San Francisco Stories: Gold, Cattle and Food

My family immigrated to San Francisco in 1849 and 1850. They were pioneer entrepreneurs, miners, grocers, cartographers, soldiers, cattle barons, judges, and feminists. By the 1880s they were wealthy, and the city was booming. They lived well, and their meals reflected this, their heritage, and the Edwardian manner. Tastes eventually changed. However, this food and style survived in our family into the 1950s.
My maternal grandmother, Emma, and her sister, Henrietta, lived in a lovely white house on Clay Street. Money from large cattle ranches and an abattoir allowed them to live and eat well. They had one of the “best tables” in town, and entertained graciously. Their family came from good New England stock and Irish immigrants.
My father’s family came from the East Coast as seamen, soldiers, and surveyors. They became gold miners, grocers, and entrepreneurs, living in San Francisco and in Belvedere, Marin County, in large houses with servants, horses, and style. They lived the grand gesture.
Recipes are embedded in the narratives of this story, reflecting the Edwardian—rather French—preparation of food, as well as the frugality of New England. Whether ample party food or simple home food, it was delicious—due to the fabulous produce available from the bays, ocean, valleys, and foothills of California.