Created in San Francisco: The Golden Gate City’s Gifts to Gastronomy.

Did you know that the Martini, the Crab Louie, Cioppino, the Fortune Cookie, and many other dishes and libations were created in San Francisco? Come to this fascinating and delicious presentation, where Chef Joseph Amster will serve up the history of many of your favorites.

Lunch sponsored by Monica Levin and Nancy Igdaloff.
Members only. Free. Reservations required.

Although most people know Joseph Amster as Emperor Norton, he has another alter ego: Chef Joseph. He led the San Francisco Food Safari tours of San Francisco’s Mission and North Beach districts for many years, offering his knowledge and insights to guests to scout out the best of each neighborhood's food scene. 

Joseph began his culinary career as a short-order cook and worked at San Francisco's legendary Salmagundi Restaurant as the soup cook, making 1,500 gallons of soup a day from scratch. He had a catering company for many years, worked for assorted caterers, and has taught cooking classes. He was the food critic at the Orange County and Long Beach Blade and IN Los Angeles magazines, and has written food articles for Oakbook and J Weekly magazine, and is currently working on a collection of food origin stories titled Created in California: The Golden State's Gifts to Gastronomy.