Food Review of the Smorgasbord at The Queen’s Royal Hotel 1947

If I get one good summer day in a summer, and I am out driving around on that summer day, I am content. I therefore declare the summer of 1947 to be a success. Such a day occurred on Civic Holiday. When I whipped in my Fireball motor over the highway Monday night, I was singing along with Carrie Jacobs Bond: “When You Come to the End of a Perfect Day.” Do you want to know my recipe for a perfect day? Well, this one had everything in it from sunshine to smorgasbord.

Austin F Cross August 6, 1947- page 17

When I had started to high tail it through from Smiths Falls to Carleton Place I remembered Sven Larsen and his invitation to try a smorgasbord at the Queen’s Royal, Carleton Place.

Now those of you who know this Scandinavian ritual will realize that it sounds as improbable that you would get a smorgasbord in Carleton Place as you “would get bouillabaisse Marseillaise at Ka-zabazua”. But I wheeled into the Queen’s Royal, and ordered up a smorgasbord.

In case there are people unfamiliar with this kind of meal, I should explain that it is sort of hors d oeuvres on a Gargantuan scale, and that it is a full meal in itself. We had salami, and smoked salmon, fresh tomatoes, and pickled herring. Many people do not know that the “smoked fish” they eat is eel! It is caught in the Richelieu river, brought to Ottawa for smoking, and relayed to Carleton Place.

You may have heard of tropical ants that over-run an elephant who is lying down, and who five minutes later leave only a skeleton. Well, the ants are sluggards compared to our family, for we left nothing. The smorgasbord a la Larsen was a great success. This with ice cream garnished with fresh (yam yum) peaches, and I was willing to call it a day.

The Ottawa Journal
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
15 Aug 1899, Tue • Page 2

It was only then that I had time to look at the hotel. It was originally operated by Peter Salter, who used to operate the Bodega in Ottawa, and whose son Hubert, was a great favorite with the Ottawa (Lisgar) Collegiate boys, as well as being an all-round athlete. In any event, the hotel stood idle for a long time, till the Larsens got hold of it. It faces Mississippi Lake, a sportsman’s paradise if you like ducks, fish, or boating.

In front of the hotel is wild rice, specially sown to attract ducks. Wild rice with ducks or geese about Thanksgiving is a great delicacy. I do not know if you can buy wild rice here, but a couple of places in Montreal sell it. Anyway, the ducks get for nothing what we pay more than a dollar a pound for. The hotel, with the croquet, its badminton, and its loafing chairs give you a great chance to do little or nothing in a delightful way.

Did you Know?

Furthermore, there were restrictive covenants on properties preventing them from being sold to Jews. As well, many clubs, resorts and beaches were barred to Jews. Signs warning “No Jews” or “Christians Only!” could be found on Halifax golf courses, outside hotels in the Laurentians and throughout the cottage areas of Ontario, the lake country of Manitoba and the vacation lands of BC.

Although I have no “personal knowledge” of such signs, I have been told from a few people that locally they remember seeing them at Lake Park Lodge

The Ottawa Citizen
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
29 Jan 1955, Sat • Page 35

check out The Tales of Carleton Place and The Tales of Almonte

Information where you can buy all Linda Seccaspina’s books-You can also read Linda in The Townships Sun Screamin’ Mamas (USA) and The Sherbrooke Record