The traditional American Easter menu as we know it today revolves solidly around lamb, with its ritual references to Jesus Christ and the springtime season. These historic restaurant menus are just one more piece of evidence that the ritual is nothing new. Spring lamb appears on turn-of-the-century bills of fare, too.
But at the same time, there's a lot more going on back then. These menus are also full of odder dishes, like Deerfoot sausage, pickled pig feet and green sea turtle.
These menus are from the vast collection digitized by the New York Public Library—the same source of the amazing Thanksgiving menus we revisited last fall.