bTruly a great bookbi--ibunique, invaluable and unapproachable as the gold standard of the genreb... bBemelmans got there first, more frequently, and better.b b--Anthony Bourdainb p bAcerbic, colorful, and spirited stories from a bygone era behind the scenes in a grand NY hotel, from the author of the iMadeline ibooksbbr bbbrbPicture David Sedaris writing iKitchen Confidentiali about the Ritz in New York in the 1920s, which had the style and charm of iThe Grand Budapest Hoteli...b pIn this charming and uproariously funny hotel memoir, Ludwig Bemelmans uncovers the fabulous world of the Hotel Splendide--the thinly disguised stand-in for the Ritz--a luxury New York hotel where he worked as a waiter in the 1920s. With equal parts affection and barbed wit, he uncovers the everyday chaos that reigns behind the smooth facades of the gilded dining room and banquet halls. p In hilarious detail, Bemelmans sketches the hierarchy of hotel life and its strange and fascinating inhabitants from the