Mei Man: I drew Superman during the Great Depression

Chapter 128 Hanging Models

"Jack and Charlie's Restaurant" is also known as "Restaurant 21".

It is a secret wine cellar built during Prohibition.

整个21号餐馆，由西52街21号、19号以及17号三座褐石房子改造而成，而眼前柯林站着的酒窖石门，就是21号和19号的部分隔墙所改造的。

It is said that the founders of Restaurant 21, Jack Kleindler and Charlie Burns, believed that the current prohibition policy in the United States was a "big stupidity", and felt that they had an obligation to violate this terrible law. Depressed New York offers great food and wine.

Colin declined to comment on the motives of the restaurant's founders.

However, it is undeniable that 21 Restaurant has become an important underground tavern in New York, and many political and business celebrities are its customers.

Including, Hughes, who invited Colin this time, is also a regular customer of Restaurant 21.

"There you are at last, Colin."

In the low underground tavern, Hughes gestured to Colin with a glass of wine, and behind him was the bartender in a white tunic.

"A cocktail."

After drinking the wine in his hand, Hughes turned his head and explained to the bartender.

The latter skillfully prepared a glass of wine and pushed it in front of him.

"What do you want to drink? I recommend the Hennesswell rye whiskey here. It's a good wine that was distilled in 1911 and recently re-bottled..."

Picking up the cocktail in front of him, Hughes recommended to Colin with a slightly drunk face.

"I'm not as rich as you." Rejecting Hughes' recommendation with a smile on his face, Colin turned to the bartender and said, "Give me a glass of gin."

After taking a sip of the juniper berries in his glass, Colin looked at the environment in Restaurant No. 21.

In the parquet-floored pine lounge, guests can enjoy drinking glasses or reading newspapers or chatting leisurely, without the gloomy feeling of the underground bar. Here, people can drink to their heart's content without worrying about being peeped by Prohibition agents.

"Don't worry, the restaurant is very safe. In fact, not long ago, a group of federal agents searched on No. 21 for 16 hours but still found nothing. They didn't find No. 21 separated by a wall."

The door to the wine cellar of restaurant No. 21 was designed by the owner of the tavern specially invited by a Swiss watch designer. The overall weight is two and a half tons. The entrance and the wall are tightly connected. Once closed, there will be no smell or sound.

Having personally experienced the era of Prohibition during the Great Depression gave Colin a special sense of history.

I don't know if it is because of the influence of the atmosphere on the 21st, the gin in my mouth has become a little bit bitter.

Tasting the taste of gin during the prohibition period in his mouth, Colin raised his head and noticed various small objects hanging on the ceiling of the restaurant.

"This is?"

Looking at the football helmets hanging from the ceiling, models of airplanes and trains, Colin cast a questioning look at Hughes.

"This is a gift from frequent customers. At the same time, No. 21 uses these toys to mark specific dining positions for guests. For example, the one with the tuna model is Ernest Hemingway's position, the ship model belongs to a certain shipping magnate, and the helmet is Rugby club owner's..."

Of course, in addition to these people, Howard Hughes also left his own mark on the ceiling - a special flight model.

"Next, it's your turn to think about what kind of small gift to leave for 21 Tavern."

After introducing the reasons for the dense objects on the ceiling, Hughes raised his eyebrows and raised a question to Colin in front of him.

"A gift I'm leaving behind?"

Hearing Hughes' reminder, Colin glanced at the model hanging above his head again.

If nothing else, the one he hung on the ceiling of Restaurant 21 should be the Superman doll.

"Mr. Howard Hughes, your dishes are ready."

At this moment, a waiter dressed in waiter clothes and with a unique Vienna Long Island accent came to the two of them and reminded Hughes at the bar.

"Ok?"

Hearing the waiter's words, Hughes and Colin came to the specific place where the airplane model was hung under the leadership of the other party with a wine glass.

"Today's kitchen prepares grilled sea bass, and it is recommended to pair with the white wine from Chateau LaGache..."

After the two sat down, the waiter picked up the wine bottle and introduced them to them.

If you just look at the meticulous service attitude of the waiters, it is hard to imagine that this is just an underground bar, and the items recommended by the waiters in front of you are even prohibited items during this prohibition period.

I took a sip of the white wine in front of me. The rich fruit flavor matched the delicate taste of sea bass. The taste of slightly sour lemon juice that emerged in the last aftertaste properly diluted the taste of the fish belly fat in Colin's mouth. Greasy feeling.

"Unfortunately, the white wine is not vintage enough, otherwise the taste would be better."

Shaking the slightly cloudy white wine in his hand, Hughes said somewhat regretfully.

Affected by the "18th Amendment (Prohibition Act), the entire United States is extremely strict on the transportation and sales of alcoholic products. Most of the wine in Restaurant 21 is smuggled into restaurants. situation created a problem.

That is, there is no guarantee that the quality of wine smuggled in every restaurant is good.

Just like the white wine that Hughes and Colin tasted this time, although it was a good wine for Colin, it obviously did not satisfy Hughes.

Although he was invited to Restaurant No. 21, drinking was not the main purpose of Ke Lin's trip.

Unlike Hughes and others who lived in the Great Depression era and were in the period of Prohibition, Colin himself is not so strongly dependent on alcohol, not to mention that if he wants, he can drink as much as he wants in the anti-world, so he is not It's not like Hughes and others, who need to sneak to an underground bar like No. 21 to taste the taste of alcohol.

"How's the arrangement for shooting the iceberg?"

After eating a mouthful of bass, Colin raised his head and asked Hughes.

"It went well. I have chartered a cruise ship and am going to go to the sinking site of the Titanic to take some pictures. As for the iceberg issue, I also specially hired a professor from the University of California, Houston, who studies the relationship between ocean currents and glaciers. Tracking the source of the iceberg that sank the giant ship, according to his guess, the wandering iceberg is likely to come from Greenland..."

"So, your final destination is Greenland?"

Hearing this, Ke Lin put down the knife and fork in his hand, and looked at what the other party said.

"I wouldn't mind a trip to Greenland if I could get the right iceberg."

(End of this chapter)