For nearly two centuries a public ferry has crossed the Mississippi between the French Quarter and Algiers. Now sleek new catamarans zip back and forth, making the passage faster and more reliable. For many years, a lumbering, aging ferry carried commuters across the Mississippi River between Algiers and the French […]
Garden Varieties
Spring has officially sprung! The flowers are blooming, the bees are buzzing, ferns are stretching out tendrils from brick walls, and bright green mosses are forming lush, natural carpeting just about everywhere. When the rain takes a break, everyone in the Greater New Orleans Area is out and about enjoying […]
Currying Flavor
Once upon a time, not so long ago, there was a dearth of great Indian cuisine in the GNO. But the restaurant scene, oh boy it is a-changin’! In the past decade, pandemic and hurricanes notwithstanding, the region has seen a huge influx of Mexican restaurants (tacos a-go-go), Thai food, […]
Louisiana: It’s the Berries!
From Watsonville, California to Stilwell, Oklahoma, there are quite a few cities who’s claim to fame is the “Strawberry Capital of the World,” but for folks around here that title will forever and always belong to Ponchatoula. For almost two centuries, farmers in and around Tangipahoa Parish have been growing […]
Feeding an Irish-American Tradition: Corned Beef
Digging into food origins can tell you a lot about history, including revealing some of our widely-held misconceptions. Take for example the belief that for centuries, the Irish have celebrated St. Patrick’s Day by devouring plates of corned beef and cabbage. Like most customs, the truth is far more convoluted […]
Tasting the Purple, Green & Gold
Though a measured level of Mardi Gras is expected this year, are you one of many folks out there hesitant to participate? Are you hoping for at least one more year of house parades? There’s plenty of reasons to abstain — if the resurgence of Covid breakouts (and its Omnicrom […]
Eat Your Greens!
It’s like a war cry shouted by nutritionists, dietitians, doctors and mothers all around the world. Eat your greens! You know they’re right. You know that eating dark, leafy greens reduces the risk of heart disease, blood clots, obesity, and high blood pressure. You also know they’re packed with minerals […]
Creole Comforts: Saint John
Chef and restaurateur Eric Cook breathes new life into a historic, French Quarter space with the launch of Saint John, a Lower Decatur Street restaurant offering “haute Creole” cuisine. Only a few months ago, local chef and native New Orleanian Eric Cook announced the opening of his second restaurant Saint […]
Generations of Service: Crescent City Steaks
The Vojkovich family has been feeding prime USDA steaks, served “sizzling in butter,” to over four generations of New Orleanians. The two-story building with art deco accents on the corner of St. Phillip and N. Broad has long been a landmark on the edge of Bayou St. John. Almost 90 […]
A Toast to the Roast
A deceptively simple dish, the oyster pan roast is equally at home on your kitchen counter or the most heavily-white linened table at a high-end restaurant. Though its origins are far to the northeast in New York City, many local chefs have taken this cozy, winter-time dish and made it […]
Pub Po-Boys
Not unlike incredible gas-station eats, New Orleans’s dive bars have long perfected the art of serving great food at affordable prices. Though one can find almost any type of cuisine at a bar these days, from burgers and tacos to pierogi and dim sum, one of the oldest and most […]
Bubbles or Bust
“Bubbles, bubbles everywhere, and not a drop to drink . . . yet.” -Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory Is there a large concentration of trypophobic folks in Orleans Parish? Perhaps there’s an underlying mental aversion to tapioca? One theory might be that there’s a distinct line drawn between food […]
Hyped-Up Hummus
Chickpeas, garlic, tahini, lemon juice and salt; five ingredients whirred together in a blender or food processor and voila, you have hummus. This simple, Middle-Eastern dish has easily become one of the most common dips in the United States since its popularity exploded in the mid-80s. These days, it can […]