Killer Meals

Ever wonder what your last meal would be if today was your last day on Earth? I have a friend who always asks that question, and it’s a pretty tough one for me.

But killers on death row often have their last meals archived. Seems like they can pretty much request anything they’d like, and it’s a pretty interesting read.

Epi Log recently wrote about how the Texas Department of Correction’s Web site used to display last meal requests (up until 2003) and some can still be seen in their archives. But sleuthing around the web I found a site that recovered list of final meals (click here to see it).

It’s fascinating if morbid reading, from suicidal murderer Charles Rumbaugh’s single flour tortilla and glass of water to shotgun-wielding killer Stanley Baker Jr., whose request makes you wonder whether he was trying to cheat the state of an execution by rupturing his own stomach. His last meal? Two 16-ounce ribeye steaks, one pound of turkey breast (sliced thin), 12 strips of bacon, two large hamburgers (with mayo, onion and lettuce), two large baked potatoes (with butter, sour cream, cheese and chives), four slices of cheese (or one-half pound of grated cheddar cheese), chef salad (with blue-cheese dressing), two ears of corn on the cob, one pint of mint chocolate-chip ice cream, and four vanilla Cokes (or Mr. Pibb).

You can also check out Dead Man Eating, a website that focuses on recent death row inmate’s last requests. The most recent?

Elijah Page, July 11, 2007 – the menu: steak with A-1 sauce, jalapeno poppers with cream sauce, onion rings, and a salad with cherry tomatoes, ham chunks, shredded cheese, bacon bits, and blue cheese and ranch dressing. He wanted lemon iced tea and coffee to drink and ice cream for dessert.

And before that?

John Washington Hightower, June 26, 2007 – the menu: had a final meal request of four fried pork chops, collard greens with boiled okra and “boiling meat”, fried corn, fried fatback, fried green tomatoes, cornbread, lemonade, one pint of strawberry ice cream and three glazed donuts.

Here’s some other good ones…

Thomas Grasso, 1995 – The signature meal in “Last Suppers”. Mr. Grasso devoured a dozen steamed mussels, a Burger King double cheeseburger with mustard, mayonnaise, lettuce and tomato, a can of Franco-American spaghetti with meatballs, a mango, half of a pumpkin pie with whipped cream, and a strawberry milkshake. But, there was a problem. Mr. Grasso had been served spaghetti and meatballs, but had actually requested Spaghetti-O’s. He did not take this slight lightly, his last words included this complaint, “I did not get my Spaghetti-O’s. I got spaghetti. I want the press to know this!”

Still not satisfied? Here’s an interview with a death row chef.

Not enough? Pick up the book My Last Supper: 50 Great Chefs and Their Final Meals, by Melanie Dunea. You can get your copy from Amazon for $26.37 or at a bookstore near you. I might have to pick up a copy for myself.

Annie Leibovitz meets Heat in this award-winning photographer’s stunning celebration of world-famous chefs and their final meals.

Chefs have been playing the “My Last Supper” game among themselves for decades, if not centuries, but it had always been kept within the profession until now. Melanie Dunea came up with the ingenious idea to ask fifty of the world’s famous chefs to let her in on this insider’s game and tell her what their final meals would be. My Last Supper showcases their fascinating answers alongside stunning Vanity Fair–style portraits. Their responses are surprising, refreshing, and as distinct from each other as the chefs themselves. The portraits—gorgeous, intimate, and playful—are informed by their answers and reveal the passions and personalities of the most respected names in the business. Lastly, one recipe from each landmark meal is included in the back of the book. With My Last Supper, Dunea found a way into the typically harried, hidden minds of the people who have turned preparing food into an art. Who wouldn’t want to know where Alain Ducasse would like his supper to be? And who would prepare Daniel Boulud’s final meal? What would Anthony Bourdain’s guest list look like? As the clock ticked, what album would Gordon Ramsay be listening to? And just what would Mario Batali eat for the last time?

Featuring: Ferrán Adrià, José Andrés, Dan Barber, Lidia Bastianich, Mario Batali, Rick Bayless, Michelle Bernstein, Daniel Boulud, Anthony Bourdain, Scott Conant, Gary Danko, Hélène Darroze, Alain Ducasse, Wylie Dufresne, Suzanne Goin, Gabrielle Hamilton, Fergus Henderson, Thomas Keller, Giorgio Locatelli, Masa Kobayashi, Nobu, Jamie Oliver, Jacques Pepin, Gordon Ramsay, Michel Richard, Eric Ripert, Marcus Samuelsson, Charlie Trotter, Jean-Georges Vongerichten and more… (from Amazon)

So what would your last meal be?

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