, Tony Danza, Rosemary Clooney, and Leslie Uggams. Who can deny that this is material worth saving and consulting? I'm thrilled to have these papers at the Library, and I can't wait to look through all 158 (!) boxes.

To make an appointment to see the Joe Baum papers, please email the Manuscripts Division directly.

La Fonda del Sol

La Fonda del Sol (The Inn of the Sun) originally opened in 1960, and was the creation of Joseph Baum and his Restaurant Associates group. Located in the Time-Life Building on 50th Street and Sixth Avenue, Craig Claiborne called La Fonda del Sol "one of the most lavish Latin-American restaurants north of the border." He continued, "Should this restaurant become a Manhattan attraction to vie with the Empire State Building and the lions at the Public Library [that's us!], it will be well-deserved."

In 1960, four-course dinners at La Fonda cost $5.50, $6.50, or $7.50, depending on the food offerings chosen, and coffee was made table-side. Claiborne's review makes special note of the restaurant's cocktail options, including sangria -- apparently a relatively new libation to NYC restaurants at the time. He writes, "[...T]he management recommends a drink known as Sangria, which is really a wine punch made with citrus juices, Chilean wine, and soda. It is undoubtedly authentic but it would be more suited to warmer climates."

Beyond its culinary offerings, La Fonda was known for its creative and colorful design. The entire restaurant -- from its linens and dishes, to its menus and matchbooks -- was designed by Alexander Girard. Displays of Latin-American folk art, masks, and pottery wheels attracted Spanish-language school groups who apparently arrived en-masse for the $2.50 lunches. The restaurant closed in the early 1970s.

Just a few months ago, La Fonda del Sol re-opened in the Met-Life Building off Park Avenue with Josh DeChellis as head chef. From the photos online it displays nothing of the kitchy aesthetic that marked the restaurant's first incarnation, and while I haven't seen DeChellis' new bill of fare, I thought I'd present the 1960's La Fonda del Sol menu in its full glory.