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Author: Becky Libourel Diamond

Food writer, librarian and historian Becky Libourel Diamond presents her book "City Tavern: The Founding Table – Colonial Dining, Revolutionary History, and the Restaurant at the Center of it All."

About the Book:

Several blocks from Independence Hall, City Tavern was a hub of life in colonial Philadelphia and its dining table an important political and social meeting place. Built through a subscription model funded by fifty-three of Philadelphia’s wealthiest and most socially connected men, City Tavern soon became an essential meeting place for Continental Congress delegates to make connections, solicit opinions, and offer off-the-record thoughts and solutions—all over a pint of ale or glass of Madeira. Many of the Founding Fathers dined there, and George Washington even used it briefly as his headquarters.

Beautifully illustrated with 40 period images, "City Tavern: The Founding Table – Colonial Dining, Revolutionary History, and the Restaurant at the Center of it All" views this crucial time in America’s history through the tavern’s lens—from the decision to break from England to the Constitutional debate and the grand banquet Washington enjoyed there in 1789 on the way to his presidential inauguration. Throughout, the business of an eighteenth-century tavern is described in detail along with the food and drink enjoyed by customers at the crossroads of the American Revolution. With 2026 the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States, this book is a perfect opportunity to celebrate the City Tavern’s key and extraordinary role.

About the Author:

Becky Libourel Diamond is a food writer, librarian, and research historian. She is the author of two cookbooks, "The Gilded Age Cookbook" and "The Gilded Age Christmas Cookbook," and two books of culinary history, "The Thousand Dollar Dinner" and "Mrs. Goodfellow: The Story of America’s First Cooking School." She holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Rider University and a Master of Library Service from Rutgers University and has worked as a business librarian at Rutgers–New Brunswick since 2020.

Photo Credit: Heather Raub of FrontRoom Images

Presented by the library's Public Humanities Initiative in partnership with the Morven Museum & Garden and the Historical Society of Princeton. Public Humanities programs are presented with support from the National Endowment for the Humanities: Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this programming do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

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