Are You Hungry? Cookbook

     The French Hospital was the first public hospital in Los Angeles.  Founded in 1860 during a smallpox scare by a group of primarily French Protestant immigrants, joining Los Angeles’s other hospital, the Catholic St. Vincent’s. 

 

4 years after this cookbook’s publication, The French Hospital celebrated its 125th birthday with a 6 foot tall cake and a presentation by then Los Angeles Mayor, Tom Bradley. 

 

Later known as the Pacific Alliance Medical Center, it was long Chinatown’s only hospital, where staff no longer spoke French but did speak over 25 languages, including Mandarin Cantonese, Toishan, Zhongshan, Vietnamese, and Spanish. Located at the corner of College and Hill Streets, the hospital closed due to financial issues in 2017, but the building continues to house an urgent care facility.