Louisiana Foodie Trail

The Times-Picayune ran an interesting article yesterday. The Louisiana Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism is planning a more sedate (and some would say infinitely more interesting) adjunct to the Audubon Golf Trail—a Louisiana Culinary Trails program which:

…[W]ill highlight authentic restaurants and food experiences across the state, and provide materials for travelers to create their own eating itineraries during their visits here.

Lt. Gov. Mitch Landrieu and chef John Besh were among those announcing the three-year initiative Wednesday at the Sheraton New Orleans, during the annual Louisiana Tourism Summit.

Unlike the golf trail, no highway signs will be placed to guide travelers to their next stop. The trail will be web-based; suggested “trails” will be provided to help guide the uninitiated through the state’s culinary treasure troves.

Stacy Brown, president of the Shreveport-Bossier Convention and Tourist Bureau, explained how the system will work:

“We’ll have a Web site that will allow you to design your culinary trail and combine it with other things you want to do or see,” Brown said. “There will also be a lot of suggestions for different types of food, different types of restaurants.”

The site will list all Louisiana-owned restaurants free of charge and will have enhanced listings with logos and ad copy available for $150.

Chef John Besh was quoted in the article (which was picked up by the AP and ran in CNN.com and other outlets) saying culinary trails aren’t anything new.

Besh pointed out that culinary trails have always been here. When he was little, his mother would go to Gambino’s or Gendusa’s for bread; to Progress Grocery or Nor-Joe’s; to the butcher shop or the fish market.

“The great thing is that this is all natural for us,” Besh said. “We’re the real thing.

Imagine that—planning your vacation activities around an itinerary based on places where you’d like to eat. Isn’t that how we plan our day-to-day lives around here?

Homework assignment for the day: What would your ideal culinary trail itinerary be?