Casino Russe

The third establishment reviewed by Iles Brody in the April Gourmet was the Russian-themed nightclub Casino Russe at 157 West 56th Street, run by and contiguous with the Russian Tea Room. It had been a favorite with New York's emigre population, the Carnegie Hall crowd and cosmopolitans since the 1930s. Showing off his worldliness, Brody compared the night spot with the cabarets of southern Russia as well as with the Russian-themed supper clubs that had been all the rage in Paris just before the war. In his current best seller, Arch of Triumph, novelist Erich Maria Remarque made one of the Russian clubs of Paris a favored haunt of his protagonist. Remarque, who was living in New York in 1946, frequented Casino Russe, one of his "headquarters" in the city along with "21," Le Pavillon and El Morocco. The food was Russian as was the entertainment. Brody wrote that the house cocktail was vodka, apricot brandy, cherry brandy and lemon juice, although he preferred his vodka straight with a sprinkle of pepper and a slice or two of unpeeled cucumber as they did it in Russia. The 40-man kitchen staff also prepared food for the Russian Tea Room, which had a different menu. Shows were at 8:30 and 12:00. When Brody visited the entertainers included a flame eater/dagger dancer, a chanteuse and a violinist. Dinner and floor show were $3.50. The drinks were good, he said, but the wine list was meager. He noted the existence of the Baghdad Room, off from the main dining room and away from the floor show.