Daily Menus - 20th Century Steamships & Ocean Liners

Daily Bill of Fare Illustrations from Norddeutscher Lloyd Bremen

Daily menus were commonly used for third class or steerage passengers on steamships. The offerings for each meal were very limited compared to those in the first and second class. Daily menus were phased out as each steamship line transistioned from transporting immigrants to transporting tourists.

Allan Line RMS Virginian Daily Bill of Fare Card, Second Cabin - 9 June 1906

1906-06-09 RMS Virginian Daily Menu

Vintage Second Cabin Daily Bill of Fare Card from 9 June 1906 on board the RMS Virginian of the Allan Line featured Beefsteak and Onions for Breakfast, Roast Goose, Apple Sauce for Dinner, and Preserved Salmon for Tea.

 

SS Bremen Breakfast Bill of Fare Card 27 June 1925

1925-06-27 SS Bremen Daily Menu Card

Vintage Daily Bill of Fare Card from 27 June 1925 on board the SS Bremen of the North German Lloyd that featured Fried Eggs with Bacon for Breakfast, Fried Homemade Sausage for Lunch, and Boeuf à la Mode for Dinner. Coffee and Berlin Doughnuts were offered for an afternoon snack.

 

SS Bremen Breakfast Bill of Fare Card 29 June 1925

29-06-1926 SS Bremen Daily Menu Card

Vintage Daily Bill of Fare Card from 29 June 1925 on board the SS Bremen of the North German Lloyd that featured Boiled Eggs and German Pancakes for Breakfast, Boiled Brisket Beef, Mustard Sauce for Lunch, and Breaded Pork Chops - Red Cabbage for Dinner. Coffee and Fancy Cake were offered as an afternoon snack.

 

SS Bremen Breakfast Bill of Fare Card 30 June 1925

1925-06-30 SS Bremen Daily Menu

Vintage Daily Bill of Fare Card from 30 June 1925 on board the SS Bremen of the North German Lloyd that featured Ham and Eggs for Breakfast, Braised Ox-Tail for Lunch, and Roast Leg of Mutton for Dinner. Coffee and Silesian Short Cake were offered as an afternoon snack.

 

SS Bremen Breakfast Bill of Fare Card 2 July 1925

1925-07-02 SS Bremen Daily Menu

Vintage Daily Bill of Fare Card from 2 July 1925 on board the SS Bremen of the North German Lloyd that featured Bacon and Eggs for Breakfast, Sauerkraut and Mashed Potatoes for Lunch, and Chicken Poulette, Rice with Asparagus for Dinner. Coffee and Short Cake were offered as an afternoon snack. The reverse side of the Bill of Fare Card presented the Music Concert Program on the Promenade Deck.

 

SS Bremen Breakfast Bill of Fare Card 3 July 1925

1925-07-03 SS Bremen Daily Menu

Vintage Daily Bill of Fare Card from 3 July 1925 on board the SS Bremen of the North German Lloyd that featured Scrambled Eggs with Tomatoes for Breakfast, Boiled Leg of Lamb, Caper Sauce for Lunch, and Roast Leg of Pork for Dinner. Coffee and Fancy Cake were offered as an afternoon snack.

 

SS Bremen Breakfast Bill of Fare Card 4 July 1925

1925-07-04 SS Bremen Daily Menu

Vintage Daily Bill of Fare Card from 4 July 1925 on board the S.S Bremen of the North German Lloyd that featured Omelette aux Confitures for Breakfast, German Pot Roast with Potato Dumplings for Lunch, and Roast Fricandeau of Veal for Dinner. Coffee and Silesian Short Cake were offered as an afternoon snack.

 

SS Bremen Breakfast Bill of Fare Card 5 July 1925

1925-07-05 SS Bremen Daily Menu

Vintage Daily Bill of Fare Card from 5 July 1925 on board the SS Bremen of the Norddeutscher Lloyd Bremen (North German Lloyd) featured typical breakfast fare, Halibut in Aspic for Lunch, and Entre-Côte for Dinner. They also offered an Afternoon snack of Chocolate and Stollen.

 

Front, SS Bremen Daily Bill of Fare Postcard - 9 January 1926

1926-01-09 SS Bremen Daily Menu

Vintage Daily Bill of Fare Postcard in German from 9 January 1926 on board the SS Bremen of the North German Lloyd featured Sautéed Liver, Spicy Sauce, Fried Potatoes for Breakfast, Roast Pork - Red Cabbage - Potato Sauce for Lunch, and Wiener Rostbraten, Princess Potatoes for Dinner. The reverse side is a postally unused postcard.

 

Vintage Menu, Hamburg America Line, SS Deutschland, 30 September 1927

1927-09-30 SS Deutschland Daily Menu

Vintage Third Class Daily Bill of Fare Card from 30 September 1927 on board the SS Deutschland of the Hamburg America Line featured Boiled Eggs for Breakfast, Braised Fillet of Fish for Dinner, and Matjes Herrings, Bacon Sauce for Supper.

 

Front Cover, SS Bergensfjord Daily Bill of Fare - 1 September 1936

1936-09-01 SS Bergensfjord Daily Menu Card

Vintage Third Class Daily Bill of Fare Card from 1 September 1936 on board the SS Bergensfjord of the Norwegian-America Line featured Oatmeal for Breakfast, Potage Marie Louise for Dinner, and Ragout of Veal with Vegetables for Supper. The reverse side was the Bill of Fare in Norwegian..

 

Front Cover, SS Bergensfjord Daily Bill of Fare - 4 September 1936

1936-09-04 SS Bergensfjord Daily Menu Card

Vintage Daily Bill of Fare Card from 4 September 1936 on board the SS Bergensfjord of the Norwegian American Line featured Oatmeal for Breakfast, Fried Mackerel for Dinner, and Mutton with Cabbage for Supper. The reverse side was the Bill of Fare in Norwegian..

 

Front Cover, SS Bergensfjord Daily Bill of Fare - 5 September 1936

1936-09-05 SS Bergensfjord Daily Menu Card

Vintage Daily Bill of Fare from 5 September 1936 on board the SS Bergensfjord of the Norwegian-America Line featuredOatmeal and Boiled Eggs for Breakfast, and Corned Beef Hash for the Luncheon. Dinner for this date was a special Farewell Dinner Menu.

 

Front Cover, Lunch and Dinner Menu, Tourist Class on the TSS New York of the Greek Line, Wednesday, 21 August 1957.

1957-08-21 TSS New York Lunch and Dinner Menu

Vintage Tourist Class Lunch and Dinner Menu from Wednesday, 21 August 1957 on board the TSS New York of the Greek Line featured Szegedin Paprika Gulyas, Braised Haunch of Beef à la Mode, and Ice Cream for dessert.

 

Vintage Menus from the GG Archives collection are representative of the menus, typically printed on board each steamship during the voyage onto a blank pre-printed graphic cover. The bill of fares was intended as souvenirs of the journey and provided to each passenger for that class (First, Second, Third, Tourist, etc.). Many survive today as delightful displays of gourmet meals served in elegant dining saloons on the ocean liners of yesteryear.

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