davebr

I had a very good upscale meal at a place whose name escapes me, but it started with a "G" and it reminded me of an old creole name like Geutreau's. The atmosphere was a bit odd. Dont get me wrong, it was nice, it just looked liked it was built to be a reception hall, then converted to a restaurant. But the waitress, Lynn (who actually used to be one of the GM's for Commanders Palace) told me the place was built to be the restaurant it is today. For 3 nights in a row we picked up freshly cooked Royal Red shrimp and had that for dinner with butter and french bread, they were sooooo good.

I do enjoy a good sweat and I dont care for huge crowds. Summer is it for me. Get a hotel with a pool and a pool bar. Practically walk into whatever restaurant you want without a reservation.

Food related: The Fire Never dies by Richard Sterling Awesome book!!!!!!!!!! Is there anything worth reading not food related??

yes, there were some photos of me and "Arnold" but I am a little embarrased to show them on account of someone putting a mini top hat on him.

Well the pig turned out to be 15lbs. I roasted it at 425 degrees for 15 minutes then lowered the tempuature to 325 for a little under 3.5 hours. I basted the hell out of it with butter, wrapped the ears in foil, then basted it with L&P, brown sugar, salt, garlic, and cayenne the last 30 minutes. I liked it alot, I ate a fair amount of skin, the cheeks and an ear. We also had 2 crawfish pies. It was a first for me to make. I put rice and 1 egg into my etouffe base to help it set. It came out great. After reading the boudin thread about Poches and the Rosengarten Report about Poches, I ordered and we ate crawfish boudin, pork boudin, andouille, chaurice, hogs head cheese, crawfish sausage and smoked alligator sausage. All were great, especially the boudin. The crawfish was awesome and you could really taste the pork liver in the pork boudin. Although at first, I tried to poach the boudin gently and it immediatly started coming out of the casing. So I just nuked it. The huge chunks of garlic in the andouille was a big hit to me. I had some left over etouffe base so I made a little mornay with smoked mozzerella and asiago, folded it together, instant dip for the french bread. That BBQ Shrimp thread had me craving that. I called all over the city and couldnt find any shrimp with the heads still on. So I switched to frog legs. Browned in the skillet in butter super high heat. Deglazed with what ever white wine we had moved onto. Placed that in a baking dish with L&P, lemons, butter, garlic(sliced not minced), cayenne, black pepper, thyme, oregeno, and basil. I just kept thinking---Make it look like mayhaw man's BBQ Shrimp picture. That was my favorite of the night. Tomato salad layered with local pecans, some fresh press olive oil I recently picked up in Napa, salt, pepper, balsamic and the other half of that smoked mozzerella. I contemplated not having any vegetables at all but was overruled by the women. Foie gras jambalaya. Trinity sauteed with garlic, sage and cinnomen just for tricks. Chicken stock and a bay leaf then the rice. After it was done I diced a lobe of foie gras and folded it in. Covered the pot for 5 minutes and served it. This was some peoples favorite of the night. After the final seasoning I never did try it. Too full or drunk or both. Louisiana strawberries, stemmed, halved and doused with sugar and the dry french rose wine we were "tasting" at the moment. Hand whipped cream and it was done. My friends and I do this sort of baccanalia every few weeks. We usually have a theme and we always have too much food and not enough wine. I counted 22 empty bottles before going to relax on the patio. I believe there were 12 people. But hey, who's counting? The next theme will be "Dumplings". Gnoochi, spaetzle, gyoza, southern and whatever else we think of.

Im making that tomorrow with my baby pig!

As a kid, we would ride our bikes to the snowball stand and order the nectar flavor with cream(canned condensed milk) on top. At the time it was a very New Orleans thing to do.

Thanks!!! oddly enough I definitly plan on visiting Nash's, I worked for he and his brother in New Orleans 14 years ago. Nothing like a surprise visit. What about Des Amis, catahoula and pejeans? I believe the crawfish festival is that weekend in Beaux bridge. Only once maybe 10 years ago did I even stop for just lunch in Lafeyette, so Im up for anything. Is there any chef trying to shake things up around there? I love to get both sides of the spectrum. Again thanks for the continued assistance.

Thursday the 29th returning to Shreveport, sunday may 2nd. I will be attending a wedding saturday, but Im not sure what time. Yes to a vehicle, and other than the wedding, I can do whatever, whenever. I am even willing to stay and travel up to 20 miles.

I will be going to lafayette at the end of the month. Can anyone give me some tips on where to stay and eat. Thanks

25lbs is the smallest available to me.

I am planning on cooking a whole baby pig(25lbs) next week. Can I get some suggestions/recipes for couchon du lait.

I have had a few of the different types of grits from anson mills and the War Eagle Mill in Arkansas seems to be just as good for waaayyy less of a price. The mill is actually on the banks of a stream, which turns the paddle, which turns the stone, which grinds the hominy. They are just a little over a $1 a pound! and I use the technique from the anson mills to cook them with less liquid, covered for 1/2 hour then uncovered for another 1/2 hour. Rogers, Arkansas---check it out.

The Cypress restaurant is the best hands down.

I would suggest Seasons at the White Church in Collierville. Sorry if I spelled it wrong, Im a coon-ass. The chefs are from auberge du soliel in Napa. Can you really go wrong?

I would suggest Seasons at the White Church in Collierville. Sorry if I spelled it wrong, Im a coon-ass. The chefs are from auberge du soliel in Napa. Can you really go wrong?

The oysters are great!!! What was I supposed to do with that powdered sugar? I put it on my Soft Shell but even the hard core coon asses where looking at me funny. If you are in New Orleans and you see Souffle Potatoes on the menu anywhere, order them. Its a lost art.

I was reading in the 1928 Times Picayune Creole Cook Book. The recipe for boudin not only doesnt include pork liver but it doesnt include rice either. Instead of rice it calls for bread that is soft and cook with the pork in cream. When did we switch? Also, the creole word for cooking "chitterlings" is andouilles. Im freaked out.

Could you please explain to me-- Didnt Comus at one point stop rolling? Is that the parade Harry Connick Jr took over? If not, what is the name of his parade? Just tell me the whole story so I am not confused anymore.

My experience at the wild boar was average at best. The food was nothing special and someone can help you buy the same great wines at Nashville Wine and spirits. Acorn was very good. Saffire was very good-- but the chef is no longer there. Tamarind Thai restaurant was also very good. The boundry seems to pack them in, I walked around for 20 minutes and couldnt get a table or a drink so I left. You will have a great time!

I bought 20lbs tonight. Dont gauwk at me, I grew up near Lafitte. But, there is a place called the crawfish hole #2 in Dixie Inn, Louisiana. The guy owns a crawfish farm and saves the biggest crawfish for the restaurant. I swear to all of you, during the peak of the season, you can eat the claws off of each crawfish they are so big! I have never seen or tasted anything like it in all of my years (32) of eating. We all have been on Atkins forever, I guess its the booze that keeps the weight on me.

Crazy enough, I had the some of the same problems at Brightsens. I brought my parents there for dinner. They had given our table away---no we were not late. My dad is a very uncomprimising man. They took a drink order from us while we waited for a table and after 45 minutes we never got it. They never brought me my salad course until the entrees showed up, then insisted that I have my salad "europeon style" after the entree. Come on, if you make a mistake just admitt it and move on, dont lie to me assuming that I dont know any better. Frank's food was great. They were out of a couple of things(isnt everyone on a saturday night), but they probably weren't 45 minutes ago. My guess is Frank has some family working for him. Which is noble. He is definitly the star and they cant live up to his level of skill. What ya gonna do?

Personnaly, I would have the Red Fish Grill be my swing table for wednesday night. Go to NOLA for dinner on friday. All of your other selections are perfect for staying in the French Quarter. Another thing you might want to consider is dinner or lunch at The Bistro Masion De Ville. Patric is by far the quintessential New Orleans Maitre'd. You would be amazed at the food put out by what seems to be a 10 by 10 foot kitchen. If you have trouble getting a table at NOLA, email me Im sure I can help. For fun, there is an antique culinary store in the french quarter with some rediculous foodie antiques, I think it is on Royal st, the name escapes me but it is french and it starts with an L. If you like wine, go to the Vieux Carre wine store next to K-Pauls and ask to see the back room, just dont go with a buzz. Snug Harbor has great live jazz with 2 shows each night. If you slip the doorman some money he'll let you stay thru both preformances. Oh Yeah, dont bet money with anyone that wants to tell you "where you got dem shoes".

I went for 10 days 2 weeks ago. Terra is by far the best food, the sommilier-matre 'd is a dick( Tim or Tom). He will take every oppurtuity to switch you to a higher priced wine. The waitress was sweet and knowledgeable, Hell, it wasnt her fault Tim ot Tom put us in a seperate room by ourselves on a sunday night. Martini House is a close second in food but first in service. John is an awesome sommilier, one of the best, and will find your taste to help complement your food. Oakville Grocery was overwhelming in the choices for a snack. Just buy everything and have a pick-nic out front.

Im with mayhaw man, dont give me any of that crap with a filling. Me venturing out is a doughnut king cake from tastee. Granted this is all from memory since I havnt lived in south louisiana for 10 years. But seriously, look at the changes since then, has there been that many changes before now???? I doubt it. So why change? If the MTV and GIRLS GONE WILD crowd dont like it, well I guess we have to make something a little more Little Debbie like. Or just find a way to fry it.