A traditional, soul-satisfying breakfast dish that’s gradually disappearing from New Orleans restaurant menus. Without skipping a beat, any local (or devout fan) can rattle off dozens of New Orleans dishes such as étouffée, gumbo, jambalaya, crab ravigote, muffulettas, po-boys, Yak-a-mein, beignets and king cake. We think of the oyster loaves […]
New Orleans Food News: December 2024
Po-boy preservation . . . Since chef Benjamin Wicks and Art Mahony Murray opened Mahony’s Po-boys over 15 years ago, folks from near and far have been flocking to the Magazine Street restaurant for a taste of Wicks’ fine dining take on po-boys (this writer loved the pot roast beef […]
New Orleans Food News: November 2024
Changing hands? . . . Algiers Point restaurant Tonti’s Cocktail Bar & Bistro (formerly Tonti’s Hand) has tapped a new head chef. Chet Henderson recently moved to The Point from Colorado where he worked as the Corporate Executive Chef of The Culinary Creative Group, a hospitality company responsible for restaurants […]
Proofing Future Bakers at Ayu Bakehouse
Frenchmen Street bakery owners Kelly Jacques and Samantha Weiss have created an in-house incubator, educating and encouraging employees taking first steps toward entrepreneurship. This Saturday and Sunday marks the 4th weekend of Bella McDow’s new pop-up at Ayu Bakehouse. After normal hours every weekend this October, the bakery is under […]
New Orleans Food News: October 2024
Finger lickin’ chicken . . . Adolfo “Fito” Garcia and Sophia Petrou, a couple of new, New Orleans restaurateurs from old New Orleans restaurant families recently launched Chi Chi’s Chicken & Beer on Freret Street. Working out of the tiny space once home to (the much-missed) Windowsill Pies, the duo […]
Preserving the Narrative at The Celestine
In 2023, hôtelier and restaurateur Robért LeBlanc of LeBlanc + Smith collaborated with CureCo founder Neal Bodenheimer, and development partners Talbott Ottinger and Chris Dawson to renovate the Maison De Ville, an 18th century Creole townhouse-turned boutique hotel on Toulouse Street. “It just felt like the right time to reinvest […]
New Orleans Food News: September 2024
As dreamers do … The long-awaited Étoile opened this past summer finally filling the stunning historic mansion left vacant after the closing of Cavan in 2021. Originally from New Orleans, Chef Chris Dupont (of Dupont’s Restaurant in Birmingham, Alabama) returned to his hometown to open Étoile, a “farm-to-table” fine-dining restaurant […]
Marsh House Rum: For More Than a Mojito
The folks at Marsh House Rum, a relatively new Louisiana distillery out on Avery Island, sent me a “sample” of their product. Now when I say sample, I mean a fifth of their signature rum and a fifth of their barrel aged rum. Both are smooth rums with notes of […]
Sophie’s Got a Yellow Citroën
Like anyone, I have ups and downs. Some days are sheer torture while others put an ear-to-ear smile on my face. I’m glad to say, today is one of the latter, and it’s not over yet! This morning I drove out to Gert Town to visit a most talented baker, […]
Dirty Linen Night Billows Beyond Royal Street
Now in its 21st year, the festive and funky Royal Street gallery event has grown to include shops, museums, and nearby locations in the French Quarter Back in 2017, renowned post pop artist Matt Rinard walked into Ryan Tramonte’s office at Galerie Rue Royale and said “Hey, I just took […]
The Porch: U.S. Representing at the 2025 Venice Architecture Biennale
Every day (dare I say every hour?) my inbox is flooded with press releases, mostly from local firms touting their clients restaurants proclaiming new menus, wine dinners, summer dishes et al. I also receive PR from national and international companies, again, mostly talking about food or dining trends or, most […]
New Orleans Food News: August 2024
One stop shop? . . . Just as more people were turning on to the hunger-healing eats at Fharmacy (will we ever taste mussels like that again?) the tiny Banks Street spot suddenly closed up shop leaving fans sad and hangry for nearly two years. But just recently, the little […]