"This is the story of two cities joined by the Rio Grande and two men who endured that flood: the author's grandfather, Mayo Bessan, and her father, Porter S. Garner Jr., who married Bessan's only daughter in 1946. The tale sprawls across more than a half-century, and ranges from the culinary traditions of southern Louisiana to pre-Prohibition New Orleans to the dusty border towns that straddle the Rio Grande in far South Texas. The Cadillac Bar attracted wildcatters and lawmakers, celebrities and tourists. It spawned imitators across the United States until Mexico's economic and political instability caused the Garner family to hand over the keys to the waiters in 1979 and walk away"-- Provided by publisher.
Note
Includes index
Contents
Intro -- Contents -- Preface -- Acknowledgments -- 1. Mayo -- 2. Porter Joins the Business -- 3. What the Cadillac Looked Like -- 4. The Cast of Characters -- 5. The Flood -- 6. Meeting Up at the Cadillac -- 7. The Party's Over -- 8. Recipes from the Cadillac -- Afterword -- Timeline -- Index