The Still-Popular Breakfast Brand That Was Enjoyed On The Titanic

The tragedy of the Titanic still captures people's attention over a century after the ocean liner struck an iceberg and sank to the bottom of the Atlantic. The "unsinkable" ship was already an icon when it set sail, thanks to the service and luxury it provided to passengers in first, second, and even third classes. One thing that especially piques people's interest is the opulent dining experienced by the first-class passengers, which included daily 11-course French-style dinners, but it's worth noting that second-class passengers ate food similar to what was served in hotels at the time, and while third-class passengers ate simpler fare, there was plenty of it.

When it comes to the most important meal of the day — breakfast — the menu wasn't as formal as dinner, and it offered plenty of choices for passengers in every class. Found among the breakfast foods passengers ate on the Titanic, Quaker Oats is one that's still commonly eaten today and was on the breakfast menu of all three classes aboard. According to the Titanic Belfast attraction website, in first class, passengers were offered Quaker Oats and puffed rice,  which was also a Quaker product. The oatmeal for second-class passengers was called rolled oats, and in third class, it was called oatmeal porridge and milk.

Regardless of how they are served, oats have been a breakfast staple in Europe since medieval times. Quaker Oats was officially trademarked in Ohio in 1877, and by the early 1900s, the cereal was found on tables across the U.S. Given its popularity on both sides of the pond, it's not surprising that it was served to passengers on the Titanic. In addition to Quaker Oats, first-class passengers were offered a lavish buffet that included buckwheat cakes, scones, and cornbread served with blackcurrant conserve, honey, or marmalade. The breakfast menu also included cold meats, fresh herring, smoked salmon, and made-to-order omelets. Because it was not a fixed, multi-course menu like dinner, items like sirloin steak and mutton chops were offered, too. How first class-passengers took their steak aboard the Titanic varied, and they also had three options for how their potatoes were served: mashed, baked, or sauteed.

Among the interesting Quaker Oats facts you need to know, there's another connection between the cereal brand and the Titanic. Walter Douglas, a multi-millionaire and entrepreneur who sat on the board of Quaker Oats (a company at which his father had once been a partner), was aboard the Titanic when it sank. Douglas and his wife, Mahala, were returning from a European vacation. Douglas helped women and children board lifeboats and dressed in his finest eveningwear and lowered the last lifeboat off the ship.