GAYOT's Blog

by: Sophie Gayot

Continue reading “Mardi Gras in Your Mouth” »

by: Sophie Gayot

Despite his busy schedule, I had the real pleasure of sitting down and enjoying lunch with John Besh in New Orleans at his fine dining establishment August, which made GAYOT’s 2008 list of the Top 40 US Restaurants. While chef de cuisine Michael Gulotta was preparing the delicate dishes, I was discovering the other side of the pans of chef Besh.

Besh is very concerned by his surroundings, whether it is people, the city of New Orleans or the environment. He uses produce from local farmers and fishermen for all of his restaurants: August, La Provence, Lüke, Domenica, Besh Steak, and The American Sector. That practice supports the local economy, cuts the carbon footprint, and guarantees more organically-grown vegetables. He even has his own vegetable garden in the back of La Provence restaurant, located a few miles away from the city in Lacombe. A native of southern Louisiana, he is consumed with putting the city and the state back on their feet after Hurricane Katrina (traces are still visible after five years) and the oil spill (he was part of the effort of December 1st Dine America’s Night Out for Gulf Seafood).

Continue reading “My Lunch with John Besh” »

 by Sophie Gayot 

For months, the world has watched with horror the oil spill caused by the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon drill rig in the Gulf of Mexico that killed eleven people. We are all very sad for the families of the men who left us. 

Even though the well has been sealed, another drama is now unfolding concerning the area’s fishermen. The sales of their products — shrimp, oysters, crabs, crawfish and over 167 varieties of fin fish — have gone down. If they stay at that reduced level, most of them will not have enough income to support their families and businesses. Imagine the chain reaction on the economy in the region. Thousands and thousands will be affected. After Hurricane Katrina, they certainly do NOT need this. 

After conducting many tests, the experts definitely agree that seafood from the Gulf is safe. If you are like me, so far, you’ve done nothing to actually support the population, besides almost cry when looking, powerlessly, at the images during the long ordeal, and curse at BP. Now, as foodies, we can do something.  

Continue reading “America’s Night Out for Gulf Seafood” »

by Patricia Mack

I’ve eaten at restaurants where goose was on the menu, but goose bumps? They’re on the bill of fare at some interesting restaurants and inns that embrace “the dearly departed” who never have — departed, that is. Do I believe these stories of spirits who enjoy fine dining? Or specters in hotel hallways? The hard-nosed reporter in me says, “Of course not.” But the Celt in me says, “There is mystery and magic in restaurants and hotels, and always has been.”

So, maybe the case of a ghost who dines each night at a reserved table isn’t strange. In New Orleans, which has more than its share of spirits — literally and figuratively — there is Muriel’s Jackson Square, a lovely French Quarter restaurant where I was shown the table reserved for Monsieur Jourdan, more properly M. Pierre Antoine Lepardi Jourdan, the restaurant’s resident ghost. And not the only one, I’m told.

Continue reading “Haunted Restaurants” »

By Jeff Hoyt

 

I enjoyed my first visit to New Orleans so much, that I was on the verge of renting an apartment there. But tragedy struck, and somehow, it took me more than two decades to return. I vowed to visit this year, but once again, fate stepped in.

 

In 1986, I drove to the Crescent City for the one-sided Super Bowl between the Chicago Bears (of Super Bowl Shuffle fame) and the New England Patriots, and fell in love with the city’s music, food, and joie de vivre. My traveling companion and I made plans to rent a place so we could stay at least through Mardi Gras. 

 

Continue reading “I Know What it Means to Miss New Orleans” »

by Becky Sauer

 

Chef Susan Spicer, known for her French Quarter restaurant, Bayona, is from Lakeview, a suburb of New Orleans devastated by Hurricane Katrina in 2005. As the area continues to rebound from the calamity, Spicer is set to open Mondo in her hometown.

 

Look for pizzas from wood-burning ovens, local seafood, ethnic specialties and handmade desserts at what she describes as a “comfortable, casual, upbeat neighborhood restaurant and bar with an international menu full of things you want to eat.” Bayona is known for its fabulous desserts, so expect nothing less from Mondo.

 

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