Author Jan Longone to offer a taste of American culinary history

As the holiday season approaches, Oakland University students, faculty and staff have the opportunity to experience an evening of gastronomic bliss at an event featuring culinary specialist Jan Longone. 

The event “Have You No National Dishes?” is presented by The Honors College and is set for 5:30-7 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 8, in the Oakland Center Lake Superior Room.

Longone is curator of American Culinary History at the University of Michigan’s Clements Library. The Janice Bluestein Longone Culinary Archive consists of nearly 25,000 items including books, ephemera, manuscripts, graphics, menus, serials and maps.
As a well-known writer, lecturer, teacher, consultant and media commentator, Longone has curated nearly a dozen culinary exhibitions and two international culinary history conferences. 

“Students will get to hear about some of the traditions, recipes, cook books and food stories of their own past and present,” said Graeme Harper, director of The Honors College. “They have an opportunity to learn from Jan how cooking and food culture in America has developed and changed, along with the culinary origins and food stories that impact them every day.” 

Longone has lectured on culinary history at renowned venues that include the Smithsonian, Oxford University, Harvard University, Los Angeles Public Library, Historic New Orleans, and the New York Historical Society. 

In the past decade, Longone has won numerous awards. She received the 2000 Food Arts Silver Spoon Award, the 2007 International Academy of Culinary Arts Award for Culinary Life achievement, the 2009 Book Person of the Year Award, and the 2011 Amelia Award by the Culinary Historians on New York at the New York Public Library. 

“Jan Longone is truly a unique speaker for us to have with us, and her knowledge of food history in America and the history of cooking and cookery in America is unsurpassed,” said Harper. “It is going to be a great night!”

The event will include a special taste testing menu. The event is free and open to the public. For more information, view the flyer or visit The Honors College website at oakland.edu/hc.