The Beekman Hotel just opened in 2016, but because it sits inside the 150-year-old Temple
Court Annex, one of New York City’s original skyscrapers, it looks like it’s been around for all of modernity. Plush leather banquettes and upholstered arm chairs line the bar. There’s a perimeter of old bookshelves. Portraits of Edgar Allen Poe hang on the dark walls. It also just so happens to be one of the few places left in the city to order what once was an iconic Manhattan dessert: the Baked Alaska -- a dish that’s just as old as the Temple Court Annex itself.
Pastry chef Abby Swain’s version of the confection has become the signature item at Temple Court (formerly Fowler & Wells), Tom Colicchio's restaurant inside The Beekman. The restaurant, like the hotel, pays homage to old Manhattan, and the Baked Alaska -- though now difficult to find -- once was the epitome of Gilded Age, New York opulence. However, this 150-year-old dessert isn’t just a flamboyant stunt food: there’s a history behind the Baked Alaska that’s just as complicated as keeping ice cream solid inside a 500-degree oven. And in an age where showstopping food has the propensity to go viral, it may just be poised for a comeback. https://www.thrillist.com/eat/nation/baked-alaska-is-crazy-complex/food-and-drink
