what picnics are all about: fun. It happens automatically, on that first warm, sunny day; we start thinking about taking our meals on the road, turning them into moveable feasts. It's magical: those sandwiches and sides taste different – better! – when we're sprawled on a blanket under the trees. There's something else going on, too. Picnics are inherently, essentially nostalgic. Sure, we may bring along our smartphones and bluetooth speakers. But the picnic experience is so fundamentally timeless – enjoying good food with family and friends, in a beautiful outdoor setting – that the thought of having a "vintage" picnic seems completely natural. And one of the nicest things about the vintage picnicking idea is how open-ended it is. You can go super-elaborate or supersimple. If your notion of a vintage picnic requires 1950s outfits, music and a restored "canned ham" camper…go for it. If you prefer a neo-Victorian outing on a broad expanse of manicured lawn, with a fitted wicker basket, crystal glasses and fine china plates…why not? And if your picnic doesn't take you any further than your own back yard, for a classic mid-century hot-dog&-hamburger family cookout…well, that's cool too. (Candidly, we tend to favor the simpler, more laid-back style ourselves.) Now that spring is in full swing (for most of us, anyway), we thought it might be fun to gather a few vintage picnic suggestions. You'll find easy tips to make your picnic more festive, fun…and period-perfect. An entertaining look at picnic menus from decades past. And recipes, too – every one an updated classic – to give your own menu a little extra pizazz.
What’s on the Menu As far back as 1912, old folks were already fondly looking back on the charms of the "old-fashioned" picnic. A good two dozen young men and ladies would ride to the chosen spot on a "picnic wagon"…not one of those new-fangled trolley cars, nossir. The clothes and the conveyances may have changed, but many of the picnic staples we enjoy today were already on the menu: cold fried chicken, potato chips (more likely to be known, back then, as "Saratoga Chips"), potato salad, peanut butter sandwiches, cake and ice cream. Some of the other early 20th-century menu items, however, may strike us as slightly unusual. Fishballs, potted rabbit, pigs' feet, something called "bewitched veal" (which seems to have been a kind of meat loaf) and baked bean sandwiches? We'll take the baked beans, thanks – minus the bread – and pass on the rest. If you were invited to a 1920s picnic, the menu wouldn't seem terribly unfamiliar. Who could object to cold broiled chicken, potato salad, Boston baked beans, sliced tomatoes, pickles, apple pie and peach ice cream? By the middle of the decade, the all-American hot dog – described as a "hot dog sandwich" – was showing up as well. The 1930s may have been a Great Depression decade, but some of the surviving picnic menus feature alarmingly ritzy dishes. English mutton chops, broiled Porterhouse steak, lobster Newburg and hot beef bouillon for a seaside picnic…really? Then again, a few modern staples were also beginning to appear, including cole slaw (inexplicably spelled "cold slaw"). 1940s menus for "bonfire dinners" sound mighty tasty today, spotlighting hot dogs and "Hamburg steaks" along with corn on the cob, pan-fried potatoes and macaroni and cheese. (We're not quite as enthusiastic about the olive and tongue sandwiches that were popular picnic picks during this decade, though.) We think of the 1950s and 1960s as the pinnacle of picnicking. A simple "cold" menu might include a variety of sandwiches, deviled eggs and cold fried chicken (some things never change!). A "cookout" style menu, on the other hand, might feature main dishes that are still favorites today: hamburgers, hot dogs, spare ribs or kabobs, accompanied by roasted corn, potato salad, mixed green salad, chocolate cake, pie, cookies and watermelon. (Yum.)