VERONICA HINKE

Media Coverage of “The Last Night on the Titanic”

News Stories

NEW YORK TIMES–  Remembering The Last Night on The Titanic through Food, Florence Fabricant, April 3, 2023

Coinciding with the anniversary of the Titanic sinking, on April 15, 1912, there will be a two-part virtual talk from the 92nd Street Y covering the ways of not just top-hatted and bejeweled first class passengers like the Astors and Guggenheims, but also the less fortunate huddled in steerage, and even the crew. Veronica Hinke, the author of “The Last Night on the Titanic: Unsinkable Drinking, Dining and Style,” to be published in paperback next week, will provide the details‌. As in the book, she plans to cover the demands of style that defined luxury in the late Edwardian era, the games the passengers played on board, menus from the ship with recipes for some dishes, like English pea soufflé and apple meringue, and the pre-Prohibition drinks that were served in first class. Included will be what people down in third class ate and drank. She will also describe life on board as recounted by survivors and family members of those who sailed.

“Drinking, Dining and Style Aboard the Titanic,” online April 14 and 21 at 2 p.m., $80, Roundtable by the 92nd Street Y, New York, roundtable.org.

Gannett / USA Today Network–  “Lit Wisconsin,” Keith Uhlig, April 14, 2023

I love Keith Uhlig’s new “Lit Wisconsin” series, and was delighted to be among the first local authors featured.

Wausau writer’s book about food and drink on Titanic released in paperback 

“The Last Night on the Titanic: Unsinkable Drinking, Dining and Style,” is a detailed, multi-layered book that delves into the story of the doomed ocean liner using food and drink as a hook. The book is peppered with anecdotes, profiles of passengers and menus of the food they ate the cocktails they drank, often accompanied by recipes. LINK

Chicago Tribune- 

After so many phenomenal years of reporting food stories for Chicago Tribune’s Pioneer Press papers, you can imagine the joy that it was for me to actually be featured in the Chicago Tribune Food Section about my new book The Last Night on The Titanic. An incredible honor to share my story in the paper of the town where I sunk my teeth into the craft of reporting and writing food stories. This story was written by one of my favorite reporters, Amy Bizzarri. Amy’s stories and books are incredibly well-researched and provide wondrous details and insights. This story shines a spotlight on world-renowned Pastry Chef Gale Gand’s Apple Meringue recipe featured in the book. Apple Meringue was served in first class during the last lunch aboard the Titanic on April 14. We know because the menu was saved by at least two first class passengers – Ruth Dodge and Abraham Salomon. Do you save menus from special dinners? I still have the coach menu from my first flight ever back in 1984 – from Chicago to Paris! LINK

Photo credit: Abel Uribe/Chicago Tribune; Shannon Kinsella/food styling

NEWSWEEK MAGAZINE– What did they drink on the Titanic? ; October 1, 2019

Part cookbook, part first-person narrative, part anthropolical study, it uses cuisine, cocktails, dress decor and other cultural threads to dive into our obsession with the ill-fated ship and the Edwardian era as a whole.

FORBES MAGAZINE – The Culinary Legacy of RMS Titanic; April 5, 2019

Hinke delves into the first-class dining room menus that passengers saved in their pockets before boarding lifeboats; provides old recipes that can be recreated by readers; and describes the origins of the classic cocktails served on board. The author also recounts the poignant stories of those who survived and others who perished at sea, including the tale of the chief baker, Charles Joughin, who survived the wreck by drinking a bottle of schnapps. The book sheds light, too, on the different lifestyles of first-class passengers and those in steerage, both on land and at sea.

USA TODAY NETWORK –Wausau native’s book looks at what Titanic passengers ate and drank before the iceberg hit; April 1, 2019

After years of research and writing, is a just-released hardcover called “The Last Night on The Titanic: Unsinkable Drinking, Dining, & Style.” It’s a multi-layered, detailed piece of work, part cookbook and bartender’s manual and part historical account of the events that happened in the icy water the North Atlantic on April 15, 1912.

WGN-TV Morning News –Pre-Prohibition Cocktails with Veronica Hinke August 11, 2020

“I’m giving my Bronx Cocktails a modern twist this summer with lemon-thyme. It adds another wonderful layer of citrus flavor to the orange essence in the drink. I bought eight lemon-thyme plants this spring from Winding Creek Nursery & Garden Center in Millbrook, Illinois. It’s a fantastic place for herbs, prairie plants & more.” Veronica Hinke 

THE DEPAULIA –Reliving the last night on the Titanic  July 27, 2019

“I really was happy to intertwine the history with the here and now and these folks that are here with me at the table, that’s why they are pretty special. I can’t talk to those people that were here in 1912. But I was able to talk to so many amazing people that are here to try to interpret the story as best we can.” Veronica Hinke

NkosiWhite.com –
I just love Nkosi (“Nik”) White’s vivid descriptions of events, and was so glad to hear he could be at The Gage for the Chicago debut of my new book The Last Night on The Titanic. In his story, Nik describes the three signature cocktails that the Cocktail Guru (Jeffrey Pogash) curated especially for the event – and why he chose those. Nik also spotlights the information Astra Burka shared at the press conference. Astra’s grandfather wrote the first letter from the Titanic. Her great-uncle Adolphe Saalfeld wrote an amazing letter home about the lunch that he ate on his first day aboard the ship (April 10). Adolphe’s words home provide information about the food aboard the Titanic unlike anything else. His letter contains the facts, and also genuine sentiment about the foods “I washed it all down with a Spaten beer, iced,” he wrote. HERE is Nik’s story and fantastic photos.

Interviews

WJFW NBC-TV 12, Rhinelander

Rhinelander covered the Merrill, Wisconsin debut of my book The Last Night on The Titanic. The party was held at the Sawmill Brewing Company, which was once headquarters for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. In this story, I talk about the money that was found at the Titanic wreck site that must have belonged to Merrill resident Dan Coxon “Popcorn Dan.”    Watch the interview

Kitchen Chat

Margaret McSkeeny interviews Veronica Hinke on Kitchen Chat TV