Clams casino is a distinctive shellfish appetizer made with a cherrystone clam, breadcrumbs, and topped with bacon. A Rhode Island dish which spread in popularity across the country like wildfire, it is a culinary survivor of one of the Ocean State’s most prominent and cherished landmarks.

Let’s revisit Narragansett Pier during a time when trains from New York and Boston transported scores of wealthy tourists to this seaside resort to enjoy the beaches, fishing piers, casinos, tennis courts, polo fields, race tracks, restaurants, and hotels—namely The Casino.

The Casino was constructed between 1883 – 1886 for the Narragansett Casino Corporation following designs by Charles F. McKim, associated with the architectural firm of McKim, Mead & White. This rambling edifice consisted of an S-shaped stone and wood-shingle structure along Ocean Rd. and Exchange St., and a smaller structure backing up to Mathewson St. The original roof shingles were laid in uneven wavy rows to look wind-battered. Purportedly McKim himself climbed the roof when it was finished and pried off some of the shingles to make the building look even more weather-beaten.

The main building of The Casino included stores, dining rooms, cafes, parlors, a billiard room, reading room, and an assembly room which served as a theater and ballroom. The Mathewson St. structure contained a bowling alley and shooting gallery. Hence, The Casino became the center of social life where the affluent were expected to appear and be noticed at lunch, dinner, and evening gala events.

Alas, on September 12, 1900, a fire started in the Rockingham Hotel, north of the Towers and swept the Exchange St. area, destroying The Casino and leaving only the stone Towers. Though the ruins were repaired 1908 – 09, the Towers remained vacant until 1924 when it reopened as a ballroom. The Great Depression of the 1930s vacated The Towers once more until 1963 when a snack bar was opened on the ground floor of the east tower. The Towers burned again in 1965.

However, during The Casino’s seabed of pretention and frivolity, the recipe for clams casino emerged in 1917.

According to 'Good Housekeeping Great American Classics,' reigning socialite, Mrs. Paran Stevens wanted something special for a luncheon she had booked at The Casino, so maitre d’hôtel, Julius Keller obliged. Mrs. Stevens named this appetizer on the half shell in honor of the hotel, and could not have foreseen how social banter would spread the popularity of clams casino beyond the Atlantic seaboard.

Though The Casino perished by fire, the legacy of clams casino lives on. One needn’t be a socialite to enjoy an appetizer once savored by the affluent. Here is the legendary recipe for clams casino serving four (John Mariani, 'The Italian American Cookbook,' published by Harvard Common Press).

Ingredients

4 tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter
2 tablespoons minced shallots
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh or bottled roasted red pepper
½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons finely chopped green bell pepper
4 teaspoons finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
4 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
Freshly ground black pepper
½ cup white wine, such as Chardonnay
24 littleneck or cherrystone clams well rinsed
3 strips bacon, each cut into 8 pieces

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 450°F.

2. In a small saucepan, combine the butter, shallots, red pepper, Worcestershire sauce, green pepper, parsley, lemon juice, and black pepper to taste. Place over low heat until the butter melts, then remove from the heat. Stir to blend, and set aside.

3. In a large sauté pan, heat the wine over medium-high heat. Add the clams, bring to a boil, and reduce the heat to medium. Cover the pan with a tight-fitting lid and let steam until the clams open, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat. Carefully remove the top shell from each clam, being careful not to spill the liquid surrounding the clam. Discard any clams that have not opened.

4. Spoon the butter sauce over each clam, and top with a piece of bacon. Arrange the clams in a baking pan, and bake for 5 minutes. Increase the oven temperature to broil. Heat the clams under the broiler for 2 to 3 minutes, until the bacon crisps a bit, and serve.

Like The Towers which survived The Casino fires as well as the Hurricane of 1938, clams casino reigns in social prominence long after Narragansett Pier’s heyday at the turn of the twentieth century. A gracious nod to hostess with the mostest, Mrs. Paran Stevens, for her brilliant suggestion, and to maitre d’hôtel, Julius Keller for his culinary genius.

Minding our table manners, let’s be discreet in using our appetizer forks to scrape every breadcrumb and bacon bit from the half shell.