Wednesday, May 17, 2017
Tweaking Prescriptions.
I'm in the doctor's office again, as he and I try to get better results from a medication that addresses nothing life-threatening, unless it gets really out of control, which in my case it isn't. A number of readers have asked me to be more specific about this. It's simple and common enough: pressure, the excess of which comes from my late mother's genes. We talk more about what time of day I should pop the pills than the medication itself. And then I update the doctor (at his request) on the better new North Shore restaurants.
MA and I been invited to attend a press event tonight at Fogo De Chao, which is rolling out its new cocktails and bar snacks for the summertime. I don't often attend events like this, but Mary Ann is a big fan of Fogo and wanted to be there.
I should come to these events more often, if only to touch base with some of the other food writers around town. The roll call of us scribblers has not changed a lot over the years. In a party for thirty, I'd be able to name twenty of the attendees before I even arrived. And I haven't checked in with these guys and girls in awhile. To name a few: Errol and Peggy Scott Laborde, friends of mine since college days. Errol is the publisher and editor of New Orleans Magazine. Margarita Bergen, without whose presence it wouldn't really be a party. Tim McNally and Brenda Maitland, who are wine fans. Dominic Massa, who does p.r. for Channel 4 and who wrote a couple of books about local broadcasting. Sandra Dartus, who invented the French Quarter Festival. John Shoup, who created the Great Chefs series of television shows.
We begin with a choice of caiparinhas--the hot new Brazilian drink. There are three flavors. One is rather sweet, made with strawberries. The bartender didn't seem to be a fan of this one, and I see his point. He was more interested in the traditional caipirinha, which has a high citrus and acid component. One small sip was strong enough for me to wonder whether a plug shoved into the stuff would generate electricity.
But the best of these drinks was very good indeed. It was flavored with caramelized pineapple and brown sugar. It was sweet, but only a bit.
The food, on the other hand, involved the likes of beef empanadas and grilled shrimp. I didn't get much of it to try, busy as I was watching the various meats being carved off larger roasts. This is Fogo's big deal: all-you-can-eat steak, using cuts you may not have tasted before. About ten different meats came out, not all of them beef. The lamb chops, for example, were very good. The restaurant is in what had been the main dining room of the J.W. Marriott Hotel, and most recently Shula's steak house. The management says that business has been beyond expectations. It's the first successful churrascaria in New Orleans. (The two before it did not do well, and with good reason.)
What impresses me most about Fogo De Chao is that the service staff could not possibly be more accommodating. Really, the service is in a league with Commander's and Restaurant August. Making this even better is that the waiters are all conversant both in English and Portuguese, so they can tell you the stories behind every dish. There's nothing you can ask for that they don't seem to present to you within a minute or two.
Fogo is not a restaurant you'd visit once a week (although I'll bet there are some people who do), but it accomplishes the experience the customers are seeking.
Fogo De Chao. CBD: 614 Canal St| (504) 412-8900.
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Thursday, May 18, 2017.
Eating Oysters At Frankie & Johnny's.
I haven't been to Frankie & Johnny's in a good while. But they have resumed their sponsorship of the radio show, and I go there see whether everything is where I left it. It is much busier than I remember. Indeed, I got one of the last tables, and the porch out front is also full. Lots of tables are spread with platters full of boiled crawfish and shrimp.
The waitress is very New Orleans, which I appreciate. I go for a pair of Thursday's specials, in which oysters raw and grilled are sold for about a buck and a half. When I tell the server this, she responds in a way that says, "You have ordered enough food, and there's no need to continue." I appreciate that kind of advice. The raw oysters are still running big and fat. The grilled jobs are a touch overcooked, but not enough for me to feel a sense of loss.
Now I ask for bread pudding. It is the very light, almost fluffy quality that I love in a bread pudding. "It's not the kind that you eat, and then. . . .you don't go swimmin'," to quote the wisdom of my late friend Dick Brennan, Sr. And there's another nice touch here. A squirt bottle has been used to decorate the plate with chocolate sauce. I'm a custard guy and don't much care for chocolate interfering with bread pudding's classic flavors. But this is just the right amount, and the chocolate touch works, even after my prejudice on the subject.
Coincidentally, our radio guest today--Mary Ann just keeps them coming, for which I am very thankful--is John Martin, the chef de cuisine from Tableau. That's Dickie Brennan, Jr.'s newest restaurant, in what may be the best imaginable location of any New Orleans eatery. It's on the corner of Chartres and St. Peter, across from Jackson Square. Beyond that, it can claim to occupy a historic building that housed Le Petite Theater for many decades. It still does, solving a problem the Little Theater had been fighting for some time: too much building, not enough money in the bank.
Chef John confirmed my feeling that Tableau has a somewhat retro menu. Although they are up with most of the currents, a large portion of the menu refers to classic Creole-French dishes. Dick Brennan, Sr. would have liked that, if it wasn't his idea to begin with.
Tableau. French Quarter: 616 St. Peter St. 504-934-3463.
