Charles B. Faulhaber, Director of The Bancroft Library, and Alice Waters enjoy the Friends reception. [note]

Alice Waters opened the doors of Chez Panisse in 1971 as a neighborhood bistro named after a character in Marcel Pagnol's 1930's trilogy of movies ("Marius", "Fanny", and "Cesar"). The Restaurant and Café, an homage to the sentiment, comedy, and informality of these classic films, became a Berkeley landmark.

Thirty years later, on August 26th, 2001 The Bancroft Library celebrated the acquisition of historical documents and images from this renowned Berkeley restaurant which helped revolutionize eating and dining in the United States and abroad. Still operated by Alice Waters (Berkeley, Class of 1967, Alumna of the Year, 1999), the restaurant has become a symbol of the movement to eat fresh produce that is grown locally.

San Francisco Public Market Collaborative Benefit Dinner, n.d.

Interdisciplinary scholarly interest in California food and cuisine continues to grow, and promises to bring a new and creative perspective to the holdings of The Bancroft Library. Numerous publications within Bancroft's collections describe the human need and desire to grow, cook, and consume food and this exhibit demonstrated California's ongoing fascination with methods to produce, preserve, present, buy, sell, and appreciate food. Other works illuminated the social, cultural, economic, and political aspects of food.

California's cuisine is shaped by many cultures, strengthened by the bounty of the land and waters, and polished by technological developments in agriculture, transportation, and communication.

Anniversary menu, August 28, 1997, Chez Panisse Records.

The traces of this potpourri of cultures are found in California's culinary innovation, its willingness to try the new and unexpected. The recent exhibit focused not only on the early chefs of the state who tested their skills on sometimes discriminating clientele, but also the home cooks, concerned with satisfying hungry family members and friends. A certain sophistication in California's cuisine followed the arrival of a population of writers and artists, educated and refined travelers, and international business people and professionals who came to demand more from California's cooks.

Alice Waters continued the tradition of California culinary innovation. Graduated from the University of California at Berkeley with a degree in French Cultural Studies, she then trained at the Montessori School in London, followed by a year traveling in France. Alice is author and co-author of several books, including The Chez Panisse Menu Cookbook, Fanny at Chez Panisse, a storybook and cookbook for children, and, most recently, the encyclopedic Chez Panisse Vegetables. She has also received numerous awards, which include being named one of the ten best chefs in the world in 1986, by the magazine Cuisine et Vins du France; Best Chef in America and Best Restaurant in America, from the James Beard Foundation, in 1992; and an honorary degree from Mills College, Oakland, California, in 1994.

Diet for a Small Planet, Frances M. Luppé, 1971.

"The act of eating is very political," she says. "You buy from the right people, you support the right network of farmers and suppliers who care about the land and what they put in the food. If we don't preserve the natural resources, you aren't going to have a sustainable society."

Waters is convinced that the best-tasting food is organically grown and harvested in ways that are ecologically sound, by people who are taking care of the land for future generations. Chez Panisse has stitched together a patchwork of over seventy- five nearby suppliers, who share Water's concerns for environmental harmony and optimal flavor. To drive home her commitment to the local farmers Waters started the Chez Panisse Foundation to help young people, in particular, who are isolated from the land and deprived of the joys and responsibilities it teaches.

Views From a Trip to California, 1887-1889, Harriet S. Tolman.

Women's Leadership Forum menu, June 12, 1999, Chez Panisse Records.

Items in the exhibit included Gold Rush Era menus from noted San Francisco restaurants and hotels; nineteenth century photographs of the California wine industry by Eadweard Muybridge and unattributed photographs of Chinatown markets and restaurants; transcripts of oral history interviews with contemporary figures such as Robert Mondavi, Chuck Williams, and Polly Ghiradhelli; and cookbooks from such California culinary icons as Helen Evans Brown. Additional materials on display include contemporary menus from a wide range of Bay Area restaurants; photographs and publications that address the social aspects of food and diet during the 1960's; and books and pamphlets that illuminate the technical and commercial preparation of food for railroads and other service industries.

Historical materials from the records of Chez Panisse included correspondence between Alice Waters and M.F.K. Fisher, the noted culinary author. A selection of Chez Panisse menus, particularly those holiday and special occasion menus produced by leading printers and graphic artists offered both a visual and sensual treat, as do a series of Chez Panisse cookbooks presented with elegant illustrations.

The Refugees' Cookbook, 1906.

Chez Panisse posters, the work of David Lance Goines, added additional luster. The exhibition closing was celebrated with a December 7th reception sponsored by the Friends of The Bancroft Library. Some 200 guests enjoyed one last "taste" of the exhibition, and comments by Charles B. Faulhaber, James D. Hart Director of The Bancroft Library, and Alice Waters, who traced the culinary and social history of Chez Panisse.