The Po-Boy Festival is Sunday on Oak Street, where it has been since its revival in 2008. But the party started today with the construction of the world’s longest poor boy.
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Even though the weather was cold, I expected this little fun event to be overrun with people ready to sample the results. Instead I wondered what they would do with all this food.
I arrived at 11:15am and the tables extended a full block on either end of the Maple Leaf Bar, where the project was headquartered. French bread loves were placed end to end butting against each other for 360 ft., 8 ft. longer than last year. Soon carts loaded with bins of sliced ham and American cheese, lettuce, pickles, and tomatoes were pushed to the starting point.
Already lots of people were squirting generous amounts of Blue Plate Mayo on the bread.
On the other side of the loaf were carefully placed slices of Chisesi Ham, a product Tom always considered to be without peer.
More people came behind the mayo with handfuls of thinly sliced lettuce, tomatoes, and pickles so fresh and crispy I could smell them above everything else.
The American cheese caused a quandary. How should it be placed? They tried a few different ways, finally settling on a diagonal placement.
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As a final touch, a bit of Tony Chacere’s new Cajun Kick spice was sprinkled on the whole thing.
It took about an hour for all this to be assembled, and then the cutting started at the end where the assembly began. But first the sandwich was carefully folded by tucking in all the cheese and ham. By this time I wondered how all of this food would be consumed. There were not enough people to eat this gigantic poor boy. And that surprised me.
I helped as much as I could, and it was hardly a chore. Tom always said the best food starts with the best ingredients, and this simple ham and cheese poor boy was delectable.
The Leidenheimer bread was so crusty on the outside it seemed toasted, but I knew it wasn’t. The crumb inside was perfect, airy and dense at the same time. A recipe perfected over 129 years. When bits of the Blue Plate Mayo oozed from the sides, I could taste the richness of this sublime condiment, made the European way with only the yolks of the eggs. Better than all the rest, for 98 years.
And anyone who has read anything Tom wrote or followed him at all on the show knows that Tom had a special place in his heart for Chisesi Ham, turning out the best of its kind since 1908. His signature dish, the famous Root Beer Glazed Ham, started with Chisesi’s ham. He would recognize no other.
It’s a pity not more people showed up for this sandwich. It was delicious, and a perfect start to what will be another wonderful celebration of one of our most famous local classics, the poor boy sandwich.
I walked down the street with my portion, smiling at a banner hanging from the balcony of The Maple Leaf Bar. It had a slogan that couldn’t have been better: #SpreadNolaTradition.
