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fifty years Bernard Sbisa served Texas A&M. In fact, he quite
literally served the school. As Steward of the College he was
responsible for serving three meals a day to A&M students.
Sbisa, pronounced "spee-za," was born in Austria in 1843
and at age five moved with his family to New Orleans. Growing up
in the Crescent City, he attended the best private schools. He
studied at the Feins School of Languages in preparation for a
academic career.
However, it was the tradition of grand hotels
and fine restaurants of the city that held his interest. He
trained with the best of New Orleans' hotel managers and chefs. In
1864, he opened the Commercial Hotel in Matamoros, Mexico.
By 1868, he had returned to the United States
and opened the Washington Hotel and Restaurant in Galveston. In
1874 he built the Grand Southern Hotel which unfortunately was
destroyed by fire three years later.
After a brief association with the Tremont
House, Sbisa left Galveston for College Station to become manager
of the Subsistence Department of the Agricultural and Mechanical
college of Texas. He lived in a small room in Gathright Hall,
known at the time as Stewards Hall, to be close to his work.
His family had to take rooms in Bryan because of the severe
shortage of suitable housing on the campus.
Sbisa was soon named Steward of the College. For
half a century the "dapper" little man used his culinary
artistry and talents to please and educate the palates of
students, faculty and guests to the campus. Working first from
Gathright Hall and then from the Mess Hall (constructed 1897),
Sbisa built a statewide reputation for the preparation of fine
food served on an enormous scale.
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By the turn of the century it was not unusual
for the Mess Hall to host more than a thousand people on
Thanksgiving. His "monster turkey dinner" was said by
A&M students to be the "best in the world." Not only
did he served members of the Cadet Corps their regular three meals
a day but he also catered campus banquets and parties. For special
occasions, such as the traditional Senior Banquet, he pulled out
all the stops. There were multi-course affairs featuring oyster
cocktail, soups, stuffing, lavish deserts, wine and even cigars to
finish off the meal. He was an artist whose craft brought rave
reviews.
In all of his years at Texas A&M, Sbisa was
late only once in serving a meal. In the early morning hours of
November 11, 1911 the stately Mess Hall caught fire and burned to
the ground. This was a double tragedy for Sbisa. Not only did he
lose his place of work but he also lost his home. His second floor
apartment above the dining hall, where he and his family lived,
was destroyed along with nearly all of their worldly possessions.
Even this did not deter the dedicated Sbisa. He borrowed portable
kitchen equipment used by the Corps on field maneuvers and managed
to serve breakfast to the students by 10:30 a.m. For the next
year, while the school constructed a new dinning facility, Sbisa
performed miracles keeping the cadets fed. With the opening of the
new mess hall, it seemed only fitting to name it in honor of the
man who had done so much for the school. Sbisa Hall still stands
as a monument to his spirit, dedications and professionalism.
Bernard Sbisa never fully retired from Texas
A&M. In his later years he became an advisor to the
Subsistence Department so he could keep an eye on the organization
he had created. He died in Cuba in 1928 while visiting his
daughter.
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