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Everything posted by Mayhaw Man
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Brett Anderson wrote a very good breakdown, as positively as humanly possible, on the situation in New Orleans as far as the Summer, Convention business, and employee situations go. Lemons? Make lemonade. If you can find someone to squeeze the damned things
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This is more like it, but my Mom, who I just emailed for the actual recipe, iirc, uses milk and half and half in equal proportions-and it's almost always bourbon-Old Grandad. Also, over the rocks is the way that I have always seen them served. I don't think that I have ever seen one up. Also, one nice thing about this drink, other than the fact that it's delicious, is that you can make them ahead of time and have the stuff cooling in the ice box-to serve-if you don't have a bartender (which, generally, is what happens here), you can just put the mix in a large silver pitcher with some nutmeg in a nice shaker and call it a day. It's easy. And, really, the things are sublime and, when consumed over good conversation and an equally as good meal, deadly. They can make for very short afternoons. In the town where I grew up, we used to call that condition, "The Garfield Flu"-named after a very popular, and still active but getting older, private bartender. He has a very heavy hand, that guy, but I loved him because, among his other talents, he could slip you a drink when your parents weren't looking better than anyone on Earth. When I hear from Mama I'll post the recipe.
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As a veteran, lifelong, 45 years worth, of these things-you only need three things to drink: Milk Punch (you can use brandy, but you'll mostly see bourbon-and, if at all possible, serve in silver beakers-rent some if you have to-but most of the people I know got them when they got married and have added on over the years) Spicy Bloody Marys (tall collins glasses for these, or better yet, big honking water glasses) Mimosa's-Champagne flutes That's all you need. Regardless of socio-economic status, once you clear the firmly entrenched middle class and move your way up, that's what you'll see over and over again. There will be beer and white wine available, but, you don't even really need it.
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Congrats to you! And might I suggest New Orleans? There are tons of places and, frankly, we could use an extra cop or two.
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When everyone lines up for the purple kool-aid, just get in line. It's delicious.
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That magic mouthful: a taste I will never forget
Mayhaw Man replied to a topic in Food Traditions & Culture
The first time that I ate okra and tomatoes made by my own hand. The mystery and trepadation was gone. I could, in fact, make this sublime and delicious dish just as well as my mother. A thousand repeats and still going strong. I had it on Tuesday night, as a matter of fact, and it was delicious. As always. -
Does a bear.... I was born here, have lived elsewhere, but have been back for many years. I wish that I could be in Nashville, but I'm working on a book that is, after the excitement has worn off, not unlike a giant anvil around my neck-or a painfully tight hair suit. So, I will be hanging around here for the rest of the month as my travel schedule in July, August, and Sept. is a bit heavy. Have fun. Introduce yourself. Wear your name tag.
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You know, I'm glad that you asked all of those questions because, if nothing else, sometimes answering questions allows one to consider just what is important about a subject. To me, what's important about the SFA is that it DOES stuff. This is no namby-pamby thinktank of an organization. It might be made up of a few eggheads, a few bacon freaks, some BBQ geeks, more than one or two who have just figured out that, if you hang around enough , you'll get some damned fine eats on a regular basis, but mainly, it's folks who, for whatever reason, really, really want to learn more about the food and culture of the Southern United States-all of the cultures that we can cram in, not just along a thin spectrum- and try to do what they can to promote and/or preserve it. Hell, look back at some of the stuff in just the recent past: We've- Helped a 90 year old woman rebuild her home and restaurant in hurricane ravaged New Orleans and most of the people doing it didn't even know her before they showed up to help We raised a bunch of money and raised even more importantly, the level of conciousness about the situation down here-and we did it in a way that was more than just reporting. It might be a small thing for a small woman with a small restaurant-but it's a big deal to her and for most of the people working on this, that's plenty enough. Began a collection of oral histories concerning, in very broad ways, the foodways of the Southern United States Had one hell of a good time on a field trip to Appalachicola (just one of a series of interesting field trips sponsored by the SFA) Had our first day camp Published a series of really good books, loaded with good stuff from writers that you might know and some that you will want to know, collectively titled, "Cornbread Nation" We've had a series of symposiums every October for the last few years covering some pretty lightweight subjects that got a bit heavier as they were considered and some really heavy subjects that got a bit easier to handle as we discussed them together. We've covered subjects as complex as race relations and how food played a part in them to something as light and sweet as Sugar and the South. We've met chefs of all descriptions-big deal James Beard cats like John Besh, John Fleer, John Currence (John maybe should be a theme at some future event), Ann Cashion, Bill Smith, Ken Smith, and masters of more common, but no less important tables from all over the place. Just last weekend I had the opportunity to hang around with and learn from (important lessons in life-not only BBQ) Ricky Parker-master whole hog pit man at B E Scott's BBQ in Jackson, TN. Writers of all sorts have attended and spoken on an incredibly wide variety of subjects over the years and interestingly, they almost always end up showing up on their own AS PAYING MEMBERS after they attend an event, because they have just as much to learn as everyone else and also, well, it's fun. Hell, where else in the world could you have 4 of the best fried chicken chefs in the world cooking in one tent, basically in a deserted lot in downtown Oxford, MS and, to top it off, have the folks from Jack Daniels just giving away the farm just because-We've had deviled eggs by the hundreds, fish by the pond full at Taylor Grocery, the best caramel cake in the history of the world, pimento cheese by the gallon, eaten more barrels of pork than even Congress can dish out, scarfed down an ocean of sweet tea and not so sweet beer, and even had a nip or two of the corn out of a jar if you happened to be standing in the right place on the right night. You get your money's worth. The SFA, the organization, which is, in fact, a sum of the people who belong to it, represents-to me-just exactly what is right with the South and gives me, and I think many others, a serious sense of hope that the best parts of our past can be preserved and the parts that some of us don't like, understand, or want to deal with can all become part of the strength of not only the organization, but of the Southern Foodways diaspora as a whole. It's ultimately an organization that is about food, but, when you think about it, food is often a catalyst or a metaphor for much more important matters to chew on. I'm not rich. In fact, right now, I am probably just about as broke as I have ever been or ever want to be in my whole life. But, I promise, I will come up with what it takes to be a part of this deal, and while I can't convince you beyond this slightly over dramatic description, I can tell you that I've not seen anyone yet walk away complaining about not getting their money's worth out of the deal. In fact, come to think of it, last year, just after The Thing, we members from New Orleans recieved an email from the home office in Oxford informing us that an ANONYMOUS member and the nice folks from White Lily Flour were covering our fees to the conference. There were more than a few of us and trust me when I say that the SFA is not exactly an overfinanced operation. It meant alot and said even more. It's surely and clearly not about the money, if it was, you would be right and SFA wouldn't exist. It's about much more than that. These are good folks. I'm proud to know them all. We never did find out who that anonymous member was, but, in true Southern form, we thanked the hell out of everybody we talked to. We're just that way.
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There is not a better organization on the planet of this type. You will not ever regret it. I would be attending in Nashville were I not otherwise occupied, but I just got finished attending the trip to Appalachicola and will, once again, and hopefully for many more years, be in Oxford in the Fall for the annual symposium and for the divertissement before that weekend. You won't meet nicer people, or have a chance to meet more people with the same interests, as you will on one of these little outings. I am, by definition, a person who doesn't do well in groups, but with this group, I don't think that I could do better. A Day Camp is a great way to learn a bit more about the SFA (that's what they are for) and to have some fun and maybe, inspite of your best efforts, learn something. Then, probably, you will want to join and participate more often and in a more active way. That's what it's all about. Just sign up and go. You'll never know if you don't try. Best, B
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Depending on money and John M's schedule (that's John Currence), it might be a long work weekend-but it kind of depends on him, plumbers progress, and money
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True enough. The real issue with service, if you ask anyone who isn't working with long term employees, is keeping people on the floor long enough to get them trained. Job jumping is a new hobby here. Also, we are working now, and will be working in the future, with a much smaller pool of college age kids who would have been in many of the positions. I'm not saying that it's terrible, and I know lots of places that won't put up with anything much less than perfect, but it's not easy and even though managers and owners might be willing to put in the effort to train and supervise, they still have the problem of constantly being shorthanded and working with people who are not trained to a level that would be acceptable in most fine dining. ANd, speaking of Willie Mae's-doing anything on the 4th? Want to lose some weight? Get a good workout?
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I don't disagree with much of that and as far as I am concerned you can review away, especially if the reviews are more concerned with the food coming out of the kitchen than with the whole package. These days, really, what I want is well made food. I'm so far from worrying about the rest of it that it actually kind of suprises me. I was, pretty much, one of the most demanding assholes in the place for a very long time. I would not eat at a number of otherwise well regarded places in NO just because I couldn't deal with slipshod, amateurish, not even good on the most average scale service. These days? Not so much. I'm more concerned with what finally hits my table or ends up in the glass. But, that's just me. There's no reason not to expect more, I guess, but I really don't. So, consequently, my happiness level is higher than it might be if I spent a bunch of time worrying about it. The food? I'm still looking for great and it's happily pretty easy to find these days-if only in a more limited way, geographically. So, I come down firmly on the side of a pass/fail standard. If you do a good job and I leave happy with the food, and NOT unhappy with the service-you pass and I will put you on my list of places that I will happily march into and have another meal. If the service is great-I call your mom and tell her how hard you are working and not to worry about the tattoos and the facial piercings-you know, that it's just a phase. If you fail, I'll check you off for a while and not go back until I get the high sign from someone that I trust that all is well again. It's my system and I like it-though I just kind of made it up as I was defining it. And Todd, you know some of those kids really deserve and A. Don't be such a hard ass. Happily, I don't and never will write reviews so I have the luxury of taking this cavalier and daring stand-you and all of our other cohorts do not. I'm glad that I'm not in your shoes. You and I both know that it doesn't take much negative toned ink to generate a big old pile of hate mail these days. People are pretty sensitive. They kind of feel (whether right or wrong is not the point) like if it's bad and it's not pointed at the inept recovery efforts but at someone just doing what they can to make it here, well, they don't like it much and are pretty quick to tell you about it. But, I know one place that has SWELL service and is doing land office business since the reopened. Give me a call and I'll take you for a bowl.
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No, frankly, I am still just dealing with it. It's the way that it is and if any of you think that it's going to get better during a SUMMER in New Orleans, I highly reccomend that you take your vacations somewhere with swell service-Westwego or Baton Rouge come to mind. The Summer here will, in all liklihood, be the end of some very familiar, but not very well financed, names. I eat out. To a large degree I get PAID to eat out. On the other hand, I would be doing it anyway and when you get right down to it, I know that for both operators and for much of the wait/kitchen/whatever staff this is a learn on the fly propostition. I know where to go if I want great service (Herbsaint, Brigsten's, August, and happily, Cochon all come to mind), but generally, these days, I am not going to spend a great deal of time worrying about it. I just spent the week on a trip, in what is, effectively, the third world of the United States, and the service was better there than ANYWHERE except one place that I ate in Memphis. And the one place was a really great, but catered dinner. It's not about who's waiting tables, it's about whether they get what service IS in the first place. The problem here is that, by and large, we are dealing, generally, with a very inexperienced pool from the front of house management on down. It's the blind leading the blind for Pete's sake. What do you expect? The chefs are having to stay in the kitchen and cook because they are short there so there's only so much that they can do about the front of the house. When you are in the back, good service means moving the food off of the pass line efficiently-after that? Not so much. Sure, there's a higher standard to be met, and it's nice when it happensl ike it used to, but this ain't like it used to be. I still feel like there are things things that are more important to worry about. Like giving people a place to live. Just think, if we did that, the waiter pool would be back to bottomless! WhooHoo!
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Cooking for chefs, even really big deal ones, is the easiest thing in the world. Just do what you know you do well, serve it, and don't make a big deal out of it. Most of the time, all of the time, pretty much, they'll be so glad that someone is cooking for them that they will make a huge deal out of it-even if it's just bread, or red beans and rice, or meat loaf. I hang around with a bunch of big deal types for a regularly occuring meal (red beans or something else simple every Monday night), one of them as often as possible , and they all dig not having to cook-though, almost invariably, they will jump in and help if you are cooking while they are there-it's a reflex. I would serve the bread.
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When one's mission in life is to spend as much time as possible learning all that can be learned about whole hog there is an essential thing that has to be learned-how to stay awake as much as possible keeping an eye out for pit fires. There is a good bit about this subject in the film, Whole Hog, and the drink, really, makes perfect sense-lots of caffiene needs to be consumed to stay awake and, well, if you are going to be awake, you might as well be happy about it-which is where the Jack Daniel's comes into play.
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Of course, all of you can do what you want, eat what you want, and talk to and listen to whoever you want-BUT-what you should do is go to the seminar on Sunday afternoon with John T and Ricky Parker. You will be able to watch the sort of/kind of world premier of my friend Joe York's (filmaker for the SFA and all around decent sort of guy) new short film, "Whole Hog" which features Ricky and some of his family, along with one of the most evil and clueless people on Earth (watch the film-you'll see). It's a great movie and was well recieved at the Pork Film Festival in Dubuque and at the Swine Life Festival, as well. Ricky Parker is THE MAN. He is one of my personal lifestyle heroes and a man who can tell you more about whole hog than you might ever want to know. Ricky gets his hogs from ONE GUY, who raises them with the utmost care. Most of these whole hog guys don't have a clue (Ed Mitchell is a giant exception) what kind of pigs they get or how they are raised. Ricky told me that he wants to be "the best there has ever been" and I'm telling you that, right now, easily, he probably is in the whole hog world. He is the Einstein of Whole Hog BBQ. He never sleeps, he only drinks Jack Daniels and Mountain Dew. He is, once again, one of my personal lifestyle heroes. Here are a few Ricky pics. Ricky and one of his many friends. Ricky explains the art of cooking whole hogs and gives a few lifestyle tips Ricky and his 13 year old son Zack turn a hog. There were 17 going at one time on his three pits. It's a 24 hour a day job and YES they sell that much meat. All of his Duroc swine is USDA inspected. This is actually a pretty big deal in terms of resale and safety and many places don't go to the trouble and just sneak them by the man as best they can. Not my man Ricky. He goes the extra mile. And, well, I couldn't help myself. How often do you get to pose in a meat locker with Porky? Also on the bill for the seminars is Lolis Eric Elie and his movie, Smokestack Lightning, which is also well worth your time. I love the thing. The film work is great, the narrator is very good (Lolis is nothing if not erudite), and the soundtrack is worth the price of admission. Have fun. It looks like a good time. And, if you are ever driving from Memphis to Nashville, swing off of the highway in Jackson and head for B E Scott's Barbeque. You won't regret it. There's nowhere quite like it. The meat is served STRAIGHT FROM THE HOG-not chopped all to hell and ruined with some vinegar concoction. Want ham? Ask for it. Want shoulder? "You bet!" Can I have some of those rib bones (no meat on them) so I can just eat the marrow out of them? "You're our kind of guy!" Really, go watch the guy. He's pretty much mesmerizing.
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Exactly! I remember watching them stock it, wondering where in the chain of command someone decided this was a good idea. You could always resolidify them by dropping them into a frozen daiquiri from up the street, though. $4.95 to NH, too, maybe that's their flat domestic rate during the discounted shipping special. Between Hubig's, Zapp's, and Poche's, I think my Christmas and New Year's dinners have just been planned out. If only someone here carried Dixie. ← In my building (the palatial Xerox center in Beautiful Kenner (It's a Winner!)), we have not one, but two flavors of Hubig's at all times. Usually it's Apple and Lemon, but this week, we are featuring Coconut, which happens to be my favorite. The only problem is that they are located on the top rows of the machine, and when the little wire screw spins them off and they drop to the bottom, sometimes they break open-making them no less delicious a treat, but a hell of a lot harder to eat.
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I spent a large part of the weekend working under the supervision of our fierce taskmaster, John Currence, who has been doing the job of site foreman for the last couple of months. The walls are going back up, and there is some paint (or at least primer) going up on the walls, and both sides are coming together nicely. The work will now stall as we all wait, just like everyone else in this city, on the plumbers and electricians to ply their trades and then volunteer work will again commence. Hopefully, with any luck, sometime around Labor Day Willie Mae Seaton will be back in her home and each morning travel the ten feet to the kitchen at the Scotch House to begin the day's task of "serving the people"
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and coming from Raichlen, the King of Barbecuing, I think he must know whereof he speaks! or, maybe not, depending upon what carpetbagger,esq. just mentioned ... ← I am going to be in Memphis this weekend specifically for a food event. Rendevous will not be on my list of must visits (in fact, I don't have a list this trip as all of the food for the Viking Range Corp/Culinary Institute of America tour of the Delta is pretty much being custom cooked for the participants-which won't suck, trust me on that one). The food just doesn't do it for me, ever, and that is that. I know people love it, but the ribs are usually very dry and just not so swell. On the other hand, as you are visiting the hallowed grounds where the King once walked, played, and ate peanut butter and banana sandwiches (no wonder he needed debilitating narcotics) you could drive down the road towards the river and eat at Interstate Barbeque. In my mind this place is, hands down, the best meat in Memphis. The sauce is tasty and I just generally like the place. Give it a try. Really.
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This is, sadly, the case with almost everything that's worth it. I am off of corndogs forever, as I will never again be satisfied by the previously loved corndog. At the SFA Field Trip in Appalachicola the other night, Tory McPhail, young and very talented chef at the currently closed Commander's Palace, had these unbelievably good lollipopped shaped things that were, and I mean this in the nicest possible way, the best corndogs in the history of the known universe. Ground, top quality Andouille balled up on the end of a piece of sugar cane and coated in the richest, most delicious corndog like batter imaginable. The whole thing was deep fried and served (cocktail style-"Hey! Come back here with that tray! I want more!") with a really good homemade honey mustard (well, the mustard was hand made, I assume that the honey was bee made-then again, Tory's pretty good, so you never know). They were awesome. A mere corndog will never again satisfy-especially since I quit smoking pot a while back and I just don't get the urge for an entire box of State Fair Brand Corndogs like I used to.
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Great hands wash alike. I like to think of my hand washing technique as a key to building up my resistance to all manner of evil health problems. When the plague comes, they'll be no one left but me, Tommy, and Rachel Ray. (the end of the world will not be pretty, but we'll be there to see it)
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The fact that Bruni selected tater tots from Sonic and The Blizzard from Dairy Queen proves that he was indeed on his game. They are both awesome. Also, the line about the blizzard, "I'd like to be buried in it." was really funny. And having had both, many times, he's wrong about the Varsity-the hot dogs there are OK (but the place is really cool-at least the original is)-having the best hot dogs-Sonic's are better, imo.
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I really love eating at the Palace Cafe. I drive that section of highway alot on my way from New Orleans to Jackson Parish and, depending on the time of day or night, I usually stop at one of four places- Palace Cafe Camille's Joe's Dreyfus Store Lea's The Palace Cafe, even beyond the food, has got a really cool vibe. The best time to go is later in the evening on a weeknight when the downtown area is quiet. It's pretty easy to put your mind back many years in that place, as not much has changed (I've been eating there since the early 80's and it's been there a hell of a lot longer than that). I regularly get the chicken livers and the gumbo. Poppy is right. It's a great place.
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Also available in the food/cafeteria section of Ikea-Kopparberg Pear Cider- I love the stuff. It's refreshing as hell and absolutely delicious. Delighful, even. Sparkling, refreshing, and tasting of fresh pears with just the right wang of ferment. It's worth a drive out to the burbs just to get a few cans or bottles. Really.
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Heh, where do you think that you are? Sheesh. ← It's 5 celsius this morning. ← 5 Celcius? That's good? This celcius thing is a mystery to me and many of my fellow countrymen. If you people are going to use the metric system I really believe that you should just kind of keep it to yourselves and not refer to it in public. It causes people to talk and that's not the kind of thing that you want, I'm quite sure.