Come Fly With Me

Montreal

2011-07-29T07:35:00.000-07:00

Montreal was a real treat (albeit completely different than Quebec City). Quebec City has that certain "European-charm"--clear streets, gorgeous historic buildings, horse drawn carriages etc. Montreal is a more diverse city and comes with a side dish of steaming hot metropolitan culture. After taking a walking tour of Montreal, we visited the Notre Dam Cathedral of Montreal. BREATHTAKINGLY beautiful interior. After indulging on this architectural delicacy, we took a bus out to the Biodome where were visited the 4 ecospheres: tropical, temperate, coastal and arctic. I actually already visited the Biodome the first time I ventured to Quebec 11 years ago (but it was still nice to re-explore the Biodome). After we made our way back to the city center Alanna and I met up with our host family and had dinner in a charming little neighborhood just outside of the city center. Our host dad is a professional photographer and he showed us his amazing work and he also gave me tips on how to use my DSLR camera.

Later that evening we met up with Alanna's cousin and found a good spot to watch the fireworks competition that's being held in Montreal this entire summer. We saw Canada's official entry into the competition. It was an amazing show based around the theme of "love." The fireworks lasted for 30 minutes, and our view from the bridge was just spectacular :)

The next morning I headed uptown to meet up with my friend Catherine who was in the same residential college as me at Yale. We grabbed brunch at a wonderful restaurant called Lawrence. I opted for the d'oeufs champignon--yum! The mushrooms were so rich and buttery, and the iced cafe au lait was to die for.

After brunch, Catherine and I decided to take a mini-culinary tour of Montreal. We grabbed Montreal-style bagels at Fairmount Bagel (they hand roll the dough, soak the bagels in honeywater, and then bake them in a brick oven over an open flame. HEAVEN!) The bagels are much smaller than New York style bagels and are quite sweet. Fairmount Bagel coats there in poppy seeds, and when you order one at the counter, it comes piping hot out of the oven and into your hand (all for 75 cents).

After our trip to the bagel shop, we made our way to a patisserie which as "better Croissants than Paris!" I opted to get an almond croissant to go. It was delicious, but I have to admit that I am a diehard fan of Croissant D'or in New Orleans.

Finally, we made our way to Shuartz's--famous smoked meat establishment in Montreal. The line outside the diner was 2 hours long! Luckily for us, there is also a take-out counter adjacent to the diner. After thirty-minutes in line, we finally ordered our smoked meat sandwiches on white bread with lots of mustard, and a black cherry cola on the side. Perfection!

After lunch, I said goodbye to Catherine, and headed to the large city park to meet up with Alanna, our host family and Alanna's cousin for the weekly musical gathering: Tamtam. For an hour or so we listened to the syncopated rhythms of African drums echoing throughout the park. There were a few hundred people enjoying the music, basking in the sun and dancing. After a while we walked a bit further into the park to check out the life action role play (people who dress up in mediaeval garb and fight one another with faux weapons).

All in all a wonderful experience in Montreal!

Parc National de la Mauricie

2011-07-17T09:04:00.001-07:00

Yesterday, we all headed out to Shawinigan for a day at Mauricie national park. We took a group hike, swam in the lake, sunbathed and made our way to a cascading waterfall to cool off. It was a stunningly beautiful day, and I think we all were appreciative of the natural landscape that Quebec has to offer.

Here are some photos from the trip:

FestiVOIX

2011-07-17T08:50:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago Trish, Amanda and I decided to attend the music festival in Trois-Rivieres. We opted to see Inxs, perhaps best known for their 80s pop hits like "Never Tear Us Apart:" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2oRI1-PznQw

The concert was good, and we couldn't help but laugh because the new head singer of Inxs was Russell Brand reincarnate a la Forgetting Sarah Marshall. After the concert, we agreed to have a girls night in later that week and watch Music and Lyrics.

Chez Dany

2011-07-16T19:15:00.001-07:00

The original maple syrup cabin:

Playing spoons!

Do you like maple syrup? Then you will certainly like Chez Dany--a sugar cabin restaurant near Trois-Rivieres. Yesterday, we headed out to have dinner and dance at Chez Dany. The food was traditional Quebecoise cuisine: consisting mainly of maple syrup, ham and peas. The meal started with yellow pea soup, moved on to roasted ham, ham quiche, ham and beans, fried potatoes, beets and meat pie, and finally ended with pancakes and coffee. Every course of the meal was eaten with maple syrup (except the pea soup). People love the maple syrup so much that they keep it in an easy-pour Tupperware container...!

While we feasted on ham and maple syrup, we listened to the Quebecoise chanteuse who was playing the wooden spoons and singing traditional Quebec songs. However, after the main course was served, the traditional Quebec tunes stopped and the DJ started playing a melange of the most bizarre dance songs including the Macarena and current pop hits by the Black Eyed Peas and other American artists. Everyone got up and danced and danced, and then danced some more. It was so great (albeit, the cultural melting pot was a bit strange!)

After we finished our dessert and coffee, we headed outside to eat maple candy (maple syrup cooled on ice and then twirled onto a wooden stick).

The singer and some of my fellow students:

Quebec Day 2

2011-07-16T18:57:00.000-07:00

After enjoying a lovely breakfast with our host family, we spent the remainder of the day with Yvan (one of our hosts). We walked long the Plains of Abraham (where the British conquered the French in 1759, claiming Quebec as a part of Great Britain), we passed through the Jean d'Arc (Joan of Arc) park, we visited Parliament and took a guided tour, grabbed lunch at a falafel restaurant and went to an afternoon music concert. It was a great day in the beautiful city of Quebec.

Joan of Arc gardens:

Yvan, Alanna and Me:

View of Parliament:

Stained glass inside of Parliament:

Chambers inside Parliament:

I love the image of this boat and the flags (near a open air performance area):
At the end of our journey through Quebec, we met up again with both of our hosts and took a tour of the local farmers' market. Alanna and I bought some apple butter (delicious!) and tried some local Quebecois cheeses. A great adventure, indeed!

Quebec Day 1

2011-07-16T18:21:00.000-07:00

The day after St. Quentin, we made our way to Quebec City. I absolutely adore Quebec City. The French colonial architecture is stunning, the city is impeccably clean and the weather on this trip was perfect. In the morning we took a guided tour of the city: we visited Parliament, the Vieux Quebec, and many other historic sights. There were many tourists in Quebec because there was a giant music festival that week (Elton John performed on Saturday evening).

After our walking tour, we met up with some of the other students in the program for a historic tour of the Chateau Frontenac, which is now a 5-star hotel. The tour guides who work at the Chateau wear historic costumes and are wonderful actors and actresses. On our tour we learned about the world class restaurant, the bee keepers who keep hives on the garden terraces of the Chateau, the special breed of hens that can withstand the cold of the Quebec winter, the general history of the founding of Quebec City and the hotel, and much more. The 40 minute tour was jammed packed with amazing details!

In the early evening, my friend Alanna and I met up with our hosts, who were incredibly kind and generous. They invited us to dinner at their home to meet their friends. Alanna and I were happy to accept.

Before dinner, Alanna, Amanda, Trish and I attended mass in Vieux Quebec, and then Alanna and I returned to our hosts' home for supper. It was wonderful practice to speak French with francophones! After our delicious supper, our hosts departed for the Elton John concert, and Alanna and I made our way to the center of town to get in line for the free Cirque du Soleil show. We met up with a few friends there and rushed through the gates with the rest of the crowd to try and hunt out a good spot to see the spectacle! After some quick negotiating with the neighbors to my right and my left I was able to get a half decent view of the stage (although I did feel a bit guilty for blocking the view of the people behind me...I'm a bit tall!) While we waited for the show to start, a few performers meandered through the crowd and interacted with the audience members (turning baseball caps backwards, miming at various people)--we were all so excited to see the show!

There were several parts to the stage, and a catwalk that stretched out into the audience right next to where we were standing. During the show, some artists would perform at the end of the catwalk (providing us an excellent view!) At one point there was a performer who was whirling 10 different hula hoops on her body at one time--she was the image of grace and strength. The show was also special because it was an outdoor performance so the entire arena was lit by the full moon (in addition to the stage lighting).

After the Cirque du Soleil, we visited la rue grande allee. It seemed that all of Quebec was hanging out and socializing on la rue grande allee that night! The best part? I saw the biggest mirror ball I have ever encountered in my life! It must have been about 8 feet in diameter...it was suspended about Chez Dagobear (a dance club). I couldn't help but think of my Yale friends who have a thing for disco balls.

Horse drinking out of a special fountain for draft animals:

Beautiful flags:

I love this building (the red and white colors are stunning):

Heading toward the Vieux Quebec:

View of Vieux Quebec:

A church in the center of the historic district:

Scores of sailboats on the river:

Chateau Frontenac:

Alanna at at our host's dinner:

Cirque du Soleil:
Giant Mirror Ball:

ON SORT À L'ÎLE!

2011-07-16T18:09:00.001-07:00

The second Friday of the program we visited Saint Quentin island at the mouth of the river. We packed our lunches, bathing suits and beach reading (I had just bought a copy of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in French, so I brought that along). The island was crowded with Trifleuviens searching for a respite from the summer heat. Once we got of the buses, we made our way to the far corner of the beach. We set up volleyball nets, played music and created a colorful patchwork of beach towels on the sand. Trish and I took a walk along the coast and tried our hands at amateur nature photography (traversing the precarious rocky coast to get decent shots of the coast line). After our little promenade we returned to the beach to enjoy the sunshine and catch up on reading. My friend Amanda was kind enough to buy us all a much needed beer.

Le Sanctuaire Notre-Dame-du-Cap

2011-07-16T17:56:00.000-07:00

We also visited a local sanctuary on our guided tour of the downtown area. The sanctuary is situated about 20 minutes outside of the center of the city and has a beautiful view of the river. The architecture is fairly modern--the basilica was built in the late 1950s. I enjoyed walking around the sculpture garden where they had bronze depictions of all of the stations of the cross and other important biblical scenes.

Trois-Rivieres

2011-07-16T17:47:00.001-07:00

Trois-Rivieres means "Three Rivers" in French. The city was named as such because at the mouth of the central river there are three isles which split the river into three parts. The original explorers of the city believed that there were three distinct rivers, but that is actually not the case (there is only 1).

The city is quaint with many meandering lanes and beautifully maintained gardens. The main part of town and most of the social life is situated on Boulevard de Forges. The first week we arrived in Trois-Rivieres there was a 10-day long musical festival called Festivoix ("Festivoice") going on in the center of the city.

In general, I really enjoy living here. The summer is splendid with temperatures ranging from 70-85 degrees. There are many bike paths throughout the city, and I rented a bike for free and like to go on rides with my friends. The Trifleuviens are very sporty and love biking, hiking, roller blading and many other kinds of outdoor activities. I've seen entire families using the bike trails and I have seen 85 year old men with walkers meandering along the paths here. In summertime, everyone takes advantage of the nice weather.

Fête Nationale

2011-07-16T17:14:00.000-07:00

For the past few weeks I have been living in Trois-Rivieres, Canada to attend a French immersion program. I'm here with my fellow Duke classmate, Trish. We are having a fantastic time speaking and learning French! I thought I would catch y'all up on what has been happening over the past few weeks...

July 1 is Canada Day and L'École internationale de français de l'UQTR hosted their first fête (party) in the theme of: Rouge et Blanc (red and white)! All of the students at the immersion program crafted costumes, donned Canadian flags and prepared for a night of dancing.

I went to the party as the La dame de coeur (The Queen of Hearts). There were many fun costumes: pirates, maple leafs, Pierre from Ou est Pierre? (the French version of Where is Waldo?) A few of my friends and I won prizes for our costumes: tickets to see Eclyps (a theatrical and circus spectacle in Shawinigan, Canada). On the following Wednesday, we took taxis to the next town over and attended this amazing show! The spectacle is based on the story of the citizens of the moon who are threatened by an upcoming eclipse. These moon citizens send a messenger to "the green planet" to find someone to believe in the moon people (because belief in their existence will magically save them). The show ends happily with a little boy saying, "Je crois, je crois!" (I believe, I believe!)

The theater of Eclyps was situated outdoors on a rotating stage. The backdrop of the first few scenes was sunset and a few moments of twilight (beautiful!) Then the stage turned and the forest was lit spectacularly for the scenes which depicted the birth of the universe and the creation of the moon by the "ancient mysteries." I would liken Eclyps to Cirque du Soleil with its bizarre costumes and quirky plot. The circus aspects of the spectacle were absolutely fantastic! My favorite part was a scene involving trampolines and nearly a dozen individuals bounding off of a series of trampolines in synchronization!

Here is the link for the show:

http://www.citedelenergie.com/fr/index.aspx

SFA Cajun Country Field Trip: Savoy, Crawfish and Smothered Lunch

2011-06-26T15:32:00.000-07:00

The third day of the Southern Foodways Alliance field trip was just as spectacular as the previous two days. We started off our morning with Royal Cup Coffee (a sponsor of the SFA), fried boudin balls on homemade biscuits with cane syrup drizzled on top, and various other breakfast foods...then we settled down for some good conversation, and waited to head to the Savoy Music Center for a Saturday morning jam session--a must in Cajun Country. Just a short trip down I-90, you see the big sign of Savoy's a callin' your name! Some omnipresence seemed to say, Come celebrate! Listen to some classic Cajun hits! At Savoy's anyone and everyone is welcome to join the band (as long as you don't try to upstage the veterans!)

We spent and hour listening to the raucous accordions, the deft and nimble fiddles, and the harmonious guitars. Every so often, a Cajun singer would belt out a love ballad in Cajun French. Spectacular!

Music in the morning was followed by a trip out to a Crawfish farm to hear about the art of raisin' crawfish in the bayou! The farmer was a charmer, and his family is known for streamlining the crawfish industry in Louisiana.

Soon enough our tummies started rumbling and we headed to La Village for a Cajun plate lunch meal. The SFA brought in smothered dishes from some of the most famous Cajun plate lunch joints in Acadiana: smothered rabbit, smothered cabbage, smothered okra, and short rice with dark gravy.

Chef Pablo spoke about smothering in New Iberia, and Rien Fertel spoke about his oral history project on plate lunch eateries in Cajun Country. It was a great afternoon, and a spectacular lunch. The smothered rabbit was to die for, honestly!

SFA Cajun Country Field Trip: Hawk's

2011-06-26T14:55:00.000-07:00

Ever been to a crawfish boil? If you have not, you need to get to one, and fast! It is the ultimate community event where personal space disappears and merriment fills the void! You eat from a communal plate, you break apart boiled potatoes with your hands to share, and you pass around corn on the cob. "That's just the way it is. It's communal."

The Southern Foodways Alliance crawfish boil at Hawk's was my first. Granted, it was not a community, side-of-the-road crawfish boil that you see in New Orleans, but it was pretty darn close.

Hawk's specializes in crawfish, and prides itself on the "purging" technique it employs to cleanse the crawfish of their "muddy" taste. This purging process involves soaking the live critters in a series salt water vats for at least 24 hours: this ensures that "the fat is golden yellow." You might be thinking at this point, What does she mean by "the fat." Well, once you pull the tail of the crawfish from the head, and you have a look inside the cavernous tete, you'll more than likely see a glob of bright yellow fat. Louisianans treat this as a delicacy: digging their finger into the head to scoop out the fat...or in some cases, putting their lips right on the head and sucking out the fat. Yup. That happens...

While we waited for Hawk's to start the boil, we all grabbed beers or cocktails at the open bar and settled down for some good conversation. I sat with Mr. Patout (the man I ran into in front of Quarter Grocery), Fern, Jim and Carol--my gang for the evening. We were a team on a mission: to eat crawfish, a lot of crawfish. Anticipation mounted as we saw servers bringing out plastic buckets of crawfish to the tables near the front of the restaurant. In preparation, Fern urged me to tape my thumbs with duck tape so that they would not get sore from peeling off dozens upon dozens of exoskeletons.

These are the steppes I learned:

1) Pick out your boiled crawfish

2) Pull the tail from the head

3) Suck the head for the fat or use your pinkie finger to extract the fat, and then suck on your finger

4) pinch the tail of the crawfish so it cracks the exoskeleton, pull off the tail piece, and fish out the meaty crawfish to pop in your mouth...enjoy!

Together, our table ate 6 buckets of crawfish. Fern was the champion, finishing 2.5 on her own. At the end of our supper, our hands were stained with crawfish juice the color of saffron. There was juice everywhere. To put it simply, washing one's hands after a crawfish boil is not sufficient, you truly need to take a shower.

SFA Cajun Country Field Trip: Rice Farm

2011-06-26T14:41:00.000-07:00

After dining at Mowata's we headed out to visit a nearby rice farm. Mr. Uncle, the farmer who was kind enough to host us at his farm, was a pleasure to meet. He had a very friendly disposition that won over everyone in the crowd. He spoke to us about his philosophy on farming and how every part of the natural environment is key for growing nutrient rich crops; he does not weed his fields, arguing that weeds have important roles to play in enriching soil nutrients etc.

He also showed us to the mill where his grain is processed and then packaged. His rice is sold under the name: Cajun Grain. He has a wonderful mix of grain: my favorite was aromatic jasmine and red rice.

Mr. Uncle has found a niche market throughout Louisiana at restaurants like Cochon, who serve his rice in a particular shrimp dish.

SFA Cajun Country Field Trip: Mowata

2011-06-26T14:18:00.000-07:00

The story goes that Mowata, Louisiana was supposed to be named "More Water." The original settlers apparently needed more water, and wanted to name the settlement that as a sort of ironic testament to their current condition. But, the accent was misunderstood, and the town went down in the books as Mowata instead. You can judge whether or not this is a likely story...

Anyway, our culinary tour in Cajun Country started with Bubba Frey at the Mowata Store. Bubba spoke about his livelihood making boudin: a German-inspired sausage traditionally encased in intestine and filled with pork, Louisiana rice, and a lot of spice. There are typically two kinds of boudin: white boudin or red boudin (or blood sausage). Last Friday we tried white Boudin--it was delicious! Bubba Frey said that we could eat the casings if we wanted to, but I opted to just eat the filling this time. In addition to boudin there were sweet pickles and fig jam (from "the biggest fig tree in the world.")

After we ate lunch, Marcelle Bienvenu gave a talk on Cajun and Creole Gumbo and the general distinctions between various gumbos. She was wonderfully entertaining. I could listen to her speak all day. A few years ago, I met her at a book signing and I got my mother a copy of her book on pecans...pecans can be temperamental if you do not watch them very carefully, but if you baby them a bit, they turn out wonderful!

SFA Cajun Country Field Trip: Calcasieu

2011-06-26T13:11:00.000-07:00

For the past few days, I joined the Southern Foodways Alliance crew for the Cajun Country Ramble...a culinary field trip to Eunice, Louisiana. We started the 3-day event in New Orleans at Donald Link's restaurant, Calcasiue. After sipping on a few Pontchartrain cocktails and biting into a wonderful array of charcuterie, we sat down for a Cajun-inspired dinner. After feasting on yeast rolls, a waiter came over to our table to inform us that they were going to add another place setting. I scooted over to the left a bit, and they fixed the table. Soon enough, Chef Paul Pruhdomme sat down across the table from me. What a treat to have THE celebrity chef of Cajun cooking sharing a dining table with you. The meal was delicious: smothered greens, smothered pork, crawfish pie, fried boudin balls, catfish courtbouillon, shrimp and eggplant casserole, chicken andouille gumbo and pecan pie a la mode for dessert. After dinner, we headed back to hotel for some shut-eye before waking up at 6:45 the next morning!

Andouille Sausage:

Chicken Andouille Gumbo:

Shrimp and Eggplant Casserole:

Catfish Courtbouillon:

Pecan Pie a la Mode:

Quarter Grocery

2011-06-26T05:56:00.000-07:00

Walking by Quarter Grocery on Bourbon Street and Ursulines Street, you might think this place was only a liquor store. But it is so much more. Once you look beyond the liquor lined shelves, past the rows of snacks and other junk food, you find yourself staring at a lunch counter.

As I was walking through the quarter one morning, I ran into Mr. Patout, a friend of Liz and Rick's. He was walking out of Quarter Grocery and told me that I should try the breakfast sandwiches there. Why not? I stepped inside, peered around a few shelves, walked past a few cases of beer and saw the corner of a menu board. Phew! I ordered the egg and bacon breakfast sandwich. I was a bit surprised how expensive it was $4.25, but shrugged off the price because I was in the French Quarter--prices are always inflated here. I was expecting your typical breakfast sandwich: egg, cheese and bacon on a croissant. In stead I got an 8-inch long French bread breakfast sandwich that could have fed half of my family (no wonder it was pricey!)

The best part? The bread! The French bread was still so soft this morning, even the crust was soft because it had come out of the oven only a few ours before.

Preservation Hall and Camellia Grill

2011-06-26T05:25:00.000-07:00

Last Tuesday, a few friends and I planned to head to Preservation Hall--a music venue in New Orleans built for the sole purpose of preserving traditional New Orleans Jazz (Arguably, one of the greatest contributions America has made to the world stage of culture). Like any great music or culinary venue in New Orleans, you have to get in line to get in. So, an hour and 15 minutes before show time, I arrived in front of the weathered wooden exterior of Preservation Hall. My friend Angela was there waiting for me (we were second in line!)

More and more friends joined us in the que as we waited to be admitted inside. By 7:25 about 35 people were lined up along St. Peter's, and by 7:55 there were about 50 would-be jazz enthusiasts eagerly peering over heads to see if the line was moving.

At 8:00 on the dot, the ticket master stepped out onto the sidewalk and bellowed: "Cash only! Exact change is greatly appreciated! 12 dollars! Cash ONLY!" Upon hearing his announcement, a tangible ripple of excitement ran down the que. We quickly started to file into Preservation Hall. The venue is quite small. Probably 20 by 30 feet. The band is set up on one side of the room, and an array of floor cushions, wooden benches and standing room make up the rest of the space. We snagged a great seat in the first row of benches. People filed in front of us, around us, beside us...the place was packed!

Soon enough, the emcee came in and gave a grand announcement. He threw out jokes like beads on Mardi Gras day...one after the other. He was charming. After a few seconds of silence, the band came to the "stage." I was sitting about 6 feet away from the lead trumpet. AWESOME!

The music was s-p-e-c-t-a-c-u-l-a-r! I would even describe it as magical. The improvinization had the ability to sweep you back to the 1920s--a musical time machine. The set is short and sweet and leaves you craving more: only 45 minutes! All of the musicians took turns singing in addition to playing their instruments...such talent! One audience member placed a large tip in the hat-shaped tip jar to hear "When the Saints Go Marchin' In." Everyone clapped along, and wooped with glee.

After the concert, a few of us decided to grab a late night snack at Camellia Grill. When we arrived, the place was virtually empty, but the staff was markedly more friendly at this location than at the Carrolton location. One of the waiters taught us a song he made up about Camellia Grill that had lyrics such as, "Come one, come all. To the downtown Camellia Grill!" We were his chorus, and we made up harmonies and what not. It was really fun. In the meantime we ordered burgers and split some pecan pie. The burgers were tremendously delicious, as usual, and the pecan pie a la mode was stellar.

What a perfect night in the Quarter! Go see Charlie Gabriel's Preservation Hall-stars!

Mother's (est. 1938)

2011-06-23T12:49:00.000-07:00

Mother's is one of those institutions in New Orleans that always has a line no matter what time of day....I remember the first time I passed by Mother's nearly two years ago. I was with my friend Connie, and she said that I had to go to Mother's!

It took me a while to get there, but the other morning I stopped by for a late breakfast. I opted for the Jerry's omelet, which came with a biscuit and grits. I didn't mind standing in line: people watching combined with the ephemera on the walls was entertainment enough. One of my favorite kitchy artifacts with the Budweiser clock: shaped like an old fashion carriage with eight horses pulling it along an invisible track. This clock might have seemed out of place in another restaurant, but it fit right in to the Mother's scene.

The menu at Mother's is quite special. The back of the menu tells the history of Mother's and also shares the restaurant's Katrina story. After one month, many of the Mother's restaurant staff moved back to New Orleans in September. Many of the them lost their homes in the storm, "so nine FEMA trailers were secured and set up in our parking lot. Our mother's family, Pat, Shirley, Lydia, Sandra, Roland, James, Betty, Duke and Philip, along with their families, constituted a new little neighborhood next door to the restaurant for the next nine months." On October 15, 2005, Mother's reopened to the public. The menu states, "Vice Admiral Thad Allen, the head of the disaster relief effort in New Orleans, was our first customer."

My favorite quote: "The power of food, especially New Orleans cuisine, to comfort the soul and nourish the spirit as well as the body, is amazing but a fact witnessed here in the ensuing months as returning locals and the wonderful disaster personnel who flocked to our city frequented Mother's in droves."

CC's

2011-06-23T12:45:00.000-07:00

Well, I have to have a post about Community Coffee (fondly called CC's here in New Orleans). You can identify CC's by the cranberry red and cream signs swinging all throughout New Orleans proper. I like their lattes, and tried their chocolate coffee latte the other morning. The staff is always friendly, and they provide free wi-fi!

Wayne's World

2011-06-23T12:40:00.001-07:00

On Sunday I met up with some of the Robertson Scholars from the Duke-UNC Chapel Hill program. We went tubing on the Bogue Chitto River (pronounced bow-ga-chih-dah). After driving over lake Pontchartrain via the Causeway, through some countryside, we finally made it to Wayne's World Canoeing and Tubing. We rented our water vessels for $15 a person, and picked out a special inter tube for our cooler and set off for a lazy afternoon on a lazy river. It was a wonderful treat to stay cool on such a hot summer day (97 degrees!) We floated for about 5.5 hours. It was nice to catch up with old friends and meet new people.

City of New Orleans with Rich Campanella

2011-06-23T12:24:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday, I joined the Bulldogs in the Big Easy Yalies for a day-long tour of New Orleans conducted by Rich Campanella--professor of Geography at Tulane University. The tour was fantastic! Rich knew the city like the back of his hand. We went from Audubon Park to the River front down through the warehouse district, the French Quarter, Marigny, Bywater, the 9th ward, Versailles, back through Treme and then finally made our way back up to Tulane. He has a wonderful understanding of the architecture of New Orleans, the demography of the city, its natural landscape and a wealth of statistics. I felt instantly smarter having spent a few hours with him.

The whole group stopped for lunch in Versailles. We tried to go to a Vietnamese restaurant called Ba Mien, but it was closed because of a wedding. We tried another Veitnamese restaurant, and they were also closed because of the wedding (it must have been a large community event). Finally, we settled on a Vietnamese owned and operated po'boy shop. I would never have found this place on my own because it was sandwiched in a strip mall next to a laundromat. The po'boy shop was called Easy Seafood & Po-boys. Delicious oyster po'boy! There was something really fresh about the bread. YUM!

After the tour, I walked downtown with Rich (all 5.5 miles). Then I went to the Southern Food and Beverage Museum for their sno-ball event. I even got to operate a sno-ball machine and douse cups of shaved ice with watermelon and pineapple syrups!

Lemon Pie

2011-06-17T16:34:00.001-07:00

I've been thinking a lot about my first Hubig's pie experience a few weeks ago. I had an apple flavored Hubig's pie, and was so hungry that I really didn't get to eat it properly...there's a whole process to eating Hubig's pies, and in order to do Hubig's justice, I thought I should follow all of the steps...

This time I opted for a lemon flavored Hubig's in honor of my friend Ms. Ruth.

Step 1:

Buy a Hubig's pie at your local liquer store, art gallery, Rousse's etc. Have $1.09 and some change available.

Step 2:

Unwrap the Hubig's

Step 3: Microwave the Hubig's for 30 seconds

Step 4: Plate the Hubig's and scoop vanilla ice cream on top (if availalbe)

Step 5: ENJOY!

Leah Chase and Carol Allen

2011-06-17T15:46:00.000-07:00

I met Carol Allen, the author of Leah Chase's biography at the Ladies in Red Gala last week. She was so kind to me and agreed to take me to lunch at Dooky Chase's to meet Leah Chase, "the Queen of Creole Cooks." Quel Bonheur! She picked me up in the Quarter today and we drove to the restaurant. When we arrived, we were immediately greeted by Mr. Dooky Chase himself. Carol introduced me to him, and he was so excited to hear that I was researching Lena Richard. What a precious older gentleman...he had such a twinkle in his eye, and he proudly wore his white apron and white baseball cap! Then, Leah and Dooky's daughter, Stella, said hello to us and asked us to take a seat while they prepared our table.

Within the first minute of being at Dooky Chase's, I felt like I was with a celebrity guest...but in this case, a good friend of the family. In the eyes of the Chase family, friends and family are the most special guests of all. As I sat in the little parlor making pleasant small talk with Carol, I peered around me. The bar area to my left was painted emerald green and had these beautiful foggy blown glass light fixtures with little flecks of emerald green and ruby red in them. I really liked the color combination in the room. The parlor was filled with a few larger photos: President Obama hugging Leah Chase; President Obama tucking a red napkin into the neck of his shirt, with a huge boyish grin on his face; George W. Bush sitting down for a meal at the restaurant; and a sketching of Leah Chase and Tiana from Disney Pixar's Princess and the Frog (2009) signed by none other than John Lasseter (head of Walt Disney Animation Studios), Ron Clements and a few other animators...did you know that Tiana was modeled after Leah Chase? During the 1940s, Leah had worked as a waitress in New Orleans' restaurants, and all the while dreamt of opening up her own restaurant, and eventually did (sound familiar?)

After a few minutes, we were seated in one of the three dining rooms: this one was painted cranberry red and featured folk art from black artists. The colors in the paintings were spectacular. There are two other dining rooms at Dooky Chase's. One is painted the color of whipped hollandaise sauce, the other of cool honeydew. Carol recommended that I have the buffet, and our lovely waitress suggested that I try the lemonade. She said, "This is your first time here? Then you have to have the lemonade!" It was really good lemonade. Then our cup of okra gumbo came out: you could see the little okra seeds floating around in the stew. It was a really dark gumbo, quite thick too. There was shrimp, rice and nothing but gumbo goodness...simple and delicious.

Within 10 minutes, Mrs. Chase made her way over to our table. She was wearing a pumpkin colored chef's smock with a striped white and purple shirt underneath. She said hello to Carol and me and sat down at our table for a chat...which lasted 2 hours! What a treat! She spoke about her childhood, Lena Richard, operating a restaurant during World War II, early television and famous black cooks: including Mandy Lee and Freda DeKnight. I was so busy chatting with Mrs. Chase, that Carol offered to fill my plate up from the buffet. Delicious egg salad, potato salad, beets, tuna salad, and fresh watermelon. It reminded me of summer picnics in Pittsburgh, but had a distinctive taste...quite different from what I was used to (aka my Grandma Rose's salads)

We continued to chat, and Mrs. Chase said, "I don't want to prevent you from eating. Eat up!" and then she had another plate fixed for me with fried chicken and eggplant casserole. The fried chicken was the best fried chicken I ever had in MY LIFE. It came right out of the oven, was hot hot hot and full of flavor. The dark meet was so tender, and the breading so light and crispy. YUUUUM! The eggplant casserole was full of shrimp and other delicious flavors that I could not quite put my finger on...

At the end of the meal we had peach cobbler. It was a nice sweet treat to top of a once in a lifetime meal.

Thanks for sharing your memories, Mrs. Chase!

Ahoy! Port of Call!

2011-06-17T15:10:00.000-07:00

Ages ago, Scott Sullivan, the head of the Yale Club of New Orleans told me about the burgers at Port of Call. He exclaimed: "Why, they are the simply the BEST burgers in New Orleans! You must go there!"

Naturally, I placed Port of Call on my growing list of "must eat" places in New Orleans (this list now exceeded the length of a typical loaf of French Bread, and is approaching baguette length). Two days ago, I tried to go for a late lunch at Cafe Amelie to find that they were only serving cocktails and olives. Now, I have nothing against cocktails and olives, but I was in search of something a little more substantive. I then decided to grab a simple meal at the local Rousse's. I did my grocery shopping, got in line, and was told that "the bank" was malfunctioning and the store could not accept any debit or credit card purchases...what?!? At this point, I was blinded not by rage, but by hunger. How could this be?

Without really knowing where I was going, I headed back home, and decided to walk the extra blocks to Port of Call. The bar doesn't look like much: brown siding, shuttered brown windows...a brown sign with big white letters spelling out "Port of Call." I had a bit of trouble finding the door (it was around the corner), but I eventually made my way in to the nautical underworld that is Port of Call. I honestly could not see a thing when I walked in because it was so dark. A hostess sat me at one of the tables next to the bar. The whole dining area was lit with red light bulbs. There was something quite disorienting about the rose colored room and fish net draped ceilings. After about 10 seconds, a waitress came to my table asking me what I wanted. I ordered a cheeseburger and a a bottle of Abita Amber (I was still on edge about my culinary misadventures with Cafe Amelie and Rousse's and thought a nice cold beer would ease my mind).

After about 15 minutes the burger, in all of its glory, was ready. Cheddar cheese had been melted over top the all-beef patty. A 2 inch high stack of tomatoes, onions, and pickles was ready to be placed on top of the burger. When I crowned the patty with the top bun, the burger measured about 4 inches high. Dig in! The burger was great: nice and smokey, and cooked medium well. Did I mention that the side dish was sour cream with some baked potato? They literally put 3/4 cup of sour cream on my baked potato...

I only made it through half of my burger and 1/4 of the baked potato before the food coma started setting in. I called it quits and headed home. When I walked out of Port of Call, a huge waft of greasy air followed me, and I could smell the chargrilled scent of the back kitchen...yup, Port of Call has the best burgers in town...

Leidenheimer

2011-06-17T07:47:00.000-07:00

In New Orleans, there are two major bread companies that source nearly all po'boy vendors. One of them is Leidenheimer Baking Company. You wouldn't think that a German company would make French bread, but there you go! Interestingly enough, although New Orleanians call the po'boy loaf, "French Bread" it is actually a Creolized version of French bread. In New Orleans, French bread has a crispy crust and a large soft interior (great for soaking up the justices from roast beef po'boys). In fact, German immigrants just upriver of New Orleans had a major influence on the city's "French" Bread back in the 18th and 19th centuries...

In any case, I love seeing the Leidenheimer trucks zipping around the French Quarter in the morning, stopping off at various eateries and shops. The best part: the trucks are very colorful with cartoonish depictions of people enjoying po'boys...I always love a sense of humor.

Liuzza's

2011-06-16T20:42:00.000-07:00

At a Bulldogs in the Big Easy event a few weeks ago, I met a Yale aluma named Fran. She just returned from class reunions in New Haven: the week long celebration when thousands of alums flock back to Yale for various class reunions...5th! 20th! 50th! Fran is a go-getter, and right off the bat she was enthusiastic about my project. She offered to take me to lunch to meet a fellow Yalie named Tim who happened to be 1) Creole 2) a trained chef 3) a lawyer. How do Yalies do so much?

A few weeks went by, and I did not hear from Fran. But, at the beginning of this week, I got a message from her saying that she wanted to follow through with our plans. So, she did all the legwork and planned a lunch for us. When I say us, I mean Fran and several of her native New Orleanian friends. What a treat! The best way to learn about New Orleans' food is to eat with the natives, and now I had the chance to have lunch with 5 of them!

Fran wanted to take me to an area of town that I hand't been to: Midtown...the large chunk of land that surrounds City Park (one of the largest city parks in the United States). She opted for Liuzza's, a Creole Italian place that serves Red Gravy (so you know it's fusion cuisine: the best of the bayou meets the tomato vine). Many French Creoles find Red Gravy (a roux-tomato sauce combination) to be an abomination, a bruise on an otherwise perfectly ripe fruit of Creole cuisine. I on the other hand, love everything and anything that is Italian, or part thereof.

Liuzza's has been in New Orleans for a while (since 1947). The exterior of the building can be described as follows: white brick, pink and green neon fixtures...yeah. That's about it. It's a typical New Orleans eatery. Similar to the ambiance of Domilise's: newspaper clippings on the wall, sturdy wood furniture, and wood paneling straight out of 1968.

The whole table opted to get beers in "iced goblet." Refreshing! The table also shared onion rings and stuffed artichokes. Now, in New Orleans, people take their vegetables three ways: fried, smothered or stuffed. I knew I had to try the stuffed artichoke because the dish can only be described as a labor of love: one has to push bread crumbs into all the crevices of the spiky leaves and then bake it! One word: yum!

I also opted for the lunch special: half a po'boy and a cup of soup. Fried oyster, dressed and the shrimp and artichoke bisque please! The soup was delightful: very creamy, but light. The oyster po'boy --as all oyster po'boys are-- was fantastic.

Did I mention that one of Fran's colleagues might be able to introduce me to Chef Paul Prudhomme? Also, Chef John Besh was eating at the table across from ours...another sign that Liuzza's is a winner.

Places I am Trying to Remember

2011-06-14T20:06:00.001-07:00

There are a few places that I wanted to chat about on my blog, but I visited them back in 2009. I have been scrolling through my iPhoto trying to find traces of my early adventures in New Orleans, and I came across a few photos that helped jog my memory.

I ventured to The Praline Connection on Frenchmen Street within my first week in New Orleans. My friend and fellow intern, Connie invited me there for a Duke University farewell party. I walked there from the Southern Food and Beverage Museum, navigating the length of the French Quarter for the first time. I remember being so scared that I was headed into a bad neighborhood (I was still getting to know the city). But I found the restaurant soon enough, and walked in to find waiters in black fedoras and white button down shirts. They seemed to blend into the restaurant which was decorated in white and black tiles and framed newspaper articles. One of them was kind enough to show me out of the main dining room, to a private room in the back. The room was colorful: a mixture of red, white and black--peppered with family photos, newspaper clippings, and local awards. There was a large bakery case full of delicious treats: pralines, pecan pie etc. There was a smorgasbord of goodies along the far wall: seafood gumbo with a dark brine broth, fried okra, fried shrimp, fried oysters...fried EVERYTHING. Welcome to New Orleans!

Rock 'n Bowl was one of the first New Orleans institutions that I went to with my fellow Yalies. Rock 'n Bowl is not just any bowling alley, it is so much more than that. It is a place of celebration, a venue for dancing, and a New Orleans icon. When we arrived, we walked into the middle of Swing Night, and a 16 year old girls birthday party. No matter! We were still able to bowl (for free, thanks to the kindness of the 16 year old's mother). We grabbed a few Abita beers, bowled a few sets, and then danced to the live Big Band music. I loved watching the 70 year old men in white Oxford shirts and bow ties playing their triumphant music. There were many locals on the dance floor showing off their honed in swing skills. I was only slightly jealous ;)

Believe it or not, I forgot that I had eaten at Willie Mae's Scotch House! Once I saw the photos, I began to remember the meal there: the extra crispy and ultra light breading on their home-style fried chicken, the soggy green beans, and the red beans and rice. I remember my friends noting the religious iconography that graced the walls of Willie Mae's, and I remember the Abita root beer that we drank out of red plastic glasses. What a great meal (and we only had to wait outside for about 20 minutes before we were seated).

Finally, I've been thinking about the bread pudding souffle at Commander's Palace. I need to make my way uptown to have that queen of New Orleans desserts...

The "Wedding Cake" House

2011-06-14T19:56:00.000-07:00

During my first week in New Orleans, I accompanied Rick to an event for Southeastern Louisiana University. This party was held in the famous "Wedding Cake" House on St. Charles Avenue. The house is called this because of its layered architectural exterior which resembles a fancy wedding cake. The interior of the home was lovely. My favorite part was the gorgeous gold, purple and green stained glass window along the main staircase. I found my way to the kitchen and chatted with the caterer, told her about my project, and picked up a few cooking tips. Overall, a successful evening!

Bon Operatit!

2011-06-14T19:47:00.000-07:00

Last week Rick and I went to the Inn on Bourbon, at the corner of Toulouse and Bourbon Streets. The Inn rests on the site of the Old French Opera House in New Orleans, the first opera house in the United States, and is host to Bon Operatit: a trio of opera singers with live accompaniment. Once a month this band of singers comes together to perform a free concert for New Orleanians. You can order cocktails at the bar, or sit down and enjoy a light dinner during the performance. The group performs 3 sets of music ranging from Handel to Andrew Lloyd Webber. This week was "friends of Operatit week," so there were guest performers as well. What a lovely evening! Everyone was swaying along to the music, enjoying the powerful and elegant voices of these singers. Just another one of those fantastic events in New Orleans.

Cafe Du Monde

2011-06-14T19:07:00.000-07:00

This morning I tried to grab and almond croissant at Croissant D'or, and came to the realization that the cafe was closed on Tuesdays! Zut! I rerouted towards Decateur Street and opted to stop by the infamous Cafe Du Monde for a late breakfast. I did not think that I could possible live with myself if I did not stop by Cafe Du Monde at some point this summer. It was crowded (comme d'habitude). I wove my way through the tables into the inner dining hall where I grabbed a coveted seat in the air conditioning. The table surface was sticky with powdered sugar. I realized this after I wrested my arms against the table's edge and felt my skin stick to the table. I like to think of the stickiness as part of the ambiance--the grittiness of Cafe Du Monde that goes hand in hand with the crowds and less than friendly staff, and is buffered by the mirrored walls, bright lights and live music.

The beignets came out buried in 2 inches of powdered sugar...who knew you needed so much powdered sugar. (note: do not laugh while you take a bite of your beignet or you might find yourself coated in a layer of white powder...this happened to me the first time I had beignets at Cafe Du Monde). I like to think that beignets would make a nice addition to the Candyland board came. They could be nestled behind Candy Cane Lane, and you could go skiing in the fresh powder!

The cafe au lait was fantastic as always: nice and strong and really creamy. Delicious!

Disappointment and a Fro-Yo Cure

2011-06-14T18:46:00.000-07:00

After having lunch, I called my interview subject to triple check that we were OK to meet for our oral history. Sadly, she was not feeling well and asked to reschedule. I was so disappointed. I felt lost for a few minutes, like my purpose for that day had just slipped away. In order to clear my head, I decided to stop by a local frozen yogurt place: Pure Yogurt Culture. I opted for my classic fro-yo combination: original tart yogurt with granola, strawberries, blackberries and honey. Yum. After the first bite, I felt much better, and started to plan for my interview next week...

La Macarena: Pupuseria & Latin Cafe

2011-06-14T18:26:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I headed uptown for my first oral history (how exciting!) It would take me about 1 hour and 30 minutes to get to my interview subject's home, so to be safe I opted to head up early and have lunch. I did not have any specific plans, but headed towards Carrollton Avenue with a rumbling tummy and an open mind. I walked past Camellia Grill since I had already enjoyed a delicious burger there a few weeks ago, strolled by a few Creole restaurants and rounded a corner to stumble upon a jackpot of family run restaurants lining Hampton Street. Like a moth to flame, I was drawn towards La Macarena, an El Salvadorian restaurant situated across from a strip mall. When I walked in to the restaurant, I was half blinded by its lime green, lemon yellow, and teletubby purple walls. I immediately liked the place, which probably sat 20 people on a busy night. The owner of the restaurant came up to me and introduced herself and the restaurant: the restaurant sources all of its ingredients locally and makes all of its sauces on site. She was extremely kind, and endearing. I knew I was in good hands. I opted for two starters: the Sweet Corn Tamal served with homemade crema and the Chicken Flautas. As I waited for my meal, I studied my French grammar, trying to remember the different uses of demonstrative adjectives. I ended up people watching instead. After about 20 minutes, my meal came out on two seperate plates. The perfect portions. The tamale was fantastic! I had never had a sweet corn tamale, and this hit the spot, although I would have loved to have some jalapenos and cheese to kick it up a notch. The chicken flautas came out with a cabbage slaw on top. They were delicious, but mild in flavor. If you are looking for fresh food and fresh taste, La Macarena is the place for you! Their dishes are subtle, their staff is friendly, and they do not take credit/debit cards, so bring cash!

The owner let me snap a few photos of the Lunch Combos that were coming hot out of the kitchen:

Tomatoes, Zydeco and Boudreaux

2011-06-12T20:45:00.000-07:00

Every once in a while you have a “New Orleans” day where you can’t believe half the stuff that goes on—it is just too surreal…

Today, there was a trifecta of festivals in the Quarter: The Creole Tomato Festival, The Zydeco Music Festival and The Louisiana Seafood Festival. I headed down to Decateur Street to walk in the French Market and check out the Creole tomatoes; then I made my way to the Old US Mint where the Zydeco festival was held. I listened to the band that was playing, snapped some photos, swayed to the music etc. When I turned to walk to another part of the festival, a middle-aged man in a straw hat and a tie-dye t-shirt said to me (in a slight Cajun accent), “I like your flower power shirt! Boudreaux, I’m Boudreaux.” I smiled, and introduced myself to Boudreaux. The conversation started out like many of my conversations do: I chatted about my research. Then, Boudreaux shared his opinion of the best places to eat in New Orleans, suggesting places I need to eat: Brigsten’s, Susan Spicer’s place, La Provence, Commander’s Palace etc.

Today I ended up meeting, chatting and dancing with a whole slew of people that were in one way or another connected to Boudreaux. Apparently, the Zydeco festival scene has fostered a tight knit community. I met people from Alabama, Georgia, Texas, Mississippi etc. I ended up spending a good 5 hours at the festival, loving the music, enjoying the conversation, and learning to Cajun two-step. All the while, Mr. Boudreaux entertained everyone around him whether they were friend, kin or stranger. It was certainly an experience to get to know one of those New Orleans “personalities."

Here is a photo of Leroy Thomas and the Zydeco Roadrunners:

And All That Jazzz

2011-06-12T19:47:00.000-07:00

On Friday evening I went to the 11^th Annual Ladies in Red Galla. Rick, one of my hosts in New Orleans, chaired the event, and was kind enough to invite me along. The invitation read, “Wear Jazz (red) cocktail attire.” Sadly, I do not own anything red, so I opted to wear a solid blue dress in hopes of complimenting the sea of red dresses that I was going to wade through throughout the night. When I first arrived at the party, I was the only one not wearing a red dress. Opps. Throughout the event, more and more women in non-red dresses arrived.

The Ladies in Red Galla was held at Generations Hall in the warehouse district. The event was organized to honor jazz musicians and intuitions who support New Orleans jazz artists. This year Maynard Chatters, Thais Clark, Wendell Eugene, and Daniel Farrow were honored for their musical talents. While Jan Ramsey of OffBeat magazine, Preservation Hall and Snug Harbor Jazz Bistro were recognized institutions. Miss Thais was a character. Boy, did she have a voice!! She sang "Wild Women," and I was blown away by her charisma. Another woman named Germaine Bazzle sang a few songs, and she had a wonderful jazz voice! Youtube her! In addition to these women, The George French Band as well as The Brass-o-holics performed a few sets. Bravo!

We danced, and danced some more (Germaine Bazzle has some moves!) There were a few New Orleans-style parasols that were passed along with scores of red boas. Everyone was having a great time, and Rick taught me how to Cha-Cha and Jitterbug! While I was dancing with the huge crowd of passionate New Orleanians, I definitely had one of those moments where I thought, I love New Orleans, I really really love New Orleans.

The food was great too! Many of New Orleans' finest establishments donated food including Dooky Chase’s, The Praline Connection on Frenchmen Street, and Pralines by Jean…and Cupcakes Too. I was so lucky to be introduced to Dooky Chase himself (as in, the son of Leah Chase), as well as Carol Allen, the woman who wrote Leah Chase’s biography. She was super kind and wants to introduce me to Leah this week!

Piccadilly, not as in Circus

2011-06-12T19:11:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I met up with a friend from Duke who is in New Orleans as part of the Robertson Scholars Program. We went on a historic tour of New Orleans, which took us upriver towards the Andry, Trepagnier, Bernoudy, and Ormond plantations. Our tour guide, Mr. Waters, introduced us to an often-overlooked aspect of New Orleans history: the 1811 Slave Revolt in St. John the Baptist and St. Charles Parishes of Louisiana. The bicentennial of this event is commemorated by the Louisiana Museum of African American History. For lunch, we stopped at a place called Piccadilly, a buffet style restaurant. There is no menu, and no waitresses. You line up with your dinner party, and shuffle along the buffet, asking the servers for your main dish and sides, which they hand to you under the glass "sneeze-guard."

You can eat well for under $10. There was fried chicken, red beans and rice, vegetables of all kinds, pecan pie and other traditional Southern fare. I would almost compare this place to Eat ‘n Park in Pittsburgh, where you have that casual dining experience: florescent lights, weak coffee and good conversation.

After eating lunch, our tour guide took us through the French Quarter, towards the old slave exchange building (which also hosted the infamous Quadroon balls in the 19th century), and then on to the Lower Ninth Ward for an introduction to Katrina relief.

Having lived in the city off and on over the past few years, I don’t often take tours, but I did learn a lot from Mr. Waters, and I am grateful for his perspective on New Orleans’ history.

Pizza Delicious!

2011-06-12T19:08:00.000-07:00

One of the best-kept secrets in New Orleans: Pizza Delicious pizzeria in the Bywater area. It is only open on Thursdays and Sundays and delivers to a limited area: Bywater and Marigny. But, oh! The drive to Bywater is well worth it! This is high quality, gourmet-inspired pizza...with a tomato sauce to die for. And the crust? Medium-thin, and soft. You can’t eat this pizza with your hands unless you fold it in half (and you still will have juice running down your arm!) If your lucky they might throw in a handful of garlic knots.

Mahony's PoBoy

2011-06-12T18:48:00.000-07:00

Mahony’s is one of the top PoBoy shops in town. Situated on Magazine Street in a brightly painted Creole cottage, Mahony’s is a major destination for po’boy lovin’ New Orleanians and tourists alike. You know that the place is popular because it has two doors: one labeled “in” and the other labeled “out” for optimal traffic control.

After grabbing drinks at Columns, we headed to Mahony’s for an early dinner around 5:00. I ordered the roast beef po’boy and swapped half of it with Qiao’s friend who ordered a root beer-basted ham and cheese po’boy. Both were delicious, but I still believe that Parkway Bakery makes the best roast beef po’boys in town!

When I went up to the bar to order an Abita root beer, I noticed that someone had spray painted something on the wall. It was an image of a man with sunglasses, a goatee and spiky hair. Upon closer examination, I realized that Guy Fieri from the Food Network had made his mark in Mahony’s, dating his trip to September 2010.

Keep an eye out on Diners, Drive-in and Dives for this New Orleans po-boy shop!

The Columns Hotel

2011-06-12T18:44:00.000-07:00

There are hundreds of bars in New Orleans. Sometimes the best places to enjoy a nice cocktail are right in front of your nose! In this case, the Columns Hotel on St. Charles Avenue. For those of you who have ridden the streetcar uptown, you have more than likely set eyes on Columns. The Greco-Roman architecture and bright white columns are difficult to miss. This Parthenon-inspired building sticks out like a sore thumb in the middle of the 19^th century Creole architecture that dominates the Garden District.

I met Andrew, Qiao and few other friends at Columns this past Friday for afternoon drinks. I ordered my first mint julep ever. Not bad! Drinks in hand, we made our way to one of the many rooms in the Columns Hotel: this one was lined with rich mahogany paneling, a large marble fireplace and plush leather chairs (Anchorman, anyone?). Many people were out on the porch enjoying lunch, but I needed the icy embrace of in air-conditioning after trekking uptown from the Quarter. After finding our seats, we settled down for some nice conversation.

The Columns Hotel is also easy to spot at night because there are strings of white Christmas lights guiding you towards the entrance. The next time you make your way to New Orleans, keep an eye out for Columns, and stop by for their happy hour which starts at 5:00!

Galatoire's Restaurant

2011-06-12T18:02:00.000-07:00

Since I first arrived in New Orleans almost two years ago, Galatoire’s has been shrouded in cultural mystery. Galatoire’s is one of those classic New Orleanian restaurants, which a Yalie might liken to one of the “Old Eight” secret societies. The restaurant is an integral part of New Orleans’ restaurant scene, but it clings to the restaurant culture of the 1940s when white linens, mirrored dining rooms, and brass chandeliers were a la mode. Today, however, the restaurant borders on démodé.

Unsurprisingly, I have been intimidated by Galatoire’s for a long time. I often imagined the dining room filled with men in dapper suits and women in beaded, jewel-tone evening gowns, gliding through billowing clouds of cigar smoke with a Sazerac cocktail in hand. I’ve thought of venturing to the restaurant on many occasions, but normally find some excuse to eat somewhere else.

Last Thursday, I mustered up the courage to dine at Galatoire’s--an event rather than mere action. I wove my way through the crowds on Bourbon Street, dodging past tour groups and slipping between street performers to stand in front of glass-paned doors of Galatoire’s. A friendly young man opened the door for me and immediately sat me at a table in the coveted main dining room. The space was bustling with waiters in black suits and servers in white smocks. There was nearly as many staff as restaurant patrons.

My table was nestled up against the left side of the dining room with a great view of the restaurant. My waiter came over, and informed me of the specials. I took a few minutes to decide what I wanted, and opted for the Red Snapper in Brown Butter Sauce.

I enjoyed people watching. There were two obnoxious lawyers sitting at the table next to mine—they had foul mouths. In attempt to block out their conversation, I focused on observing the staff. I was impressed by the mechanical nature of their process. One man would clear the table, another man would step in with a fresh, white tablecloth in hand. This man would whip the tablecloth into the air until it billowed upwards and settled perfectly on the table. If the cloth was askew, he would toss it back into the air until it landed in place. He then dressed the table with a fresh pitcher of water, a salt and pepper shaker, a bottle of Tabasco, and a bottle of Worcestershire sauce…everything a New Orleanian needs to enjoy the Creole dishes served at this bistro. Within moments, people would be seated at the table.

When I wasn’t busy watching the staff, I was taking in the ambiance: the blue-green walls embossed with gold fleur-de-lis, the 5-prong brass light fixtures that looked like octopi, the warm glow of incandescent light reflecting off the mirror-lined walls, the clanging of plates, the clinking of glasses, and the hum and harmony of cherished conversation. Galatoire’s is a perfect place to meet a group of friends and settle down for a two-hour lunch imbibed with reminiscence. The restaurant’s appeal is very much wrapped up in the ambiance, and not in the food, necessarily.

My mouth began to water when my red fish came out, dressed with crab meat, artichokes and mushrooms in a brown butter sauce. Yum. The brown butter was pure brilliance, and the red fish was nice and fresh. I could have done without the green-purple artichokes and limp mushrooms.

For a treat, I ordered the house bread pudding, which came out with a dollop of whipped cream on the side. There was a bananas foster-flare to this dessert, which was more heavily flavored with banana than some of the other bread puddings I have had.

Would I recommend the food at Galatoire’s? No. This restaurant acts almost like a social club for New Orleanians. The food is OK, but the price is astronomically high for the quality. Apparently, it is good to order drinks at Galatoire’s because you can get a cocktail for around $6-8 and they automatically make it a double—so you get a bit more bang for your buck from the bar than from the kitchen.

A Little Slice of Heaven?

2011-06-12T17:09:00.001-07:00

On Wednesday afternoon, after I went to the movies, I headed to Magazine Street and stopped by a local pizzeria: Slice. The restaurant was relatively empty when I arrived. The server was kind, and took my order for a strawberry summer salad and a slice of veggie pizza. They made the pizza-by-the-slice to order, so it came out with perfectly melted cheese and a good heaping pile of vegetable toppings. I liked the crust a lot—quite thin, but super crunchy. For a quick lunch, Slice is not a bad spot to stop.

To the Prytania!

2011-06-12T17:03:00.000-07:00

As I stated in a previous blog post, the Prytania Theater in New Orleans is one of my favorite places in the entire city. I headed there last Wednesday to catch Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953) staring Jane Russell and Marilyn Monroe. After the movie, I stumbled into a 45-minute conversation with two New Orleanians about the birth of burlesque culture in New Orleans around the mid 20^th century, and how themes of burlesque are embedded in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. Apparently, there is a man in New Orleans who is attempting to revive burlesque culture on Bourbon Street, and is employing classically trained dancers to perform alongside a traditional jazz ensemble. If I am not mistaken, Rick Delaup, a local New Orleanian, is the creative genius behind this revival. The New Orleanians, who I spoke with described the revival burlesque as a classy and sophisticated show that attracts a wide audience in the city.

A Little Mississippi in New Orleans

2011-06-12T16:37:00.000-07:00

Last Tuesday, I met up with Andrew, an acquaintance I made in Oxford, Mississippi. Born and bred in Mississippi, Andrew has a certain Southern flair that is best marked by Oxford dress shirts, seersucker slacks and fine leather shoes. He is now an anthropology student at Tulane, and is in New Orleans writing some academic papers. We met up in front of St. Louis Cathedral, and headed to a small bar on Decatur Street where I tried my first Abita Strawberry beer. How refreshing, and only $2 to boot! We struck up a conversation that ranged from revisionist theories on totenism to Allen Ginsburg’s Howl; we soaked in the eccentric atmosphere of the bar: New Orleans regalia, a totem pole, and pictures of long dead poets. After a few drinks, we opted for spontaneity…a ferry ride to Algiers! I was happy to tag along for this adventure, as I have always wanted to cross the river to this small hamlet of New Orleans’ society. We waited to board the ferry, standing in line with a handful of New Orleanians making their way home after a hard days work. We stood on the bottom level so that we could enjoy the view of the Mississippi from the bow of the ferry. I had to resist the temptation to start singing “My Heart Will Go On” a la Celine Dion. Once we arrived in Algiers, we meandered along the cobblestone streets past a handful of restaurants and shops, and settled down for dinner at the Dry Dock Café and Bar. At this point, we were fairly hungry and eager to get some sustenance. I opted for Barbecue Shrimp. I was expecting “shrimp-on-the-barbie” style shrimp—peeled, on a skewer, with distinct char marks. Not the case. These enormous shrimp came out fully clothed in their exoskeletons with antennae stretching a good 5 inches. They were served in a shallow bowl with a spicy brown sauce and thick slices of French bread. As the dish sat there steaming, I tried to act nonplussed at the idea of peeling all of these gargantuan crustaceans. I looked over at Andrew, he shrugged, and I got to work. Delicious! The ride back to Algiers was fantastic. New Orleans, dotted with the bright lights of Harrah’s casino, Bourbon Street and various high rises, was a sight fore sore eyes.

Ken Burns Event at SoFAB

2011-06-06T19:17:00.000-07:00

Tonight, a wonderful array of organizations hosted an event in honor of documentarian, Ken Burns, perhaps best known for his documentary called The Civil War. WYES, along with the Southern Food and Beverage Museum and the Museum of the American Cocktail threw a wonderful event in honor of Burns' latest documentary Prohibition. Many of New Orleans' finest bartenders were working the event, making classic cocktail from across the United States, with particularly attention to Washington D.C.

I've never been much of a cocktail drinker, but from the moment I had a sip of the classic Sazerac, I was determined to become a bit more familiar with the wonderful array of cocktails that the US has to offer.

I had a taste of several kinds of cocktails: a traditional Daiquiri, Monkey Glands, Gin Rickey, and Hong Kong. Apparently, the Gin Rickey is the official drink of Washington D.C., and the Daiquiri originates from our nation's capitol as well.

There was also wonderful jazz music, with Linnzi Zaorski as the soloist. Her swinging jazz vocals echoed beautifully throughout the various exhibit halls of the Southern Food and Beverage Museum.

I learned plenty about the history of cocktail and Prohibition. For example, New York City had over 30,000 speakeasies during the Era of Prohibition and was known as "Satan's Sink." However, New Orleans won the title of the "wettest" city in America. Apparently, the government official in charge of American Prohibition regulation determined this within the first 30 seconds of being in New Orleans. The story goes that he stepped into a taxi, and the driver pulled out a flask of alcohol and handed to him as he settled in the backseat.

The photos below are of the jazz band, Mr. Burns, the making of a Gin Rickey and the crafting of a Hong Kong:

Muriel's

2011-06-06T12:42:00.001-07:00

A storm is coming. You can almost feel the electricity flitting through the air. It is quite unsettling, but at the same time, New Orleans really needs rain. Don't get me wrong, it has been humid for the past few weeks, but the humidity is only there to taunt us. An unfulfilled promise. Today, we are all looking up to the murky grey skies praying for a drop of rain. I'd give it a few more hours before the deluge washes over us.

This afternoon, I grabbed a late lunch at Muriel's restaurant right on the corner of Jackson Square. I originally planned to stop by Cafe Amelie, but it only serves lunch Wednesday through Saturday. After wandering aimlessly around the Quarter for 15 minutes, I passed by Muriel's and was happy to stop in.

Muriel's reminds me of a modern Antoine's with its expansive and numerous dining rooms, and white linen table clothes. Whereas Antoine's was established in 1840, Muriel's is relatively new to the city of New Orleans, and was established in 2001.

The restaurant sits on one of New Orleans' most historic locations: the original colonial settlement which was built up around St. Louis Cathedral (an area now known as Jackson Square). This corner plot was originally granted to Claude Trepagnier as a reward for his participation in the expedition party led by Bienville to established la Ville de la Nouvelle Orleans in 1718. Over the next two centuries, Trepagnier's land was purchased by a number of people: Jean Baptiste Destrehan c. 1743 (Royal Treasurer of French Louisiana Colonies); Pierre Phillipe de Marigny c. 1776 (plantation baron); Pierre Jourdan c. 1788; Julien Poydras c. 1823 (President of the Louisiana State Senate and Director of the Louisiana Bank); Theodore Leveauc. 1881; Peter Lipari c. 1891 (opening the Alec Lanlois Saloon on location in 1895); Frank Taormina (opening a pasta factory, and restaurant called the Spaghetti Factory).

During the 1970s the Spaghetti Factory was converted to the Chart House Restaurant on the second floor, and the bottom floor was turned into Heritage Hall, the home of the Heritage Hall Jazz Band. Lastly, in 2001 Muriel's Jackson Square opened its doors in March, serving traditional New Orleans Creole and Cajun cuisine.

Having been converted from a colonial era home (many of the original walls have been restored), the restaurant is rumored to be home to several ghosts, of whom "Antoine" is the most inquisitive and active. The restaurant has a dining room on the second room named "The Seance Room," because of the numerous sightings of a ghostly aparation. After my lunch, I made my way to the staircase at the side of the restaurant. There was eerie Gregorian chant music being plaid in the dimly lit staircase and my heart began to race. This is ridiculous, I thought to myself! I'm 23 years old and should not believe in ghost stories! After a few moments, I mustered some courage and made my way up the creaking stair case, all the while hyper aware of the eldritch music swirling in the background. Once I got on to the landing, I realized that there were about five more dining rooms upstairs (all empty). I quickly peaked in a few of them, rushed to the open courtyard to feel the light on my face, and steeled myself to visit into the seance room, which was ominously cast in a red light at the end of the hall. I scuttled over to the door way, glanced at the plush red velvet seating, and the gild framed paintings. I could feel my hair stand on end as I stared into that crimson void. I quickly turned around and ran down the stairs. I was so relieved to be released from the spell of that room. I'm not saying there was any spirits there, but the atmosphere was entrancing, and it put me on edge!

Anyway, on to the food, which was the best part! I opted for Fontana's West End Turtle Soup to start. It was nice and briny, with a rich coppery brown broth. The waiter came out with the soup in a metal cup, and then poured it into the ceramic bowl in front of me (like they do at Commander's palace). He asked me if I would like my turtle soup dressed with a dash of brandy, and I agreed. He replied, "When in Rome, do as the Romans do." This made me chuckle, because I couldn't help but think of Anchor Man. I wanted to reply jokingly, "Please, go on..."

For my entree, I ordered Crawfish & Goat Cheese crepes. These are goat cheese filled crepes topped with fresh crawfish in a buttery sauce of chardonnay, onions, tomato and bell peppers. It was heavenly. I honestly, don't know how to describe it other than that. What I loved most about the flavors in this dish, is that they never lost their vibrancy. From the first bite to the last, they flavors were rich and tantalizing. The dish came garnished with a boiled crawfish on top. I am not sure if I was supposed to eat this crawfish, but I felt inclined to be as "New Orleanian" as possible. So, without ever having eaten crawfish before, I did the best I could to dissemble the crustacean, and find the best meat. I even sucked on the crawfish head. I think I surprised my waiter, when he came by and saw me with the crawfish pressed against my mouth. So much for being demure.

For dessert I opted for the bread pudding. When I ordered the dessert, my waiter commented, "Good choice! And is that 'all that she wrote?'" Trying to keep a straight face, I simply replied, "Yes." The bread pudding came out with a buttery brandy sauce. The dessert was topped with a pecan crumble topping. Divine! I'll be thinking fondly of Muriel's for a good while.

If you spot any ghostly orbs in the following photos, let me know ;)

Hubig's Pies, the Other Moon Pie

2011-06-05T18:11:00.001-07:00

For those of you out there unfamiliar with Hubig's pies, they might be likened to the New Orleans' version of Little Debbie brand desserts--that packaged sweet that can be eaten right out of the wrapper. Although, most New Orleanians would tell you to zap the thing in the microwave for about 10-25 seconds and then top it off with some vanilla ice cream for an a la mode treat. All in all, New Orleanians are absolutely in love with these pies which come in an assortment of flavors: apple, lemon, pineapple etc.

Typically described as glazed moon shaped pies, these desserts have a sweet/salty taste to them that is difficult to describe. I applaud anyone who can fishing a whole Hubig's pie without suffering from a stomach ache afterwards.

My favorite part? The crinkly white, yellow and red wrapping which crackle as you unwrap your dessert. Or better yet, the hot pink price stamped at the top edge, "Apple, $1.09!" The wrapping is just so lively, I love it!

Believe it or not, Hubig's pies did not start in New Orleans. They originated in Cincinnati, moved to Fort Worth, Texas in 1914, and eventually settled in New Orleans. New Orleans was the only city in the United States that fell in love with these crescent desserts, and thank god for that. They have become an important part of New Orleanian culinary history and I am always glad to see those garish bags propped up on a shelf at the corner grocery (believe it or not, Walmart sells them now too).

Perhaps there is more than one reason they call New Orleans "The Crescent City." Then again, maybe not.

Pat O'Brien's Hurricane

2011-06-05T09:06:00.000-07:00

If you make your way to New Orleans for a weekend of fun in the French Quarter, you have more than likely heard of three drinks 1) The Sazerac (classic New Orleans cocktail) 2) The Hurricane (Pat O'Brien's infamous ruby red rum drink) 3) The Hand Grenade (New Orleans' "most potent" adult beverage).

After dining on po'boys at Johnny's, we made our way down Royal Street, watched a street performer do "magic" for a few minutes, and eventually headed towards Pat O'Brien's to draw another line through our NOLA bucket list: Hurricanes. I thought that Pat O's would be a single bar, but it is actually a series of bar rooms and courtyards. We stepped into a quiet and dimly lit bar room. The room was so dark, it was difficult to make out its decor. The walls may have been a dark green, or perhaps a dark purple? The details were lost to the inky darkness.

We ordered our drinks. The bar tender created them with ease: a healthy serving of rum (perhaps too healthy), Hurricane mix, a scoopful of ice, an orange slice and a single cherry. The drink was refreshing and strong. An oasis in a cup for overheated tourists. Drinks in hand, we strolled around the rest of Pat O's, taking a look in the courtyard, and peaking into one of the bar rooms that hosted live music. Before long, we stepped back out into the sunlight (a la New Moon), and made our way further down Royal Street, and then back up Bourbon Street.

The story of the Hurricane is entertaining. Apparently the drink was invented during WWII, and was aptly named "The Hurricane," when someone served the rum drink in a glass that was shaped like a hurricane lamp. Why is the drink rum based? Well, apparently rum was inexpensive and available during WWII (whereas other alcohols were in short supply). How do you use up all that rum? Make and incredibly strong cocktail!

A very touristy day in NOLA, but fun nonetheless!

Johnny's Po-Boys est. 1950

2011-06-05T08:41:00.001-07:00

After their trip to the museum, my fellow Yalies wanted to go out for Creole cuisine. The unanimous recommendation was Johnny’s, as in Johnny’s Po-Boys, which apparently also serves traditional Creole dishes like gumbo and jambalaya.

We made our way through the sweltering heat, past the brightly colored décor of Harrah’s Casino, through Sax Fifth Avenue (For an AC respite), and down Decatur Street until we hit St. Louis. Sweet salvation! We finally made it!

Johnny’s was crowded. A long line of customers snaked down the center of the restaurant through the sea of red checkered tablecloths. I walked in last, and was ushered to the front of the line by anxious Yalies. I got up to the front of the queue, where the cashier looked at me expectantly. She repeated, “What would you like?” Without as much as a glance at the elaborate order board, I said, “Oyster Po’boy, please.” She then began to say, “Would you like that dressed? Dressed means tha-” “Yes, please” I replied quickly. I then attempt to pay, and came to the realization that there was no credit card machine attached to the cash register. Gah! Even Domilise’s has a credit card machine! The cashier assured me that I could get cash at the ATM, “just over there.” By the time I got back with my cash, my oyster po’boy was pipping hot and ready to eat (it only took about 2 minutes for them to make the sandwich).

DELICIOUS! I think oyster po’boys are SO good…who doesn’t love battered, deep fried oysters? I don’t think you can go wrong there!

Yalies and Vom Fass

2011-06-05T08:27:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, the Yale interns with the Bulldogs in the Big Easy program came down to the Southern Food and Beverage Museum. Liz greeted them, and introduced them to the museum. They were able to wander around the museum for an hour or so before the Vom Fass tasting. At this point, you might be wondering what "Vom Fass" is? The first time I heard the name, I had images of a 1950s modernist painter flash through my mind, then a 1990s techno DJ...neither one of these images is remotely correct. According to their website, Vom Fass means "from the cask" in German, and their stores "house the nation's widest, cask-borne selection of the finest fruit vinegars, exquisite oils, selected wines, exclusive liqueurs and an incredible choice of spirits, all bought from the cask."

In New Orleans, the Vom Fass store is located uptown on Magazine Street near the Whole Foods. One of the owners of the store came down to the museum to host a tasting to showcase Vom Fass' offerings. After this tasting, I am tempted to take a trip uptown to try out some of their offerings: honey vinegar, beer vinegar and a plethora of other infused vinegars.

The Gumbo Shop

2011-06-05T08:07:00.000-07:00

For weeks, I've been thinking about finding a restaurant that serves really good gumbo. I did a bit of asking around, and a dash of research on the internet, and The Gumbo Shop on St. Peter was a consistent favorite. This small restaurant was named “The Best Place to Get Gumbo” from 1999-2009 by Best of New Orleans.

I stopped by the Gumbo Shop for lunch the other day, and was seated in the charming outdoor courtyard. I already knew what I was going to order, Chicken Andouille Gumbo. Within minutes, my waiter brought my bowl of gumbo (I imagine it would have been steaming if it were not 97 degrees outside).

The gumbo came with a slightly askew serving of Louisiana rice plopped in the stew. It was good gumbo, there is no doubt about that. But, I am happy to admit that the gumo Liz made last week was better. I am of the opinion that Creole cooking is home cooking, and is therefore best when eaten at home. Perhaps it’s the atmosphere, perhaps its that je ne sais quois of home cooks…but one thing is certain: it is just better.

I was really in the mood for bread pudding, so I ordered some. The breadpudding came out looking like a small mountain of dough drenched in cinnabon icing. I think I’ll stick to the breadpudding soufflé at Commander’s Palace from now on!

Improv Dinner

2011-06-05T07:54:00.000-07:00

I love watching Liz cook. She has the magical ability of improvinization in the kitchen: to open up the fridge, pull out a handful of ingredients and make a great dinner without preplanning. The other day, I walked into the kitchen and found Liz prepping some baby artichokes. She then cut up a variety of vegetables, tossed them in a large pan to sauté, and before I knew it was whipping up eggs to make a vegetable frittata. While watching Liz sauté the vegetables, I learned that you would never deglaze the pan with wine when you are using eggs, because wine is too vinegary and would not pair well with the eggs.

Look at the beautiful color combination of these vegetables:

The Man Who Ate New Orleans

2011-06-04T17:39:00.000-07:00

This past Thursday I had the pleasure of meeting Ray Cannata, the pastor of a small Presbyterian Church in New Orleans. When he moved to post-Katrina New Orleans in 2005, he had 18 members at his church; today he has nearly 200 members. In addition to building a strong community within his church, Ray has recruited volunteers from across the country to rebuild nearly 500 homes in New Orleans. He has made an indelible mark in both the spiritual community of New Orleans and the physical makeup of the Big Easy.

When Ray moved to New Orleans, he learned about the city in the best (and only) way possible: through its food and music. The two often go hand in hand, especially along Frenchmen Street and throughout Treme.

Ray is lucky to remember nearly the exact moment that he fell in love with New Orleans, and realized that he could never leave. He was at Maple Leaf Bar, listening to Rebirth (an epic brass band in New Orleans), when it hit him: the realization that he wanted to die in New Orleans at a ripe old age. I can imagine how Rebirth might have this effect on people. If you have never heard them play inside Maple Leaf, you need to make the trip uptown. This Tuesday (and every Tuesday thereafter).

After living in New Orleans for a significant amount of time, and after eating at many of New Orleans top restaurants and eateries, Ray began to think the unthinkable: what if he ate at all of New Orleans’ non-chain restaurants? When Ray officially started his quest, there were 610 restaurants on the list. However, this number does not stay static, but rather mimics the death and life cycles of New Orleans’ restaurants. On average, two eateries open up per week in New Orleans. He is currently starring in a film by Michael Dunaway called The Man Who Ate New Orleans. I can’t wait to see the film when it comes out! Ray’s final restaurant meal will be at John Besh’s place, and the event has been aptly named “The Last Supper.” On September 11, 2011, chefs from across New Orleans, as well as any passionate foodies will join Ray in celebrating his monumental feat.

When I met Ray last week, he had eaten at just under 700 restaurants in New Orleans. After meeting at Croissant D’Or earlier that morning, we decided to get proper lunch at Jackson Brewery, a new tourist-trap restaurant on Decatur Street. I had never eaten catfish before, so I felt inclined to try the catfish po’boy. In all honesty, I could not even tell that it was catfish! I don’t remember much about the food a Jackson Brewery. The interior of the restaurant had excellent views of the river, and might be a good place to have drinks with friends one evening. Would I eat there again? Not when there are so many great restaurants just a few blocks away!

Overall, I feel so lucky to have met Ray. He may not have been born in New Orleans, but he is definitely a New Orleanina through and through. He has such passion for the city, a great knowledge of its history, and an understanding of its people. Good luck on the rest of your culinary adventure, Ray!

Hansen's Sno-Bliz

2011-06-04T09:01:00.000-07:00

There is a culinary feud going on in New Orleans. It all depends on what side of the sno-ball question you stand. Do you support Hansen’s or Plum Street? Having lived on Loyola’s campus two years ago, I was just a few blocks away from Williams Plum Street Snoball. I had my first wintry date with Plum Street, and we’ve been going steady ever since. However, like an indecisive teenage drama queen, I felt the need to explore my options and give Hansen’s a try. So, after grabbing a po’boy at Domilise’s I trudged town Tchoupitoulas Street (pronounced “Chaw-pa-too-lus”) until I found Hansen’s. I had no idea where I was going, but I felt that I would stumble across the sno-ball stand soon enough.

The doors were wide open, I walked into the shop and was immediately entranced by the Pepto-Bismol colored cement floor. There was a 3-inch wide marigold yellow line painted on top of the pink floor to guide sno-ball fanatics towards the counter (this landing strip was used to keep order in the hot summer months when 20 or more people might be vying for a spot in line. Chaos!) There was only one person in line, and I followed the golden strip like a lemming, ooching towards an unknown culinary abyss. Ready to take a leap of faith?

I introduced myself to the Hansen’s gang: two young women dishing out syrup and a young man operating the famous Hansen’s Sno-bliz ice shaving machine. They were incredibly friendly, and let me know that Hansen’s was giving a lecture down at the Southern Food and Beverage Museum later that month (sadly, I’ll be in Canada by that time!)

The sno-bliz operator asked me what size I wanted. I heard the New Orleanian in front of me order a “3.50.” I glanced over at the size chart for sno-bliz cups and figured out that the size corresponded to the price. I opted for the “1.50.” When people filed in behind me they all ordered the “3.50”—moderation is never the case in New Orleans. I better build up my tolerance for bigger desserts!

Then, one of the young women asked me what flavor I wanted. Oh no! Decisions, decisions! After a moment of anxiety, I blurted out, “Cherry….wild cherry!...with sweetened condensed milk.” She smiled at me and said, “Good choice.” She was handed a half filled cup of shaved ice, she doused it in syrup, handed it back to be filled with more shaved ice, doused it again, passed it back to be domed with one final helping of shaved ice, then drenched the whole thing with syrup and sweetened condensed milk. Layering is Hansen’s trademark. As the sign hanging below the window says, "There are No Shortcuts to Quality."

I walked around the store, looking at photos, newspaper clippings and handmade signs while I dug through my sno-ball. Sweetened condensed milk is a must. I snapped a few photos, and went outside to sit on the bench with the other New Orleanians enjoying their guilty pleasure desserts.

Who do I prefer? Plum Street or Hansen’s? I don’t think I am ready to divulge my decision just yet.

Donalises? Domalisus? No! "Domilise's!"

2011-06-04T08:45:00.000-07:00

I have to admit, that I do not know New Orleans’ various neighborhoods well enough to walk around without a map tucked away in my backpack. I do my best to familiarize myself with the neighborhood before traversing the scalding pavement, but it is nice to know that I have a security blanket in easy reach.

A few days ago, I set off to eat an early lunch at Domilise Sandwich Shop & Bar (pronounced Dom-ah-lee-see), and was fairly confident with where I was heading (a residential neighborhood uptown). I made my way down Leontine Street from St. Charles, believing that Domilise’s was on the corner of Leontine and Ascension. Wrong. Domilise’s is sandwiched between Belle Castle and Ascension (just a few more blocks in the direction of the Garden District). I could have easily checked the map nestled in my backpack, but I was passing by a handful of New Orleanians at the moment I was lost, and did not want to reveal my unfamiliarity with the neighborhood. I so badly wanted to remain incognito (and “un-touristy”) that I continued in the wrong direction. By the time I turned the corner to peak at my map, I realized that I was still 10 minutes away from the po’boy shop (I still had to order and eat lunch too), and needed to turn around and head back towards Prytania before the movie started (I could grab a quick snack at Whole Foods on the way).

I was thwarted by my own insecurities—a non-native academic trying to settle into a tight knit and wonderful community. I still have a long way to go.

After the movie, I spent a few minutes memorizing my directions to Domilise’s and set off. This time I was successful. I turned onto Belle Castle, and had a brief moment of hesitation: the neighborhood was fairly sparse. It reminded me of the rundown steel mill towns that pepper the landscape around Pittsburgh. Could this be right? I searched the paneling of the buildings around me for the hand painted Domilise’s sign. Aha! There it is! Phew!

I steeled myself for the chaos that Domilise’s is famous for: the packed dining area, the crowded bar, the overwhelming smell of fried catfish, oysters and shrimp. I stepped into the door. Silence. What? Once my eyes adjusted to the dim lighting, I saw a young man standing by the bar and one of the workers taking her lunch at a table. That was it. Note to self: to beat the crowds even at the most infamous eateries in New Orleans, continue eating late lunches (after 2:00) in summer.

The young man strolled over to take my order. I opted for the “dressed” smoked sausage po’boy with gravy. Dressed meaning: lettuce, tomato, pickle and mayonnaise. The man skeptically looked at me, and quietly said, “You should get the smoked sausage with chili, not gravy.” I humbly agreed to his suggestion.

He carefully crafted the sandwiches: slicing the French bread in half; layering on lettuce, tomato, pickles and mayo as the halves of the bread rocked back and forth like cradles; skillfully laying the smoked sausage on top of the veggies; and swiftly closing the two ends of the sandwich together. At Domilise’s, po’boy making is an art, passed from one generation to the next.

After the trials and tribulations of my journey to Domilise’s, I felt that I deserved and ice cold glass of beer. One Miller High Life for me, please! I settled down at a linoleum table cattycorner to the woman on her lunch break. Before I knew it, we were immersed in an hour-long conversation about New Orleans, Madi Gras, my research, her life story, politics, sandwiches making, restaurants, and Katrina. This is the gift of late lunches in uncrowded restaurants: you get to connect with people who would otherwise be far too busy to look at you twice. Today was my lucky day!

Midway through my conversation with Mary Lou, I realized that I had not even tried my po’boy yet! The sandwich was stone cold at this point, but the bread was still crispy, the sausage still seasoned and the chili still spicy. Was it my favorite po’boy? No. But the atmosphere of Domilise’s and my conversation with Mary Lou far surpassed any po’boy eating epiphanies I may have had. Next time, I’ll try a more traditional po’boy: fried oyster or fried shrimp.

R.O.U.S.s or Rouses?

2011-06-03T20:08:00.000-07:00

The local grocery store scene in New Orleans is dominated by the hometown favorite, Rouses Supermarkets (not to be confused with mythical swamp creatures of The Princess Bride (1987). For small groceries I stop by the Rouses on the corner of Royal and St. Peters (That's right. There is a grocery store in the heart of the Quarter...just one block down from Bourbon Street, and right across from the somewhat acclaimed Gumbo Shop). For larger shopping trips, Liz and I drive out to the Rouses on Magazine Street.

When Whole Foods built their mega store Uptown, there was an uproar among New Orleanians who fought tooth and nail against the grocery corporation. They argued that New Orleans' economy thrived off of local family-owned businesses, and Whole Foods had no place in New Orleans proper! Regardless, Whole Foods renovated the historic Arabella Station, and stuffed its interior with exotic passion fruit from overseas, organic grass-fed beef from the midwest, and locally brewed Abita beer. Foodies throughout New Orleans grappled with their inner critics: on the one hand they wanted to support local grocers, on the other hand they could not pass up the opportunity to purchase pea shoots and star fruit. Whole Foods made its mark on the city. Although some still vehemently oppose its presence, many have come to accept the chain as part of the changing landscape of the Big Easy.

When I came back to New Orleans this year, I noticed that a Pinkberry had moved in across the street from Whole Foods. Its seems Whole Foods has paved the way for more mega businesses to move into the city, or at least it seems to be attracting other national chains to claim their space in New Orleans redevelopment.

Be Sweet Cupcakes

2011-06-03T19:49:00.001-07:00

I first stumbled across Be Sweet Cupcakes two years ago when I was meandering along Magazine Street near the massive Whole Foods uptown. As I navigated the crooked terrain of New Orleans' sidewalks--eyes concentrating on the Grand Canyon-like cracks that riddle New Orleans' pedestrian walkways--I saw a chalk written sign advertising homemade cupcakes. That certainly caught my attention! I timidly entered the bakery, and saw a 5 year old boy "manning" the counter (his mother was hovering a few feet behind him). I fondly thought back to my experiences working in the family business, artfully spreading tomato sauce on pizza dough, spooning my grandmother's potato salad into decorative dishes to be put on display in the salad department...

...anyway, the woman greeted me with a smile. She was petite, with dark hair and she was wearing a patterned apron. I remember thinking that she was very "chic" for a baker. Her style was reflected in the bleu de roi walls and sleek stainless steel counter. Soon enough I was asking her about the history of the cupcake shop, and she informed me that they opened that year and that business was doing well. On that first trip I ordered a classic vanilla cupcake with vanilla icing, but later fell in love with the "Roger Rabbit" carrot cake and cream cheese icing cupcake.

Two years later, Be Sweet Cupcakes had adopted new flavors, and I was temped to try the New Orleans inspired Bananas Foster cupcake. Vanilla cake with bits of banana folded into the batter, and a rum and banana liquor icing. I think I heard a choir of angels singing...

Movie Going is a Lost Art

2011-06-03T19:09:00.000-07:00

I’ve always loved going to the movies. There is something so magical about the big screen, the plush seats, the hushed conversations and the smell of heavily buttered popcorn. Unfortunately, movie theaters today are often overpriced, dirty and filled with obnoxious patrons who make comments throughout the entire film and exit the theater with a disgruntled look on their face. What happened to the era of The Majestic?

In New Orleans there is a one-screen historic movie theater on Prytania Street that has been beautifully refurbished. This theater puts glamour back into the movie going experience, and when I am away from New Orleans, it is one of the places I miss most.

This past Wednesday, I made my way uptown via the streetcar with the intention of getting a po’boy at Domilise’s before catching Prytania’s Classic Movie Series showing at noon. Unfortunately, I did not count on the glacial pace of the Streetcar (or the possibility of getting lost) and had to give up and go to Whole Foods for a quick snack (quelle horreur!)

This past week’s classic movie was Hitchcock’s Shadow of a Doubt. As I made my way to the theater I could see the line of golden agers waiting to buy their tickets. I had to smile because these men and women had been my Wednesday afternoon companions on many occasions. There would be a handful of teenagers and younger adults at the theater, but retirees make up the bulk of Prytania’s Classic Movie Series audience.

I eagerly peered inside the lobby, hoping I would see the star of Prytania Theatre…I searched the crowd for any trace of a wildly eccentric tie (his trade mark). Before I knew it, an elderly gentlemen, with thick-framed glasses, a bounce in his step, and an award winning smile waltz towards the theater entrance: the owner and emcee of Prytania Theater. He sported one of my favorite ties: “the Marilyn Monroe tie.” He greeted everyone that came into the theater with an exuberance that defied his 90+ years of age.

Once inside the theater, I settled down in my seat. I watched as more and more white-haired couples filed into the theater seats in front of me. The soft glow of the side chandeliers made their hair look like whiffs of cloud against a night sky. I love when the dancing popcorn and soda come up on screen gaily singing “Let’s all go to the lobby, let’s all go to the lobby, let’s all go to the lobby, and get ourselves a drink!”

Once everyone got settled, the emcee strode down the right isle, microphone in hand, as he began to introduce the movie. He informed us that Hitchcock refused to film this particular movie in Technicolor because he thought that black and white would create more drama. Our emcee also shared another morsel of trivia with us: the tune that Charlie hums throughout the film is the “Merry Widow Waltz”—a clue to the mysterious murders that have plagued the East Coast. After his introduction, our emcee finished his speech as he always does: by pointing up towards the projection room while stating, “I’ll keep talking until you start the film…I promise ya, I’ll keep talking, just watch me….” After a dramatic pause the film starts to roll and hush falls over the crowd…

After the movie, there is complimentary cake and cookies for all the patrons of the theater. This tradition creates such a wonderful community atmosphere because everyone sticks around to chat and share stories of their youth. You can’t help but leave Prytania with a smile on your face, and longing in your heart for the next visit.

Cochon = Pig

2011-06-03T17:59:00.000-07:00

In past years, when someone asks me for restaurant recommendations in New Orleans, I dish out two suggestions: Jazz brunch at Commander’s Palace (an event, rather than a restaurant) and Cochon. I then amend this suggestion by sheepishly admitting that I have never actually eaten at Cochon, but reassure my friends that it has an impeccable reputation. Then I quickly follow up with my raving review of Cochon Butcher, the wonderful bucherie next to the restaurant. After giving these recommendations, my thoughts drift away like steam swirling off my morning cup of coffee. I envision the decadent bread pudding soufflé at Commander’s and the blue ribbon worthy pulled pork sandwich at Cochon Butcher…

…There I go again…I can’t help but let my mind wander back to those life changing culinary experiences.

Last week, I had the pleasure of dining at Cochon with Liz, Rick and their friends from Maryland. As is tradition at many of New Orleans’ restaurants, we ordered half a dozen small plates to share with each other. Those of us who were brave enough, ordered entrees as well.

As we waited for our food, I admired the rich wood interior of the restaurant. It is hard to describe the style of the asymmetrical dining room in Cochon. I would say that it is half modern, one quarter rustic and one quarter Asian: a fusion combination that only works in New Orleans (especially in the warehouse district where Cochon is neighbor to a gas station, the Ugly Dog Saloon, and a somewhat distant neighbor to the Civil War Museum, The Ogden Museum of Art, and the National WWII Museum). Ah! Variety is the spice of life, especially in the warehouse district.

Now on to the food! Our waiter informed us that Cochon “does pig best.” So after much anxiety over the menu options, I took our waiter’s advice and opted for the BBQ ribs (He seemed like a pretty trustworthy guy. After Katrina, he moved to New York, tried to make it in the Big Apple, and ultimately made his way home. That is enough evidence of good sense in my book). The ribs came out fiery and tangy. They were smothered in a homemade barbeque sauce that dripped down my fingers and rust-washed my napkin. Finger-licking goo-ood. I shared my eggplant and shrimp dressing with the table: a dark stew, thick as gumbo, with flavors teetering on the edge of perfect balance. I tried some of Liz’s pork brisket. That first bite sent me straight back to my Grandmother Rosella’s kitchen. I could smell the carrots slow roasting in the oven…mmm! The twice-baked potato was as rich as the Rockefellers. I sampled a mouthful of hush puppies dipped in house-made aioli, and had several helpings of fire roasted stuffed bell peppers. The one dish that I wish I could have tried was the oyster and bacon sandwich. Liz described it as one of those items that you order over and over again regardless of all the wonderful options on the menu. I’ll have to save that for another day.

Cochon is notoriously “heavy.” Most people do not make it to dessert, and sadly (and I mean sadly) we did not have room for dessert either. But we were tempted by the thought of homemade blackberry ice sandwiches, wedged between two fresh baked oatmeal cookies. I also had my eye on the pineapple upside down cake made with cornmeal and bathed in dulce de leche as well.

Now, when I recommend Cochon, I will actually have the eating credentials to back up my claims. The restaurant certainly lived up to its reputation.

Gumbo!!!

2011-05-29T15:22:00.000-07:00

I believe that Gumbo is the most iconic New Orleans dish (and I don't think many people would disagree with me on that one). I was so excited to have a "gumbo" lesson with Liz this afternoon. She had friends coming into town from Washington, DC and they were so eager to learn how to make "traditional" New Orleans fare--so Liz invited them (and me) to come over and learn how to make a roux based chicken, andouille and oyster gumbo.

After reading about the horrors of burning roux, and the struggles associated with getting gumbo started, I was a bit apprehensive about tackling this dish. But Liz is a great teacher, and guided us through the steps with ease. Liz is my culinary guru. She can make anyone (amateur cook, foodie etc) feel comfortable and confident in the kitchen.

Immediately Liz had her guests chopping up green bell peppers, green onions, andouille sausage etc. Liz pulled out a bunch of knives for us to work with ranging from a Japanese chefs knife (all the rage in the food world) to her grandfather's semi-rusted and slightly chipped chefs knife. In Liz's kitchen heritage meets high-tech, tradition meets fusion and expert cook works alongside apprentice...

For most of this culinary adventure, I stayed behind the camera, capturing everything on film while taking notes at the back of the kitchen.

Here is how we put the dish together (a true team effort):

Recipe for Gumbo

Ingredients:

*1 whole chicken

*2 onions

*2 green bell peppers

*5 stalks of celery

*2 bunches of scallions

*6 smoked andouille sausages

*Olive oil

*Flour

*3 bay leaves

*1 tsp ground thyme

*2 tbs black pepper

*1 pint of oysters

Night Before:

-Place raw whole chicken in a medium-sized slow cooker/crock pot. Pour water into the slow cooker so that the chicken is submerged (about 3-4 cups of water). Cover the slow cooker and set on low heat. Let cook over night.

Day of:

Preparation:

-Take chicken out of the slow cooker and place chicken on a plate. Save the juices in the slow cooker (this will become stock for your gumbo). Pull chicken off the bone with your hands and set aside.

-Chop onions, bell peppers, and celery into equal size pieces.

-Chop 2 bunches of scallions into 1/8 inch medallions (including the white bulb and half way up the green stalk).

-Cut 6 smoked andouille sausages into quarter inch thick medallions.

Rice:

-Prepare 3 cups of white rice, and let cook while you make the roux and gumbo

The roux:

-Heat 1/2 cup of olive oil in a large soup pot on medium high heat

-Add 1/2 cup of flour to the pot (roux is made in a 1:1 fat-flour ratio), and stir until the oil and flour are well incorporated (the roux should be a butter yellow color). The roux should be the consistency of natural peanut butter. Let the roux cook on medium heat for 5-7 minutes stirring occasionally (the roux will come to a simmer--don't forget to stir!).

-After about 7-10 minutes on medium heat (perhaps a bit longer) the roux will start "to roux," meaning the roux will start to toast and turn a carmel/pink color. Once the "roux-ing" process starts, stir the roux often (so that it does not burn).

-Keep stirring the roux until it begins to "stick" then add the chopped onion. (NOTE: When the roux begins to stick to itself, it gets thicker and doesn't flow as much. Essentially, when you pull your spoon across the bottom of the pot, the roux should stay for a few seconds before its settles back along the bottom of the pot. The roux should be a nice caramel color as well).

The gumbo:

-Fold the chopped onions into the roux, add 3 bay leaves (make sure the bay leaves are submerged in the hot roux) and let cook for about 3 minutes.

-Add bell peppers, celery and scallions, fold the greens into the roux/onion base. Let cook on medium heat for about 2 minutes.

-Add the juices from the chicken (about 6 cups of chicken juice in total from the slow cooker. 3-4 cups of water put in the night before, the rest from the juices of the chicken).

-Add andouille sausage

-Add two more cups of water

-Add 1 tsp of ground thyme, 2 heaping teaspoons of black pepper, and a few dashes of Tabasco

-Let gumbo cook on medium heat for 20-25 minutes.

-Reduce heat to low and let simmer for 5-10 minutes (while you prep the table for supper)

-Add 1 pint of oysters (with the brine). Let oysters poach in the gumbo for 5 minutes, then salt the gumbo to taste

Plating the Dish

-Place 1/2 a cup of rice in the bottom of a shallow soup dish

-Ladle 1 cup of gumbo overtop the rice

-add gumbo file powder (normally 1/4 teaspoon per serving) and tabasco sauce to taste.

The beginning of the roux:

The butter yellow incorporated roux (1 part olive oil, one part flour):

The roux is beginning "to roux" or toast (note pink/caramel color on the bottom of pot):

Keep stirring the roux as it turns a nice toasted caramel color"

Once the roux "sticks," add onions:

Add greens, andouille and chicken:

Add two cups water:

Let simmer for 20-25 minutes (sausage floats to the top):

Once you've poached the oysters, plate and enjoy!!

Croissant D'Or (Part 2!)

2011-05-29T13:10:00.001-07:00

The entire week I kept dreaming about the almond croissant at Croissant D'Or. Once I got back to New Orleans I had to make a trip to get this delectable pastry. The patisserie was packed with a Sunday brunch crowd when I arrived. I waited in line, snapped a few photos...I had a good laugh because there were a few other tourists in front of me frantically taking photos right and left with their iPhones. I like to think that I am not in their 'category' of tourist, but at the end of the day I think we are in the same boat! I have a long way to go to be considered even partially New Orleanian.
The croissant was wonderful: buttery, slightly glazed on the bottom and top, with a subtle almond paste spread throughout the flaky insides of the pastry. It was even better than I remembered. Yum!

Eat New Orleans (Part 2!)

2011-05-29T08:43:00.000-07:00

So, I got back to New Orleans yesterday and slept. Then I slept some more, and eventually I went to bed early at 10:30 pm (traveling really takes it out of me). I woke up this morning craving New Orleans brunch food. I was too tired to trek uptown to Commander's Palace or some other infamous brunch place, so I settled on stopping by Eat New Orleans again. The specials board propped up outside the restaurant caught my attention as I stepped inside: pulled pork and goats cheese bread pudding--I was intrigued by this savory take on a traditional southern dessert. I also saw that they had a dessert of the day: red wine strawberry sorbet.

The savory bread pudding was served with two poached eggs on top with a cranberry mustard sauce drenched over the entire dish. The sauce was a bit strong for my taste, but the bread pudding was delicious: each bite tasted like Thanksgiving Day. Interestingly, I could barely recognize the pork in the dish. After having grits at BBB, the grits served at Eat New Orleans tasted so nondescript. I wouldn’t claim that I am a grits connoisseur, but I do miss the BBB grits.

The sorbet was excellent. It tasted mainly like a strawberry sorbet with a rich undertone of red wine and a hint of basil. Very refreshing!

Ajax Diner revisited

2011-05-27T19:36:00.000-07:00

....after our epic journey to Rowan Oak, we meandered back to the town Square (the walk took 15 minutes--a far cry from our first attempt to get to Faulkner's house). We stopped by Emileigh's Kitchen to grab some baked goods. I opted for a "cowboy cookie" upon a local Oxfordian's suggestion. It was a really hearty cookie with chocolate, macadamia nuts and a bunch of other goodies. After that quick stop, Qiao decided that we head to Ajax for another "southern comfort" meal. I have to admit, I was a bit weary to eat two heavy southern meals in one day (BBB breakfast being my first), but I found the culinary courage! I ordered the Ajax burger dressed with mayonnaise, pickles and cabbage. I really liked the cabbage because it did not wilt from the heat of the burger. It was a goooood burger. I'd definitely get it again! Qiao got chicken fried steak and Tandra also opted for the Ajax burger. We all left happy, then walked off our dinner by shopping in the Square's many boutiques.

Falkner....Faulkner? Our long trip to Rowan Oak

2011-05-27T18:58:00.000-07:00

This afternoon Tandra, Qiao and I set out to visit Faulkner's home, fondly known in Oxford as Rowan Oak. What could have been a 35 minute walk from Sara's house, turned out to be a 1 hour and 30 minute walk that took us along an overpass above highway 6 and back again. Sometimes, it is not good to trust google maps (especially in the South, where it is common to have two roads with the same name in close proximity to one another). Apparently, we wanted the other Old Taylor Road.

Once we got to Rowan Oak, the long and arduous walk was worth it. The grounds of Faulkner's home were gorgeous. I think the following pictures will explain the rest...

BBB: Big Bad Breakfast

2011-05-27T18:41:00.000-07:00

My host was kind enough to drive me to Big Bad Breakfast (BBB) this morning at 7:10 am to pick up my to-go order of the Big Bad Breakfast Plate: two poached eggs, andouille sausage, grits, tomato gravy and a homemade biscuit. Yum. Everyone, and I mean everyone I talked to in Oxford said that BBB had THE BEST breakfast. Naturally, I felt inclined to make a trip, whatever the cost, to this infamous breakfast joint (...no beauty wrest for me). It is located in a strip mall about 1 mile North of the Oxford town square. The building and its surroundings may be nondescript, but nothing about BBB or its food is bland. The diner has a very warm atmosphere: largely burgundy and creme decor. When I walked in, a lone man sat at the curving counter, hunched over his breakfast plate, chewing away at his large mouthful of scrambled eggs and biscuit. He didn't even look up at us--he was too consumed by the task of finishing his breakfast (I took this as a good sign).

After we got back to Sara's apartment, I unpacked my breakfast onto a real plate, and sat down with a content sigh.

The smell of perfectly cooked and seasoned grits was calming...and yes, the grits were the best grits I ever had in my life....ever! Seriously, I loved them! The andouille sausage was nice and spicy, the poached eggs (with traces of red vinegar still on them) oozed onto one half of my biscuit, and the red gravy dressed the other half of my biscuit. The biscuit was clearly homemade (it broke apart so easily), but the spices were not ideal for my tastes. I'm more of a buttery-goodness kind of gal, rather than a gritty-spicy biscuit gal.

Bottletree Bakery

2011-05-27T18:36:00.000-07:00

I am in love with the Bottletree Bakery. As I mentioned in a previous post, I went there one of the first mornings here in Oxford, and fell in love with the bakery: with its enticing homemade artisan breads, brioches and pastries. Not to mention they make a killer mocha. I stopped back at the Bottletree with a few of my colleagues on Thursday afternoon. Strawberry humble pie...who knew? A shortbread crust and semi-sweet strawberry filling. I think the description stands for itself, but in case you need to make your mouth water a little more, check out this photo.

One of my favorite parts of the bakery is its cold drink cooler: a refurbished retro ice box. It is a bit hard to jiggle open the door, but the sturdy presence of this massive wooden ice box is aesthetically worth it!

Oxford Farmer's Market Shop

2011-05-25T20:13:00.000-07:00

This afternoon we observed Amy conduct an oral history at the Oxford Farmer's Market Shop, located about an 8 minute drive from the town square. The shop sells mainly locally sourced produce along with a small selection of specialty grocery items...the shop is lovely, and the owner, Liz, is knowledgeable and friendly. Best of all, the produce is affordable and of great quality. Check out these great pictures of what the store has to offer the community of Oxford, Mississippi.

Soulshine

2011-05-25T19:39:00.000-07:00

Day 3 in Oxford, Mississippi brought our cohort of scholars to Soulshine Pizza Factory for pizza and tamales (upon Amy's suggestion). We sat out on the side porch to enjoy the "cool" 80 degree weather. The hot tamales were de-licious! They were much smaller than the tamales I have had up north, but surprisingly they are actually "large" for Delta tamales. These tamales were made with cornmeal and beef, and were much dryer than other Delta tamales which tend to be served with a type of sauce made of their own juices.

After sampling a few tamales we ordered our main dish: The Kitchen Sink pizza (marinara sauce, mozzarella cheese, chopped tomatoes, pepperoni, Italian sausage, sauteed bell peppers, sauteed onion, button mushrooms and black olives). YUM! The crust was a bit thicker than I am used to (what can I say, I love New Haven thin crust), but overall the pizza was really satisfying!

Ajax Diner

2011-05-24T15:54:00.000-07:00

I asked Amy what the "go-to" dining joints were in Oxford, Mississippi. She immediately responded: Ajax Diner! The quintessential place people think of when they reminisce about their childhoods in Oxford. She recommended that I get the vegetable plate or the hamburger for which the diner is famous for. So, when our workshop braked for lunch today, I proposed that we head up to Ajax for lunch. The diner is located smack in the middle of the town square in Oxford. I almost walked straight past it because its storefront was quite narrow, and its signage subtle.

We stepped inside to a bar/dining area, and then made our way back towards the crowded dining room which was strung with bulbous multi-colored Christmas lights. We tried to find a space for 5 people to sit, but had no such luck so we headed back up to the bar area and grabbed a booth (dragging a spare chair up to the end). Immediately we were presented with the lunch menu which sported items such as: fried catfish, chicken fried steak, po-boys and an array of "vegetables" including sweet potato casserole, squash casserole, red beans and rice, fried okra, cheesy grits, butter beans, green beans etc. I opted for the veggie plate on Amy's suggestion...ordering what I saw as an awesome trifecta of southern foods: cheesy grits, red beans and rice and sweet potato casserole. I have to admit that I have never had a sweet potato casserole with marshmallow topping, and I really enjoyed the gooey sweetness! The pecans that were smothered in the marshmallow topping also complimented the sweet potato well. The red beans and rice were spicy, just the way I like them. But you could still see all the individual beans (whereas, sometimes in NOLA, the beans are so cooked that they sort of become more of a paste). The cheesy grits were a bit too heavy on the American cheese for my taste, but I enjoyed sampling them nonetheless.

My colleagues ordered fried catfish, pork chops, the Ajax hamburger and another vegetable plate. All of us left full and happy as we strolled back towards Ole Miss.

YaYa's Frozen Yogurt: "A Healthy Twist on the Square"

2011-05-24T15:17:00.000-07:00

I arrived in Oxford, Mississippi via the City of New Orleans Amtrak line on Sunday evening. We spent much of the afternoon happily staring out the train window at the varied and breathtaking countryside of Louisiana and Mississippi. There was a smooth and seemingly effortless transition from the Louisiana bayou with its bright green spring vegetation to the deep green foliage of Mississippi's forests (who knew nature could be so subtle?)

I'm staying with my colleague Sara in her chic apartment just a few blocks off of the main square. I'm in Oxford for the Southern Foodways Alliance's Gathering the Stories Behind the Food -- a workshop on how to conduct oral histories (note: I'll abbreviate Southern Foodways Alliance as SFA). Our program began in the late afternoon on Monday, so I had the early morning and afternoon to explore the town square. I originally set off to find Bottletree Bakery, which Sara recommended for its "tasty" homemade pastries, but alas, it is closed on Mondays! After turning back from the Bottletree Bakery, I took my time exploring Oxford's famous book shops: Square Books, Off Square Books, and Square Books Jr. What a fabulous family of bookstores: my academic mouth was watering as soon as I stepped into the spacious Square Books shop. Many of their books are signed by the author, so if you have any inclination towards "collecting" books, this store is addictive. I happily flipped through some of the most recent monographs released on southern culture and southern foodways in particular, and picked up a copy of Jessica B. Hariss' High on the Hog: A Culinary Journey From Africa to America (I couldn't resist!) After touring the other book shops and a few of the dozen or so designer boutiques peppered around the square, I headed into YaYa's yogurt shop for some frozen yogurt...

The icy air felt really good! Once I got my barrings, I noted that I was in a pleasantly lit Pinkberry-type frozen yogurt shop. But YaYa's is self-service, and had that "family owned" flare to it that mega-franchises like Pinkberry lack (I believe there are two YaYa's locations: one in Oxford, and one in Asheville, NC). I helped myself to a bowl, skimmed past the yogurt dispensers: Banana, Chocolate Mint, Vanilla Bean, New Orleans Pecan...I settled on "Original." You can never beat the beautifully complicated tart-sweetness of original flavored frozen yogurt! I dressed my dessert with a dash of granola, a good helping of fresh berries, a sprinkle of pecans and a drizzle of honey (I love when honey gets cold and sort of crystallizes over top of the frozen yogurt so you have to break it up with a spoon as you make your way through the dessert). The yogurt hit the spot (as frozen yogurts tend to always do).

After meandering around the city, I headed back to Sara's place. She fixed some potato salad for the SFA potluck dinner later that day, and I got ready to head into our introductory session in the Observatory at Ole Miss. Amy Evans Streeter is directing the workshop, and she introduced us to some of the work that the SFA has been doing over the past 13 years with their organization. Amy is the oral historian for the SFA and has conducted a significant portion of the SFA oral history projects (which are absolutely wonderful--check them out at southernfoodways.org under the documentary tab, and then under the oral history index).

The potluck dinner that evening was lovely. We got to know the other workshop participants and many SFA staff members including John T. Edge and Mary Beth Lasseter. We dined on BBQ pork and baked bean tacos, deviled eggs, potato salad and a delicious strawberry cake that Amy made. The cake was my favorite part: moist strawberry cake with a creamy semi-sweet tart strawberry icing...delicious!

First Creole cooking lesson: Jambalaya

2011-05-22T09:22:00.001-07:00

Liz has agreed to give me some cooking lessons this summer. I need to know how to make New Orleans fare in order to study it properly. So we picked jambalaya as our first dish. I have to admit that I was a bit creeped out by the unpeeled shrimp and the ham hocks that we bought at the grocery store (I've never been that comfortable working with meat, fish and shellfish in the kitchen). But I have to get over that, and fast (and there is not better time than now!)

I took a few notes on the preparation:

Ingredients:

*1 lb unpeeled shrimp

*4 tbs olive oil

*1 onion chopped

*1 green bell pepper chopped

*2 stalks celery chopped

*8 oz cooked chicken

*2 bay leaves

*1 tbs of Creole seasoning

*3 uncooked sausage links

*3 smoked ham hocks

*1 tsp of thyme

*1 tsp of pepper

*juice of 1/2 lemon

Directions:

-Peel l lb of shrimp (pull off the heads, the tails and the exoskeleton and place bits in a medium saucepan). Set peeled shrimp aside.

-add water to the medium saucepan full of shrimp exoskeleton bits and bring to a boil (this will become the stock for the jambalaya).

-heat an extra large pan on medium high, add 4 tbs of olive oil.

-chop onion, green bell pepper and celery into roughly quarter inch size pieces. Add to pan and saute (stirring occasionally). Saute on medium high heat until the onion and celery become somewhat translucent and begin to brown.

-pull 8 oz of chicken from a pre-cooked whole chicken (the rotisserie kind you can pick up at the local grocery store). It is good to use up the dark meat and then throw the bones and extra chicken bits into the shrimp stock that you are bringing to a boil. This will add richness to the shrimp stock. Add the 8 0z of cooked chicken to the large pan of vegetables. Stir. Reduce heat to medium.

-Once the shrimp/chicken stock comes to a boil, reduce heat to medium and let it boil for 10-12 minutes and strain. Set stock aside.

-add 2 bay leaves and 1 tbs of Creole seasoning to the pan of chicken and vegetables. Stir until seasoning is incorporated.

-add three links of uncooked sausage to the pan and let cook through. Once cooked, take out of pan and slice into "coins" and place back into the jambalaya pan.

-add 3 smoked ham hocks, 1 lb of brown rice, 1tsp of thyme, 1 tsp of pepper, and the juice of 1/2 lemon to the jambalaya pan. Stir and let cook on medium heat for about 5 minutes.

-add the shrimp/chicken stock to the jambalaya pan. Add more water to the pan if necessary (depending on what type of rice you use). Cover the pan and let cook on medium low for 30 minutes.

-add shrimp, reduce heat to low, cover and let cook for 10-15 minutes.

-dish out about 1 cup of jambalaya onto a plate or bowl. Enjoy!

Eat New Orleans

2011-05-22T08:57:00.000-07:00

As I headed to the archive every morning, I kept passing by this little restaurant called Eat. I like the name: it is simple. The lime green awning kept drawing my attentions as I was passing by a countless number of pastel colored Creole cottages in the Quarter. So, yesterday I stopped by Eat for an early brunch. I arrived about 10 minutes after 9:00, so the restaurant was relatively empty. I grabbed a window seat, and ordered a cup of coffee. The menu was sheer genius. Any menu that has 4 variations of eggs benedict (my go-to brunch dish) is A-OK in my book! I opted for "Eggs Dauphine:" poached eggs perched on top of half-inch thick pieces of ham wresting on top of fried green tomatoes...top it all of with hollandaise sauce. The dish came with fresh fruit and a giant homemade biscuit on the side. The first bite was pure heaven. I mean honestly, I've never met an eggs benedict that I didn't love. In the early morning light, I could see the steam rising off of the poach eggs as the golden yellow center poured over the ham and fried green tomatoes. Fantastique! And the biscuit...oh my...the biscuit was that perfect combination of sticky-crumbly dough with a slightly salty-sweet taste. Great with butter and jam! In addition to this amazingly delicious meal, the server I had was a doll. Most of the servers were in their twenties--a youthful staff. The patrons of the restaurant were also young: several artists came in with their guitars in hand. With a wink, one of these musicians promised to play me a song "the next time." In general, people in New Orleans are quite friendly. I love it here!

Nirvana

2011-05-21T19:40:00.001-07:00

When I visited the Southern Food and Beverage Museum the other day, I was talking to some visitors of the museum. I asked them what restaurants they recommended in New Orleans, and the woman suggested Nirvana, an Indian restaurant on Magazine Street. On Friday, after visiting the Historic New Orleans Collection in the French Quarter, I hopped on the streetcar and headed to Napoleon Avenue, and then walked to Magazine Street. It was H-O-T hot outside, and I was so glad to step into the air conditioned restaurant. I immediately liked the ambiance: midnight blue walls, mat gold painted chairs with red cushions. There were several paintings on the walls depicting scenes from various Indian epics. The waiter suggested that I try the lunch buffet (although I could order off the menu if I liked as well). THE FOOD WAS SO GOOD! I might even venture to say that this was the overall best Indian buffet I have ever been to. There was a wonderful salad bar with great fresh greens (which you don't often find at buffets). But the stars of the buffet were the many curry dishes, the paneer and the masala mushrooms! Yum, yum, yum! The flavors just worked so well together, and the spices were perfect: a solid medium hot. I like my Indian food to have some kick to it, and Nirvana delivered. I would recommend any Indian food lover to visit this fantastic restaurant! And the best part? The price! $10.93 for the lunch buffet (much cheaper than Tandoor in New Haven!)

Williams Plum Street Snowballs and Camellia Grill

2011-05-21T19:02:00.000-07:00

Many years ago, someone told me that the Irish liked to eat their desserts before their main meal. When I asked why, the person responded jokingly that the Irish did so in case they died in the middle of the meal (at least they could have their dessert!) When I travelled to Ireland, I did not find this story to be the case, but I find it endearing nonetheless (better yet, it gives me an excuse to eat sweets before a meal...which was the case this past Thursday).

Thursday was one of those really hot days in New Orleans--where you step outside and the humidity immediately grabs you in a steamy hug. On my way to Camellia grill, I decided to walk to Plum Street Snoballs (also known as Williams Plum Street Snowballs). At this point, you are probably wondering what in the world a snoball/sno-ball/snowball is. Well, it is kind of like a snow cone, and it is kind of like Hawaiian shaved ice, but it also distinctly different than these two icy desserts. The shaved ice that makes a snoball a snoball is created by a unique machine called "Hansen's Sno-Bliz" which produces incredibly fine snow-like shaved ice that is then drenched in homemade syrups.

I was so lucky! I walked up to Plum Street Snoballs and did not have to wait in line! I arrived just after a group of 3rd graders had made their way through the small shop, and just before a troop of screaming 4th graders walked up in line behind me. I walked up to the screen door marked "in" and stepped inside the incredibly small space (about 10 feet by 8 feet). A young woman was operating the Sno-Bliz machine. She carefully packed my shaved ice into a chinese-takeout container, and another young woman asked me what flavor I wanted. Upon the suggestion of New Orleans food writer, Sara Roahen, I tried the cream of nectar syrup. This syrup is a creamy pink-orange color and is devilishly sweet. It is common for New Orleanians to ask for condensed milk as a topping for their snoballs, but I just stuck with the syrup this time. I ooched 3 feet to the left and paid for my summer treat. $2.20. Totally worth it! I sat on the sidewalk across the street and indulged in my forbidden dessert-before-the-meal. I could hear countless imaginary mothers saying, "You'll spoil your lunch!" But I didn't care. The snoball was so good (and I got the smallest size!)

After my renegade trip to Plum Street Snoballs, I headed up to Carrollton Avenue to Camellia Grill. I had meant to go to Camellia Grill when I was in New Orleans in 2009, but I never made it that far uptown (and I was not inclined to battle the long lines and chaotic atmosphere of this infamous New Orleans diner). So, I arrived to a somewhat empty and not-so-chaotic Camellia Grill around 2:00 in the afternoon. I sat down at the counter next to three middle aged men who were in New Orleans filming a movie. Our waiter swaggered over to our counter and deftly whipped out a few menus for us to look at, while also skillfully slapping an order sheet in front of each of us in a series of swift movements. A few minutes later he came back to scribble our orders down and call out the order to the cook--he did so with authority. I was amazed that the line cook actually remembered the 4 orders so easily (I could barely follow the coded communication). But these men were experts at diner cuisine. While I waited for my hamburger, I enjoyed people watching and chatting to the men next to me. They told me about their culinary adventures in the city: Dookey Chase's, Commander's Palace, Maggie Mae's. I suggested that they try the po'boys at Parkway Bakery and hit up Cochon Butcher for a pulled pork sandwich. Meanwhile, our orders arrived. The hamburger was simple perfection: bun, lettuce, tomato, grilled onions, a slice of American cheese, mayo and real beef. I think the key is in the real beef (so rare these days in the empire of fast food dining). This hamburger was a true guilty pleasure...good thing I am keeping up an exercise regime to stay in some kind of shape! For dessert I ordered a slice of homemade pecan pie (Yes, that is right...I had two desserts that afternoon) The waiters bantered with one another as they whipped up my dessert, slapping the pecan pie upside down on the griddle to heat it up and give it that extra "seasoning" from the griddle to make it o-so-good! The pie was delicious and the coffee was strong. A good combination. While I was working on my dessert, I noticed that my waiter had switched roles in the kitchen and was now acting as the griddle cook, then before I knew it, he was back to waiting on another couple (you have to be versatile when you work in a place like Camellia Grill where there could be up to 35 people sitting at the counter at a time). I would definitely come back to Camellia Grill (and I would make sure that I hit the restaurant at a non-peak time, so that I wouldn't have to wrestle my way through the crowd).

Croissant D'Or

2011-05-21T18:49:00.000-07:00

Liz and I were walking to the Southern Food and Beverage Museum one morning, and we passed a little patisserie called Croissant D'Or. I asked Liz what she thought of the cafe, and she said that it was quite good. So the next day I ventured there for lunch. I liked the open exterior of the cafe with its wide cream walls and expansive bakery case (Yum!) I read online that the almond croissants were "the best," so I decided to try one. I also ordered a small quiche lorraine tart and a mocha (my favorite cafe drink). The quiche was served warm and was delicious. The crust of the quiche was thick and flaky (parfait!) The croissant, true to its review, was fantastic: an almond paste had been incorporated into the croissant (undetectable from the outside). The subtleness of the almond flavor was truly a work of art. The mocha, unfortunately was subpar--a bit watery, and lacked a strong espresso flavor. Besides, the mocha I had a wonderful experience out in the courtyard. There was a lively bunch of New Orleanians and tourists at the cafe. A vibrantly dressed street performer waltz into the courtyard around 12:30. She was dressed head to tow in Hawaiian silk flowers. She sported an umbrella that was similarly garnished. She picked up a conversation with the Japanese-born wife of an American army vet who was sitting at a nearby table. The street performer had taught in Japan for several years, and was excited to share her experiences with the native of Japan. I love these par chance meetings that bring two unexpected persons together--how wonderful! I will be returning to Croissant D'Or soon and will certainly be ordering another almond croissant!

Louisiana Pizza Kitchen

2011-05-21T18:26:00.000-07:00

Much of my time in New Orleans is spent in the archives, researching the lives of somewhat obscure chefs and cooks in New Orleans. On a good morning I can wheel my way through 15 reels of microfilm. In between this research, I break for lunch. But my lunch break is so much more than eating: its my portal into New Orleanian culture which is so defined by its food. If I want to write about the history of New Orleans cuisine, I must have a good grasp of its restaurant scene. So, I started my exploration of NOLA cuisine with the Louisiana Pizza Kitchen. The restaurant had decent reviews online, so I headed past the French Market to this small corner restaurant. I immediately liked the ambience: cool exterior with a hip bar-like feel. From my seat I could see the pizza oven and the mastermind cook behind the crispy thin crust of LPK pizzas. My tummy was rumbling, and I was craving good pizza (with a Creole twist?) The service was really fast, and before I could properly look at the menu I found myself ordering a "Four Seasons" pizza and a black cherry soda. When the pizza came it looked delicious: heaps of artichoke hearts, sun dried tomatoes, mushrooms and a dusting of flour on the edges of the crisped crust. I started out with a knife and fork, but was too hungry to stick to such tedious practices, and just picked up the pizza in my hand. Anticipation mounted as I took my first bite, but bizarrely my taste buds were hit by an overwhelming taste of herbes de Provence. What?!, I thought to myself. Upon closer examination, I saw that my knight-in-shining armor cook had been a bit too liberal with his spices. I am not one to normally dislike food, but these herbs were too pungent for the pizza and overwhelmed the simplistic characteristics of good pizza: simple crust, cheese and tomato sauce. Well, at least I had my black cherry soda to cheer me up! If I head back to the Louisiana Pizza Kitchen, I will not order the "Four Seasons" pizza, but I would venture for a simpler pizza which showcases the delicate wood fired crust.

Catching Up On The Past Year

2011-05-21T16:34:00.001-07:00

I can't believe that it has been almost a year since I posted (sorry about that!) I wanted to take this post to catch y'all up on the remainder of Whim 'n Rhythm's world tour...So here we go!

After Japan we whisked off to Singapore, India, Egypt, Israel, Turkey and Italy (then I took a week long sojourn in Brooklyn, New York). Singapore was a strange place. It is difficult to sort through my feelings about this city-state. Yes, it is beautiful. I'll give you that. But it is almost too perfect. The streets are so clean, and there is an eerie calm that settles over this tropical city: a muggy perfection that tends to cling to rather than comfort you. That being said, I did enjoy my time there: the a cappella groups we held a workshop with were so enthusiastic about singing (it was such a joy to bring so many passionate people together and teach each other about music and exchange rehearsal/performance strategies). Whim had a good laugh going on a local news show: it was fun to be interviewed on international television, and to make up "jingles" on the spot to advertise our interview.

Never in my wildest dreams did I ever think I would go to India. Throughout my life, it remained one of those far-off lands that I would never go to: something that was built up in my imagination from childhood movies like A Little Princess. From what friends had told me from their travels in India, I was prepared for the worst: the extreme poverty, the overcrowded cities, the chaos...What I did not expect was the beauty, the vibrant cities and the rich culture that also make up India. The clothing alone was art. Women were dressed in peacock blue, ruby red, acid green, and deep lavender saris...I felt like I was wading through a bag of Skittles ("taste the rainbow!"). So many colors! We were lucky enough to stay in the Taj Coromandel hotel in Chennai, and had the privilege of every modern amenity you could ask for. The Yale Club of Chennai hosted a major event at the Taj while we were there, and we were able to put on a nice show for the alums. We were also on Chennai Radio Live, were interviewed for nation-wide newspapers, and in our spare time travelled to the east coast of Chennai to stare out at the Indian Ocean (no swimming though...deadly bacteria...not to mention the crocodiles...) We also visited silk artisans and rode elephants!

Egypt was a dream come true for me. As a little girl, I used to spend countless afternoons daydreaming about circumnavigating the globe. I imagined myself wearing a bright red coat like Carmen Sandiego while heading to places like the Eiffel Tower, the Colosseum and of course, the Pyramids at Giza--yellow scarf flapping in the wind. So, from a very young age my ambition was to travel the world...and there I was standing in front of my biggest dream, about to ascend to the inner chamber of Khufu's pyramid.

Eventually, all of Whim made it into the burial chamber, and after all of the other tourists had left, we stayed a few moments longer to sing "We Are" (a very meaningful song for Whim about legacy and fulfilling the dreams of grandmothers and grandfathers). It was a magical moment (at the same time very moving and also incredibly unsettling). I think we were all waiting for a mummy to aparate from the darkness a la The Mummy.

After a very trying 8-hour bus ride through the Egyptian dessert (on a very sketchy bus) we eventually made our way to the Israeli border. After our horrible experience on the bus, the palm trees and expansive waters of the Red Sea were paradise. A few of us strolled out along the pier and stuck our feet in the cool water. The ocean was so clear, we could see tropical fish darting 20 feet below us. There were actually some snorkelers out at 8:00 am already. We caught another bus to Jerusalem and dodged between passerby in the Arab quarter to get to our hostel which had an amazing panoramic view of the Old City: the Dome of the Rock glistened in the afternoon sunlight. I came to love Jerusalem in those few days we were there. As a historian, I was fascinated by how saturated the city was with biblical history. We were walking down the street and saw the stations of the cross marked by placards on the city walls. We also saw signs like "Birth Place of the Virgin Mary, this way." I felt like I was being pelted by historical presence every time I walked by an ancient church or cemetery.

After spending a few nights in Jerusalem, we made our way to Tel Aviv. Jakara and I had wonderful hosts: our host mom was a method actress named Sharon and had a vivacious personality. I loved spending time with her: she was a fantastic host. We also spent a lot time at the beach: the Mediterranean waters are beautiful (although riddled with jelly fish!) Tel Aviv provided us that much needed let-down time before surging on to the later part of our tour.

Soon we made our way to Istanbul (my all-time favorite city). Since I had visited the city before, I spent most of my time milling around the markets, chatting with vendors, sampling loads of baklava. Yum. I have a small obsession with Turkish ceramics, so I did a lot of "window shopping" for patterns (and bought a fare amount too). Highlights include the Independence Day celebrations at the consulate in Istanbul (almost 100 American food vendors!), being escorted around town by U.S. marines, singing in an archaeological site of a Roman Cistern, and visiting a Turkish bath house.

Oh, Italia! The real question is...who doesn't love Italy? It is absolutely fabulous!
We started off in Bologna: the best food! I took a day trip to Ravenna, Italy to see the infamous Byzantine mosaics (thanks for the tip Vincent Scully!) One of the more random stops was to Castel Del Piano, a small village, which is home to a UNESCO heritage men's choir. We sang a joint concert with them, and had a great time (yes, there was yodeling involved).

I really enjoyed visiting Siena. We arrived a fews days after the Palio. I stayed with my friend Lissie's Italian teacher from Yale. He had an apartment in a neighborhood of Siena called Selva (Forest). Consequently, Selva had just won the Palio a few days before and the community was inclined to celebrate in the wee hours of the night by parading back and forth through the neighborhood singing and playing drums. It was really special to be living in the "winning" part of town. The Siena Duomo is the most beautiful church I have ever seen in my life. The marble work is just stunning.

Then we headed off to Roma! It was incredibly educational, inspiring and fun as always. I loved meandering around, stopping in churches on a whim to discover the most amazing architecture. The World Cup was going on while we were there, so everyone was in a hubub. Did I mention that we stayed in a Catholic convent (curfew at 5:00 pm!) They were incredibly kind to host us, and it was nice to spend the evenings with all of Whim (catching up on the third season of True Blood).

Then we had to say our goodbyes, which of course, were sad because we were losing two of our members before returning home: Jennie (off for more adventures in Europe) and Jakara (starting her Fullbright research in Rome). Somehow we made it back to New York City with all of our baggage. It was raining cats and dogs when we got back (which was like pouring lighter fluid on the flame our our emotions). We sang "Hammond" one last time, and wandered off to our various destinations. I caught a taxi to Brooklyn. I was forlorn to close such a wonderful chapter in my life...I was in a daze when I caught the elevator up into Lissie's apartment (I ran into her Dad as I was coming into the building). I walked into the familiar space: I was instantly stunned into reality by the smell of roasting chicken (it was dinner time). The apartment, although not my home in Pittsburgh, was an overwhelmingly comforting and homey space. As I turned left into the family room, I saw Lissie sitting on the white chair-and-a-half that she always sits in while watching TV. I think she was actually watching The Last Unicorn. She jumped up when she saw me, scream "Oh My God! ASHLEY!" and we gave each other a big hug. It was the perfect homecoming! That evening we met up with Luke and Michelle and went to eat at a southern restaurant: I had a pulled pork sandwich. I think it was at that point--when I was happily eating away at one of my favorite all-American dishes--that I realized I was elated to be back home in the good ol' U.S. of A!

I spent the remainder of my summer (5-week) in Pittsburgh with my family before starting my first year in a history PhD program at Duke University. Just two weeks ago I successfully finished my first year of graduate school and now I am in New Orleans for my summer research!

Kobe, Japan

2010-06-07T22:04:00.000-07:00

Kobe, Japan is incredible! Most of Whim 'n Rhythm is staying with their own host family, but Lita and I are staying together at the Arima Family's house. Our host Dad runs a trail mix and nut company in Japan and exports to places like Whole Foods in the United States.

We had 3 concerts while in Kobe. One at an all girls school, which my host sister, Satoko went to. One at an outdoor shopping area called Mosaic, and one at a really nice concert hall. Our hosts have been so gracious and have driven us to all of our concerts and attended all of our concerts.

Highlights from the trip include:
*Great Chinese Food in Kobe's China Town
*Sight seeing and tropical cocktails at Kobe's Harbor
*Trip to Osaka, Japan (Japan's second largest city) for the best Sushi, Tempura, and Sake I have ever had! The sushi was so fresh and well prepared...it was a really interesting restaurant (very small) with an open kitchen so you could see the chefs preparing the sushi. It was both delicious and beautifully crafted (I felt like I was eating artwork).
*Traditional Japanese Tea Ceremony and Yukatas (the summer version of Kimonos). Our host families are spoiling us and bought us all Yukatas to take home with us to the States as souvenirs.
*Home cooked Japanese dinners: Sukiyaki (a Japanese Beef dish) and Japanese Curry! YUM!
*Day Trip to the historic and beautiful city of Kyoto where we saw the Golden Temple and many shrines. Our host families treated us to a traditional Japanese lunch were we sat around low tables on cushions and drank green tea.

We have been so so so lucky in Kobe: I have not met a more hospitable people than the Japanese!

Tokyo

2010-06-02T18:15:00.000-07:00

Tokyo is an amazing city. It almost rivals Istanbul as one of my all-time favorite urban spaces. Like all major cities, Tokyo has numerous distinct sections of town that each have their own flare.

There is the posh Shinjuku area:*Fancy department stores with multi-level gourmet eating halls in the basements (These eateries are the most gorgeous spaces, with rows and rows of impeccably plated and delicious looking foods ranging from dumplings, to sea grass, to french pastries.
*Really expensive boutiques that sell $6,000 puppies (Apparently, celebrities like Paris Hilton travel here to get their toy poodles).
*Apparently the metro station was named after a dog, who followed his master to work everyday and waited for him at the station...one day his master died, and the dog continued to wait for him. The people of Tokyo cared for the dog, bringing him food etc, and the station was named in his honor.
Shibuya:
*Similar to Time Square...it is the big "meeting place" and has all the giant electronic billboards

Harajuku:
*This is a super hip part of town, where the famous Harajuku girls come from (the high fashion, beautiful Japanese girls that Gwen Stefani was obsessed with a few years back).
*The main streets are bustling, but the real jewel of this area is its winding side streets that have the charm of small town village, but are brimming with high fashion boutiques and great cafes.
*Near Harajuku there is the Meiji Shinto Shrine in a large park (kind of like central park). This shrine was built in 1920 in honor of the Emperor Meiji and his wife. Jennie and I saw a traditional Japanese wedding take place here yesterday. Beautiful!

Roppongi:
*Hip part of town with a huge clubbing culture. We went out here last night to an American Bar called Geranimo's (famous for it's 15 shot challenge).

Shinagawa:
*This is the area that Jennie and I are staying in with our host David Wright.
*A big convention center type area

Honolulu

2010-06-02T17:58:00.000-07:00

Whim spent last week enjoying the sandy beaches and azure blue waters of Honolulu, Hawaii. Highlights from our trip include singing on the Channel 2 morning news, singing for the mayor of Hawaii and the state library, and singing for a retirement home nestled in the misty mountains of the East side of the island.

Outside of singing, we had a great time exploring some of Hawaii's most beautiful beaches: Hanauma Bay, Waikiki, and the North Shore (Waimea Bay).
On the way home from Hanauma Bay, we stopped by a beach on the North Shore that is famous for its sea turtles (apparently they love the green algae that grows on the craggy rocks spattered across this beach). We hopped out of the car and saw 5 turtles sunning in the beach! They were huge!

Waimea Bay was also beautiful: we went rock jumping at this bay...plummeting off of rocks into the rolling ocean water 30 feet below. A lot of local boys were hanging out on top of the rocks, and when I asked one of them what I was supposed to do, he replied, "Just Jump." And so I did! It was really scary, but awesome! I got 2 other girls in Whim to join me on the next jump.

W also visited the Waimea park and botanic gardens which had an amazing waterfall and swimming hole that we went to. There were some famous scenes from the TV show Lost, that were filmed here.

A Tour of the SoFAB Museum

2009-08-19T18:56:00.001-07:00

Here are pictures from the Southern Food and Beverage Museum, so you can get an idea of what this great institution is like (Keep in mind that we are only a year old and still growing! Small steps....)

The St. Joseph's Altar--There is a relatively large Sicilian population here in New Orleans, so much so that its traditional to see altars dedicated to St. Joseph on March 19. The altars are decorated with breads that have been molded into beautiful images of crosses and other religious symbols:

Here is the Cookbook corner where patrons can read cookbook dating back to the late 1800s as well as modern cookbooks:

The Famous New Orleans Snowball. As mentioned before, if you think Hawaiian ice is delicious, you have no idea what you are missing with the New Orleans Snow Ball. Fluffy decadent ice is shaved in a machine like the one seen below. This ice is like a fresh Christmas snow: magical and perfect!

Pralines are also a New Orleans staple: the image scene in this exhibit makes my mouth water!

Leah Chase: This extraordinary women and food icon is known as the "Queen of Creole Cooking." She is also known for bright colored cooking smocks and her delicious home-style cookin'!

The Entrance to the Museum of the American Cocktail:

Martinis: As seen in the Museum of the American Cocktail:

The White House Chef exhibit (one of 5 displays):
Overall, the museum is a fantastic space. It used to be a GIANT Limited (as in the women's clothing shop). But after hurricane Katrina, the Limited decided not to come back and that is when Liz jumped on the opportunity to utilize the space and bring the history of southern culinary tradition to life!

ARKANSAS!

2009-08-19T18:32:00.000-07:00

One of my projects at the Southern Food and Beverage Museum was setting up a state exhibit on Arkansas. Who knew that Arkansas is famous for its pink tomato or that Alma, Arkansas is the spinach capital of the world? Better yet- did you know that the Arkansas state cookware is the Dutch Oven? This my friends, its what food history is all about! Finding treasures in small town pride! Here are a few pictures of the exhibit done by "yours truly"

I also set up a small exhibit on the Laitram Automatic Shrimp Peeler which was invented by a teenage boy in the first half of the 20th century. The adapted washing-machine-shrimp-peeler he invented completely revolutionized the shrimp industry because the machine peeled shrimp 10 times faster than workers peeling by hand!

So we went out to the antique shops and found an old washing machine from the 1920s that is a similar style to the washing machine that this boy would have modified to make it into a shrimp peeler. You can see it below:

The basic principle: When you push a shrimp up again the turning rubber-wringer with the appropriate pressure; the rubber will grab the shrimp shell and not the meat, pulling away the shell from the delicious shrimp! YUM!

A Pittsburgher in New Orleans

2009-08-18T20:08:00.000-07:00

This past weekend my mom and my Aunt Noreen came to visit me in the Big Easy! They came in on early Saturday morning and I met them at their cute little Bed and Breakfast on the corner of Washington and St. Charles. My mom and Aunt Noreen stayed in the Oak Alley Room (named after one of the famous Plantations of New Orleans) and when we pushed open the heavy wood door, a charming oasis waited for us, complete with gourmet chocolates on lace doilies and complimentary sherry and dainty crystal glasses.

After we got settled in and took a little rest we headed over to Commander’s Palace for the Jazz Brunch. Commander’s Palace is right on Washington, about 4 blocks from St. Charles so it was an easy walk to the restaurant. We walked out of the sunshine and through the entrance and we were immediately engulfed by the air conditioning (I felt like I was walking into an old fashion ice box) We sat in the main dining room just to the right of the entrance. All of the tables had bushels of balloons on them- which provided a festive atmosphere (almost child-like...as if I expected Mickey and Minnie Mouse to pop out from the Kitchen and greet us table side...anyone who has been to Disney will know what this experience feels like).
I knew it was going to be a fancy experience when the waiter placed the napkin on my lap for me, but I had no idea about the incredible food experience that lay ahead. We all ordered the Jazz Brunch special-- I ordered Turtle Soup with Sherry, The Cochon de Lait, and the famous bread pudding soufflé known as the “Queen of Soufflé."
The first course came out with 4 waiters in tow. With an ease only accomplished through months of practice, the waiters -in perfect synchronization- poured the soup into our bowls. Then with the swish of the waiter's wrist, my turtle soup was magically dressed with Sherry and ready to eat. It was Delicious! The broth was rich and very creamy with a texture similar to that of bean soup. The flavor was also nice and strong with a good amount of salt (Just the way I like it!)
Then the main course came out and I almost died! It was a roasted pig's shoulder-pulled pork style-drenched in delicious gravy with red peppers and other vegetables. The pork was graced by the presence of two perfectly poached eggs drizzled with gourmet hollandaise sauce. All of this was sitting on top of a buttered southern biscuit! It was TO DIE FOR! I cannot even tell you how delicious this dish was and how much I loved it! The pork was so tender...the gravy so flavorful and the eggs and hollandaise sauce paired with the southern biscuit really added a unique texture to the dish. It was a circus of flavors perfectly coordinated for my palate.

Then the DESSERT came and I think I may have died and gone to heaven! The soufflé was magical, but non challant, a pale creamy color with a sort of blush to the fluffy bread. Immediately after setting the dish on the table, the waiter broke the soufflé with one deft thwack of the spoon and poured whiskey cream sauce into the steaming pastry! The first bite was so magical, it was one of THOSE perfect food moments! I savored the perfectly balanced dessert. I was smiling while trying to chew while trying to exclaim to my mom and aunt how good it was!

My mom’s pecan pie was EXCELLENT as well! The flavoring was so subtle- you could tell it was a REAL homemade pecan pie and not some fake store-bought pie. My Aunt Noreen had a great praline parfait that tasted like the Onassis dessert at Christos in Pittsburgh- the cinnamon honey ice cream encased by a vanilla cookie cylinder with whipped cream and pralines as dressing.
Then we left Commander’s Palace with our wallets a little lighter and our stomachs WAY fuller!

We took the street car down to the French Quarter and we did a bit of boutique shopping and we headed to The Historic New Orleans Collection Research Center to look at some New Orleans restaurant menus from the 19th century.
That evening, we met at my boss Liz’s house for dinner at 7:00. The food was fabulous. Chicken cacciatore with garlic bread and a side salad. Simple and delicious. A "little Italy" right in the middle of Louisiana! I wasn’t even hungry after Commander's Palace, but the dinner was very good and I really like the chicken dish (which I had never had before).
The next morning we went to the Prytania movie theater to see An American in Paris. It was a perfect Prytania-Classic-Movie-Day. We had delicious freshly popped popcorn which we munched on while watching a Bugs Bunny Cartoon (prelude to the featured film). Afterward we helped ourselves to the complimentary Coffee and cookies and headed back out into the sunshine in the direction of Magazine Street which is known for its eclectic boutiques and old school cafes.

That evening, we returned to Commander's Palace (Because one time wasnt enough) for cocktails, appetizers, and dessert! I had the Oyster a la “Dom” which was absolutely amazing. It came out in a little ceramic bowl and inside was a cream sauce that was heavily flavored with tarragon and potatoes. The poaches oysters were bathing in this heavenly sauce and atop all of this was a crispy flaky pastry. The oysters were piping hot and plump- when you bit down on the oyster there was an explosion of flavor! We all got different kinds of desserts. My aunt Noreen had a chocolate volcano explosion type dessert, I had the bread pudding soufflé again, and my mom had a delicious peach and marzipan with mint sauce dessert. It was a perfect ending to a perfect weekend visit! Thanks for coming down to the Crescent City Mom and Aunt Noreen!

A date with Eliza Doolittle

2009-08-06T13:48:00.000-07:00

New Orleans is a magical place. Nowhere else do you have a city saturated with Creole culture, deep southern traditions, and a vibrant modern enthusiasm! This city has suffered because of Katrina, but the people who live here fight every day to keep their city alive. They seek to fuel New Orleans into the future while cherishing the warm embrace of their past.

One of my favorite examples of this ‘fantastic love affair with the past’ is the Prytania movie theater located uptown. This quaint one screen movie theater was renovated with loving care and as a result maintains its early 20th century charm. I recently went to the one of the theater’s Classic Movie Series pictures, My Fair Lady. The movie experiences started off with a cute little old man singing the “Warner Brothers- movie-introduction-score” into a hand held mic. Then he went into a little speech about the beautiful colors in My Fair Lady and how Cary Grant had turned down the lead role and how the roses in the beginning scenes are some of the most beautiful flowers he ever had seen.

His little speech was charming and something that would NEVER have occurred in one of the mega-plex movie theaters that my generation has become accustomed to! To top of his little speech he announced that complimentary cookies and coffee would be served at the intermission of the movie (SUCH GREAT CUSTOMER RELATIONS AND A WONDERFUL TRADITION!). Hearing this, the whole audience was in a great mood as the pre-movie Bugs Bunny cartoon started. Without having to sit through any annoying commercials or movie previews My Fair Lady began to roll seamlessly just after the short cartoon ended.

I have to admit that I didn’t want to leave this wonderful place at the end of the movie! It was tempted to stay for the 4:00 showing of Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince because I wanted to hold on to the magical mood that this charming theater had put me in (and it was not only me- all of the audience from the little old lady wearing a straw hat on my left to the young teen with a pierced lip and Converses to my right- thoroughly enjoyed the movie and the old-world-charm of the theater). The Prytania theater is exemplary of the wonderful culture and tradition that one can experience in New Orleans. I cannot wait to visit it again soon!

Audubon Park

2009-07-22T09:40:00.001-07:00

Old Oak Trees Covered in Spanish Moss in Audubon Park
Image of Mississippi River Near Sunset:
House On Fringe of Audubon Park (Uptown, New Orleans):
Audubon Park Entrance (Uptown, New Orleans):

Week 1 in the Big Easy

2009-07-20T08:23:00.000-07:00

My Camera has been out of commission for a while, so unfortunately my blog will be picture-less for a bit longer.
First things first- New Orleans is AMAZING! What a vibrant, wonderful, appreciated city! My favorite part of New Orleans is the people because they all LOVE their city and enjoy sharing their experiences with anyone and everyone. Their passion is contagious and I find myself smitten with the city and perhaps en route to falling in love with "The Big Easy".
I have been here for one week- and I have already accomplished many of the "must-dos", but I also feel like I haven't even touched the surface of what this city has to offer.

Top 10 moments of the week (in no particular order)

1) Audubon Park: This might be the most gorgeous city park that I have ever been to in the United States- more so because of the energetic people than the landscaping. Everyone who lives uptown flocks to this urban oasis to jog, bike, walk their dog, and just sit and read. There is so much energy and happiness in this park that it drapes the oak trees just like the famous Spanish moss.

2) The Bayou: This Saturday the Yale group took a 2 hour drive out into the Louisiana countryside to take a Swamp Tour! This was REAL Louisiana from the smoky bar, to the mangy dogs, to the lakeside camps (or cabins). We saw HUGE alligators, flocks of blue herring and egrets all the while listening to the oldies station and cruising on Richard's (our guide's) boat.

3) Second Line Parade: Particularly in the French Quarter, there is a tradition of the Second Line where a big marching band, or brass band, or just a group of people singing parade through the streets of New Orleans in celebration (This may be for a wedding, a funeral, or just for fun!) There is nothing like the pulsating beat of the marching band drawing you in and calling you to let go and dance in the streets!

4) Po-Boys: Pittsburgh may be famous for Primanti Brother's sandwiches, Yalies may love Wenzels, but New Orleans tops the chart with their Po-Boy sandwiches. I went to Parkway Bakery yesterday to have the infamous Po-Boy Roast beef sandwiches: Necessary Elements include a very crunchy baguette, perfectly marinated and roasted beef, lettuce, tomato, pickle, and mayonnaise. Simple- yet it could rival the food at Antoine's.

5) Snowballs: This is yet another infamous New Orleans treat which is comparable to Hawaiian Shaved ice, or your run of the mill snow cone. But Snowballs are much MUCH better! The ice is so fine and is the consistency of a 'fresh snow fall'. Then (at the Plum Street Snowball place at least) they DRENCH your ice with delicious flavoring...there is no skimpy or halfhearted dressing of this ice! I had Bananas Foster flavoring on mine and I might argue that it was even BETTER than the actual dessert (and a lot cheaper too!)

6) Gospel Choir: So I was riding back home with Andrew the other night and we passed a group of people standing outside of a church-- they were all holding candles and were staggered on the church steps. We decided to make a U-turn and circled back around. As we got closer to the church we could hear the soft yet haunting song being sung in unison” There is no death that can reach them". As we passed by the choir began threading in harmonies to the chorus that made the impact of those words (repeated over and over) even more powerful. It was a magical New Orleans moment that could not be captured in any tourist book or magazine.

7) Degas House: Yesterday (June 19) was Edgar Degas 175th anniversary! (Happy Belated B-day!) We went to the Degas House (or Musson Family House) here in New Orleans to listen to live music and walk around the house (which is now a functioning Bed and Breakfast)

8) Ogden After Hours: Every Thursday, the Ogden Modern Art Museum hosts 'after hours at the Ogden' where you can go and look around the gallery, buy the cocktail of the week, and listen to live jazz music while you stroll around the museum. Fantastic!

9) Bastille Day: July 14 was the French Independence Day and I got to help out with an event that the Southern Food and Beverage Museum (SoFAB) was hosting in coordination with the French Consulate. There were 500 people in our quaint little museum on Tuesday evening- most speaking in French, Franglish, and very few in English!

10) Cafe Du Monde: Famous for its fried donuts and its simple yet delicious cafe au lait- this is an New Orleans staple right in the middle of the French Quarter in Jackson Square. A charming place, but unfortunately no French people actually work there.

As the French Say (Bisses!)

Holden Beach NC (My Paradise!)

2009-06-29T12:25:00.000-07:00

For the next two weeks I will be at Holden Beach North Carolina soaking up the sun and spending some quality time with my family. The beach is as lovely as ever and the sun is certainly shining :) Here are some great shots from our first day!

Walking on the beach:

The Summer Sun:
Eagle Kite Flying in the Sky:
Sunset looking back out towards the Causeway:
Sunset:

Henley-On-Thames

2009-06-29T12:10:00.001-07:00

The day before I came home to the States for good, I took the train up to the little river town of Henley-On-Thames to watch some of my Yale friends row in the international rowing competition known as Women's Henley. The town itself was in one word: CHARMING! From the gingerbread-like houses along the river to the traditional English pubs, Henley-On-Thames was the perfect boating town.

Some cute little cottages on the river:

The Angel: Where we had traditional English pub fare

I was SO HAPPY not only to see my friends but to see them row in competition! Tt was AMAZING! The power and grace and spot-on timing of their strokes was MAGNIFICENT! I am so proud of Allix, Dara, and Caroline and now that I have dabbled with rowing, I can further appreciate their efforts and accomplishments!

The Yale Women's Eight rippin and ready to go at the start line:

Allix just after her race:

The Yale Women's Eight boat is currently competing at Royal Henley- one of the largest rowing competition in the world! Good luck Caroline and lady bulldogs!

Visiting Laura in Durham

2009-06-29T11:51:00.001-07:00

I also had the wonderful opportunity to go visit my best friend Laura up in northern England in the little town of Durham. Her college (St. Aidan's) was hosting a Summer Ball called "Out of this World" that I went to with Laura and her friends. We had a blast singing Karaoke in the bar, Boogieing at the Silent Disco, and chatting in the Mood Pods!

Laura and I at dinner in St. Aidan's dining Hall:

I got to meet "The Queen"

After another all night/morning long ball I was pretty whipped! So we relaxed the next day and went to a BBQ party at one of Laura's friend's house. The next day though we were up and rearin' to go for a fundraiser Netball tournament. This was REALLY fun and a great chance to meet more of Laura's friends. We had fun dressing up or wearing "fancy dress" as they call it in England. Our team did not really have a theme to our costumes, but we certainly had pizazz (with fake mustaches to boot!)

Laura and John celebrating after Laura's score:

Shaun diving around with his cape on:

Human Pyramid:

Then Laura and I took a day trip up to Scotland and poked around for a few hours. We didn't do anything that touristy, but just walked around the city enjoying the nice weather and the gorgeous/haunting architecture of Edinburgh!

Then it was back to Durham and then back to Oxford. Here are a few picturesque photos from my trip to Durham: