Coasting on this one

I was kind of thinking of rereading some J.D.Salinger since he just died. I think I did read Catcher in the Rye again, at least once, since the age of 14 when I first read it. That was probably when Evelyn was around 14. But I have not looked at any Salinger since I started searching every novel and detective story for food themes and ways food advances the plot, the characterization, or the general atmosphere. Further, I do not think I have reread any of the Glass family saga since it was published in book form. My friend Olga and I had gone into the library stacks and searched out these and other Salinger stories in old magazines before they became a book. So I had in fact read them prior to book form. Maybe I never did read them again.

But I'm in luck: I get to coast on Salinger and food, because Diner's Journal in the New York Times started this endeavor with a piece on the chicken sandwich consumed by Franny Glass, specifically "when Franny’s date orders a sophisticated French meal and she has a chicken sandwich that she doesn’t touch."

And they asked readers to contribute food notes from Salinger's collected works -- not to mention the frequent references to drinking. Here are two quotes about Holden Caulfield that I liked from those comments:

"The steaks at Pencey Prep, served each Saturday night so that when students' parents visited the next day and asked how their sons were eating, the honest answer would delight them."

"Holden enjoys a grilled swiss cheese sandwich. I had one today in his honor. Not on rye though."

Thank you, Diner's Journal!