New Orleans Revisited

I hadn’t been to New Orleans since pre- Katrina and oil spill days.  At that time,  New Orleans was the capital of regional American cooking and Chef Paul Prudhomme ‘s had taken the country by storm.   I went to celebrate  and honor  his wife and partner   Kay Prudhomme who  had passed away but not before planning an unforgettable  jazz funeral complete with brass band to send  this lovely lady off in grand style.

The spirit is still there but it is not the  NOLA I knew.. Some people say the city is dead but I know that this historic city will rise again. Chef Paul told me that for two months after the Saints  won the Super bowl , business was back to what is was before Katrina,  then the oil spill brought  that to a screeching halt.   Restaurants have no local fish to serve.  It’s pretty sad.

This trip  was dedicated to celebration!   It was  Chef Paul’s 70th birthday.  I needed a rest and left two days early. a highly unusual thing for me to do and a it turned out to be the right thing to do.  I hung out with Rae Jacobson, my dear friend Mark’s daughter, and her gentlemanly boyfriend. we went  to K-Paul’s for  dinner and was transported me to my first visit there in 1981..

I went to my favorite card store:  Walgreen’s.  Yes!  Walgreen ‘s. and found two  cards for him.   I gave him one because the attached seemed trite considering that this is the way he has always lived.  I share it with you:

Because you Enjoy Life

Just think of the year ahead

As a journey

It’s an old, curvy road that’s seen a lot of travelers,

But never anyone quite like you.

So hop on, Put a few miles behind you,

See all there is ti see,

And don’t forget to sop for pie.

As  long as you keep

Your tank full of wonder

And your mirror full of memories

It should be one sweet trip.

Next on the agenda was  a gift from Ratso Sloman and Christy: an introduction to their good friend,  artist Michael Deas who designed the famous Marilyn Monroe, James Dean, Tennessee Williams, and now the Edgar Allen Poe stamps.  He also created the logo for Columbia pictures,  He’s a great listener and conversationalist; a great host who drove me around the Garden District and its magnificent mansions, took m o see a particular house with a fence made to look like cornstalks.  Then we finished the evening of at a Bastille Day street party and met his charming friend Robert. and his girlfriend and frantically tried to find oysters.

.I’m not much of a shopper but, for some reason or other, I always find exactly the things I like to wear in New Orleans.  My friend, journalist  Christy Smith, gave  me a list of second hand and consignment stores that sell designer clothes and I found 6 great outfits with a median price of $30.00 each.  She suggested a store named UAL on Chartres Street right around the corner from the Monteleone Hotel where my associate Ben of Frosch Travel had arranged a lovely room for me at a good price.

Ben  and I are  exploring the feasibility of  planning a tour of the Orient(Hongkong, Vietnam and Thailand) following the route of chile peppers into the cuisines of these countries. For years I have been studying the influence of Asian food on Mexican cooking but right now  I’m in the process of testing recipes, studying local culinary techniques and  cultural  similarities  to see if and  how  Mexican food   has influenced theirs.  I’ll give  cooking  classes and try to get the luxurious Seaborne  ship to  set up a Zarela Cantina to  recreate the fun and festive  atmosphere of my restaurant Zarela  in New York City on the ship. I am known for throwing  great parties and people always ask to be invited.   Want to come party with me?  Let me know. The trip starts on January 6th.