 The "New York Times" reported that “Pie à la Mode” was first invented by Townsend at the Cambridge Hotel in Cambridge, New York in the late 1800s.It was later reported by several sources that Townsend ordered pie and ice cream at the Cambridge Hotel in 1896, and thus invented the dessert.The legend also states that a reporter from "The Sun" newspaper in New York overheard a conversation between the manager of Delmonico's Restaurant and Charles Townsend.