|
Monday, 18 October 2010 00:42 |
|
What is this deliciousness? It's a gooey, cheesey, juicy, beefy burger and fries from the newest "pop-up" restaurant MVBurger (on Twitter as @MVBurger).
Pop-up restaurants are new to New Orleans' market and they are an interesting thing. In short, a pop-up is a restaurant within a restaurant. For example, Slim Goodie's (open daily for breakfast and lunch) is typically closed on Sunday evenings, so they rent out their restaurant space to MVBurger for the evening. Cool? Yes. Dangerous? Possibly.
The pop-up concept is popular in Los Angeles (and other big food cities) where a well-known restaurateur takes his menu into a different neighborhood restaurant for one week, and utilizes social media to get the word out. After the one-week stint, he's on to another neighborhood and another existing restaurant space. It works in L.A., but that's a biiiig town and we're a small big town.
In New Orleans, the pop-up idea has recently hatched and functions more in the form of a "secret" or "underground" restaurant. Think locally beloved Pizza Delicious who post their menu on-line each Sunday, take phone orders and only then reveal where you can pick up your pizza. And, when they run out of pies (they make a limited number), they're done.
The only other "pop-up" I know of was a short-lived (as in three weeks) Vietnamese restaurant that took over the Marigny's incredibly popular Cake Cafe & Bakery several nights per week.
MVBurger proposes to operate somewhat like Pizza Delicious with the added bonus of table service (our waiter was an efficient young attorney who is also an MVB partner). Speaking of which, the partners in this operation include Joel Dondis (Sucre), Rene Louapre (www.blackenedout.com); and Larkin Selman (Sucre).
Starting tonight and on future Sunday nights only (for now), Slim Goodie's becomes MVBurger, serving burgers, fries, shakes/malts and fountain drinks. The burgers are hand-formed patties of a special beef mix, cooked to order; the fries are handcut thin and fried crisp; the shakes are spun rich, thick and creamy. There is a textured and nicely spiced homemade ketchup; buns locally baked by Ziggy of Maple Street Patisserie; and tonight there was the "surprise" option to add-on truffled mushroom duxelles (a "paste" of finely chopped and cooked mushroom caps and stems, onions, herbs, butter...). Of course opening night was busy, a crush of notable locals dining out in support of this new venture, and there were a lot of mid and post-meal smiles. MVBurger is certainly poised for success.
Food-trucks, Pop-up restaurants, innovative menus, loads of new restaurants, bars/lounges and more. It's a scary (over-saturation?) though an interesting and invigorating time in our local food world. Could New Orleans be getting back its cool food mojo? Could it be we *are* a stellar food city worthy of being under the national/global microscope for innovating while maintaining our sacred and unique culinary traditions? Yes. I've never doubted it. I'm staying focused and hungry...
|
|
|
Sunday, 05 September 2010 12:41 |
Remember this guy? Chef Pete Vazquez. He was the avant garde instigator, the guy often credited with having dished up the most innovative, creative and delectable food in New Orleans; and he left after Katrina...meaning he both left the city and left us hungry. Janis, his stunningly funny former wife, sent me an email to advise that Chef Pete has a cool YouTube channel called "The Anti Food Network" where you can watch and learn some of Chef Pete's excellent cookery, and in typical Pete fashion, he says, "No, I'm not gonna share cute little food anecdotes with you." But he does share skills and damn if it doesn't make me miss him and his food, all the more. Watch and learn people, it is soooo worth it.
At the same time that I learned of Chef Pete's videos, I am still basking in the afterglow of a beautiful lunch I had at Green Goddess* in the French Quarter. Chefs Chris DeBarr and Paul Artigues teamed up to tackle dinner and lunch, respectively. Chef Chris is a genius. Chef Paul is a genius. I am more than familiar with Chef Chris' culinary prowess, but Paul's food is relatively new to me. That said, I am now his biggest fan, a wacky groupie, a devotee. I saw him on Canal Street the other day and shouted from my car window, "You, sir, are a rock star!" Apparently Paul didn't hear me, he didn't even look my way, but some random guy with an umbrella hat shouted back, "I know!" This was lunch:
Dubbed Watermelon Mango Salad, this giant plate was a happy toss of chilled watermelon slices topped with cojita cheese over
arugula, surrounded by mango slices, topped with chili powder and dressed with mango puree and saba, then crowned with lime mango marinated Lafitte Blue Crab. What I must tell you is that the play of textures (soft, crunchy, toothy) and flavors (sweet, spicy, tangy, peppery, earthy) was perfect. The balance was spot on with no one flavor or texture overpowering. Heaven.
Then I had this, and well, I was floored, finis, termine, fershtunk, done-in. The Cuban Luau is this: Artisanal salame, pulled pork, manchego, pickled banana peppers & roasted pineapple on pressed ciabatta. Must I regale you with the details? I must, I must. Again, it's all about texture and flavor and balance (anyone call that I'm a Libra?) The salty salame, richness of the pulled pork, funk from Manchego, brightness of the banana peppers and the enhanced sweet-evergreen aroma and taste from the roasted pineapple, ramped up by the big crunch of pressed-crisp ciabatta.
Dining here = foodgasm. Light the cigarette, bask in the afterglow. I want this lunch again...right now.
*True to my nature and integrity, it is only fair to disclose that I help Green Goddess with their Twitter and Facebook feeds; for money. That said, nothing stands in my way of telling people where the deliciousness happens in New Orleans...and that means anywhere...
|
|
Sunday, 29 August 2010 18:30 |
|
Um, this is a wee embarrassing, but I've just heard that my blog, the one I've let laspe for a few weeks (yes, I know, very lame), has been voted #1 by The Gambit readers. Whoa. I had NO clue, but I'm very grateful and as my pal Rene Louapre says, "You now like the Saints, have a target on back." Yikes. And a big congrats to Blackened Out and Nola.com for being that number too.
|
|
Monday, 19 July 2010 21:12 |
My pal Kim Ranjbar writes an excellent blog that covers, amongst many things, food and drink. She's been waging a personal battle of the bulge, having dropped almost 60 pounds, eating carefully 6 days per week. On the 7th day (Thursdays), she cheats. And then she writes about that cheat. Her weekly reports post the next day following a cheat and they are loads of fun to read. For good or bad, her intent or not, the posts are hunger-inducing.
Taking a page from Kim's dining "book," I too have decided to "cheat" on Thursdays...with a twist. I am cheating on my carnivorous ways, spending one day each week dining as a vegetarian. Can it be done in breaded, battered, buttered and fried, pork-a-licious, meat and seafood-centric New Orleans? Can I cheat on meat and dine well, withour succumbing to nothing but salads? Are the restaurants up to snuff? We'll see.
I start with last week's dining adventure. Taceaux Loceaux (on Twitter as @TLNola), a gourmet taco truck forging New Orleans' burgeoning food cart scene, has two vegetarian tacos on their menu and both can be made vegan. Chef-owners Maribeth and Alex Del Castillo are making quite a name for themselves with their super fresh, extra delicious and cleverly named "taceaux" (tacos). Pictured are "All Hat, No Cattle" and "The Notorious V. E. G."
"All Hat" is a mass of spicy black Beans and rice, shredded cabbage, slices of radish, crema and cilantro, tucked into flour tortillas. The beans are deep and earthy, crisped quickly on the griddle to produce delectable crunchy bits amid the creaminess of the beans. The cabbage and radish provide another toothy layer, while the crema cools and the cilantro adds herbaceousness.
"Notorious V. E. G." is the plant-only version of a popular meaty taceaux also served by Taceaux Loceaux. Tofu crumbles are cooked and seasoned like chorizo, then topped with a tomato-rich homemade salsa, shredded cabbage, cilantro and avacado crema on corn tortillas. Surprisingly this tofu taceaux tastes exactly like a fresh, light and fabulous version of its porky cousin; no joke.
Taceaux Loceaux's vegetarian taceaux come two per order for $5. Great food, great price, great start on my weekly foray foraging vegetarian dining.
|
|
Friday, 09 July 2010 22:13 |
|
Several years ago I was hired to write a comprehensive drinks story for a national magazine. I wrote the article and a month later I received the editor's questions. The subject of coffee came up. "New Orleans doesn't have a coffee culture and your coffee is mediocre at best," she wrote me. Worse still, in her edited version of my article, she had inserted those words. WHAT???? Long story short, I blew a fuse, and though the offensive words were removed from the printed piece, I was furious and refused to accept the pay. Stupid, I know, but it felt like blood money and I wasn't interested. In case your wondering, New Orleans' coffee culture is over 200 years old. I realize that's giving the subject serious short shrift, but it'll have to do...for now.
We all have our favorite coffee shops, coffee brands, blends, roasts, flavors, and New Orleans has several longstanding family-owned coffee roasters, but it seems we're always on the look-out for better and the truth is, we don't have much of a "barista" culture. Things are changing. On a hot tip from my pal James, I learned about Dee's Coffee in the CBD, a place that touts itself as having "The Best Espresso in New Orleans." They also have certified Baristas, and the organization SNOB (Society of New Orleans Baristas), that meets every Thursday at 6:30 pm to have...well...coffee talk and "throw down some awesome latte art..."
I popped in recently to taste the coffee and watch a certified barista in action. The regular iced coffee is cold dripped and kept cool in your cup/glass with ice cubes also made of coffee - the theory being that coffee ice cubes will not dilute the drink. Hmmmm. I ordered an iced latte and asked for the coffee ice cubes. That drink is pictured above. It was rich from whole milk (I'd likely ask for reduced fat in the future) and bold, upheld by those coffee cubes. This was indeed a great iced coffee. I'll be back for sure.
Dee's also offers "Billy Bites" pastries, free wi-fi, foodstuffs including gluten free and vegan options as well as self-serve copy machines, consignment art and the deal-maker - validated free parking. Open from 7am - 6:30pm, this is a very interesting place to sit and sip. There's fair people watching, plenty of outlets, lots of quiet, and yes, the espresso is excellent - it took the barista four "pulls" from the machine to get my espresso "perfect" (his word) with a lovely quarter-inch, amber colored crema - and worth the wait.
If the whole barista thing intrigues, check out www.facebook.com/snobbarista
Dee's Coffee in the CBD
401 Baronne Street
(504) 596-2012
deescoffenola[at]gmail[dot]com
|
|
|
Comments Latest
Thanks Jonathan! Fun to see you as always!!
You're right it was great. Nice to see you again a...
Yum! You could just stay at Slim Goodies all day.....
The most respected chef in the world Daniel Boulud...
Hey there Nola Eater. Sorry it took me a while to ...