One of the first chefs at The Algonquin Resort, in the late 1800s, was the brilliant and respected Chef George F. Braxton. Braxton is believed to be the first African-American man to lead a luxury resort kitchen and publish a cookbook.
His philosophy of providing uncompromising quality continues to inspire us to this day, so much so, that we’ve named our fine dining room Braxton’s Restaurant and Bar in his honour.
To piece together the history of The Algonquin Resort, we’re launching the Chef George Braxton Challenge. We’d love to connect with the ancestors of Braxton’s culinary team and fellow staff members who served our first generation of guests.
The Algonquin Resort Staff, 1896
We’re also looking for an original copy of his cookbook, Braxton’s Practical Cookbook, published in 1889, so that we can showcase it at the resort.
As The Algonquin Resort reopens in 2014, we’re proud to honour and pay-respect to one of the legends of our seaside resort. We’re looking to invite descendants of Braxton and his co-workers to the grand opening early next year.
If you have any information on George Braxton and/or the history of the Algonquin Resort, we invite you to contact us on Facebook and Twitter, or e-mail us at socialmedia@algonquinresort.com
George F. Braxton was a renowned chef, who, among other places, worked at The Algonquin Resort during the late 1800s. Chef Braxton is thought to be the first African-American to lead a kitchen in a luxury resort. The Algonquin Resort began in 1889 in St. Andrews, New Brunswick, Canada, and still exists today as a luxury retreat. Sadly, not a great amount of detail is known about Braxton's life. He was born in Virginia during the late 1850s or early 1860s. He became the Chef at Wellesley College from 1883 to at least 1886. He led the Resort in Canada during the late 1800s, and it appears that he had moved to Massachusetts around 1900. By then he was widowed, but was remarried to Rose McBride in 1901. He opened up a restaurant in Cambridgeport, Massachusetts around November 1901. It does not appear that he had children. Not much of his life is known afterwards, but the Algonquin Resort recently renamed their restaurant Braxton's in honor of his memory.
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