Kristine Froeba: The Classic Cocktail Enamored By Locals

“If it lacks authority, add more vodka,” those are Ernest Hemingway’s instructions while mixing his preferred Bloody Mary. Hemingway understood New Orleans. It’s Bloody Mary Season in New Orleans
The Classic Cocktail Enamored By Locals
Some might say Fall marks the arrival of Bloody Mary season in New Orleans—at least for me anyway. I find the Bloody Mary too heavy for the humid southern summer, but curiously sublime when temperatures drop or are supposed to drop. Come late September or October, this staple of the brunch bunch becomes the staple of many a tailgate or pre-game party. First off, I must admit I hate tomato juice.

Kristine Froeba: New Orleans’ Restaurant Week ends tomorrow

New Orleans’ Restaurant Week has only two days and nights left to enjoy. September is one of the slowest months of the year for restaurateurs, but it’s an excellent opportunity for locals to experience new chefs and new menus from old favorites. Celebrating its eighth year, Restaurant Week New Orleans offers a line-up of restaurants with innovative menus at discounted prices. The week, a brainchild of the Louisiana Restaurant Association in partnership with New Orleans & Company, runs through Sunday, September 16. “In New Orleans, dining out is many things—a celebration, a sport, an adventure and above all else, a necessity.

Kristine Froeba: La Crêpe Nanou Bistro Bastille Day Celebration: An Uptown Gem Flourishes

France’s La Fête Nationale, or national celebration, commemorates the storming of the Bastille on July 14, 1789. La Crêpe Nanou, our resident French bistro, has been an Uptown touchstone since 1983. At 35 years of age, it hasn’t a long history, but in restaurant years, remarkable nonetheless. In a city where things are changing more often than not, the familiar is appreciated. A plate of steaming Moules et Frites bathed in a garlicky white wine sauce and a crusty baguette at La Crêpe Nanou’s qualifies.

Kristine Froeba: Southern Charm: New Orleans’ Benny Poppins

The Sassy Private Chef’s Shrimp n’ Grit’s Recipe as featured on Bravo

Each series has one breakout character, and while the Bravo Southern Charm New Orleans series offered little to locals other than indigestion, it did present us with the sass of New Orleans’ private cook, Mr. Benny Poppins. Poppins, aka Benjamin Levasseur, originally from Algiers, plies his trade amongst New Orleans’ families as a personal cook. “The name ‘Benny Poppins’ came from working closely with families and their children as a personal chef, and it stuck,” said Levasseur. In the Bravo series, Benny Poppins, of the bow tie, eye-roll and discreet side-eye proved popular amongst the audience who enjoyed the series. Levasseur portrays the cook and private assistant to New York documentary film producer Nicelle Herrington – also a real-life gig.

Made in Louisiana: The Bulldog Pepper Jelly Sisters

The Southern Food and Beverage Museum holds a yearly “Made in Louisiana” festival. The fest features merchants, chefs, distillers and all-around interesting people with locally made products available in New Orleans. I was lucky enough to be invited, and I plan to introduce you to some of those people and their products. Part One
Bulldog Pepper Jelly: Jelly with a Bite

Everyone should have the pleasure of meeting the Bulldog Farm Pepper Jelly sisters, Kim Johnson White and Cindy Johnson Anders. These ladies are contagiously happy, high energy, hard-working and Louisiana to the core.

Kristine Froeba: Mardi Gras Mambo – Surviving the controversies of King Cake and more

My commentary is usually filtered through nostalgia—in this case, my fond memories of Mardi Gras. Two words sum that up: McKenzie’s and Doubloons. Mardi Gras was fun, easy, laissez-faire, with no tattletales, no politics, no bead safe-spaces, and no King Cake scalping—yes, this is really a thing in 2018. Why can’t we just enjoy the greatest free show on earth without government intervention, irate commentary, division, and scary cakes? City government confiscated many toddlers’ personalized Mardi Gras ladders this year.

Kristine Froeba: 10th Anniversary of #SaintsCooking with Gerald Duhon

Saints Feasts, Playoffs, and homemade King Cake! Can we get a #WhoDat? The Black and Gold are back in the playoffs, and locals are talking about more than just Kamara’s yardage. What’s cooking this Sunday is a hot topic as New Orleanians plan to watch the game from home. Viking’s fans can have their frozen chicken wings, brat dogs, and bagged chips, but the Ain’ts aren’t having it.

Kristine Froeba: The New Orleans Thanksgiving Table

Creole Dressing, Stuffing, Mashed Potatoes, Rice, or Macaroni? The countdown to a New Orleans Thanksgiving dinner has begun. The old guard, as we know, still serves Oyster Dressing along with their roast turkey. However, an influx of newcomers might be changing the local menu. [poll id=”2″]

 

Many families might serve all five of the above.

Kristine Froeba: Oktoberfest NOLA: Chicken Dance on Dah Bayou!

Oktoberfest and the Oompa band have finally returned to New Orleans proper. What could be more fitting for a New Orleanian than Bratwurst and beer on the bayou? New Orleans Deutsches Haus, founded in 1848, the keeper of all that is German regarding New Orlean’s heritage, is back. And New Orleans is happy. The Haus, originally named Deutsche Gesellschaft von New Orleans, has evolved with the times and is also hosting an Oktoberfest 5k this Friday.

Kristine Froeba: New Orleans’ Magazine Street: Will the restaurant corridor soon suffer a Chipotle?

Magazine Street winds itself along the river down the center of old New Orleans from the French Quarter to Audubon Park. It’s our Main Street. It is also our restaurant row. Along its corridor, diners can explore our unique local culinary styles and culture, and experience both regional and international food. What makes this plethora of restaurants unique is their individuality.