The opening of the Bancroft Hotel in 1859 announced to the outside world that East Saginaw was a real place – more than a spot on the map. Even before the Bancroft House opened in 1859, both Saginaw City and East Saginaw boasted a number of inns and hotels. For well over 130 years, hotels were pivotal anchors of the downtown business district – especially the Bancroft. Providing lodging for visitors and convention goers, they also served Saginaw’s residents as venues for special events and places to have dinner.
In the late 1970s, at the very time Saginaw’s fabled Bancroft Hotel was closing as a place of lodging and was being transformed into apartments, construction started on a new hotel in downtown Saginaw. Located on Johnson Street, directly across the street from the Saginaw Civic Center – now the Dow Event Center - it was designed to complement those facilities and help retain Saginaw as a convention center.
When it was dedicated on June 24, 1980, the ceremony featured a man dressed as Pierre Radisson - after whom the chain was named, throwing one of the hotel’s keys into the Saginaw River. A symbolic act indicating the hotel was now open 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. The first guests were Saginaw’s Mayor Paul P. Prudhomme and his wife.
Costing roughly $5.8 million, the 8-story building had 180 rooms – though the count varies in different descriptions—an indoor pool, cocktail lounge and a restaurant. The restaurant, named the Red Sash in honor of Saginaw’s lumbering heritage, was located on the first floor and offered a complete menu featuring a very 70s-style champagne brunch on Sundays. While conceived as a convenience for guests, the eatery still catered to local residents. A manager noted:
“‘You’ve got a lot of secretaries and business people who work downtown’ he noted, ‘I think we can bring more of them in here if we offer a good product at a reasonable price.’
Potential innovations include:
A broader menu at the Red Sash restaurant and lounge, going beyond the standard hotel fare of steaks and sandwiches.
‘We want people to come to dine not just to eat.” (The Saginaw News, September 19, 1981.)
The hotel advertised, “We offer a lot more than the rest!” –perhaps a reference to the then-new Sheraton on Tittabawassee Road. However, the hotel did not thrive and in 1985 it was sold. Several other owners would attempt to operate it under numerous names. In 2012 it was demolished, and the Johnson street site is now a parking lot serving the Jolt Credit Union Event Park.
There is a certain irony in the fact that Saginaw no longer has a downtown hotel. When the Bancroft House was dedicated in 1859, Detroit papers speculated on the slim chance that a hotel of that size would survive in the fledging city of East Saginaw. It thrived for over a century.
The Recipe: Radisson Inn Saginaw’s Poulet A La Pierre
The recipe appeared in a 1984 advertisement for the Raddison Inn Saginaw. If one didn’t feel like preparing it, it was advertised as the October special. For $8.95, dinner included an all you can eat salad bar. The ad noted: “We suggest either our Saint-Louis Chardonnay Macon B & G Vintage 1980, or Vouvray B & G Vintage 1982 wine to complement our Featured Entrée.”
Note: CTK clarifications and additions are added in brackets.
4 – 8 oz chicken breasts (remove skin and cut each breast into six strips, lengthwise).
2 cups mushrooms
½ cup flour [salt and pepper to taste] 2 tablespoons sherry
[neutral cooking oil]
Dredge meat in [mixture of] flour, [salt and pepper] and put hot oil in skillet. Cook to golden brown. Drain on paper towel. Sauté mushrooms in ½ cup oil and sherry* until tender. Drain. [* As we are overly cautious about adding alcohol to a hot pan, we added the sherry near the end of the cooking process – of course, after removing the pan from the flame.)
Sauce
2 ½ cups milk ¼ teaspoon chicken base
1 ½ tablespoons sherry
1/8 cup rue [roux]*
Bing milk to boiling point, stirring constantly. Add other ingredients and pour over meat. Sprinkle a dash of paprika over meat and sauce.
Serve on a bed of Minnesota Wild rice, mushrooms on the side.
CTK Notes –
*This is a rather straightforward and rather timidly flavored preparation. However, don’t be seduced into thinking it is as simple as it appears. The 1/8 cup rue – the CTK spells it roux -is the essential and magical step that brings it all together. This link will take you a discussion about creating a perfect roux.
The CTK staff cannot claim to have perfected this recipe. As our roux did not adequately thicken the sauce, we cheated and added arrow root. We were definitely tempted to add finely chopped shallots. But it was good and reminded us of walking to the Radisson’s lounge after events at the museum. Yes, some of us remember such things. And remember noting that the performer in the lounge continued to sing even when he was on break. The art of lip-synching had already been invented.
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