Ella Brennan-The Real Queen of Cuisine

[Mayhaw Man]

Elizabeth Mullener, a frequent contributor to the New Orleans Times-Picayune, has written a truly great piece on Ella Brennan, the woman who put together the Brennan's Restaurant empire and who has hired, and smacked around, a list of chefs that is hard to top (Emeril would probably not even exist, at least not in the form that he does now, without the experience of having worked for this restaurant industry GENIUS)

Even if you don't know who she is, haven't ever been to one of her restaurants, and don't care if New Orleans ever makes it back, you should read this if you are in, or starting out in, the business. You New Yorkers, Californians, and others around the country might be surprised to see who is quoted and just exactly how much influence she has had on what YOU eat. I've always liked her a great deal, but I've only spoken to her for various stories and as a guest in her place, which means that I don't really know all of her sides-this piece gives a really clear picture of the woman and her dedication to the business of running restaurants and her overwhelming interest in what she believes is are the most important things to not only make a restaurant a short term success, but a very, very long term one, as well.

This is an extremely long piece for a newspaper. I'm really glad that they gave Mullener the ink. It's way worth the read. It's full of theory, great stories, and information that many operators and chefs today seem to have forgotten or just plain take for granted. Read the damned thing. You can thank me later.

Ella Brennan, The Real Queen of Cuisine

[docsconz]

Great article! Thanks Brooks for posting the link. My one experience at Commander's Palace back in the early 1990's was slightly disappointing given the reputation and my expectations, but there can be no question of Ella Brennan's place in the firmament of the American restaurant world. The only person I can think of as influential in the American Restaurant Revolution as she would be Alice Waters.

This quote from the article epitomizes the transition from Continental to American dining that Brennan represents:

And still others say it's her gift for combining a spirit of fun with a grand restaurant. Many upscale restaurants, especially in the Northeast, have service designed to flatter the intelligence of their customers, validate their sophistication. For Brennan, the task has more to do with warmth and joyfulness and pleasure.

Reichl, the editor of Gourmet magazine, recounts her first visit to Commander's Palace in 1980: "It was the most extraordinary service I'd ever had in an American restaurant," she says.

"We were used to going to fancy restaurants and having a guy with a French accent look down his nose because you weren't pronouncing it right. Or he'd say, 'Very good choice,' and you'd be proud. Some waiter was congratulating you.

"But you went to Commander's Palace and it wasn't like that. It was like we're here to make you have a good time. It was like understanding what the contract with a restaurant is supposed to be about: We give them a lot of money and they make us feel good. You went to Commander's Palace and you understood what you'd been missing all along. 'Oh, this is what it's supposed to be like.'

"Fun is way up on the list. Upscale fun. Going out is not just what's on the plate. It's everything around it. And Ella never forgot that."

Edited October 7, 2007 by docsconz (log)

[Dana]

I just had a minor freak-out. I was afraid she'd passed away. So glad that wasn't the case. What a wonderful article.

I'll just thank you now.

Thank You

[docsconz]

I just had a minor freak-out. I was afraid she'd passed away. So glad that wasn't the case. What a wonderful article.

I'll just thank you now.

Thank You

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Sorry Dana if you got that impression from my post. I edited "represented" to "represents" given that she is still very much alive though her influence may not be what it once was.

[Dana]

It's ok, docsconz, it wasn't you. As I opened up eG and my eye caught the teaster threads on the left side of the page, I saw her name, and that was my first thought. When I finished reading the whole title of the thread, I breathed a sigh of relief.

I was probably reading as you were posting, and I didn't read your response until after I had posted mine.

[gfweb]

Great article! Thanks Brooks for posting the link. My one experience at Commander's Palace back in the early 1990's was slightly disappointing given the reputation and my expectations,

"

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[maggiethecat]

Brooks, thanks for the link to the most interesting article about anyone, anywhere, I've read for a long, long time. Not only is it a great piece about restaurant craft, but I have a brand new heroine. I've changed my sig line in her honor.

I haven't eaten at Commander's Palace -- damn! -- but my daughter- who- dines did a couple of years ago. Her happy memories are indelible.