Having now made it back from New Orleans in one piece (and a couple days at the beach), I now recap what I can remember about the whole thing. There were a lot of good stories and I will do my best to recollect what was going on, including a couple of places visited and the logo on the outside of the place just so others can follow in my trail or (dis)agree with me on how great some of the places are/were.
First, I want to make a couple of points about food. Being there pretty much makes you want to eat everything and I certainly did my best to do so. For those unfamiliar with the New Orleans cuisine, this guy provides a good primer. Typical examples include jambalaya, gumbo, red beans and rice, etouffes, and the like. Two places that particularly stood out (and what I got):
1. Serio's Deli and the Muffeletta Sandwich - If Serio's sounds familiar, it might be because you saw it on TV...
Yep, Bobby Flay took on these guys in a muffeletta challenge and lost. So there you go. It was especially close to where I was staying, so I snagged one of these bad boys before I left town.
I had never had one of these sandwiches before. For the unenlightened, a muffeletta is a Creole sandwich with salami and ham and swiss cheese with an olive salad on the top, primarily consisting of pimentos, both black and green olives, carrot coins, celery, and maybe pickled cauliflower (which is what I recall this particular sandwich having). Typically, they are enormous sandwiches served on circular bread and can be purchased by the half or whole (and in some places, quarter).
Now I may not have been many places in my entire life, but I am a sucker for a) popularly endorsed stuff on television and b) eating, but this meal in particular ranks up there with the best meals I've had. It was breathtaking. In fact, I couldn't stop raving about the sandwich and convinced two of my friends to get one as well. Wow. Besides the cold cuts being choice stuff, the olive salad was the star and the support of the sandwich. I am now looking for something to come close to recreating this masterpiece of human achievement.
Additionally, I was told I missed out on the Central Grocer, who serves a dynamite one of these as well, but I didn't get the memo before I left town.
Speaking of places I saw on TV...
2. The Acme Oyster House and the Chargrilled Oysters
I'm not one for raw oysters. They're pretty dirty creatures on the whole. Still, I was on vacation, so I would set aside any preconceived notions of anything. The very first night we were looking for some grub, and I just happened to spot the above neon. Because I love watching shows about eating and cooking, I remembered this episode of Man v. Food. Adam Richman does the 15 dozen (180) oyster challenge. As of the filming of the episode, only 28 out of 150 people had finished them, but Man won that round.
Now, I didn't attempt to try 180, but two dozen was the order of the day. Simply amazing and this coming from a guy who doesn't normally eat oysters. I found a recipe that matches the description that the waitress gave me for how it was prepared so I will have to try this again someday. Because I live close to Appalachicola (Oyster City; it provides a lot of SE states with oysters), this may be sooner rather than later. This was definitely #2 in foods on the trip (close behind Serio's), and they definitely blew everything else out of the water.
Incidentally, I also went to Mother's for the Ferdie Special, where Richman also dined. That was where I was beginning to speculate upon my previous article.
I also want to give an extra special mention to one of my hosts this weekend, who manages the Gordon Biersch in New Orleans, right across the street from Harrah's. Definitely recommend checking them out if you have one nearby, especially for the beer. If you're a stud muffin, you can get a beer boot. Yes, like the one from Beerfest.
Coming Friday...bar reviews.
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