Joseph Harold Baum (August 17, 1920 – October 5, 1998) was an American restaurateur and innovator responsible for creating the country's first themed restaurants, including

The Four Seasons Restaurant The Four Seasons Restaurant (known colloquially as the Four Seasons) was a New American cuisine restaurant in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City from 1959 to 2019. The Four Seasons operated within the Seagram Building at 99 Ea ...

Windows on the World Windows on the World was a complex of dining, meeting, and entertainment venues on the top floors (106th and 107th) of the North Tower (Building One) of the original World Trade Center complex in Lower Manhattan. It included a restaurant called ...

, and the restored Rainbow Room. He was the first restaurateur to bring contemporary architects, artists and designers into his restaurant designs.

Early life and career

Joseph Harold Baum was born to Leo and Anna Baum in Saratoga Springs, New York, where his parents ran the Gross & Baum hotel. He graduated from high school in Lakewood Township, New Jersey in 1938 and went on to earn a degree from Cornell University in hotel management in 1943. After college, he served in the United States Navy aboard a destroyer-minelayer in the South Pacific.Grimes, William
"Joseph Baum, American Dining's High Stylist, Dies at 78"
'' The New York Times'', October 6, 1998. Accessed February 9, 2011. "After graduating from high school in Lakewood, N.J., in 1937, he worked for two years as a busboy, waiter and cook in hotels in New Jersey and Florida to earn tuition money to attend Cornell University, where he earned a degree in hotel administration in 1943." In 1946, he went to work for Harris, Kerr, Foster & Company in Manhattan and took over the management of one of its hotels, the Monte Carlo, in 1947. In 1949, he was hired by the Schine hotel chain in Florida. Several years later, he was hired by Rikers Restaurant Associates (later shortened to Restaurant Associates) to open and manage a restaurant at Newark Airport called the Newarker, which became famous for its elegant dining, grandiose portions, and over-the-top flambée.

Restaurant Associates

After Baum's success at the Newarker, he took over the specialty restaurant division of Restaurant Associates in 1955, attracting talented individuals such as Stuart Levin, George Lang, Alan Lewis, Tom Margittai, and Paul Kovi to run the company's themed restaurants. Baum spared no expense, hiring top architects, designers, and consultants such as James Beard and

Julia Child Julia Carolyn Child (née McWilliams; August 15, 1912 – August 13, 2004) was an American cooking teacher, author, and television personality. She is recognized for bringing French cuisine to the American public with her debut cookbook, '' ...

. He went on to become president of the company. The portfolio of restaurants grew to over 130 by 1965 and included La Fonda Del Sol,

Zum Zum Zum Zum was a New York City based restaurant chain that operated from the 1960s to the 1980s. The restaurants served German cuisine. The rights were purchased in early 2022 by William Belida, owner of The Salon Group in NYC and is in the proce ...

, the Hawaiian Room, Quo Vadis, the Trattoria, the Brasserie, the Forum of the Twelve Caesars,Andrew Coe
"Roman Mosaic Found in Midtown Manhattan: A Glimpse into the Lost Civilization of A.D. 1957" ''American Heritage'', Oct. 2006. Tavern on the Green, and

Independent work and the Rainbow Room

Baum left Restaurant Associates to consult on his own, often working with Arthur Emil, and later, Michael Whiteman. His projects included developing the 22 restaurants in the World Trade Center, including

at the top of the North Tower. Windows was equally renowned for its wine program and wine school, known as Cellars in the Sky. His other projects included development of restaurants in the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC, the Hallmark Cards Crown Center in Kansas City, and

Place Bonaventure Place Bonaventure is an office, exhibition, and hotel complex in Downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada, adjacent to the city's Central Station. At in size, Place Bonaventure was the second largest commercial building in the world at the time of its ...

in Montréal. In 1986, he opened his own restaurant in New York City called Aurora. It remained open for five years. In 1987, after a two-year $25 million renovation backed by David Rockefeller, Baum reopened the Rainbow Room in New York's Rockefeller Center. Baum also redesigned

in 1996, a destination restaurant on the 107th Floor of the World Trade Center which he opened in 1976. During Baum's tenure, Windows on the World became the highest grossing restaurant in the world until its destruction on September 11, 2001. Baum died on October 5, 1998, at the age of 78 due to

prostate cancer Prostate cancer is cancer of the prostate. Prostate cancer is the second most common cancerous tumor worldwide and is the fifth leading cause of cancer-related mortality among men. The prostate is a gland in the male reproductive system that sur ...

Honors

Baum was inducted into the Culinary Institute of America Hall of Fame in 1995.

References

* http://nymag.com/nymetro/food/reviews/insatiable/2230/ * https://www.nytimes.com/1998/10/06/classified/paid-notice-deaths-baum-joseph.html
Joe Baum’s Company Will Soldier On
New York Times, Florence Fabricant November 18, 1998. Retrieved February 5, 2022

New York Times, Florence Fabricant September 13, 1995. Retrieved February 5, 2022 {{DEFAULTSORT:Baum, Joe 1920 births 1998 deaths American restaurateurs 20th-century American Jews Cornell University School of Hotel Administration alumni Deaths from prostate cancer in the United States People from Lakewood Township, New Jersey 20th-century American businesspeople James Beard Foundation Award winners United States Navy personnel of World War II