Tom Fitzmorris opined, back in 1977, that there were three restaurants he couldn’t live without: Antoine’s, Maylie’s and the Bud’s Broiler on City Park Avenue. Tom would have say whether all of that still stands today, since although Antoine’s is going strong, Maylie’s has been closed for years now (the also-defunct Smith & Wollensky...
It’s celebrated for its storied dining rooms named after and decorated with memorabilia from some of New Orleans’ most staid carnival krewes. Antoine’s is expanding on its traditions with a new venue, next door to the hallowed restaurant: the Hermes Bar. The bar’s grand opening was Friday, coinciding with the opening day of French...
Sylvester Francis runs the show at the Backstreet Cultural Museum in Treme. He’s a film maker, photographer and historian. A world of New Orleans African-American culture awaits inside the museum, located at 1116 St. Claude, across the street and down a little ways in the same block as St. Augustine church. Mr. Francis has...
Last year was my first encounter with Krewe du Vieux. It’s definitely “one for the locals;” highly satirical and raunchy to the extreme, it’s also held early enough each year that it’s off of the regular Mardi Gras beer-and-hand grenade-swilling, boob-flashing tourist crowd’s radar. As KdV’s website says: It is unique among all Mardi...
I let loose my New Year’s resolution a couple of weeks ago: To eat better in 2009. Better steaks, better shrimp, better meals all around. One wag, Yat Pundit, echoed the theme with “less Subway, more Parkway!” Yeah, you rite! That reminded me of a glaring omission in my life. I’ve yet to have...
I was cleaning up my cube today and ran across a stack of papers left over from some genealogy research I did a few years ago. I took a look at an obituary, my great-great grandfather’s brother (great-great grand uncle?), Paul ______, from 1898. I guess I hadn’t paid much attention to it after...
“On my honor I will do my best: To do my duty to God and my country…” Oath, Boy Scouts of America. “I vow to personally buy the first Sazerac for any visitor who asks ‘Hey, where do I get a Hurricane?’ and pledge to pull out the Herbsaint and Rye no matter the...
I’ll let the press release from Ann Tuennerman explain all the good news: TALES OF THE COCKTAIL OPENING RECEPTION TO BE HELD AT THE NEWLY RESTORED ROOSEVELT HOTEL TOAST OF THE EVENING TO OCCUR AT THE ORIGINAL SAZERAC BAR NEW ORLEANS, LA—December 1, 2008 – Tales of the Cocktail, a cocktail and culinary festival...
I interviewed an artist up in Covington for my day job. He asked if I had seen any of Prospect.1, the international art exposition going on all over New Orleans. There are installations and showings of 80 artists from all over the world. The U.S. Mint and the Contemporary Arts Center are the main...
Halloween 2008. It’s been planned for at least a month now. Flash mob, Jackson Square, New Orleans. Pirates vs. Ninjas. Pirates gathered in Pirates Alley (duh), Ninjas in Pere Antoine Alley. At 5pm sharp, an air horn sounded, both sides met at battle in front of St. Louis Cathedral. Now, I have no doubt...
Met the folks today for a nice little brunch at Ralph’s on the Park. Before heading to the park, that is, for some Japan Fest at NOMA. Started things off with a Sazerac and a little chicken and andouille gumbo: Finished with the BBQ shrimp and grits. Pretty good, a nice touch is they...
We went to catch up on streetcar photos for StreetCarArt.com today. They placed another set last week; Nola caught the ones in Lakeview last week and today we went to get the ones installed on Chartres, Jackson Square and at Cafe du Monde. They’ll be posted at the streetcar site soon. I collided with...
Great news via a press release I received today. The opening is set for this coming spring: FAMED ROOSEVELT HOTEL IN NEW ORLEANS BEING REBORN AS WALDORF=ASTORIA COLLECTION PROPERTY NEW ORLEANS – Oct. 9, 2008 – The revered Roosevelt Hotel name – which for nearly a half-century meant the finest luxury accommodations, entertainment and...
It was quite the strange trip yesterday, Labor Day 2008. Gustav beat the odds and made landfall at the exact spot the models had it going to 18 hours before, and within 50 miles or so of the models from 48 hours before. It was not nearly as strong as predicted, which was the...
Well, it’s two days since the Katrina Anniversary date and here we are expecting another hurricane, Gustav. The storm’s birth and slow growth and progress in the Caribbean have been torturing us for over a week now. It’s certainly distracted me from keeping up with my promised picture-a-day Katrina memorial. The Twitter is all...
One effect of the storm that couldn’t go away quickly enough for some was the proliferation of signs. In the grand scheme of things—like the large pile of debris in the background, flooded homes, lost lives—the temporary signs advertising demolition and construction services that sprouted up and covered every available inch of neutral ground...
This isn’t a destruction photo. It’s from St. Louis No. 1 cemetery on Basin Street. Our family has a tomb there. The archdiocese opened the cemetery on Nov. 1, All Saints Day, in 2005. It was the first time since the storm it had been open to the public and would not be open...
View from the roof of Harborview Condominiums. You can see where the roof was peeled off, exposing the units in the front of the condos. Out of 100 units, only a few escaped wind and rain damage. Flooding wasn’t an issue for the living units; the building’s ground level was for parking (see example...
Alright already. So we’re running behind a bit. Can I say I spent the weekend hunting streetcars for StreetCarArt.com? Remains of the West End lighthouse and Southern Yacht Club. A view up the canal along Hwy. 11 in Slidell, you know, where Tites used to be. And, finally, I give you Boat Mountain.
