New Orleans Magazine February 2014 by Renaissance Publishing

February 2014 VOLUME 48 NUMBER 5 Editor Errol Laborde Managing Editor Morgan Packard Art Director Eric Gernhauser Associate Editors Haley Adams and

Lauren LaBorde Contributing Editor Liz Scott Monaghan Food Editor Dale Curry Dining Editor Jay Forman Wine and Spirits Editor Tim McNally Restaurant Reporter Robert Peyton Home and Garden Editor Bonnie Warren Interns Kristen Himmelberg, Erika Vaughn,

Lexi Wangler SALES MANAGER Shannon Smith Senior Account ExecutiveS Jonée Daigle Ferrand Account Executives

Erin Fontenot, Kate Sanders, Elizabeth Schindler Sales Assistant Erin Maher Azar Web/Production Manager Staci Woodward McCarty Production Designers Sarah George, Antoine Passelac Web Editor Haley Adams Chief Executive Officer Todd Matherne President Alan Campell Executive VICE PRESIDENT/Editor-in-Chief Errol Laborde Vice President of Sales Colleen Monaghan Executive Assistant Kristi Ferrante Distribution Manager Christian Coombs SUBSCRIPTIONS Erin Duhe

WYES DIAL 12 STAFF (504) 486-5511 Executive Editor Beth Arroyo Utterback Managing Editor Aislinn Hinyup Associate Editor Robin Cooper Art Director Jenny Dascenzo-Hronek

NEW ORLEANS MAGAZINE Printed in USA A Publication of Renaissance Publishing 110 Veterans Memorial Blvd., Suite 123 Metairie, LA 70005 (504) 828-1380 Subscription Hotline:

(504) 828-1380 ext. 251 or fax: (504) 828-1385

Online at www.MyNewOrleans.com

New Orleans Magazine (ISSN 0897 8174) is published monthly by Renaissance Publishing, LLC., 110 Veterans Blvd., Suite 123, Metairie, LA 70005; (504) 8281380. Subscription rates: one year $19.95; Mexico, South America and Canada $48; Europe, Asia and Australia $75. An associate subscription to New Orleans Magazine is available by a contribution of $40 or more to WYES-TV/Channel 12, $10.00 of which is used to offset the cost of publication. Also available electronically, on CD-ROM and on-line. Periodicals postage paid at Metairie, LA, and additional entry offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to New Orleans Magazine, 110 Veterans Blvd., Suite 123, Metairie, LA 70005. Copyright 2014 New Orleans Magazine. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the consent of the publisher. The trademark New Orleans and New Orleans Magazine are registered. New Orleans Magazine is not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts, photos and artwork even if accompanied by a self-addressed stamped envelope. The opinions expressed in New Orleans Magazine are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the view of the magazine managers or owners.

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CONTENTS 2.14 VOL.48 NO. 5

THE WILD WEST AT THE TIME OF REX PAGE

FLEUR-DE-LIST PAGE

FEATURES 76 The Wild West at the Time of Rex Carnival’s formative years and the most dramatic period of the American West paralleled each other. by Errol Laborde

80 Fleur De List Carnival’s top 25 parades (arranged by category) by Errol Laborde

84 Rock of Ages A mash-up of gems, stones and diamonds create an ideal music medley. by Tracee Dundas

88 Broken Heart Syndrome Investigating Takotsubo cardiomyopathy by Brobson Lutz M.D.

92 What the patients say A guide to area hospitals compiled by Morgan Packard

IN EVERY ISSUE SPEAKING OUT PAGE

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8 11 12 119 120

INSIDE “When Bacchus Got Slumdogged” speaking out Editorial, plus a Mike Luckovich cartoon JULIA STREET Questions and answers about our city Try This “Infusion Therapy Isn’t a Fad at The Remedy Room” STREETCAR “Carnival of the Non-Pirate”

ON THE COVER Messenger god from Hermes’ signature float J E F F E RY J O H N S TO N P H OTO G R A P H

MODINE PAGE

CONTENTS

MUSIC PAGE

THE BEAT 18 20 23 24 26 28 30 32 36

MARQUEE Entertainment calendar PERSONA Zulu King 2014 Garren Mims Sr. newsbeat “Road Improvements Ahead” Biz The cruise industry “navigates past choppy waters” Education ”Pell Grant Abusers” HEALTHBEAT The latest news in health from New Orleans and beyond newsbeat “Youth Study Center Opens” Crime Fighting “Al Winters: The man behind ‘Shattered Shield’” newsbeat “RTA Increases Services”

LOCAL COLOR 38 40 41 44 46 48 50 52

THE SCOOP “The New Orleans Guide to the Academy Awards” music “Baby Dolls and Skeletons” Read & Spin A look at the latest albums and books CAST OF CHARACTERS Guitar maker Vincent Guidroz MODINE’S NEW ORLEANS “Show Your Wits” Joie d’Eve “Rebuilding the Season” CHRONICLES “Carnival Collectors Never ‘Cease to Love’” HOME “Kevin Kelly’s Mansion is Made for Mardi Gras”

THE MENU 58 60 62 66 68

table talk It is game time at these two hot spots restaurant insider February Fare FOOD Recipes for Carnival Season LAST CALL Enchanter’s Cup DINING GUIDE

DIAL 12 Out “It’s Carnival Time” premiering on Thurs., Feb. 13 at 7 p.m. This annual special highlights what’s not to be missed during the upcoming Carnival season, plus a look at the increasing use of the St. Charles Avenue parade route, the 75th birthday of both Hermes and Babylon parades and much more! Joining Steppin’ Out host and producer Peggy Scott Laborde are Carnival historian Errol Laborde and publisher of everyone’s favorite Mardi Gras Guide, Arthur Hardy. Also, don’t miss Great Performances “National Theatre: 50 Years on Stage” on Fri., Feb. 14 at 9 p.m. The special highlights the venerable institution’s over 800 productions while celebrating its 50th anniversary.Visit wyes.org for all WYES event and program details. F E B R U A RY 2 0 1 4

PERSONA PAGE

D1 WYES-TV/Channel 12 is getting in the Mardi Gras spirit with Steppin

FOOD PAGE

myneworleans.com

IN SID E

When Bacchus Got Slumdogged

n 2 0 0 9 , B acch u s got sl u mdogged . B eca u se

Mardi Gras was in late February that year, the Bacchus parade fell on the same night as the Academy Awards. In New Orleans that year there was more than the usual interest in the Oscars because the perceived top contender was The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. The film, starring part-time local Brad Pitt, had been filmed throughout town and had established quite a presence. That night New Orleanians were divided between Bacchus and the Academy Awards. Bacchus won the majority, but at many parties there was a television somewhere in the back. By the time the big end-of-the-show awards were announced, the parade had already passed anyway. Bacchus that year was Val Kilmer. He had a better night than Benjamin Button, which had 13 nominations. From seemingly out of nowhere, the India-made Slumdog Millionaire totally dominated. Button only won three awards, all in minor categories. Slumdog won eight, including Best Picture. As long as the Academy Awards presentation is in late February or early March ,it will be Bacchus’ fate to compete anytime Mardi Gras is late in the calendar. Whenever Mardi Gras is in early February, Bacchus, the wine god, faces yet another competitor: the Super Bowl. Bacchus has gone eyeball to eyeball with the NFL a couple of times including, most famously, the 2008 game when the New York Giants faced the undefeated New England Patriots. Here again there was a local connection as New Orleanian Eli Manning quarterbacked the Giants to one of the biggest upsets in Super Bowl history. (I was at a parade party along the route that night. People would hurry inside and cluster around the TV between floats. Extended breaks in the parade were welcomed.) Bacchus takes on the distinction of being the only krewe to, at various times, have to face the Super Bowl or the Academy Awards. It will happen again this year, March 2, as New Orleanian Ellen DeGeneres hosts the awards (see related article pg. 38). Having a big, showy crowd-drawing parade helps overcome competition. Nevertheless, when the going gets tough, it’s good to be a wine god.

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On The Web Read More About Mardi Gras In addition to the Mardi Gras articles in this issue, our team of bloggers are writing lots about Carnival season and Mardi Gras. For Carnival tips, history and more, visit our website at MyNewOrleans.com. The site features a new blog post every weekday morning.

Try These Light Cajun Recipes Louisianians are known for cooking foods high in fat and calories, but it is possible to enjoy Louisiana cuisine with less guilt. Our sister magazine, Acadiana Profile, has lots of light recipes in its latest issue. Find the recipes at AcadianaProfile.com.

Check Us Out on Instagram Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll be Instagramming lots of photos during Carnival season and beyond. Follow our Mardi Gras adventures by following us on Instagram @neworleansmag.

facebook.com/NewOrleansMagazine

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twitter.com/neworleansmag

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SPEAKIN G O U T

Krewes News: How Carnival Has Changed

ere are some ways that the C arnival parade

scene has changed, at least on the New Orleans East Bank, which is the epicenter of Carnival activity: CARNIVAL ’14 B There are no single parades anymore, except for Endymion. There was a time when parades, especially on weeknights, were spread out so that there might be one per evening. Now, with the increased demand for parade permits, all parades (except for Endymion) are part of a double- or triple-header. That sometimes puts a strain on the police and on neighborhoods, but it has been good for building parade crowds. Krewes benefit by the audience coming to see the other parades as well as theirs. B All parades, except for Endymion, move along the St. Charles Avenue route. From the police perspective that’s good because it’s easier to plan crowd control without having to move barricades back and forth. Krewes prefer the St. Charles route because it’s pretty and benefits from a parade-watching tradition that includes many area families and university students, as well as bars and hangouts along the way. B There are few suburban parades. The calendar on the east bank of Jefferson Parish and on the West Bank has thinned considerably. Part of the reason is quite commendable, as Jefferson Parish has put tighter restrictions on what were shabby parades. Another reason is that krewes such as Endymion, which are big and popular and parade before large crowds, have absorbed many former riders. For those in the other krewes, riding along St. Charles Avenue is more attractive than riding on a suburban highway. It is significant that ALLA, whose name is an acronym for Algiers Louisiana, now parades on the St. Charles route, too. B All of the activity along St. Charles Avenue is causing new issues. On nights such as the Thursday and Friday before Mardi Gras, crowds, drawn partially by relatively new players such as Muses and Le Krewe d’Etat, as well as other long established krewes, have become Bacchus-sized. That has created issues with parking, the location of portable toilet facilities and billowing smoke from barbecuing. With change invariably comes the need for new laws. B There is more street activity: Muses, Le Krewe d’Etat and Tucks have allowed for more participation by walking groups such as the Bearded Oysters, Pussyfooters, Rollin’ Elvi, 9th Ward Marching Band, Lazy Boys, Muff-ALottas and more. They bring humor to the street level and allow for more creative participation. Carnival’s biggest street spectacle is the Society of St. Anne, which saunters from Marigny through the French Quarter on Mardi Gras. There is no way to measure the numbers, but the total of those who participate in Carnival is likely bigger than ever. B

Carnival is like a big balloon: colorful, ever expanding, but always seeming somewhat vulnerable. By Mardi Gras, the balloon rises to full view only to disappear the next morning. It succeeds because it’s well-tethered, yet has the flexibility to shift with the wind. AN ORIGINAL ©MIKE LUCKOVICH CARTOON FOR NEW ORLEANS MAGAZINE

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JULIA STREET

W IT H P O Y D R AS THE PARROT

T H E P U R S U IT T O A N S W E R E T E R N A L Q U E STI O N S

Created in 1935, Monkey Hill was designed to show local flatland children an example of a “real” hill.

Dear Julia, What is the truth about the origin of Monkey Hill? Having lived walking distance to Audubon Park most of my life, there was no swamp to drain and a pile of dirt wouldn’t by chance be pyramid-shaped. If you are an authority on Monkey Hill, I would appreciate your opinion. Robert K. Morrill N ew O rle a ns

I don’t consider myself to be an authority on Monkey Hill, but will do my best to set the record straight. Like you, I take issue with the notion that Monkey Hill was built on swampland that was drained 12

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for park expansion. That isn’t quite right. Land reclamation and swamp drainage aren’t necessarily synonymous. In this case, it was the river, not the land, which was cordoned off and drained. The land at the back of the park was created by constructing a new levee in the Mississippi River, joining it to an existing levee then filling the enclosed area. On March 8, 1936, The Times-Picayune described the land reclamation project, reporting it would result in 36 acres of “made land” and a 3,500-foot river frontage “... rimmed by a new levee built by WPA workers, to a height of within three feet of

that of the main levee several hundred feet behind it.” The columnist reported that, once filled and, perhaps featuring a paved road, the reclaimed land would “... form not only the broadest and most sub-

stantial of defensive works along the Mississippi River, but will constitute a beauty spot and point of vantage from which New Orleanians and visitors really may see the great, curving sweep of the

Win a Court of Two Sisters Jazz Brunch Here is a chance to eat, drink and listen to music, and have your curiosity satiated all at once. Send Julia a question. If we use it, you’ll be eligible for a monthly drawing for one of two Jazz Brunch gift certificates for two at The Court of Two Sisters in the Vieux Carré. To take part, send your question to: Julia Street, c/o New Orleans Magazine, 110 Veterans Blvd., Suite 123, Metairie, LA 70005 or email: Errol@MyNewOrleans.com. This month’s winners are: Kevin Cahalan, Kenner; and Lenora Harris, Lebanon, Fla.

N E W O R L E A N S P U B L I C L I B R A R Y photo G R A P H

river, whose levees conceal it from normal view.” According to his obituary, Newton Reeve Howard designed and supervised the Monkey Hill project for the Works Progress Administration. Trained as an architect but better known as an artist, Howard is said to have designed Monkey Hill to show local flatland children an example of a “real” hill. Generations of New Orleanians have enjoyed the view from atop the man-made Monkey Hill. As of press time, the attraction is undergoing a major renovation. Those of us who remember the joy of rolling down Monkey Hill will be happy to hear that rolling will soon return to our very own fake hill. Thanks, Audubon Nature Institute for bringing back this cherished local tradition! Dear Julia, When I first set foot in New

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Orleans, on May 4, 1978, the streets were flooded. A strike had stopped trash collection and there were mounds of garbage everywhere. It was hot, humid, steamy and fetid. I was 1,200 miles away from my family and feeling very homesick. Dread that coming here was the worst mistake in my life was consuming me. Then I had my first cup of coffee with chicory. Suddenly, the streets turned charming, the atmosphere fascinating and the people, the friendliest. I knew that I was where I belonged. My question is: How did chicory come to be put into coffee? My own feeling is that there should be statues commemorating the geniuses who dreamed up this wonderful combination and their exploits should be taught in every school. Poydras would probably enjoy having more statues in the city; but that’s a whole new story. Please help fill this hole

in my quest to know more about the city that coffee with chicory helped make me a part of. Thank you. Kevin Cahalan Kenner

What came to be known as the May 3rd Flood was a memorable event that happened when “train effect” rain fell faster than the pumps could drain it. Everyone seemed to be either soggy or stranded by the worst flooding the city had seen in half a century. I am glad to hear that coffee and chicory helped you appreciate the good side of a city that was having a very bad day. Normally, I’d tease you about whether there was anything else in that magical coffee, but not today. While my experience wasn’t quite as trippy as yours, my first cup of post-Katrina café au lait was exceptionally good and affirmed for me that I

was home. The tradition of adding chicory to coffee was well known in France and Belgium prior to the American Civil War. While French families in old New Orleans brought with them a taste for coffee mixed with chicory, other coffee-drinking citizens insisted that their beverage contain coffee beans and nothing else. Before readers hop all over me, I shall preface my remarks by stating that I do drink and enjoy traditional coffee with chicory, I also appreciate pure highquality coffee. When speaking of pure foods, there can be a fine line between an “added ingredient” and an “adulterant.” Unfortunately, prior to the creation of modern food purity laws, unscrupulous local coffee merchants frequently added cheap extenders to their coffee beans in order to maximize profit, not to appeal

to local taste. Chicory was one such extender. Split peas were another, but I’ve never heard of anyone yearning for coffee with peas. Dear Ms. Street, With all the talk and activity involving “gluten” these days, I wonder what happened to “Spudnuts.” In the 1950s, at Washington Avenue near Broad Street, there was a shop that made “Spudnuts.” They looked and tasted just like glazed doughnuts but were made from potato flour. Now seems like the ideal time to resurrect “Spudnuts.” Your thoughts? I am a gluten-free person and it ain’t much fun. Frank Sehrt Meta irie

John Barry Drufner Sr. (1929-2010) was the man who brought Spudnuts to New Orleans. From the mid ’50s to the ’70s, Drufner and his family operated the local Spudnut

franchise at 4206 Washington Ave. According to his obituary, Drufner then returned to his career in maritime service. Spudnuts were the brainchild of the Pelton brothers of Salt Lake City, Utah, who, in 1946, established a chain of national potato-based doughnut shops. In its heyday, the Spudnut chain contained more than 300 franchises from coast to coast and in Canada. Although there’s no longer a Spudnut store in Louisiana, independent Spudnut shops still exist in other states and in Canada. It is important to note that, because the stores are no longer franchises with access to a single source of ingredients from a parent company, recipes may vary among them and some present-day products sold in the remaining stores under the Spudnut name could possibly contain gluten.

Dear Julia, I have great memories going to the Gallo Theater on Claiborne Avenue. After the movie, we would go next door to a doughnut shop. They made the best doughnuts. Julia, can you tell me about that doughnut shop? Lenora M. Harris Lebanon, FL

The Dix Pastry Shop was located at 2106 S. Claiborne Ave., just down the block from the Gallo Theater, which stood at 2122 S. Claiborne Ave. The doughnut shop was in existence for more than 25 years. Curtis N. Dix had worked as a carpenter prior to establishing the pastry and doughnut shop in the early 1950s. Dix managed the store until his death in ’74. His son, Lester N. Dix, took over daily operation at the Dix Pastry Shop but, by ’77, the property at 2106 S. Claiborne Ave. was vacant.

Julia on TV

Look for the Julia Street question on “Steppin’ Out,” every Friday at 6:30 p.m. on WYES/Channel 12. The show features reviews, news and features about the New Orleans entertainment scene. Viewers who can answer Julia’s weekly question can call in for prizes. Tell ’em you read about the show in New Orleans Magazine.

myneworleans.com

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THEBEAT MARQUEE

PERSONA

BIZ

EDUCATION

HEALTH

CRIME FIGHTING

NEWS

MARQUEE:

John Barry

King of Krewe du Vieux 2014 PAGE 19

Known for leading a lawsuit against 97 oil, gas and pipeline companies for their role in the damaging the Louisiana coast, historian John Barry begins his rein as the 2014 Krewe du Vieux king.

NOLA PERRIN PHOTOGRAPH

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MARQUEE

T HE BE A T OUR

T O P P I C K S O F T H E M O N T H’S E V E N T S BY

LAUREN

LABORDE

Folk Heroes

Bronx native Alynda Lee Segarra found New Orleans the way many do, which is by falling in with a group of young travellers hitching across the country. She learned how to write and play music by busking downtown, and early releases from her band Hurray for the Riff Raff display those street musician roots. After Hurray for the Riff Raff’s third release Look Out Mama, accolades from NPR and other national outlets, and a well-reviewed set at the 2013 Newport Folk Festival, Segarra and her band have been ordained as a country/folk act to watch. The group marks the release of its new album Small Town Heroes at a show at One Eyed Jacks on Feb. 14. Clear Plastic Masks and The Missing Links open. Information, OneEyedJacks.net

AMERICAN BEAUTIES

Raise the ‘Roof’ Locals will recognize some familiar faces in Anthony Bean Community Theater’s season-opening production of Tennessee Williams’ Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, running at the theater Feb. 7-23. WDSU meteorologist Damon Singleton and former New Orleans School Board President Gail Glapion are among the performers in the play, said to be Williams’ favorite of his works, directed by Tommye Myrick. Information, AnthonyBeanTheater.com

Through Feb. 1 Marilyn: Forever Blonde, Joy Theater.

Information TheJoyTheater.com

LePetitTheatre.com

Through Dec. 2014. “Krewe of Hermes: The Diamond Jubilee” exhibit. Information, crt.state. la.us/museum

Feb. 4-9. Beauty and the Beast, Saenger Theatre. Information, SaengerNola. com Feb. 3, 5, 7, 19, 24. New Orleans Pelicans games, New Orleans Arena. Information, nba. com/pelicans/

Through Feb. 8. Golda’s Balcony, Le Petit Théâtre du Vieux Carré. Information,

Marilyn, Forever Blonde, Through Feb. 1

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After hitting museums including D.C.’s Corcoran Gallery of Art and Nashville’s Frist Center for the Visual Arts, the touring “30 Americans” arrives at the Contemporary Arts Center this month. The exhibition of contemporary black artists marks the first time the CAC has exhibited a show on all three of its floors. The show’s more than 60 pieces are in a variety of mediums, including photography, video and a very large piece of carpet square. The CAC will host artist talks and school outreach events in conjunction with the show. The center’s SweetArts fundraiser Feb. 7 includes a preview of “30 Americans,” which runs until June 15, before it opens to the public the next day. Information, cacno.org

Feb. 7. The 610 Stompers present Sweet 610 Debutante Ball, the Sugar Mill. Information, 610Stompers.com Feb. 8. Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra presents “Boléro,” Mahalia Jackson Theater. Information, LPOMusic.com Feb. 13. “Juan Logan: I’ll Save You Tomorrow” opens, Ogden

Museum of Southern Art. Information, OgdenMuseum. org Feb. 14 and 16. New Orleans Opera Association

presents Cinderella, Mahalia Jackson Theater. Information, NewOrleansOpera.org Feb. 15. Rock on Foundation benefit concert featuring The

New Orleans Pelicans, Feb. 3, 5, 7, 19, 24

myneworleans.com

SPOTLIGHT

JOHN BARRY

with appointees who aimed to kill the lawsuit. But Barry is still working to keep the lawsuit alive with the nonprofit he formed, and he reigns as king of Krewe du Vieux when it rolls Feb. 15 in the Marigny Triangle and Lower French Quarter. Barry talks about the lawsuit and why anyone wanting beads from him needs to get up close.

The 2014 Krewe du Vieux king goes “Where the Vile Things Are”

The parade’s theme this year is “Where the Vile Things Are.” What are you hoping the krewe does with that? Well,

I think there’s certainly a lot of vile political activity surrounding the lawsuit that I hope they got. It’s a pretty easy target. Many have said that since Gov. Jindal ousted you from SLFPA-E, you’re free to speak your mind more. Is that why you wanted to align yourself with a krewe that’s known for that? [Being chosen as King] really is, if I can be seri-

NOLA PERRIN PHOTOGRAPH

ous, an honor. It’s not like being run out of town on a rail … I was flattered, of course. So of course I accepted. A line that I used back when I was introduced to the krewe – I went to a party a few weeks ago, and I had about 10 seconds on the podium. I interrupted a band; no one was listening to me, which I recognized, so I kept my speech brief. What I said was, “[Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority chairman] Garret Graves said I filed the lawsuit for fame, and now I have achieved it.” So I’ve been wondering if that means I should now withdraw my support for the lawsuit. I don’t think I will do that. What’s the status of the lawsuit and your involvement with it? I formed a nonprofit called Restore Louisiana

The irreverent Krewe du Vieux seems to have found an ideal King for its 2014 procession in John Barry, the historian and author of Rising Tide: The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 and How It Changed America. The krewe is known to take aim at the establishment with playful floats filled with ribald imagery and wordplay, and Barry certainly has experience standing up to the big shots. In fall 2013, after Barry’s term expired, Gov. Bobby Jindal didn’t renew his position as vice chairman of the Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority-East (SLFPA-E) board, which planned to file a massive lawsuit against 97 oil, gas and pipeline companies claiming they had a role in the damaging the Louisiana coast. While there are many sides to the issue, Jindal replaced Barry and two other board members

Now (RestoreLouisianaNow.org). The purpose of that is to get involved in politics and convince the legislator to stay out of the courts – we want the lawsuit settled in court, which is where lawsuits should be settled. Anything else you’re working on currently? That’s taking 10 hours a day, frankly. Is there anything you can tell us about the parade? I’m not even in the loop, to tell you the truth. I haven’t been a member of the krewe before … and they had already picked their theme [when the invitation came]. I can tell people that if they want me to throw them something, they better get close because I have a torn rotator cuff. That’s the only thing I can say about my role. For more information, visit KreweDuVieux.org

Gras parades Uptown

Walkmen, One Eyed Jacks. Information, OneEyedJacks.net

One Eyed Jacks. Information, OneEyedJacks.net

cert, St. Louis Cathedral. Information, HNOC.org

Feb. 16. NBA All-Star Game, New Orleans Arena. Information, NBA.com

Feb. 19. Dr. Dog in concert, Civic Theatre. Information, CivicNola.com

Feb. 20-21. Neutral Milk Hotel in concert, Civic Theatre. Information, CivicNola.com

Feb. 18. Cibo Matto in concert,

Feb. 19. The Historic New Orleans Collect and LPO present “Postcards from Paris” con-

Feb. 21-23. Family Gras, Jefferson Parish. Information, ExperienceJefferson.com Feb. 21. Beginning of Mardi

Feb. 23. The Eagles in concert, New Orleans Arena. Information, NewOrleansArena.com March 2. New Orleans Film Society Oscar Party. Information, neworleansfilmsociety.org

NBA All-Star Game, Feb. 16 New Orleans Film Society Oscar party, March 2

Cibo Matto, Feb. 18

myneworleans.com

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T HE BE A T

PERSONA

feel like D oroth y G ale as I head down N . B road

Street on my way to see what remains a mystery for many New Orleanians – the inside of the headquarters of the Zulu Social Aid and Pleasure Club. The gold-colored building is my yellow brick road but instead of the Wizard of Oz, it’s the King I’m off to see. Zulu is the only Carnival organization that elects their King through popular election — which involves heavy campaigning and some instances of good-natured bribery via booze and barbecue – putting the monarch in high esteem among members. I arrive to the front door and soon I’m let in by a stoic man who, after looking both ways down the street, regards me suspiciously before letting me inside. Inside the clubhouse I take in the framed photos of opulently dressed Zulu royalty that decorate the walls while men at the bar banter as a syndicated episode of “Law and Order” plays in the background. The dark clubhouse has a lair-like quality, but when the tall, sharply dressed, affable 2014 Zulu King Garren Mims Sr. walks in the door, the room brightens. For Mims, participation in Zulu is a family affair. He was introduced to the organization by a family member, his wife CARNIVAL ’14 Georgette – with whom he’s celebrating a 20-year anniversary

At a Glance

Age: 47 Profession: Program monitor

for the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals and real estate agent Born/ raised: Uptown Resides: Algiers Family: wife, Georgette; children, Garren Jr., Gabriel and Gabrielle EDUCATION: McDonogh 35 and Southern University Favorite movie: John Q Favorite TV shows: “The Haves and the Have Nots,” “Duck Dynasty” Favorite band: Maze Featuring Frankie Beverly Favorite food: Gumbo Favorite restaurant: Drago’s Favorite hobby: Jogging Favorite vacation spot: Miami and Sandestin

Garren Mims Sr. King Zulu 2014 BY LAUREN LABORDE

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GREG MILES PHOTOGRAPH

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– shares the throne as the parade’s Queen and his three children have positions on the court. This year, the krewe honors the activist and former South African president with the theme “Zulu Salutes Nelson Mandela.” Carnival enthusiasts make sure to rise early to catch the 8 a.m. parade and to nab one of those coveted hand-painted coconuts (though those still recovering from Lundi Gras reveling might be able to catch the procession on the Uptown route, where the parade tends to slow down a bit). On March 3 Zulu hosts its annual Lundi Gras Festival, an all-day event at Woldenberg Park featuring food; live music from Kermit Ruffins & the Barbecue Swingers, Rebirth Brass Band, Amanda Shaw and the Cute Guys and others; and a chance to see the King’s court and its “characters” – the Witch Doctor, Ambassador, Mayor, Province Prince and the Big Shot, who always tries to upstage the King. Zulu’s Lundi Gras festivities culminate in a special tradition involving the Rex organization. After the King of Carnival completes his royal duties by proclaiming the Fat Tuesday a holiday and a fireworks display begins, he receives a special visitor. The Zulu King arrives by boat, along with his entourage, who trek to the Riverwalk stage to greet Rex. The two monarchs shake hands, exchange proclamations and toss baubles to the crowd. But today, when I arrive to Zulu headquarters, it’s only a day after this particularly long Carnival season has begun, and Mims has a lot to look forward to about the upcoming months. How did you get involved with the Zulu organization? I got

involved in Zulu through my first cousin (Kenneth Mims Sr.). He was like an uncle to me. He asked me to join the club. In order to come into Zulu a member has to submit 22

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your application, so he submitted my application. We used to ride with the Big Shot Krewe. With him, I started volunteering with the club, and through my volunteering I became an officer. I’ve been an officer for over 15 years in the club. We do a lot of volunteering with the community, and also with making our club better. I’ve been assistant chairman of finance, treasurer, and I’m currently assistant treasurer. Why did you decide to run for King? I guess it’s a dream for

anyone when you become a member of Zulu to become King. I’ve been a member of Zulu for over 19 years. I guess because of my volunteering and service to the club, the members selected me as King. And it’s an honor. Other things you like about being involved in Zulu? As far

our Carnival seasons, it’s a real nice time of the year, as far as all the different krewes. Around the Mardi Gras season, that’s when everyone finally gets together after preparing for the whole year, starting off with the picnic, then everyone has their own separate balls, and that’s very nice as far as the Mardi Gras season goes. And of course there’s our Carnation Ball for all our members. What are your favorite Carnival traditions outside Zulu?

I live in Algiers and we live close to the parade route, so we go to some of the parades in the Algiers area. NOMTOC, those parades. What are some of the other things you’re looking forward to about the Carnival season?

To say you’re going to be the first float to come down the street Mardi Gras day, that’s an honor. I’m looking forward to having a toast at Gallier Hall, and toasting to the mayor. We toast at Dooky Chase also, and I’m looking forward to that. True confession: One time I had seasickness on a fishing trip and I did not tell my family.

NE WSB E A T These projects span the city and include the St. Thomas Development estimated at $120,000 and McDonough in Algiers estimated at $70,000, to the Lower 9th Ward estimated at $9 million and Gentilly Terrace estimated at $9.6 million. Other neighborhoods that will experience interior neighborhood road repairs include St. Claude, Venetian Isles, Holy Cross, Touro, Lakewood, Lakeview, Lake Vista, West Lake Forest, Little Woods, Milneburg, St. Anthony, Tremé, Florida Area, Bywater/ Marigny, Lower Garden District/CBD, Broadmoor, Pontchartrain Park and Iberville/Tulane-Gravier. Concurrently, the state’s transportation improvement program, Paths to Progress, is underway. Together, the Federal Highway Administration, the Louisiana Department of Transportation, the New Orleans Regional Planning Commission and the City of New Orleans target 60 roadway segments in Orleans and Jefferson parishes. The scheduled repairs consist of removing and repaving as well as full depth pavement for failed sections. The projects also incorporate installation of ADA-compliant ramps at corners. This year will see construction on Congress Drive and West Esplanade Avenue, and bid letting for other projects such as General De Gaulle Avenue, Behrman Avenue and North Galvez Street. – M E G A N S N I D E R

Road Improvements Ahead New Orleans drivers may soon find some relief from our city’s notorious potholes. This year will see a full swing of road repairs envisioned by the City’s Recovery Roads Program. The Landrieu administration says that since taking office, it has met with FEMA more than 600 times, making neighborhood street repairs a top priority. Projects in St. Claude and on Read Boulevard in New Orleans East were awarded bids toward the end of 2013. Some projects already have been completed, including repairs to sidewalks in the Lower Garden District, a demonstration project in the Lower 9th Ward and repairs to Vicksburg Street in Lakeview. The city’s Department of Public Works Director Col. Mark Jernigan says, “2014 will be a very busy year as the Recovery Roads Program really begins to take off. Residents can expect to experience construction-related inconveniences but they are all in the name of progress and much smoother roads.”

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T HE BE A T

BIZ

Carnival Dream Norwegian Jewel

Serenade of the Seas

Cruise Control Industry navigates past choppy waters

B y K a t h y F inn

A merican cruise ship passengers didn ’ t said recently that local cruise business is on track to enjoy 100 percent smooth sailing during the past year. But notable reach a new high, topping the record 488,000 pasincidents aside, cruise vacations remain popular and the industry sengers who embarked from local docks in 2012. appears poised to grow in 2014, likely bringing thousands of more An economic impact study performed by CLIA visitors to New Orleans. shows that cruise spending in Louisiana rose 40 While official 2013 reports are not yet available, business analysts predict the percent last year and the industry generated more cruise industry’s steady growth in recent years will continue through this year than 7,500 jobs. The association ranks New Orleans and beyond. After adding 11 ships to their collective fleet during ’13, North as the sixth largest cruise port in the United States. American cruise lines are slated to invest $3.4 billion in 13 more ships during ’14, LaGrange recently hailed the announcement according to the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA). of several new or renovated ships in the lineup Figures compiled by the association indicate the North American cruise fleet of weekly sailings from New Orleans. The veswill contain 240 cruise ships, with some 380,000 beds, by the end of 2015. sels include the 3,600-passenger Carnival Dream, After a string of difficulties in the past year, the cruise lines may have to work slated to replace the Sunshine in April, and Royal a little harder to fill that growing capacity. Caribbean’s 2,300-passenger Serenade of the Seas. During 2013, at least four cruise ships in the Carnival Cruise Lines fleet ran into Norwegian Cruise Line also introduced the vacation-disrupting problems that included power failures, a steering malfuncNorwegian Jewel in New Orleans last fall. The tion and an engine room fire. In the worst of the incidents, passengers endured 2,400-passenger vessel offers weekly cruises to the five days on a ship without air conditioning, lights or working toilets as tug boats western Caribbean from October to April. Among pulled the vessel across the Gulf of Mexico to a dry dock in Mobile, Ala. the ship’s featured amenities are the largest suites Royal Caribbean International also faced a public relations challenge when a currently at sea: 5,000-square-foot, three-bedroom fire broke out on its Grandeur of the Seas in May. While no one was injured and the ship didn’t lose power, the company had to scratch the rest of the cruise, fly passengers back to the United States from the Bahamas Four cruise ships offer weekly sailings from New Orleans to various destinations. and cancel six subsequent sailings. They are: The well-publicized problems no doubt dampShip Owner # of beds Frequency ened the enthusiasm of some would-be cruisers, but Dream Carnival Cruise Lines 3,646 weekly (year-round) the industry is hoping that as upgraded ships with Elation Carnival Cruise Lines 2,052 weekly (year-round) new amenities come on line, the business will regain Norwegian Jewel Norwegian Cruise Line 2,376 weekly (Oct-April) its buoyancy. Serenade of the Seas Royal Caribbean Intl. 2,360 weekly (Dec-April) In New Orleans, local port director Gary LaGrange orth

Industry Rides a Wave

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Economic impact Port of New Orleans officials last year retained consulting firm Business Research and Economic Advisors to evaluate passenger and crew spending in the local region. The study found that: B More than 80 percent of cruise passengers are from out of state. B Sixty percent of passengers spend an average of two nights in New Orleans either before or after their cruise.

B Passengers and shipboard crew spent $78 million locally in 2012. Research by Cruise Lines International Association showed that the cruise industry generated $400 million in direct spending in Louisiana in 2012. The industry employed more than 7,500 Louisiana residents and accounted for $294 million in total annual income, the association said.

“garden villas.” The ships now sailing from New Orleans reflect the cruise lines’ efforts to both expand the demographics of cruise passengers and deepen their loyalty. The major lines, for instance, now include a variety of ethnic and specialty restaurant choices to augment the main dining room experience. The menu of activities has also grown. Carnival’s new ship has an outdoor fitness complex that includes rope courses and climbing walls, along with an expanded adultsonly “serenity” deck and a water park that features a 330-foot-long corkscrew water slide. LaGrange says the quality of the ships now calling New Orleans home shows that “the industry is confident and bullish on our market.” The port is making room for the growing business with a new cruise ship terminal. Design work is underway for a terminal that can berth two ships at a time at the Poland Avenue wharf on the Mississippi River. LaGrange says the new Crescent Park, which is being developed between Esplanade and Poland avenues, will provide a welcoming setting for passengers at the wharf. Meanwhile, alongside the upriver cruise terminals at Julia and Erato streets, the former Riverwalk Marketplace, owned by the Howard Hughes Corp., will soon reopen as an upscale outlet mall that will put dozens of popular retail stores steps away from cruise passengers’ primary point of embarkation. The port’s cruise and tourism director, Robert Jumonville, predicts that local passenger numbers “will be marginally better” this year than in 2013 as the national economy continues to improve and memories of adverse incidents at sea fade away. “Those kinds of events can have a temporary effect on the industry as a whole,” he says, but he doesn’t think the impact will be lasting. He notes that following the power-loss incidents on Carnival’s ships last year, the company equipped all of its vessels with reserve generators so that any power disruption in the future will not leave passengers without toilets, conditioning or hot water. “Carnival is an awfully large company and is very well operated, and they have gotten their act together,” he says. Jumonville says that marketing efforts by the major lines that operate in New Orleans fit perfectly into initiatives underway by local tourism and convention agencies to bolster the city’s profile as a tourism destination. Their collective aim is to increase annual visitors to New Orleans from some 9 million people to 13 million by 2018. myneworleans.com

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T HE BE A T

EDUCATION

he nation ’ s staggering national debt of

Pell Grant Abusers

$17 trillion fuels most of the steamy debates in Congress these days, and just about every government program is being scrutinized, including the $33 billion Pell Grant Program. The staggering amount of taxpayer money gifted to students in the form of Pell Grants in a single year is mostly well used. Both political parties more or less agree that the Pell Grants Program, named in honor of former Rhode Island Senator and education reformer Claiborne Pell, benefits the economy because it encourages lowto- moderate-income students to get the skills they need to join the workforce. Instead of being a drain on the economy and government aid programs, the philosophy goes, aid recipients become productive, tax-paying citizens. Forty-one percent of college undergraduates received annual Pell Grants of $5,500 in 2011-’12, according to the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators. Seventy-one percent got some kind of governmental assistance, including loans and campus part-time jobs, the organization says on its website. But like any gigantic aid program, some fraud and waste exist and the colleges that deal with the consequences most often are inexpensive community colleges. Nationwide, colleges unintentionally breed scam artists who last year may have milked taxpayers of about $1 billion. The Detroit Free Press reported that estimated figure in a 2013 article that examined what the feds call “Pell runners,” people who enroll in a school with low tuition with the sole intention of pocketing the balance of the per semester grant. They skip the classes and enroll in a different low-cost school the following semester to continue the scam. In New Orleans, for example, the cost of tuition and fees at a community 26

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Education’s biggest cheaters B Y D A W N R U TH

college, such as Nunez, can runs $1,500 to $1,600 a semester. If a student doesn’t buy books, the Pell Grant refund, after the college deducts tuition costs from the $2,750 per semester grant, could be as much as $1,250. Nationally, Pell runners make up a small fraction of the students who benefit from grants. However, in community colleges they cause a lot of headaches and can even drain them of precious financial resources. Pell Grant recipients must stay in school for at least 60 percent of the semester and if they do not, the college must repay all or some of the grant. J ohn S . D Y K E S I L L U S T R A T I O N

To stop the worst abusers, the ones who never attend a class, officials adopt all kinds of time-consuming policies. One common tactic is to require attendance reports after the first two weeks of a semester. When Pell Grant students don’t show, they get dropped and lose their grants. One uninitiated runner told an admission director recently, “No one told me I had to attend classes to get the money!” Most Pell abusers wise up to the two-week attendance strategy. They attend at least one class during the first two weeks to avoid being dropped and then disappear. The most prevalent abuses of grants, however, are caused by lax federal guidelines. Guidelines allow eligible Pell Grant students who withdraw or receive a failing grade to repeat the course at no cost to them for at least a dozen times, for example. That leniency breeds a nonchalant attitude about attendance and studying in some students. “Is that rewarding bad behavior?” asks Nunez Community College Financial Director John Whisnant. “Yes, but I am bound by law.” The lax rule on withdrawals and failing grades also encourages another wasteful practice. Based on my experience advising students it appears that many Pell Grant recipients enroll in more classes than they intend to complete. To get the maximum Pell refund, they must enroll in four, three-credit hour courses. After receiving the refund, they can drop down to the number of courses they actually intend to complete without any financial consequence to them. The lax rules also allow students to easily give up on courses that require more effort to complete than they want to give. Nunez, where I teach, distributes refund checks about midterm. That is when the jokes start about the half-empty parking lot and the fall off in class attendance. In the short run, students who follow these practices get the most refund for the least amount of effort. But in the long run, some could find themselves running out of student aid before they complete their degrees. A new policy limits the length of time that students are eligible for Pell Grants. They must complete an undergraduate degree in six years. Whisnant says the worst offenders eventually get netted by rules used by most colleges that require about a 75 percent course completion rate and about a 2.0 grade point average. Many community college students struggle to keep jobs, raise families and go to school, and the refund checks no doubt are necessary to maintain their momentum; but unfortunately some just blow the extra money on frivolity. One student said that when refund checks come in, his friends without transportation ask him to take them to the malls so they can spend it. Another student bought a big-screen television that was stolen in a house burglary before she could get it out of the box. The only fail-proof way to prevent the worst grant abuse is to stop handing out cash payments. No refunds, no Pell runners and no reason for students to enroll in more classes than they intend to complete. A no-refund policy could do more harm than good, however. Maybe the best course of action is to accept the fact that there will always be a certain amount of fraud and waste in student-aid programs, continue plugging the loopholes and focus on the overall benefits they produce. Correction: This column, in the magazine’s December issue, titled “New Orleans Schools are Improving, Yet Some People are Unhappy About That” referred to statements by Jason France and said he was a fired DOE employee. France was not fired. France also worked in data management, not accountability. We apologize for these errors. myneworleans.com

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HEALTHBEAT On January 13, the Ochsner Baptist Women’s Pavilion officially opened the Perkin Alternative Birthing Center (ABC). The center is the only one of its kind in the region, offering holistic birthing in a hospital-based

environment. Use of certified nurse-midwives, birthing tubs and comfortable beds allow for new mothers to be able to have a homelike environment for a natural birth experience. The nationally ranked hospital has many amenities for the new mothers, including 24-hour room service, manicures and massages, and a lot of space for the new mothers and their family and friends to visit.

The Louisiana Deafblind Project at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center (LSUHSC) is providing services statewide to young people up to 21 years old who have a combined hearing and vision loss. The combined sensory loss at a young age can lead to many dis-

advantages that can affect behavior, learning, future employment and more. The program offers the children and their families technical assistance, training and referrals to service providers, as well as a family training program called SPARKLE. Services are free and provided in daycare centers, schools, or any other place that a child affected by deafblindness is receiving services.

U.S. News and World Report recently released its Best Diets 2014 list, and the one ranked best overall is not very well known. The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) developed the

DASH diet, which stands for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension. DASH was ranked best overall for being inexpensive and easy to follow. The diet, which is detailed in a 64-page book on the NHLBI’s website (nhlbi.nih.gov), is a hearthealthy diet focused on eating whole grains and vegetables, lean poultry and fish; and cutting back on salt and high-fat dairy and eliminating sugar. Find the entire Best Diets list at health.usnews.com/ best-diet. – ERIKA VAUGHN

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N EWSBEAT

Youth Study Center Opens

The Hainkel Home

INTRODUCING NEW PARKSIDE RED UNIT: • Private and Semi- Private Rooms • Skilled Services including Speech, Physical, Occupational Therapy • Licensed Practical and Registered Nurses on duty 24 hours a day. • Respiratory & IV Therapy & Tracheotomy Care • Adult Day Health Care Services and more! 612 Henry Clay Avenue, New Orleans, LA 70118 Ph: 504.896.5904 Cell: 504.616.3714 Fax: 504.896.5904 30

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The Youth Study Center portion of the New Orleans Juvenile Justice Center Complex will be opening this month. The facility is the culmination of an effort to replace the one destroyed during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and to come into compliance with reforms prompted by a class-action lawsuit brought by the Juvenile Justice Project of Louisiana. Located in the St. Bernard area, the new center will serve as a detention center for youth while they await trial. In addition to providing detention housing, the facility will include space for education, dining, recreation, administration and training. “This complex will be a state-of-the-art facility that follows national best practices and meets the needs of our youth and puts them back on a path towards prosperity,” Mayor Mitch Landrieu says. The complex will also house the Orleans Parish Juvenile Court, which will be opening later this fall. This facility will contain four new judge’s chambers with supporting court administrative space as well as space for the District Attorney’s and Public Defender’s offices. Additionally, the facility offers rooms for outside counsel, victims and family.

Both its structure and practices were designed to comply with the Federal Consent Decree, which addresses not only the building itself but also the environment therein. Shortly before the groundbreaking last year, U.S. District Court Judge Ivan L. R. Lemelle of the Eastern District of Louisiana Certified that the city was in compliance with all of the changes agreed to in the Consent Decree. Mayor Landrieu adds, “Treatment of juveniles six years ago was harsh and unacceptable and we made a commitment to make necessary changes. Through hard work, we met the terms of the Consent Decree in 2013 and we are moving the city forward to bring our juvenile justice system into the 21st century.” Dana Kaplan, the executive director of the Juvenile Justice Center of Louisiana, who has been instrumental in the reform, says, “The Juvenile Justice Complex is an important step in moving New Orleans towards a juvenile justice system that is fair, effective, improves public safety and uses taxpayer dollars wisely, of which we can all be proud.” – M E G A N S N I D E R

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T HE BEA T

CRIME FIGHTING

Al Winters

competent, very fair and a straightshooter,” Loicano says. “He also had that same kind of reputation with the criminal community. He was straightforward and honest with them, and they thought they could get a fair shake. It says a lot that he could be respected by both sides.” In the early 1990s, the NOPD was considered the most corrupt, brutal and incompetent police department in the United States, according to a report by the international human rights organization, Human Rights Watch (“Shielded From Justice: Police Accountability in the United States,” 1998). In 1993, Winters was a towering, taciturn senior prosecutor in his native New Orleans. He had already famously prosecuted mafia boss Carlos Marcello on racketeering charges. He had worked in Miami from ’86 to ’90, prosecuting Colombian cartel drug trafficking cases. He helped to convict three Colombian “hit men” who machinegunned federal witness Barry Seal to death outside a halfway house in Baton Rouge. “He was our version of John Wayne,” former U.S. Attorney Jim Letten said of Winters, who died last summer. “He was bigger than life. He was driven by humility and ethics. He never did like the limelight.” Winters became a courthouse legend by securing guilty pleas from criminal defendants – including corrupt cops – without going to trial because he excelled at negotiating plea agreements, Letten says. “He enjoyed unparalleled credibility among the defense bar and many of their clients,” says Robert Habans, a defense attorney and former federal prosecutor who worked with Winters in the 1970s. Winters’ reputation for integrity was such that some defense attorneys would allow their client to meet with the veteran prosecutor without counsel present. “I know of situations where defendants trusted Al more than they trusted their own lawyer,” Habans says. In violent crime cases, no one was more important than the victim, Kathy English, Winters’ secretary, recalls. After interviewing Debbie Morris, the 16-year-old girl who survived an ordeal of kidnapping and rape by convicted killers Robert Lee Willie and Joseph Vaccaro, Winters cleared the way for the State of Louisiana, a death penalty state, to try the defendants for an earlier rape and murder ahead of the federal government, English recalls. Under federal law, they faced a maximum of life in

The Man Behind “Shattered Shield” – Part Two of Two

BY ALLEN JOHNSON Jr. went y y ears ago , crime and corruption in N ew

Orleans was so bad that even some of the criminals were complaining. Terry Adams, a mid-level cocaine dealer, was one example. In December 1993, Adams directed his attorney to contact Albert “Al” Winters Jr., then a 21-year veteran prosecutor at the local United States Attorney’s Office. Adams was ready to talk to the feds about police involvement in the city’s soaring violent crime and its lucrative narcotics trade. In short order, the FBI would launch Operation Shattered Shield, an undercover investigation, resulting in the felony convictions of 11 New Orleans policemen on charges ranging from narcotics trafficking to murder. Police Chief Richard Pennington later fired two additional NOPD officers for department violations uncovered during the federal probe, bringing the total of Shattered Shield officers ousted from the department to 13. Ret. NOPD Major Felix Loicano, acting chief of detectives in 1994, says as a direct result of the corruption probe, murders dropped sharply in the Florida housing project, where corrupt officers were protecting the operations of a violent drug dealer. Murders fell from 23 in ’94; to four in ’95. The U. S. Department of Justice would call Shattered Shield “one of the most ambitious police corruption cases in United States history.” It was a case built on the reputation of Al Winters, police and prosecutors say. At the time, few in law enforcement would get such an offer, and few would seriously investigate such outrageous allegations from such a dubious source, says Loicano, who in the 1990s commanded the Public Integrity Division under Police Chief Richard Pennington. “He had the reputation with the law enforcement community of being very 32

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JOSEPH DANIEL FIEDLER ILLUSTRATION

prison. “Al wanted to make sure the victims got justice,” English says. Willie was executed; Vaccaro got life. After the success of the Shattered Shield trials in 1996, the DOJ requested Winters as supervising attorney to describe the investigation in a government publication sent to the nation’s 93 U.S. Attorneys Offices, “Operation ‘Shattered Shield:’ Investigative and Trial Techniques Used to Jail ‘Dirty Cops,’” (USA Bulletin, November 1997). Winters began on a blunt note: with the virtual rescue of the FBI probe by its new, cooperating drug dealer. “In December 1993, I was contacted by a New Orleans attorney who said he represented “A” [Terry Adams] a mid-level drug dealer in the New Orleans area who had no pending state or federal charges against him,” Winters wrote, (using letters instead of names to “protect the identity of the individuals”). Through his attorney, Adams said he wanted to cooperate “because he was sick of being ‘ripped off’ by New Orleans police officers,” Winters wrote. Adams told the feds that NOPD Officer Sammie L. Williams [“B”] threatened to put him in jail over the Christmas holidays if he (the drug dealer) didn’t pay him (the officer) $6,000. On Dec. 24, 1993, Adams paid the officer half the demanded amount, Winters wrote: “Since it was Christmas Eve and the FBI could not get emergency authority to pay the money, the informant used his own $3,000. He was never repaid.” B

In January 1994, Adams paid Williams the remaining $3,000. In a recorded conversation the officer told Adams he could protect his drug operation, but would need to “bring in his partner.” Len Davis was a decorated NOPD officer was once shot in the stomach during a police chase. He also had a reputation for brutality. In early 1994, Davis and Williams provided police “protection” to FBI informant Adams as he delivered approximately 7.5 kilograms of cocaine to an FBI undercover agent. Each officer was paid $500 per kilo. On May 4, 1994, the two cops, Adams and undercover FBI agent Juan Jackson, posing as a New York City drug dealer named “JJ,” met at a local hotel. Prosecutors and agents devised a plan to show Davis and Williams had “guilty knowledge,” Winters wrote. “JJ made everyone strip to show they were not wired.” All agreed. The cops agreed to hire armed and uniformed NOPD officers to protect large quantities of cocaine for up to three days at a time before the drugs were relocated elsewhere. On the FBI videotape played at his trial, Davis recommends that drug couriers avoid detection by law enforcement by obeying speed limits and traffic signals. B

From June to November 1994, 11 NOPD officers, recruited by Davis, protected a warehouse containing both “real” and “sham” cocaine, Winters said. Prosecutors insisted on actual cocaine for the operation to prevent defense attorneys at trial from “accusing the government of concocting everything, including the cocaine.” Posing as “couriers,” other FBI undercover agents went to the warehouse to pick up the drugs. Davis and Williams were paid approximately $94,300 to escort the “couriers” to the Mississippi state line. In October 1994, Kim Marie Groves, a mother of three children, filed a brutality complaint against Williams. “Within 24 hours, (Davis) devised a murder plot and had the woman killed,” Winters said. She was shot to death on a street corner near her 9th Ward home on Oct. 13, 1994, just hours after Mayor Marc Morial swore in Chief Richard Pennington at Gallier Hall. Winters said there were “a number of reasons” why the FBI failed to detect the murder plot on wiretapped cellular phones myneworleans.com

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provided to Williams and Davis, including: the woman’s name wasn’t used, the cops used coded language “and the fact that at the same time, other police officers were talking about killing the ‘dope traffickers’/undercover agents and stealing the drugs.” Amid fears for the agents’ safety, the undercover operation was shut down. The feds let the wiretapped phones run another two and a half weeks. They collected enough evidence, including the murder weapon, to charge Davis and drug dealer Paul Hardy with the first-degree murder of Groves. Hardy associate Damon Causey also was convicted of helping to kill Groves. Wiretaps also indicated Davis was helping Hardy kill rival drug dealers or their family members. Winters wrote, “The government ultimately warned six targeted individuals and moved them to ‘safe houses’ while the investigation continued.” The FBI arrested 11 cops in December 1994. Ten of the 11 cops pleaded guilty to drug charges. Three agreed to cooperate with prosecutors – including Davis’ partner, Williams. “In New Orleans, it is highly unusual for police officers to cooperate against each other,” Winters wrote. The feds were “fortunate to get (Williams) to plead guilty as charged and to cooperate and testify at two trials.” Williams’ testimony helped to convict Davis and Hardy of the Groves murder. Davis became the first police officer in the United States sentenced to die for federal criminal civil rights violations. Hardy’s death sentence was vacated after defense attorneys provided evidence he was mentally retarded and ineligible for execution. He was re-sentenced to life in prison. Williams repeatedly asked prosecutors for a deal. “I kept asking; they kept telling me no,” Blake Jones, Williams’ defense attorney recalled, testifying at a post-conviction hearing for Davis in 2001. Winters testified, too, rejecting Davis’ arguments that Williams was “living the deal” for cooperating with federal prosecutors against Davis. “Of all the policemen that we charged … in the investigation, the two of them we would not plea bargain with under any circumstances was Len Davis and Sammie Williams,” Winters testified, referring to the prosecution team. Williams got a five year prison term, after Winters requested a reduced sentence from U.S. District Judge Martin Feldman judge, citing his “substantial” cooperation in the case against his former police partner. Al Winters retired from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in 2006. He worked another five years for the Jefferson Parish District Attorney’s Office. Co-workers in both offices insist there was an emotional “teddy bear” side to the gruff prosecutor. The memories of their children are more persuasive. “Sissy” now 10 and “Mac” 7, recall how the avuncular “Big Al” would play with them during holiday visits to their father, fellow parish prosecutor Tommy Block. “He would bring us cold M&Ms,” Mac says of Winters, who stood 6-foot4-inches tall. “And he would put me on this shoulder.” Sissy remembers combing Big Al’s hair. “I would put bows in his hair!” Tommy Block remembers Big Al and his son at a table, hunched over coloring books. “Mac said, ‘Big Al, you’re coloring outside the lines,’” Block says. “All looked at me and said, ‘Who knew?” B

Al Winters died of lung cancer June 28, 2013 at 71 – more than 30 years after he quit smoking. Shattered Shield was arguably the largest, most effective prosecution of corrupt NOPD officers in modern times. It isn’t the legacy of Winters. No case defines him. His reputation for honesty, fairness and humility still won’t allow it – not even in death. Ed .note: The first part of this story about Winters’ legacy appeared in our January 2014 issue, pg. 30. 34

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CHERYL GERBER PHOTOGRAPH

N EWSBEAT

RTA Increases Services The New Orleans Regional Transit Authority has expanded its services. Having started in January, the changes provide more bus operations in Orleans Parish. Service increases provide more late-evening trips for Morrison Express, Lake Forest Express, Galvez, St. Claude, Jackson/Esplanade, Algiers Owl Loop and General De Gaulle–Sullen routes. Patrons can also take advantage of additional Saturday trips on Morrison Express, Broad and some St. Bernard routes. Weekday commutes for Franklin, South Claiborne and Lake Forest Express routes will also increase. Additionally, some of the timetables have changed, so riders should verify service routes and times. These changes come as the RTA continues improvements to the streetcar track along St. Charles Avenue. RTA is also working on the French Quarter Expansion, a new streetcar line built with the goal of connecting local residents to employment opportunities in the French Quarter and 36

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CBD. The line will run Canal Street, to Rampart Street, along the edge of the French Quarter, to St. Claude Avenue and to Press Street in the Bywater, with another segment that will turn off St. Claude Avenue down Elysian Fields Avenue toward the river, where it will meet the Riverfront streetcar line. The New Orleans RTA has collected responses from survey participants about the late-evening services to better understand what improvements riders would like to see. The project resulted from public meetings about service changes. In anticipation of the LSU/VA joint medical campus, the project seeks to understand the future needs of local and regional hospitality and health care workers. Another recent improvement for riders is a transit tracker, launched in 2012, which allows riders to text to get scheduled arrival times for a given RTA stop. – M egan S nider

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Baby Dolls and Skeletons PAGE 40

The Babt Dolls formed in 1912 “as a Carnival club for women who were working in the dance halls and brothels.”

KIM WELSH PHOTOGRAPH

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L OCAL C O L O R

T H E S C O O P

The New Orleans Guide to the Academy Awards Locals have a lot to cheer for on Oscar night. B y H a l e y A d a m s

he f irst week o f M ar c h is goi n g to b e a

busy one for New Orleanians: There’s Lundi Gras on March 3 and Mardi Gras on March 4, but before that is the 86th annual Academy Awards on March 2. We know that that evening is devoted to Bacchus and lots of Carnival celebrating, but if you have any room in your schedule or your DVR, plan to watch the Academy Awards; this year it’s predicted to be a big night for New Orleans films and its people. With New Orleans native Ellen DeGeneres as a host and two New Orleans-shot films nominated for Best Picture, there’s a lot for New Orleanians to look forward to on Oscar night.

The Host: Ellen DeGeneres. One of New Orleans’ biggest connections to this year’s Academy Awards is native DeGeneres, who’s hosting the show for the second time (her first time was in 2007). She was born in Metairie in 1958. According to the International Movie Database, she attended the University of New Orleans but left after her first semester. DeGeneres also worked at JCPenney in the Lakeside Shopping Center in Metairie, which she once

12 Years a Slave

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featured on her popular daytime show, “The Ellen DeGeneres Show.” You can trace her comedy roots to Clyde’s Comedy Corner in the French Quarter. DeGeneres is quoted saying in the biography Ellen: The Real Story of Ellen DeGeneres, “One night there was a woman in there just looking at me like I could be the most funny person in the world. That’s when I realized maybe I could be.” 12 Years a Slave. When it comes to the actual awards, New Orleans’ best contender for the Best Picture victory is 12 Years a Slave. Based on the true story of Solomon Northup, a free black man from New York who gets captured in 1841 and forced into slavery in Louisiana, the film is one of nine movies nominated for Best Picture and it already won Best Motion Picture Drama at the Golden Globes in January. The film was shot in a variety of Louisiana locations such as Audubon Park and the Felicity

Dallas Buyers Club

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Plantation in Vacherie, La. Many locals will be proud if the film takes home Best Picture, especially those who were actually in it, including “Mad The Prytania Theatre (5339 Prytania St., 891-2787, PrytaniaTheatreNewOrleans. Men” star and New Orleans native Bryan com)The Prytania Theatre is teaming up with the New Orleans Film Society to presBatt, previous Academy Award nominee ent one of the biggest Oscar viewing events in the city. On Oscar night, there will be a Quvenzhané Wallis and John “Spud” chance for guests to “walk the red carpet” in front of the theatre. Guests will also be McConnell. able to watch the pre-show and red carpet coverage on the big screen, as well as vote Another local, Tulane University alum for their guesses on the Academy Award winners. There will be trivia and prize giveRob Steinberg, had a small but crucial aways during the commercial breaks. role in the film. He says he could tell from Before the actual event, the theater will be showing one of the Oscar-nominated films the beginning that the film was going to for an entire week, with each week devoted to a different film. Visit their website for be an important one, just like two other movie times. films, Lee Daniels’ The Butler and Dallas The Rusty Nail (1100 Constance St., 525-5515, TheRustyNail.biz) For anyone lookBuyers Club, which were also shot in New ing for a more low-key viewing location, The Rusty Nail is a good choice. The Central Orleans. “There’s a pride that goes into Business District favorite has a big courtyard with a projection screen and rows of making those kinds of films,” Steinberg chairs set up for viewing. The bar will have Champagne specials and will hand out votsays. “I could feel it when I was making 12 ing sheets for people to choose their winners for each award. Whoever chooses the Years a Slave.” most winners will receive a bar tab. Steinberg, who has also had parts in Manning’s (519 Fulton St., 593-8118, HarrahsNewOrleans.com) This HBO’s “Treme,” Die Hard 2 and more, says well-known sports bar is taking a break from sports for the Academy the Academy loves to award movies with a Awards. With tons of big screen TVs and two rows of oversized movie powerful message, which 12 Years A Slave theater recliner seats, Manning’s is a great option for watching big has since it depicts the brutality of slavery televised events. For food there will be a specially designed Oscar menu in Louisiana; many have called it “hard for the evening with Champagne and wine pairings, along with the usual to watch.” While Steinberg would love menu. For guests who want to feel like movie stars, there will also be a red to see 12 Years A Slave win Best Picture, carpet set up in the front where guests can take pictures and pretend to be he says the point of the film goes beyond celebrities for the night. accolades. “The focus isn’t the award, but AMC Theatres (AMCTheatres.com) AMC Theatres is putting on their annual getting people to see it and learn from it,” Best Picture Showcase again this year. Best Picture-nominated films will be Steinberg says. “Awards are simply a way screened before Oscar night so movie lovers can catch up on any films they to further the message. As we would love missed in the last year. Visit AMC’s website for updated information on this to be the recipients of these awards, I think year’s Best Picture Showcase. the overall message is to see the movie and – Kristen Himmelberg learn from it.” New Orleans’ Other Top Films. Another New Orleans-shot film has the chance to take home the Best Picture prize. Dallas Buyers Club tells the story in New Orleans, he once went to Whole Foods dressed as his of Ron Woodroof, played by Matthew McConaughey, who learns character. He got some weird looks and insulting comments. “It he has AIDS and starts selling medicine not approved by the was interesting to get that condemnation,” Leto said. “It was easy FDA to fellow AIDS patients. McConaughey is nominated for Best for me because I’m playing a part, but it was important to kind of Actor this year, along with Jared Leto who is nominated for Best understand and acknowledge that.” Supporting Actor for his role of Rayon, a transgender woman. Leto Lee Daniels’ The Butler is the third film shot in New Orleans told SiriusXM’s “Michelangelo Signorile Show” that while filming that has been recognized during awards season, even though many critics have been saying it is one of the biggest snubs of the Oscar nominations for 2014, especially for Oprah Winfrey’s performance. The film’s stars, Forest Whitaker and Winfrey, The Butler were both nominated for their roles by the Screen Actors Guild Awards (aka the SAGs). The film’s cast was also nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture at the SAGs, alongside 12 Years A Slave and Dallas Buyers Club, meaning three of the five films nominated for that award were shot in New Orleans. New Orleans’ Talented Residents. There must be a talent magnet in the Garden District because two actors, Sandra Bullock and John Goodman, were in successful films this year and they both have homes on Coliseum Street. Bullock played the lead in Gravity, and is nominated for Best Actress for her role. Goodman starred in Inside Llewyn Davis, which many predicted to be nominated for Best Picture, but the film wasn’t nominated. Last year was a better year for Goodman as he starred in the Best Picture winner, Argo. Coliseum Street is also the location of the home featured in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, which was nominated for 13 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, in 2009.

Where to Spend Oscar Night

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MUSIC CARNIVAL ’14

Baby Dolls and Skeletons Taking to the streets on Mardi Gras

By Jason Berry n the al b um I sland M an : T he A f ro - L o u isiana

Sound, the latest album by Sunpie and the Louisiana Sunspots, leader Bruce Barnes lays out hypnotic melodies on piano accordion, alternating on harmonica, weaving a warm zydeco beat and Caribbean rhythms with stellar backing from 10 musicians. The songs traverse a stylistic terrain of Delta blues, rhythm and blues and Creole lyrics from southwest Louisiana, drawn together in a homegrown mojo sound to make even sloths get up and dance. “I’m So Happy” is a paean to life that Barnes wrote while on a tour in South Africa, gazing one morning at the Indian Ocean. Back home, Barnes recorded at Dockside Studios in Maurice and at Piety Street Studios. Sparkling lines from trumpeter Eric Lucero and tenor sax man Lance Ellis push the joy stream as Barnes sings: “I am so happy, to be alive today I am so proud to walk in shadows of my ancestors 40

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... to be right here in New Or-leens.” Barnes grew up in a rural enclave of Benton, Ark., part of a sprawling family; he has more than 100 nieces and nephews, and a grandmother, 98, whose father came from Madagascar. He learned harmonica from his dad; he took his stage name from an uncle called Sunpie, who was half Blackfoot Indian. The Sanctified Church was a primary musical experience for him. Barnes played linebacker at Henderson State University, earned a degree in marine biology, and after a brief stint in professional football, joined the National Park Service. In the mid-1980s, he moved to New Orleans with the service and still wears the uniform, pursuing his own music nights, weekends and vacations. All this is sweet irony to Barnes’ alternate K I M W E L S H P H O T O G R A P H , top

CHILDREN For her book The Runaway Beignet, Louisiana native Connie Collins Morgan joins illustrator Herb Leonhard to tell the story of Marcel, a baker who meets a man who gives him magic sugar for his beignets. One beignet comes to life and goes on a New Orleans adventure as people try to catch him. If the concept sounds familiar, that’s because the book is a New Orleans version of the popular children’s story The Gingerbread Man, complete with illustrations of popular New Orleans attractions and a few French words thrown in.

BIOGRAPHY Also the author of Louis Armstrong’s New Orleans, Thomas Brothers talks about a different time in the life of the famous New Orleanian with Louis Armstrong, Master of Modernism. In the book, Brothers, a music professor at Duke University, focuses on Armstrong in the 1920s and ’30s, which Brothers considers Armstrong’s “most creative period.”

COOKBOOK New Orleanians don’t immediately associate their city with Latino cuisine, but the book New Orleans con Sabor Latino gives the city’s Latino cooking culture some attention. Written by culinary historian Zella Palmer Cuadra, the book features lots of recipes, but there are also interesting profiles of local Latinos including Margarita Bergen, chef Adolfo Garcia and Kid Chef Eliana.

Pop rock The folks in Sweet Crude stick to their Louisiana roots with Super Vilaine. The group is a seven-member band that sings in both English and Cajun French. The group, according to its Facebook page, is part of “a small but fervent group of young Louisianians engaged in keeping the language relevant via art.” New Orleans music fans will recognize Alexis Marceaux and Sam Craft, who have been performing regularly around the city as Alexis and the Samurai. – H a l e y ADAMS Please send submissions for consideration, attention: Haley Adams, 110 Veterans Memorial Blvd., Suite 123, Metairie, LA 70005. myneworleans.com

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persona as a Mardi Gras Skeleton, a counter-veiling force on several of these 14 tracks. As leader of the Northside Skull and Bone Gang, he has for some years now guided the cadre of Bone Men who wear crate-size skulls atop body suits emblazoned with white rib cages and speckled spines. These skeletons tote real bones as a reminder: don’t mess with skeletons. Unlike the Mardi Gras Indians’ love fest with the public, the Skulls roam Tremé and downtown-wards in a sinuous performance of the mortal coil. “We Are the Northside Skull and Bone Gang” is Exhibit A in the Sunpie Barnes’ brief for culture recasting music. The melody borrows from the floating, circular sound of “Will the Circle Be Unbroken?” – a meditation on death’s arrival, sung variously by many artists in a gospel vein. The Sunspots use a flurry of tambourines and warm harmonies, as the singing spins slowly, like a record on a turntable: “We are the Northside Skull and Bone Gang We come to remind you before you die You better get your life together next time you see us It’s too late to cry.” Barnes will miss Mardi Gras 2014 for the first time in years. With a sabbatical from work, he will be on tour with Paul Simon. If the Skeletons give Mardi Gras a seriocomic take on death, the Baby Dolls are a more satiric reminder of the life force that make the streets a floorshow. Wearing short dresses, white bloomers, spangled stockings and garters stuffed with the cash, black women from neighborhood groups on both sides of Canal Street have paraded thusly for decades. But the Baby Dolls, otherwise known as upstanding mommas and aunties gone gallivanting, extend a tradition from the rough

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days of Storyville. Origins and transition are excavated by Kim Marie Vaz, an associate dean and professor of education at Xavier University, in one of the more fascinating cultural books on New Orleans: The “Baby Dolls”: Breaking the Race and Gender Barriers of the New Orleans Mardi Gras Traditions (LSU Press). The subtitle is a postmodern mouthful but Vaz keeps a close lens on a culture of role reversals. The Million Dollar Baby Dolls formed around 1912, writes Vaz, “as a Carnival club for women who were working in the dance halls and brothels” of the area where City Hall and the Superdome stand today. A century ago, it was Backo-Town, a vast working-class area where Louis Armstrong grew up. Some of the Million Dollar Baby Dolls carried dolls. “They were sexy and raunchy,” writes Vaz, “singing bawdy lyrics to vaudeville show tunes and Creole songs, playing tambourines and cowbells.” The pimps called them baby dolls, hence the costumes of sexy women disguised as babies who came from mothers-to-be. Vaz gives important credit to Robert McKinney, a Dillard graduate who worked for the Federal Writers Project doing field interviews in the 1930s. McKinney’s work was mined by Lyle Saxon, Robert Tallant and Edward Dreyer in Gumbo Ya-Ya (1940). “To get their information, they literally copied from the reports of Robert McKinney,” writes Vaz. “Many of McKinney’s transcripts of interviews with members of the Zulu Club and the Baby Dolls were marked ‘Private’ and slated for Tallant’s files.” I found McKinney’s work invaluable in writing The Spirit of Black Hawk: A Mystery of Africans and Indians (1995), crediting his reports in the public library, and in the text remarking on his skepticism about some folk ministers. Vaz rightly spotlights Tallant’s exploitation of McKinney and the sensationalist tone that colors his voodoo book and Gumbo Ya-Ya.

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C A S T O F CH ARAC TERS

String Fever Vincent Guidroz – Guitar Maker B Y GEORGE G U RTNER

a c h n ight they strum a n d plu c k out their tu n es

– some classics, some quickly forgotten – from bandstands at the House of Blues, Le Bon Temps Roulé, Snug Harbor and hundreds of other Tipitina’s wannabes and not so pretentious corner joints of every stripe where guitars accompany “entertainers” who may actually sing or simply moan and scream for crowds comprised of college kids and old timers. These crowds flow in and out the doors as the winds blow. And as the night ends, each person seemingly has found something of value … at least for the moment. But however memorable, however fleeting, the genesis of many of those valued moments were clunky blocks of seemingly dead wood only months ago – swamp ash or Louisiana cypress – no more promising to pour forth sound than a bag of rocks. Those blocks of wood at one time sat in a corner, perhaps for months in an out-of-the-way cavern known as “The New Orleans Guitar Company” located over the railroad tracks, down an empty street and tucked away in an isolated City Park area strip warehouse. There they waited for Vincent Guidroz to work 44

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his magic by cutting and coaxing and polishing them into stringed musical instruments to be found at many of the aforementioned musical emporiums. Guidroz, who grew up in his family’s pasta business on Dauphine Street, is quick to point out that he’s a “sculptor” and not a “carpenter.” He says this as he runs his hand gently over a gleaming guitar that’s obviously in the final stages of its transformation from mere wood to an attractive musical instrument. “Sure, I play music,” Guidroz says of the long-ago first steps on his road to being the master guitar maker into which he has evolved. “It just seems like in New Orleans if you pick up an instrument you wind up playing in a band. Most of them are really garage bands that you play in all the time moving up to the next level toward becoming a professional musician. But I knew that wasn’t my calling. That’s FRANK METHE PHOTOGRAPH

a whole different world.” He continues, “It was always in me to be a sculptor. I knew that was my calling. I started out for the first three years doing Mardi Gras work; working for Blaine Kern and others. I was freelancing. It was all commission stuff. I was like a hired gun. Also, a lot of the stuff I was doing was working for Disney and Universal Studios and for all kinds of different architectural and construction companies. I did some product designs and automotive prototypes. I was doing that kind of stuff. And, my experience as a commercial sculptor was pretty broad. I was fortunate to be able to go to Italy to study sculpture. That’s always been my calling, my business. I just happened to work with wood, with guitars.” And working with wood and with guitars has been good for Guidroz. He admits he works from sunup to sundown, six, many times seven days a week in his cavernous workshop that has more than its share of dark corners and dust here, there and everywhere. Against one wall, wooden pillars in neat stacks reach for the ceiling waiting their turn to be called on by Guidroz. A forklift here holds more wood; an office over there is loaded with drawings and mock-ups. More wood, showing a vague resemblance to a guitar in the making, sits on a table. A router sits nearby. In short, there’s nary an unused or dust-free spot inside the vast building. The 45-year-old Guidroz makes a slight hand gesture and laughingly says something like, “I don’t want to be sanding guitars when I’m in my 60s.” But again, he knows this is where his heart lies and what he was “born to do.” He is all about guitars and mandolins and some things that emit sound that exist only in a customer’s mind like the “ukulele harp” Guidroz has mocked up on a paper that hangs on a wall. “Once you get down to the bare essentials, the wood, they’re really all the same,” Guidroz says. “It’s what you do after you select the best wood and make the initial cuts, getting rid of everything you’re not going to use … that’s when the craftsmanship comes in. Sometimes a person will come in and just say, ‘I’d like you to build me a guitar. Sometimes they’re very specific. Other times they want something flashy. Then there are instruments like that.” He points to the drawing he’s made of the ukulele harp. Whatever the order, Guidroz says he tries to keep about eight instruments in various forms of rotation. “That’s a good number to go with.” A Guidroz-made guitar generally runs in the $3,000 range but can run upward “to the $7,000 range.” He gently places his hand under the neck of one guitar he’s moving to completion and lifts it up the way one does to an infant, saying, “These guitars are not the $800 instruments you buy off the shelf at a music store. I put every bit of training and experience I have into making a guitar. This is meant to last a lifetime and to be as close to perfection as it can be from the moment you walk out of here with it to the end of that lifetime.” Guidroz gently lays the guitar he’s hand-polishing back onto the neatly folded towels that serve as a bed for the instrument that’s nearing completion. He speaks with pride of a new computerized overarm router he’s gone to of late. “But won’t that take away some of the craftsma- …” Guidroz anticipates the question and stops the visitor in midsentence. “Not at all,” he says. “That router allows me to speed up some of the grunt work that unnecessarily used to take a lot of time. In the end it all comes down to this: to tender loving care. You don’t get that from a machine. I’m not interested in mass-producing instruments. If I can’t put myself into every instrument I make, I don’t want to do it. A lot of me goes into every instrument. This is what I was meant to do.” myneworleans.com

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M O D I N E’S N EW O RLEAN S

Show Your Wits

B Y MODINE G U N C H y mother-in-law, Ms. Larda, broke her leg.

She says she’s been hoping for this her whole life. This is because she broke it just before Mardi Gras. “Nobody catches more beads than an old lady in a wheelchair,” she says to me. What happened was she was running for the phone and her Chihuahua Chopsley must have thought it was for him, because he was running for it, too and they crossed paths and she tripped and grabbed at the bookcase, then the lampshade, then the lamp table, then the wastebasket and wound up underneath all of them. Thank God the phone was under there, too, so she called 9-1-1 and the EMTs dug her out and hauled her off to the hospital. She called me up from there and I went to Mr. Wheelchair out on Jefferson Highway and rented her a wheelchair, deluxe. The next day, a bunch of Gunches get together at her house to bring food, being as she won’t be cooking for a while. We help her get a head start on eating it while we talk about which parades we’re going to and what we’re going to catch. Ms. Larda is saying she’s going to have a laundry basket on each side of her wheelchair, so she can toss the beads in there quick and afterwards bag them up in a gigantic leaf-and-lawn bag. My daughter Gumdrop says, with due respect and all, Ms. Larda might need two laundry baskets, but she, Gumdrop, will need three because her kids are so cute that when she puts them up on top a ladder, the beads just rain down on them. She ought to charge people to stand next to them, just to scoop up what they don’t catch, she says. “Boobs,” says my brother-in-law Lurch. “Yeah, boobs,” agrees my other brother-in-law, Leech. By which they mean that when it comes to attracting beads, ladies who show their bosoms will CARNIVAL ’14 outdo little kids and crippled old people every time. 46

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The rest of us – who happen to be female – say that ain’t true. So the gauntlet is thrown down on the linoleum. We will have a contest between Gunches. We will all go to a parade together and stand on the same side of the same block, a couple of float-lengths apart. After the parade, we’ll compare – bead-by-bead, trinket-bytrinket – and see who caught the most. There is an obvious problem: Leech and Lurch don’t have boobs. Not the kind anybody wants to look at, anyway. Now they got girlfriends, Chiclet and Trinket; and Chiclet and Trinket got boobs. But Chiclet and Trinket are insulted at the idea of flashing their boobs for beads. They inform the boys that they ain’t that kind of ladies, and besides which, their daddy paid too much for their boobs to use them for such cheap purposes, thank you very much. No, not even for long beads. Leech and Lurch say they’ll think of something. So we pick a parade. It can’t be one of them ladies’ parades like Muses or Nyx, because boobs don’t get you nothing at those parades. Obviously. We decide a daytime parade, but I ain’t going to say which one, because of what happened. We get there and we line up. First me and Ms. Larda in her wheelchair and baskets. Then down the block Lollipop with Go-Cup up on a ladder seat looking as cute as they can with bicycle helmets on. The helmets are not part of a costume. They are wearing them because their mama, my daughter, Lollipop, got it in her head that sitting on top of a ladder in the middle of a hysterical crowd might be dangerous, even though I pointed out that she and her brother and sister spent whole Carnival seasons on ladders and they was just fine. But she don’t listen. Finally, to take the curse off the helmets, I glued bunny ears on them and that helped. Down the block from them are Chiclet and Leech, and then Trinket and Lurch. Chiclet and Trinket are all buttoned up, and their shirts are tucked into their belts, just to make the point that they are being modest. But Leech and Lurch are standing next to them and they’re wearing rubbery fake chests with boobs that they found at some shop in the French Quarter. Their theory is that if a float is moving fast, a float rider with a few drinks in him will look down and see Chiclet’s face and the same glance will show Leech’s fake boobs, and the images will blur in his head and he’ll throw long beads before his brain processes that the lady and the boobs are separate. And then he’ll do it again when he sees Trinket’s face next to Lurch’s fake boobs. Now, that’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard. I assume this contest is between Ms. Larda’s leg and my grandkids. After the parade we all meet up at Ms. Larda’s to sort out the loot. And I got to admit, everybody got plenty. In the stuffed animal category, the winners are Lollipop and Go-Cup, whose cuteness peeked through even under helmets. Ms. Larda got more beads than the kids did, but not as many stuffed animals. She also got a lot of jokey things like plastic dog doo-doo (good for hiding your house keys in the front yard). But, would you believe, the boys with the boobs got twice as much of everything as anybody else: long beads, panties, cups, the works. Boobs – and I’m talking about fake boobs, draped over a hairy chest – beat out adorable kids and handicapped old ladies. Men. Well there’s next year, and there’s Muses and Nyx. We will just have to hope for another broken leg. LORI OSIECKI ILLUSTRATION

myneworleans.com

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J OIE D’ E V E

BLOGS FROM THE NEW NEW ORLEANS

am a ha n d - wri n ger . A worrier . A

notorious borrower of trouble. One of the things I had been fretting, characteristically, about this past year was how to incorporate my late sister into my holiday traditions, how to honor her memory even though we had never really spent the holidays together. I said in one blog that I planned to teach Ruby how to make Ashley’s favorite stuffing for Thanksgiving, and one commenter suggested that I re-examine that idea. “The dysfunction of your sister’s life and the pain it caused you is something to be kept within. Don’t let your children see it, at the stove, at the Thanksgiving table, in your downer month of November – or ever. Sharing it won’t help you, and a downer November is a very poor ‘tradition’ to pass on,” wrote Traveler. I can see that perspective, but I think maybe Traveler misunderstood what I was saying. I hadn’t planned on weeping into the stuffing while Ruby watched, explaining to her that the salt of my tears was adequate flavoring. I hadn’t planned to lay my head on Ruby’s shoulder and wail, “Oh, Ru, why are there so damn many alcoholics in this family?” I do share many things with Ruby, but never because I think it will help me. She is my big helper, my best buddy and my little girl – but she isn’t my confidante or my counselor. I never meant to imply that I wanted to share my sadness with Ruby; she has had and will continue to have her own sorrows, and my fervent hope as a mom is to help her navigate them, not add to them. All I had wanted to do, honestly, was incorporate Ruby into a tradition/ memory I had shared with my sister. I was trying to find a way to give her the connection without the pain, to put a happy spin on a bittersweet situation, to link the past with the future. “Aunt Ashley loved this stuffing,” I would say cheerfully. “We can think of her while we make it!” I would be upbeat and positive, and Ruby and I would share a secret smile over a pan of sage and onions. But as it happened, Ruby had a last-minute itinerary change and went to Oklahoma with her dad for Thanksgiving, and I made stuffing alone. It wasn’t really a big deal – she had fun in Oklahoma, and when she got back we made and then devoured a chocolate-pecan pie and all was well. I hadn’t made any new traditions with her or figured out exactly how to honor my sister’s memory, but at least I hadn’t warped her in any irreparable way, and that’s always a success. So Thanksgiving was over, and now it was time for the next two hurdles: Ruby’s birthday and Christmas. The birthday was its own ordeal, but Christmas was a challenge, too. The first step was getting a tree, something I haven’t done in years. I always mean to, but I always end up stressed at work and stressed planning Ruby’s birthday and stressed trying to shop for everybody, so I keep putting the tree on the back burner until suddenly it’s Christmas Eve, and I don’t have a tree, and I get depressed about it. Two years ago, I was pregnant with Georgia and got very emotional about the whole lack-of-a-tree thing, and my husband had to stop me from dragging a ficus in from the porch and putting lights on it. (Actually, we didn’t even have lights, so I would’ve had to drive to Target in holiday traffic to get lights for the ficus.) This year, I decided I wouldn’t let that happen, and I didn’t. Ruby’s school was selling trees as a fundraiser, and so it was actually embarrassingly easy. I wrote a check, and then a few weeks later, I drove to her school and some PTA dads tied the tree to my car. My mom helped me untie it and lug it onto the porch. Boom. Done. I forgot, though, that trees require all this stuff. Tree stands and tree skirts and ornaments and garland and … stuff. Stuff that any normal 33-year-old would have, I guess, but I didn’t because my divorce from my first husband was in 48

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Rebuilding the Season Discoveries from a dusty box by Eve Crawford Peyton

April and I didn’t think to take any of the Christmas decorations, and so here I was. “Well, let’s go get it,” my husband said. (He lost all of his Christmas stuff in his divorce, too.) “Kmart might not be too bad, or I guess we could try Target.” “OK,” I agreed, and then stopped. “Wait. I have that box I took from my sister’s house when I was cleaning it out after she died. I have no idea what’s in it, but it says ‘XMAS,’ and I think it’s just shoved on one of the shelves in the laundry room.” “Well, look before we go,” he said. “It may not have anything, but let’s see.” And in fact, it had everything. There was a tree stand, a tree skirt, lights carefully wrapped and rubberbanded, ornaments (most of them made of durable plastic, a necessity with a toddler in the house), and even an awesome vintage 1970s angel for the top of the tree. Literally everything I needed for a Christmas tree, from top to bottom, was in the box. I almost cried. Actually, I did cry, just a little, when I shook out the tree skirt and the cigarettes-and-Chanel scent of my sister’s house wafted up around me. But overall, I wasn’t sad, not even a little bit. I was so thankful and joyful I couldn’t even put it into words. I had been facing these two daunting tasks – to procure decorations and decorate the tree and find a way to pull happier memories of my sister into my family’s holiday traditions – and I had solved them both just by opening a dusty box in a back room. Ruby was thrilled to see all of Aunt Ashley’s things, touching them reverently, lovingly. She knows they’re special, but they don’t make either of us sad. When Epiphany came around and it was time to take down the tree, I must admit I was a little sad. Having all of Ashley’s Christmas things in my living room had made me feel very close to her, and I sort of hated to pack it all away again. But I look forward to unpacking it again next year, and more than that, I hope I don’t forget the lesson it taught me: There is a solution to every problem, and very often, it’s just tucked away in a back room, waiting to be found. Excerpted from Eve Kidd Crawford’s blog, Joie d’Eve, which appears each Friday on MyNewOrleans.com. For comments: Info@NewOrleansMagazine.com.

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C H R O N I C LES

Collectors Never ‘‘Cease to Love’’

Serious souvenir hunters can dress their own stage and celebrate Mardi Gras every day of the year. By Carolyn Kolb

‘‘

ay b e

it ’ s

somethi n g

the

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mused a confirmed Carnival collector. He might have started with baseball cards, but it was the beauty of antique krewe favors kept in his own family that

1892 Krewe of Rex invitation

captured him. Serious acquirers of Mardi Gras memorabilia are a dedicated group and their collections can be monumental. They might prowl auctions, eBay, flea markets, estate and garage sales. Competition for items can get heated. Only recently have the old-line krewes begun seriously collecting their own items, and the Louisiana State Museum’s collection is impressive. (Occasionally collectors and families put things on loan there for special exhibits.) However, prices can vary. After museums and serious collectors all own an item, the next time it comes up it will have a lower price. This can benefit the casual buyer. Doubloons were once a popular collectible. Today, according to Sidney Lambert of Crescent City Auction Gallery, “There’s not really a market for doubloons. The sterling doubloons still sell, but part of that is the value of silver now. And, of course, there are gold ones that surface from time to time.” Crescent City Auction Gallery has recently been auctioning items from the estate of Mardi Gras costume designer and collector John Scheffler. Ball invitations, dance cards, even some royal jewelry, including crowns and scepters, have been going up for bids, with the final session scheduled for this month. The most valuable item Lambert has seen recently? “A ducal badge went for $3,750,” he says. Ducal badges – ornamental pins given to members of the krewe each year, with the design changing – are a popular collectible. Rex ducal badges are prized. In paper items, the invitations and dance cards from the early years are especially lovely. Some were printed in Paris. A Carnival bulletin is a picture of the design of all the floats in a parade. (To view one for Rex, check RexOrganization.com.) Long ago, the bulletins were put into the newspaper – as one krewe member recalls, “My father paid five cents for one of those.” Today they attract a higher price. All original artwork associated with the production of balls or parades is much prized. Indispensable to collectors, and to anyone with an interest in either art or Carnival, are author Henri Schindler’s four books in his “Mardi Gras Treasures” series published by Pelican Publishing Company: Jewelry of the Golden Age, Invitations of the Golden Age, Float Designs of the Golden Age and Costume Designs of the Golden Age. Schindler himself began collecting in 1964 when he moved to the French Quarter. While searching for CARNIVAL ’14 objects, he met Juanita Elfret who had a shop on St. 50

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E L E N A R I CC I P hotograph S

1897 Krewe of Proteus invitation

1892 Krewe of Comus invitation

Peter Street just off Royal Street. Elfret introduced Schindler to Louis Fisher – a female artist and a designer for Carnival balls and parades, such as Comus and Proteus, for 40 years. (Fisher’s also profiled in John Shelton Reed’s Dixie Bohemia: A French Quarter Circle in the 1920’s from LSU Press.) “She allowed me to carry her groceries home from the A&P and that was my introduction,” Schindler explains. “I started doing research and leg work for Louis, and I learned a lot. She made the crucial introductions.” Today, Schindler himself is a renowned designer of parades and balls. Another collector, architect Robbie Cangelosi, has designed the Bacchus invitation, and is an active member of that krewe. His own extensive collection began with paper. “I like the artwork on the invitations,” he says. His first non-paper object was an Elves of Oberon pin. Now his hoard includes scepters, crowns, costumes, sometimes with the drawings by the designer, so “you can compare the artwork to the actual piece.” Hurricane Katrina caused damage to items stored on Cangelosi’s first floor; some he salvaged, some he discarded and others he still keeps. “I have boxes marked ‘Destroyed By Katrina,’” he says. Ted Anthony can understand the importance of an object: “When you hold something in your hand that’s 140 years old, it means something, it’s part of history,” he says. His real start on Carnival collecting came after attending the Rex ball a dozen years ago, and he focuses on items created before 1917. “It was the golden age of Carnival, everything about it: the costumes, the jewelry – all very ornate, very captivating.” In one fortunate acquisition, “I was up in North Louisiana and stumbled across an antique shop that had some krewe favor pins,” he recalls. He advises beginners to focus: “Decide what you’re going for, and do research on costs. The older the invitation, the smaller the quantity and the higher the value.” Herbie Leblanc, president of the Mardi Gras Memorabilia Society (occasionally referred to as the Mardi Gras Mafia) admits, “I just didn’t really know what I was getting into,” when he began with some small silver-plated pieces from the Krewe of Zeus in the 1980s. Today his massive accumulation puts him in the forefront of serious collectors. Nowadays, “I rarely sell, I’d rather trade.” He has almost a full run of Rex ducal badges, lacking only seven from before 1900 and those of the last two years. His collection includes crowns, scepters and court jewelry. However, when he reigned himself as King of the Krewe of Centurions, he “had a crown custom-made in Mobile. Inside it has KC, my initials, the date and a little cat charm – I had evacuated from Hurricane Gustav with the cat with me when I got to Mobile.” Now, that’s an item some collector in the future is going to puzzle over.

Be a Collector

Start your own collection at the Rex Organization’s website: RexOrganization. com. Click on “merchandise” to find vendors for a copy of the year’s Mardi Gras proclamation. Rex collects, too. According to Rex archivist Dr. Stephen Hales, the krewe’s den contains exhibits and mementoes telling Rex history, and “our Crescent City Carnival Museum Foundation can accept tax-deductible donations of krewe items.” Outside groups occasionally visit. “Every year we invite Teach for America volunteers, grantrecipients from our Pro Bono Publico foundation, members of the Friends of the Cabildo, Friends of WYES-TV and Sugar Bowl officials and teams.”” myneworleans.com

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Fit for a King Kevin Kelly’s mansion is made for Mardi Gras B Y B ONNIE WARREN ph o t o g r a ph e d b y c H ERYL GER B ER

ho would have thought that a for the many parades that pass his door, not to pair of circa 1830 once-grand townhouses on St. mention the excitement of watching Zulu and Rex Charles Avenue that had become a flophouse march within a few feet of his viewing point on CARNIVAL ’14 hotel could become a grand mansion? Kevin Mardi Gras. “I love to welcome my friends to share Kelly is the man that made it all happen. Why would he want my balcony,” he says, and it isn’t an ordinary balcony. It is a sturdy a house in the busy Central Business steel-and-concrete structure built over the District where the noise of the streetentire sidewalk. “It was built as large as the Below: Located on St. Charles Avenue in the car and the traffic is ever-constant and law would allow so I could have lots of Central Business District and built around 1830 the neighborhood was more seedy than folks over to share the fun of the parades.” as dual townhouses, the building was completely classy when he found the property? “It’s restored to a grand home. Facing page: The dining The original structures, in what was simple,” he says. “I wanted to live on the once one of the most fashionable addressroom becomes the setting for the elaborate buffet Carnival parade route.” prepared by Houmas House Plantation and Garden’s es in New Orleans, are located just a Today Kelly’s balcony has indeed block away from Gallier Hall, the stately Executive Chef Jeremy Langlois that’s served for become one of the best viewing stands former City Hall that was designed by each of the parties held by the homeowner.

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renowned architect James Gallier Sr. and built beginning in 1845. It is easy to imagine the pride of having the neoclassical style, three-story, marble structure fronted by two rows of fluted Ionic columns as a neighbor back when it was built. While its City Hall function has long moved from St. Charles Avenue, Gallier Hall is still of major importance during the Carnival season when all of the parades stop there to toast the mayor and other dignitaries. “When I first discovered the shell of bygone grandeur that’s now my home, it had transitioned down to a derelict, cheap hotel,” Kelly says. “It looked like a bombed-out tenement house, but I saw past the cement floors and dilapidated chopped-up spaces.” He definitely got a glimpse of the past glory with the building’s 14-foot ceilings and arches leading onto an overgrown courtyard. “The first time I walked into the building, I immediately knew it was for me,” he says. “We ripped out walls, added steel reinforcing beams, created a grand staircase and a modern kitchen,” he recalls. “The large new parlor and library across the front of the building and the large dining room that opens onto the courtyard were all done with entertaining in mind.” Little did Kelly realize at the time that he would one day purchase Houmas House Plantation and Gardens in Darrow, La., and have an award-winning chef running the four restaurants that now exist on the plantation grounds. “I knew I wanted to entertain at my St. Charles Avenue home during the Carnival season, but 54

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This page, top: The salon is always decorated with the gold, purple and green colors of Carnival; the regal stairway was rescued from an historic building that was being demolished. Left: Owner Kevin Kelly in his Mardi Gras costume. Facing page, top left: A colorful jester is suspended from the ceiling in the library. Top, right: Even the bronze statue of a woman gets a touch of Carnival with a purple-and-gold jester hat. Bottom, left: Every surface is covered in Carnival decorations, including beads, miniature floats and masks. Bottom, right: The marble bar at the foot of the stairway is a central gathering spot during the five days of Carnival parties staged in the mansion.

I had no idea that I would have five days of parade-watching parties with a great chef to prepare the food,” he says. Executive Chef Jeremy Langlois, who’s in charge of the Houmas House’s highly rated kitchen, brings much of his operation to Kelly’s home for five days, filling the long antique table in the dining room with a feast for each parade. Kevin spares no expense with his elaborate Mardi Gras decorations to add to the excitement. “The house is transformed each year to make it especially festive for the costumes-only ball that I hold to begin the fun.” The transformation of a flophouse hotel to a showplace private residence in a city rich with historic homes is amazing. “It’s my version of a Vanderbilt townhouse on Fifth Avenue in New York or a grand mansion in Newport, Rhode Island,” Kelly says. “But most of all it’s my home to share with my family and friends for grand parade-watching.”

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Food and Fun PAGE 58

Fulton Alleyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Michael Nirenberg, executive chef (right) and Daniel Laguatte executive sous chef.

JEFFERY JOHNSTON PHOTOGRAPH

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T HE M EN U

T A B L E T A L K

Food and Fun It is game time at these two hot spots. By Jay Forman

Fulton Alley’s chicken wings

arn i v a l

t u rns

New

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world-class playground, and a couple of new places in the Warehouse District have recently expanded the scope of entertainment options available. By splicing quality food and drink offerings to their primary entertainment, DNA, Fulton Alley and Barcadia up the ante for things to do in the Crescent City while creating new options for private parties and events. Fulton Alley opened in mid-November 2013. It isn’t the first hybrid bowling alley (the venerable Rock ‘n’ Bowl wears that crown) but the vibe is distinctively different. Posited on the pedestrian-friendly stretch of Fulton Street behind Harrah’s Hotel, Fulton Alley puts forward a downtown lounge ambience to go with its primary attraction of bowling – here you’ll find Chesterfield sofas flanking the lanes rather than hard plastic benches. An idiot-proof computer takes the hassle out of keeping score, and servers are quick to come around to ensure drinks (or in the case here, craft cocktails) continue to flow. Principal owners Shawn Barney and Kyle Brechtel brought in chef Mike Nirenberg to handle the cuisine. Formerly chef at Tivoli & Lee, Nirenberg was attracted to the project in part by the ownership group but also because it appealed to him on a personal level. “This is the kind of place that I would want to go to,” Nirenberg says. “My food could reach a lot more people and is also more my style. Not quite fine dining but good food in a fun and relaxed atmosphere.” 58

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Nirenberg came in on the ground floor, helping to design the kitchen layout as well as hiring the staff and creating the menu. Like Tivoli & Lee, Nirenberg’s food emphasizes Southern and regional cuisine, with a few unique caveats tailored to the setting. Given that it’s served lane-side, plates are snack-oriented and designed to be shared; basically finger food that doesn’t break your focus between frames. “Everything we do is prep-heavy but fast on the line,” Nirenberg explains. His menu is set up so that orders can be finished à la minute and sent out right away, but in a manner that doesn’t compromise quality. “We have to be able to execute the food quickly. If it takes too long for our guests to get served it can hurt their bowling experience.” Take the chicken wings, for example. Rubbed with coriander and paprika and smoked ahead of time over hickory and mesquite, when the ticket comes in, the wings get flash-fried to order and sent out with a Crystal hot sauce and blue cheese dressing. The result is a wing that has bold flavor but isn’t sauced or greasy, and therefore manageable to eat while rolling. Unique dishes such as Nirenberg’s blackened drum tots stick to the theme of being regional and creative without being stuffy. Nirenberg often ran variations of this favorite finger food during his time at Tivoli & Lee. Here they’re bite-size morsels of coarsely chopped spiced fish that come with a tomato aioli dipping sauce. Also carried over from his prior restaurant is an emphasis on local sourcing. “We don’t necessarily write it all over the menu JEFFERY JOHNSTON PHOTOGRAPH

where we get these ingredients Find Your Playground from, but we do use Two Run Fulton Alley Farm, Covey Rise and Hollygrove 600 Fulton St. Market and Farm, among oth208-5569 ers,” he says. “Pretty much the FultonAlley.com same contacts I used with Tivoli Lunch and dinner daily & Lee I use here.” For those with Barcadia a sweet tooth, try the chocolate 601 Tchoupitoulas St. and raisin bread pudding beig335-1740 nets – you get a little bite of New BarcadiaNewOrleans.com Orleans with the bread pudding Lunch and dinner daily done up beignet-style with the bourbon sauce on top. The cocktail side of things is a big part of the attraction as well. Curated by Neal Bodenheimer and Kirk Estopinal of Cure, it leans heavily on small-batch liquor and New Orleans-inspired drinks, yet is less highbrow than some of their other ventures. Exchanging Lanes, their version of the Sazerac, is Nirenberg’s pick. Fulton Alley makes for an excellent option for parties and other special events. It has a decidedly adult vibe, but those under 21 are welcome during “family hours” on Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Just a few blocks away from Fulton Alley is Barcadia, the retro video game nirvana carved out of the ground floor of a parking garage just a block off of Poydras Street. Gamers of a certain age, please take note of the titles available – Tron, Frogger, Spy Hunter and Defender for starters, and the list goes on. Table-style attractions such as air hockey and skee ball are represented as well. Décor is casual and accented by 1950s-era cheesecake pinup art with an overall fun, friendly vibe. Food offerings are a grab bag of wraps, burgers and deli-style sandwiches. The Manager’s Special best represents the latter, with its pastrami and Swiss cheese on marble rye dressed with Abita Andygator-spiked mustard. Their everything-and-the-kitchen-sink approach encompasses some curveballs, like a tempura battered and fried peanut butter and jelly dessert sandwich, Korean “pork shanks” done up with Sriracha and a bulgogi marinade and naan (the Indian flatbread) pizza topped with pulled pork, BBQ sauce and cilantro and onion. A french fry submenu offers numerous variations (including one with pastrami and Swiss cheese, should you prefer your deli sandwiches in french fry form). A standout draft beer menu offers more than 40 options with a full bar for spirits as well. Daily drink specials include enticements such as “Free Play” Tuesday as well as a “Sous Vide Steak Night” on Wednesdays with $2 PBR and $3 Jameson shots. A life-size Jenga game is offered on the patio. Like Fulton Ally, Barcadia is a fun option for parties and private events, and a private game room is available for such functions. Barcadia is open daily from 11 a.m. to 2 a.m., making it a late-night option as well.

Other entertainment options offering a particular focus on food and drink include The Theatres at Canal Place, with its full bar service and a snack-heavy menu crafted by chef Adolfo Garcia; the number of available theaters has recently expanded. Over on the West Bank, NOLA Motorsports offers clubhouse and catering options from chef Scott Boswell of Stella! and Stanley!. Rock ‘n’ Bowl is a classic as well. myneworleans.com

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R E S T A U R A N T IN SID ER

February Fare B Y RO B E R T P E Y T ON F ebr u ary i s the sma l l est of months – i t ’ s the

runt of the litter; it’s the butt-end of the poor boy loaf – but if nothing else, it’s redeemed by Carnival and by the fact that for a few more weeks we can count on temperatures dipping below 60.

You wouldn’t call Oxalis (3162 Dauphine St.)

a gastropub exactly, because “pub” implies beer and Oxalis is focused on whiskey – as in the menu has about as many selections of bourbon as separate food items. The folks behind Oxalis were previously running La Fin du Monde on Magazine Street, and the menu won’t surprise anyone familiar with that operation. Chef Jonathan Lestingi was doing housemade charcuterie and pickles there, and he’s doing them at Oxalis as well. The food menu is divided into small, medium, large and social plates, as well as desserts,

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apart. “Izzy’s Shrimp Balls” are panko-battered shrimp mousse balls fried and served with a sweet and sour sauce; there’s a spring roll featuring house-cured bacon and shrimp; and the restaurant does a Bao (steamed bun) with Vietnamese-style beef debris. Pho options don’t extend much beyond brisket, rare steak and oxtail, but the Vietnamese talent for charcuterie is on display in the pâté used as a filling for banh mi and the egg and pork terrine served as an accompaniment to grilled pork steak on a rice platter. You can reach Namese by calling 483-8899, or you can visit Namese.net. The restaurant is open from 10:30 a.m. to 10 p.m., Monday through Saturday.

Namese

Not far from Namese, Trèo (3835 Tulane Ave.) is scheduled to open by the time you receive this magazine. If Namese’s location seemed incongruous, Trèo’s is downright insane. Regardless, the folks who own Finn McCool’s are taking a chance that the medical complex and other local construction projects are going to bring a better sort of foot-traffic than that neighborhood has enjoyed as of late. Chef James Cullen is going to run the kitchen, and while there’s no doubt the place is as much about drinks as food, Cullen’s time at Saint Lawrence should stand him in good stead at the head of a gastropub. Treo will also have an emphasis on art, with a gallery on the second floor that will also host parties and other events. There is no phone number yet, but if you’re craving information, you can visit TreoNola.com or wander over to Finn’s and ask someone wearing an apron.

Oxalis

and it includes a few Asian-influenced items such as the Bo Ssam that’s apparently obligatory on menus these days. There are wings done American- and Korean-style, a kale salad and more interestingly (at least to me) polenta with seasonal vegetables and a cauliflower “steak” with gouda, buckwheat and beet. I liked Lestingi’s food at La Fin du Monde, and I’m guessing the Bywater address is going to be a better fit all around. Oxalis is open seven days a week from 4 p.m. until they feel like closing. Call them at 267-4776 to find out more.

Mid-City hasn’t exactly seen the sort of restaurant explosion as some other parts of the city, but that seems to be changing. Vietnamese restaurant Namese (4077 Tulane Ave.) has already opened as I write this at the corner of Tulane and Carrollton avenues. It is a location that for the last few years was more or less vacant. There was a gas station there at one point, and a convenience store that sold sandwiches, but for the most part that block of Tulane Avenue looked more like a disaster than the sort of place where you might eat grilled pork vermicelli al fresco in good weather. The menu at Namese offers the standards, of course, but there are a few specials that set the place

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Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Email rdpeyton@gmail.com

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Cook Me Something, I Mister! Recipes for the Carnival Season by Dale Curry

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ne v er eat a cheese stra w

that I don’t think of Lady Helen Hardy, the grande dame of cheese straws in New Orleans. Hers were the thinnest, the most delicate, the crispiest I ever ate, and she was known far and wide for her mastery of the spicy and delicious snack. My problem is finding and keeping a cookie press that befits the recipe we ran in The TimesPicayune years ago when I was food editor. It was the recipe of Lady Helen, who died last year, and who supplied many a party with her golden gems. My original cookie press broke eons ago, I’ve gone through several plastic ones that didn’t work right and now I can’t find the latest one that CARNIVAL ’14 I must have loaned to someone

EUGENIA UHL PHOTOGRAPH

or pushed out of sight in the back of a cabinet. Whatever the case, I’ve invented a new way to sculpt these lovelies in time for Carnival parties when they’re a must-have. I simply roll them out with a rolling pen, about 1/8-inch thin, cut them in long strips and ridge them with a fork. This technique cuts the time and effort if you can soften the dough with warm hands to hold it together. The only hard part is pressing the dough together into balls that will roll out. For that, I called on my husband to help bail me out as I frequently do. When I think Carnival, I not only think of cheese straws but certain other dishes that I can make for a party or to have at home. One of my favorites is a crawfish-stuffed brisket. What I like about it is that you can put it in the oven and all but forget about it. This dish is typical of the way we love to stuff things in south Louisiana cooking. Meats, vegetables – you name it, we’ll stuff it. I also recently set out to duplicate the amazing spread called Better Cheddar sold at Langenstein’s. The ingredients listed on the package are white cheddar cheese, walnuts, mayonnaise and seasonings. Easy enough; it was just the amounts I had to figure out, and the following recipe comes pretty close in my estimation. First I roasted the walnuts, giving them extra flavor, and I made sure to use Hellmann’s mayonnaise. Some recipes I’ve seen call for homemade mayo, which is great if you have the time. For seasonings, I turned to good old Tony Chachere’s, a combination of Louisiana spices that’s hard to beat. It is my all-purpose seasoning, although I sometimes turn to Paul Prudhomme’s and Emeril Lagasse’s spices when I’m feeling my gourmet instincts. Mardi Gras is late this year; it’s always late or early, never on time. But we’ll get started mid-February when the weather can be freezing, rainy or sunny. When you’re out on the Carnival route by day, it’s comforting to return home to a cooked dinner. I like to

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cook my briskets overnight on a low oven. If I don’t take them to a party, then they’re there when I return home. Or if you’re dead tired and just ready to prop up your feet, there’s nothing like a good Old Fashioned and some cheese straws.

Lady Helen’s Cheese Straws 2 cups all-purpose flour 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 1/2 sticks butter, at room temperature 16 ounces extra-sharp cheddar cheese (preferably Cracker Barrel), grated, at room temperature 6 to 8 dashes Tabasco sauce 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Sift flour into a large bowl. Add baking powder and salt and sift again. Set aside. Place butter and cheese in a large bowl, making sure they’re soft and at room temperature. With your hands, mix the two together until smooth and creamy. Add Tabasco and cayenne pepper and mix well. If you have a good cookie press, go ahead and use it, laying out strips of cheese mixture, about 1/8-inch thick, on lightly greased or sprayed cookie sheets. (Or, press dough into several balls, using warm hands, until packed together well. Then pat thin on wax paper or parchment paper and gently roll out to 1/8-inch thickness with a lightly floured rolling pin. With a sharp knife, cut into strips about 1-inch wide and lift to baking pans with a long knife. When dough is on the pans, use a fork to make ridges in the straws. This also helps to thin the dough a little.) Preheat oven to 300 degrees and bake straws for 10 minutes. Lower the oven temperature to 225 degrees and bake for about 10 minutes

more. With a small sharp knife, cut straws into pieces about 4-inches long and continue to bake until theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re straw-colored but not brown, about 10 more minutes. If baking two cookie sheets at once, switch racks and turn pans halfway through for more even baking. Take straws up onto wire racks to cool immediately after baking. When cooled, store in tins for up to one week. Makes about 100 cheese straws

Crawfish-Stuffed Brisket 1 16-pound untrimmed brisket or 1 8-pound trimmed brisket Salt, freshly ground pepper, Creole seasoning and garlic powder 3 medium onions, divided 1 bunch green onions 1/2 bell pepper 4 cloves garlic 1 pound Louisiana crawfish tails with fat 1 cup Italian seasoned breadcrumbs 1 egg 1/2 cup Worcestershire sauce

If using an untrimmed brisket, slice off much of the fat leaving about 1/4- to 1/2-inch fat. (Cooking with fat and skimming it off later adds taste and tenderness to the meat.) Using a sharp knife, cut a pocket into the brisket horizontally so that the edges of uncut meat run about 1/2-inch on all three sides. Make sure you donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t cut through the meat except on one side. Sprinkle brisket liberally inside and out with seasonings. Using a food processor, shred 1 onion, bell pepper, green onions and garlic. In a large bowl, mix onion mixture, crawfish tails, breadcrumbs and egg together, and stuff into the pocket of the brisket. Tie the brisket together by wrapping it around the whole brisket several times or sew the opening together with kitchen twine.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place brisket in a large baking pan. Chop remaining onions and sprinkle over brisket. Pour Worcestershire sauce over onions. Roast brisket, uncovered, for about 30 minutes to brown slightly. Then cover tightly with heavy-duty aluminum foil, reduce oven temperature to 275 and bake for 4 hours. Check occasionally to see if the pan needs liquid. If so, add about 1/2-cup water. If more than a cup of fat collects in the pan, skim off as much as possible during the cooking and discard. After 4 hours, raise temperature to 325 degrees and cook for 1 more hour. When done, brisket should rest for at least 20 minutes before serving. While brisket is resting, spoon or pour off fat remaining in the pan. Reserve brown juices and pour over brisket to serve. To serve, slice brisket with a very sharp knife across the grain and into serving size pieces, each with some of the stuffing. Serves about 20 people

Best of Better Cheddar 2 to 2 1/2 pounds good quality white cheddar cheese, at room temperature 2 cups walnuts 1/2 teaspoon each: salt, cayenne pepper, garlic powder and Creole seasoning

Cut cheese into 1/2-inch cubes and place in a food processor. Pulse until cheese is shredded. Place walnuts on a cookie sheet and roast in a preheated 400-degree oven for 10 minutes. In a large bowl, mix cheese, walnuts, mayonnaise and seasonings. Stir together well until mixture is spreadable. Serve on your favorite crackers. Makes about 6 cups

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THE MENU

LAST CALL

The Enchanted Season B Y T I M M C NALLY

exp l anat i on

the

C arn i v a l

season, now upon us, doesn’t do it justice. The history of our only-in-New Orleans celebration is one of the sources for the uniqueness of this city’s character. The staging of the grand balls and the tableaus, laden with tradition and pomp, is a reflection of another age. And the enthusiasm of the citizenry and visitors surrounding every golden moment permeates all that we do during this time. Carnival defies description because words are inadequate for the community’s total immersion into the festival that defines us. It is truly an enchanted time to be in New Orleans. Creating a special beverage that reflects these special moments is no easy task. But Alan Walter, aka “Spirit Handler” at Loa in the International Hotel and previously honored as the Mixologist of the Year by this very magazine, embraces such challenges. He has invented a cocktail which is complicated yet simple, another Carnival trait. CARNIVAL ’14 Twelfth Night’s Lord of Misrule is smiling.

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Enchanter’s Cup 1 ounce Kina L’Avion D’Or, a French aperitif wine infused with spices and herbs 1 ounce Salers, an aperitif liqueur created in the Auvergne region of France, made from the roots of the Gentiane Lutea, a wild plant that grows at high altitudes 3/4 ounce Cocchi Americano, a low-alcohol wine-based aperitif from Asti, Italy 3/4 ounce Suze, a French bitters created from the gentian plant 1/2 ounce Lillet Blanc, a Bordeaux white wine blend that also has liqueurs made from the peels of

macerated citrus 1/4 ounce Dolin Dry, a lighter, drier, less headstrong vermouth 1 dash Orange Bitters, a concoction of the peels of Seville oranges and spices

Stir all ingredients with ice and lighten with an ounce or two of soda water if desired. Add sliced strawberries and citrus segments along with whatever herbs you have handy (mint and dill are ideal). Serve with a straw and go forth. As created and served by Alan Walter at Loa

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$= Average entrée price of $5-$10; $$=$1115; $$$=$16-20; $$$$=$21-25; $$$$$=$25 and up.

elegant and intimate; off-premise catering. New Orleans Magazine Honor Roll honoree 2009. $$$

5 Fifty 5 Restaurant Marriott Hotel,

Antoine’s 713 St. Louis St., 581-4422, French Quarter, Antoines.com. L Mon-Sat, D Mon-Sat, Br Sun. This pinnacle of haute cuisine and birthplace of Oysters Rockefeller is New Orleans’ oldest restaurant. (Every item is á la carte, with an $11 minimum.) Private dining rooms are available. $$$$$

555 Canal St., 553-5638, French Quarter, 555Canal.com. B, L, D daily. This restaurant offers innovative American fare such as lobster macaroni and cheese, seasonal Gulf fish with crab and mâche salad with boudin. Many of the dishes receive an additional touch from their wood-burning oven. $$$$

7 on Fulton 701 Convention Center Blvd., 525-7555, CBD/Warehouse District, 7onFulton.com. B, L, D daily. Upscale and contemporary dining destination. $$$$

13 Restaurant and Bar 517 Frenchmen St., 942-1345, Faubourg Marigny, 13Monaghan. com. B, L, D daily, open until 4 a.m. Latenight deli catering to hungry club-hoppers. Bar and excellent jukebox make this a good place to refuel. $

Abita Brew Pub 72011 Holly St., (985) 892-5837, Abita Springs, AbitaBrewPub.com. L, D Tue-Sun. Famous for its Purple Haze and Turbodog brews, Abita serves up better-thanexpected pub food in their namesake eatery. “Tasteful” tours available for visitors. $$

Acme Oyster House 724 Iberville St., 5225973, French Quarter; 3000 Veterans Blvd., 309-4056, Metairie; 1202 N. Highway 190, (985) 246-6155, Covington; AcmeOyster.com. L, D daily. Known as one of the best places to eat oysters. $$

Aloha Sushi 1051 Annunciation St., 5660021, Warehouse District, SunRayGrill.com. L, D Tue-Sat. A large list of rolls, hot rice bowls, Asian-inspired soups, salads, cocktails and more. Visit for Sake Hour (4-6 p.m.): half-priced sake and three rolls for the price of two. $$

Ancora 4508 Freret St., 324-1636, Uptown, AncoraPizza.com. L Fri-Sat, D Mon-Sat. Authentic Neapolitan-style pizza fired in an oven imported from Naples keeps pizza connoisseurs coming back to this Freret Street hot-spot. The housemade charcuterie makes it a double-winner. New Orleans Magazine’s 20011 Pizza Restaurant of the Year. $$

Arnaud’s 813 Bienville St., 523-5433, French Quarter, Arnauds.com. D daily, Br Sun. Waiters in tuxedos prepare Café Brulot tableside at this storied Creole grande dame in the French Quarter; live jazz during Sun. brunch. New Orleans Magazine’s 2011 Honor Roll winner. $$$$$ Audubon Clubhouse 6500 Magazine St., 212-5282, Uptown. B, L Tue-Sat, Br Sun. Nested among the oaks in Audubon Park, the beautifully situated clubhouse is open to the public and features a kid-friendly menu with New Orleans tweaks and a casually upscale sandwich and salad menu for adults. $$

August Moon 3635 Prytania St., 899-5129, 899-5122, Uptown, MoonNola.com. L, D Mon-Fri, D Sat. Lots of vegetarian offerings and reasonable prices make this dependable Chinese/Vietnamese place a popular choice for students and locals. Take-out and delivery available. $

Austin’s 5101 W. Esplanade Ave., 888-5533, Metairie, AustinsNo.com. D Mon-Sat. Mr. Ed’s upscale bistro serves contemporary Creole fare, including seafood and steaks. $$$ The Avenue Pub 1732 St. Charles Ave., 586-9243, Uptown, TheAvenuePub.com. L, D daily (kitchen open 24 hours a day). With more than 47 rotating draft beers, this pub also offers food including a cheese plate from St. James Cheese Co., a crab cake sandwich and the “Pub Burger.” $

Bacchanal Fine Wines and Spirits

Andrea’s Restaurant 3100 19th St., 834-

600 Poland Ave., 948-9111, Bywater, BacchanalWine.com. L, D daily. The pop-up that started it all, this ongoing backyard music and food fest in the heart of Bywater carries the funky flame. Best of all, the front of house is a wine shop. $$

8583, Metairie, AndreasRestaurant.com. L Mon-Sat D daily, Br Sun. Indulge in osso buco and homemade pastas in a setting that’s both

Barcelona Tapas 720 Dublin St., 861-9696, Riverbend, LetsEat.at/BarcelonaTapas. D TueSun. Barcelona Tapas is chef-owner Xavier

Laurentino’s homage to the small-plates restaurants he knew from his hometown of Barcelona. The tapas are authentic, and the space, renovated largely by Laurentino himself, is charming. $

Basil Leaf Restaurant 1438 S. Carrollton Ave., 862-9001, Uptown, BasilLeafThai.com. L Mon-Fri, D daily. Thai food and sushi bar with a contemporary spin is served in this date-friendly establishment; private rooms available. $$

Boucherie 8115 Jeannette St., 862-5514, Riverbend, Boucherie-Nola.com. L, D Tue-Sat. Serving contemporary Southern food with an international angle, Chef Nathaniel Zimet offers excellent ingredients, presented simply. New Orleans Magazine’s Best New Restaurant 2009. $$

Bayona 430 Dauphine St., 525-4455, French Quarter, Bayona.com. L Wed-Sat, D Mon-Sat. Chef Susan Spicer’s nationally acclaimed cuisine is served in this 200-year-old cottage. Ask for a seat on the romantic patio, weather permitting. $$$$$ The Beach House 2401 N. Woodlawn St., 456-7470, Metairie. L, D daily. Gumbo, steaks, lobsters, burgers and seafood are accompanied by live music each and every night. $$$

Besh Steak Harrah’s Casino, 8 Canal St., 533-6111, CBD/Warehouse District, HarrahsNewOrleans.com. D daily. Acclaimed chef John Besh reinterprets the classic steakhouse with his signature contemporary Louisiana flair. New Orleans Magazine’s Chef of the Year 2007. $$$$$ Bistro Daisy 5831 Magazine St., 899-6987, Uptown, BistroDaisy.com. D, Tue-Sat. Chef Anton Schulte and his wife Diane’s bistro, named in honor of their daughter, serves creative and contemporary bistro fare in a romantic setting along Magazine Street. The signature Daisy Salad is a favorite. $$$$

Brigtsen’s 723 Dante St., 861-7610, Uptown, Brigtsens.com. D Tue-Sat. Chef Frank Brigtsen’s nationally-famous Creole cuisine makes this cozy Riverbend cottage a true foodie destination. $$$$$

Broken Egg Cafe 200 Girod St., (985) 2317125, Mandeville. B, Br, L daily. Breakfastcentric café in turn-of-the-century home offers a sprawling assortment of delicious items both healthy and decadent. $$

Brooklyn Pizzeria 4301 Veterans Blvd., 833-1288, Metairie, EatBrooklyn.net. L, D daily (Drive thru/take out). Pie shop on Vets specializes in New York-style thin crust. The pizza is the reason to come, but sandwiches and salads are offered as well. $

Byblos 1501 Metairie Road, 834-9773, Metairie; 3342 Magazine St., 894-1233, Uptown; 3301 Veterans Memorial Blvd., 8307333 Metairie; 29 McAlister Drive, Tulane University; 2020 Veterans Blvd., 837-9777; ByblosRestaurants.com. L, D daily. Upscale Middle Eastern cuisine featuring traditional seafood, lamb and vegetarian options. $$

Café Adelaide Loews New Orleans Hotel,

9500, Uptown. B, L Mon-Fri. Breakfasts and lunches are the hallmarks of this neighborhood spot. The Ignatius sandwich comes equipped with 10 inches of paradise. $

300 Poydras St., 595-3305, CBD/Warehouse District, CafeAdelaide.com. B, D daily, L Mon-Fri. This offering from the Commander’s Palace family of restaurants has become a power-lunch favorite for businessmen and politicos. Also features the Swizzle Stick Bar. $$$$

The Bombay Club Prince Conti Hotel,

Café Burnside Houmas House Plantation,

830 Conti St., 586-0972, French Quarter,

40136 Highway 942, (225) 473-9380, Darrow, HoumasHouse.com. L daily, Br Sun. Historic plantation’s casual dining option features dishes such as seafood pasta, fried catfish, crawfish and shrimp, gumbo and red beans and rice. $$

Blue Plate Café 1330 Prytania St., 309-

Chef Andrea Apuzzo, of Metairie restaurant Andrea’s, is offering couples more on and off-site catering options for 2014 weddings. Chef Apuzzo’s own wines, made from grapes in his vineyards in Anacapri, Italy, will be available in both red and white varieties, as will his limoncello, made in Louisiana from local lemons. Food options will run from freshly made bread and pizza in his wood-burning oven to rotisserie lamb, beef, pork, quail and duckling. Having started cooking in Italy at the age of 7, chef Apuzzo has been bringing a taste of Italy to the greater New Orleans area for the last 29 years. – Mi r e l l a c a m e r a n myneworleans.com

CBD/Warehouse District, TheBonTonCafe. com. L, D Mon-Fri. A local favorite for the oldschool business lunch crowd, it specializes in local seafood and Cajun dishes. $$$$

St., 302-7391, Uptown. L, D Tue-Sat. The focus is on seafood at this uncluttered, contemporary joint venture between Colombian chef Edgar Caro from Barü Bistro & Tapas and Louisiana fishing guide Tommy Peters. Their generally lighter approach is represented in dishes such as whole grilled snapper as well as traditional favorites such as spicy boiled crawfish (in season). $$

3100 19th St., Metairie, 834-8583, AndreasRestaurant.com

F E B R U A RY 2 0 1 4

Bon Ton Cafe 401 Magazine St., 524-3386,

Basin Seafood & Spirits 3222 Magazine

New Wining and Dining Options from Chef Andrea

TheBombayClub.com. D daily. Popular martini bar appointed with plush British décor features live music during the week and late dinner and drinks on weekends. Nouveau Creole menu includes items such as Bombay drum. $$$$

Café Degas 3127 Esplanade Ave., 945-5635, Mid-City, CafeDegas.com. L Wed-Sat, D WedSun, Br Sun. Light French bistro food including salads and quiche make this indoor/outdoor boîte a Faubourg St. John favorite. New Orleans Magazine’s 2010 French Restaurant of the Year. $$$

Café du Monde 800 Decatur St., 525-0454, French Quarter; One Poydras Suite 27, 5870841, New Orleans; 3301 Veterans Blvd., Suite 104, 834-8694, Metairie; 1401 West Esplanade, Suite 100, 468-3588, Kenner; 4700 Veterans Blvd., 888-9770, Metairie; 1814 N. Causeway Approach, Suite 1, (985) 951-7474, Mandeville; CafeDuMonde.com. This New Orleans institution has been serving fresh café au lait, rich hot chocolate and positively

addictive beignets since 1862 in the French Market 24/7. $

New Orleans Magazine’s 2010 Maître D’ of the Year. $$

Café Equator 2920 Severn Ave., 888-

Café Negril 606 Frenchmen St., 944-4744,

4772, Metairie, CafeEquator.com. L, D daily. Very good Thai food across the street from Lakeside Mall. Offers a quiet and oftoverlooked dining option in a crowded part of town. $$

Marigny. D daily. This music club draws locals in with their lineup of live reggae and blues. Tacos and BBQ in back are a plus for late-night revelers. $

Café Freret 7329 Freret St., 861-7890, Uptown, CafeFreret.com. B, L, D Fri-Wed. Convenient location near Tulane and Loyola universities makes this a place for students (and dogs) to indulge in decadent breakfasts, casual lunches and tasty dinners – and their “A la Collar” menu. $$

Café Giovanni 117 Decatur St., 529-2154, Downtown, CafeGiovanni.com. D daily. Live opera singers three nights a week round out the atmosphere at this contemporary Italian dining destination. The menu offers a selection of Italian specialties tweaked with a Creole influence and their Belli Baci happy hour adds to the atmosphere. $$$$

Café Luna 802 Nashville Ave., 269-2444, Uptown. B, L daily. Charismatic coffee shop in a converted house offers a range of panini, caffeinated favorites and free Wi-Fi. The front porch is a prime spot for people-watching along adjacent Magazine Street. $

Café Maspero 601 Decatur St., 523-6250, French Quarter. L, D daily. Tourists line up for their generous portions of seafood and large deli sandwiches. $

Café Minh 4139 Canal St., 482-6266, MidCity, CafeMinh.com. L Mon-Fri., D Mon-Sat. Chef Minh Bui and Cynthia Vutran bring their fusion-y touch with Vietnamese cuisine to this corner location. French accents and a contemporary flair make this one of the more notable cross-cultural venues in town.

Café Nino 1510 S. Carrollton Ave., 8659200, Carrollton. L, D daily. Nondescript exterior belies old-school Italian hideaway serving up red-sauce classics like lasagna, along with some of the more under-the-radar New York-style thin crust pizza in town. $$

Café Opera 541 Bourbon St., 648-2331, Inside Four Points by Sheraton, French Quarter. B, L daily, D Thu-Sat. Chef Philippe Andreani serves Creole and Continental classics on the site of the old French Opera House. Choices include crabmeat beignets with corn maque choux as well as fried green tomatoes with shrimp remoulade. Validated parking is offered for dine-in. Free valet parking. $$$

Cake Café 2440 Chartres St., 943-0010, Marigny, NolaCakes.com. B, L daily. The name may read cakes but this café, helmed by head baker Steve Himelfarb, offers a whole lot more, including fresh baked goods and a full breakfast menu along with sandwiches. A popular place to while away a slow New Orleans morning with a coffee and a slice. $ Camellia Grill 626 S. Carrollton Ave., 3092679, Uptown; 540 Chartres St., 533-6250, Downtown. B, L, D daily, until 1 a.m. SunThu and 3 a.m. Fri-Sat. The venerable diner has reopened following an extensive renovation and change in ownership (in 2006). Patrons can rest assured that its essential character has remained intact and many of

the original waiters have returned. The new downtown location has a liquor license and credit cards are now accepted. $

escargot, coq au vin and blanquette de veau. A Provençal-inspired atmosphere and French wine round out the appeal. $$$$

Capdeville 520 Capdeville St., 371-5161, French Quarter, CapdevilleNola.com. L, D Mon-Sat. Capdeville is an upscale bar-bistro with a short but interesting menu of food that’s a mix of comfort and ambition. Burgers are on offer, but so are fried red beans and rice – a take on calas or Italian arancini. $$

Checkered Parrot 132 Royal St., 592-1270,

Carmo 527 Julia St., 875-4132, Warehouse

Chiba 8312 Oak St., 826-9119, Carrollton,

District, CafeCarmo.com. L Mon-Sat., D TueSat. Caribbean-inspired fare offers a creative array of vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free fare in a sleek location on Julia Street. One of the few places in the city where healthy dining is celebrated rather than accommodated. $$

chiba-nola.com. L Thu-Sat, D Mon-Sat. Contemporary restaurant on Oak Street features an extensive list of special rolls, steamed buns and fusion-y fare to go along with typical Japanese options. Late night hours are a plus. $$$

Carmelo Ristorante 1901 Highway 190, (985) 624-4844, Mandeville, RistoranteCarmelo.com. L, D Wed-Fri, SunMon. Italian trattoria serves old-world classics. Private rooms available. $$

Casamento’s 4330 Magazine St., 895-9761, Uptown, CasamentosRestaurant.com. L TueSat, D Thu-Sat. The family-owned restaurant has shucked oysters and fried seafood since 1919; closed during summer and for all major holidays. $$

CC’s Community Coffee House Multiple locations in New Orleans, Metairie and Northshore, CCsCoffee.com. Coffeehouse specializing in coffee, espresso drinks and pastries. $

Chateau du Lac 2037 Metairie Road, 831-3773, Old Metairie, ChateauduLacBistro. com. L Mon-Fri, D Mon-Sat. This casual French bistro, run by chef-owner Jacques Saleun, offers up classic dishes such as

French Quarter; 3629 Prytania St., Uptown; CheckeredParrot.com. B, L, D daily. The Checkered Parrot is an upscale sports bar with a large menu, featuring nachos, fajitas, wings in seven flavors, wraps and burgers and an outdoor patio. $$

Chophouse New Orleans 322 Magazine St., 522-7902, CBD, ChophouseNola.com. D daily. In addition to USDA prime grade aged steaks prepared under a broiler that reaches 1,700 degrees, Chophouse offers lobster, redfish and classic steakhouse sides. $$$

Clancy’s 6100 Annunciation St., 895-1111, Uptown, ClancysNewOrleans.com. L Thu-Fri, D Mon-Sat. Their Creole-inspired menu has been a favorite of locals for years. $$$ Cochon 930 Tchoupitoulas St., 588-2123, CBD/Warehouse District, CochonRestaurant. com. L, D, Mon-Sat. Chefs Donald Link and Stephen Stryjewski showcase Cajun and Southern cuisine at this Warehouse District hot spot. Boudin and other pork dishes reign supreme here, along with Louisiana seafood and real moonshine from the bar. New Orleans Magazine named Link Chef of the Year 2009. Reservations strongly recommended. $$

Commander’s Palace 1403

myneworleans.com

F E B R U A RY 2 0 1 4

T HE M E N U Washington Ave., 899-8221, Uptown, CommandersPalace.com. L Mon-Fri, D daily, Br Sat-Sun. The Grande Dame in the Garden District is going strong under the auspices of chef Tory McPhail. The turtle soup might be the best in the city, and its weekend Jazz Brunch is a great deal. $$$$

Cooter Brown’s 509 S. Carrollton Ave., 866-9104, Uptown, CooterBrowns.com. L, D daily. Riverbend-area sports bar serves up the city’s largest selection of beers along with great bar food. The cheese fries are a rite of passage, and the Radiator’s Special poor boy makes for a great late-night meal. $

Copeland’s 701 Veterans Blvd., 831-3437, Metairie; 1001 S. Clearview Parkway, 6207800, Jefferson; 1319 West Esplanade Ave., 617-9146, Kenner; 1700 Lapalco Blvd., 364-1575, Harvey; 680 N. Highway 190, (985) 809-9659, Covington; 1337 Gause Blvd., (985) 643-0001, Slidell; CopelandsofNewOrleans.com. L, D daily, Br Sun. Al Copeland’s namesake chain includes favorites such as Shrimp Ducky. Popular for lunch. $$

Copeland’s Cheesecake Bistro 4517 Veterans Blvd., 454-7620, Metairie; 2001 St. Charles Ave., 593-9955, Garden District; CopelandsCheesecakeBistro.com. L, D daily. Dessert fans flock to this sweet-centric Copeland establishment which also offers extensive lunch and dinner menus. $$$

Coquette 2800 Magazine St., 265-0421, Uptown, Coquette-Nola.com. Br Sun, L TueSat, D daily. A bistro located at the corner of Washington and Magazine streets. The food is French in inspiration and technique, with added imagination from chef Michael Stoltzfus (New Orleans Magazine’s Best New Chef 2009) and his partner Lillian Hubbard. $$$

Corky’s Bar-B-Q Restaurant 4243 Veterans Blvd., 887-5000, Metairie, CorkysBarBQ.com. L, D daily. Memphisbased barbecue chain offers good hickorysmoked ribs, pork and beef in a family setting with catering service available. $ Court of Two Sisters 613 Royal St., 5227261, French Quarter, CourtOfTwoSisters. com. Br, D daily. The historic environs make for a memorable outdoor dining experience. The famous daily Jazz Brunch buffet and classic Creole dishes sweeten the deal. $$$$$

Crabby Jack’s 428 Jefferson Highway, 833-2722, Jefferson. L Mon-Sat. Lunch outpost of Jacques-Imo’s chef and owner Jack Leonardi. Famous for its fried seafood and poor boys including fried green tomatoes and roasted duck. $

Crépes a la Carte 1039 Broadway St.,

DINING GUIDE 866-236, Uptown, CrepeCaterer.com. B, L, D daily. Open late. An extensive menu of tasty crêpes, both savory and sweet, make this a great spot for a quick bite for college students and locals. $

Crescent City Brewhouse 527 Decatur St., 522-0571, French Quarter, CrescentCityBrehouse.com. L, D daily. Contemporary brewpub features an eclectic menu complementing its freshly-brewed wares. Live jazz and good location make it a fun place to meet up. $$$

Crescent City Steakhouse 1001 N. Broad St., 821-3271, Mid-City, CrescentCitySteaks. com. L Tue-Fri & Sun, D daily. One of the classic New Orleans steakhouses, it’s a throwback in every sense of the term. Steaks, sides and drinks are what you get at Crescent City. New Orleans Magazine’s Steakhouse of the Year 2009 and Honor Roll honoree 2007. $$$$

Criollo 214 Royal St., Hotel Monteleone, 681-4444, French Quarter, HotelMonteleone. com/Criollo. B, L, D daily. Next to the famous Carousel Bar in the historic Monteleone Hotel, Criollo represents an amalgam of the various cultures reflected in Louisiana cooking and cuisine, often with a slight contemporary twist. $$$ The Crystal Room Le Pavillon Hotel, 833 Poydras St., 581-3111, CBD/Warehouse District, LePavillon.com. B, D daily; L, MonFri. Franco-American cuisine with Louisiana influences is served in the environs of the Le Pavillon Hotel. The Southern-style breakfast features its decadent Bananas Foster Waffle “Le Pavillon.” $$$ Dakota 629 N. Highway 190, (985) 8923712, Covington, TheDakotaRestaurant.com. D Mon-Sat. A sophisticated dining experience with generous portions. $$$$$ The Delachaise 3442 St. Charles Ave., 895-0858, Uptown, TheDelachaise.com. L Fri-Sat, D daily. Elegant bar food fit for the wine connoisseur; kitchen open late. $$ Dick and Jenny’s 4501 Tchoupitoulas St., 894-9880, Uptown, DickAndJennys.com. L Tue-Fri, D Mon-Sat. A funky cottage serving Louisiana comfort food with flashes of innovation. $$$$ Dickie Brennan’s Bourbon House 144 Bourbon St., 522-0111, French Quarter, BourbonHouse.com. B, L, D daily. Classic Creole dishes such as redfish on the halfshell and baked oysters are served with classic Brennan’s style at this French Quarter outpost. Its extensive bourbon menu will please aficionados. New Orleans Magazine’s 2011 Oyster Bar of the Year. $$$$

Dickie Brennan’s Steakhouse 716 Iberville St., 522-2467, French Quarter, DickieBrennansSteakhouse.com. L Fri, D daily. Nationally recognized steakhouse serves USDA Prime steaks and local seafood in a New Orleans setting with the usual Brennan’s family flair. $$$$$

Domenica The Roosevelt Hotel, 123 Baronne St., 648-6020, CBD, DomenicaRestaurant.com. L, D daily. New Orleans Magazine’s 2012 Chef of the Year Alon Shaya serves authentic, regional Italian cuisine in John Besh’s sophisticated new restaurant. The menu of thin, lightly topped pizzas, artisanal salumi and cheese, and a carefully chosen selection of antipasti, pasta and entrées, feature locally raised products, some from Besh’s Northshore farm. $$$$

Domilise’s 5240 Annunciation St., 8999126, Uptown. L, D Mon-Wed, Fri-Sat. Local institution and rite-of-passage for those wanting an initiation to the real New Orleans. Wonderful poor boys and a unique atmosphere make this a one-of-a-kind place. $

Dong Phuong 14207 Chef Menteur Highway, 254-0296, N.O. East. L Wed-Mon. Vietnamese bakery and restaurant in the community of Versailles makes great banh mi sandwiches and interesting baked goods both savory and sweet. Unbeatable prices. $

Drago’s 3232 N. Arnoult Road, 888-9254, Metairie; Hilton Riverside Hotel, 2 Poydras St., 584-3911, CBD/Warehouse District; DragosRestaurant.com. L, D daily (Hilton), L, D Mon-Sat (Metairie). This famous seafooder specializes in charbroiled oysters, a dish they invented. Raucous but good-natured atmosphere makes this a fun place to visit. Great deals on fresh lobster as well. $$$$

Dry Dock Cafe & Bar 133 Delaronde St., 361-8240, Algiers, TheDryDockCafe.com. Br Sun, L, D daily. Fancier daily specials have been added to the menu of this casual neighborhood seafood joint in historic Algiers Point near the ferry landing. Burgers, sandwiches and fried seafood are the staples. $$

El Gato Negro 81 French Market Place, 525-9752, French Quarter, B Sat-Sun, L. D daily; 300 Harrison Ave., 488-0107, Lakeview, L, D Tue-Sun; 3001 Ormond Blvd. (985) 307-0460, Destrehan, L, D Tue-Sun. ElGatoNegroNola.com. Popular spot near the Frenchmen Street clubs serves up authentic Central Mexican cuisine along with handmuddled mojitos and margaritas made with freshly squeezed juice. A weekend breakfast menu is an additional plus. $$

Elizabeth’s 601 Gallier St., 944-9272, Bywater, ElizabethsRestaurantNola.com. B, L Mon-Fri, D Mon-Sat, Br Sun. This eclectic

Warehouse Grille creates one big burger 869 Magazine St., 322-2188, WarehouseGrille.com

Warehouse Grille in downtown New Orleans is now serving what might be the biggest burger in the city: A 10-ounce patty is contained between two three-cheese grilled sandwiches, dressed with four pieces of bacon, four onion rings and 12 fried pickles, all served with a side of fries. The burger joins an extensive menu at the Grille, which is just celebrating its first anniversary. The place has quickly earned a reputation for game days, free live music, bottomless mimosas, 40 drafts of beer, daily specials and lots of happy hours. – M . c . 70

F E B R U A RY 2 0 1 4

myneworleans.com

local restaurant draws rave reviews for its Praline Bacon and distinctive Southerninspired brunch specials. $$$

Emeril’s 800 Tchoupitoulas St., 528-9393, CBD/Warehouse District, Emerils.com. L Mon-Fri, D daily. The flagship of superstar chef Emeril Lagasse’s culinary empire, this landmark attracts pilgrims from all over the world. $$$$$ Feelings Cafe 2600 Chartres St., 945-2222, Faubourg Marigny, FeelingsCafe.com. D WedSun, Br Sun. Romantic ambiance and skillfully created dishes, such as veal d’aunoy, make dining here on the patio a memorable experience. A piano bar on Fridays adds to the atmosphere. Vegan menu offered. $$$$ Fellini’s Café 900 N. Carrollton Ave., 4882155, Mid-City, FellinisNewOrleans.com. L, D daily. With décor inspired by its namesake Italian filmmaker, this casual indoor/outdoor spot serves large portions of reasonablypriced Mediterranean specialties such as pizza, pastas and hummus. $ Fiesta Latina 1924 Airline Drive, 468-2384, Kenner, FiestaLatinaRestaurant.com. B, L, D Tue-Sun. A big-screen TV normally shows a soccer match or MTV Latino at this home for authentic Central American food. Tacos include a charred carne asada. New Orleans Magazine’s 2010 Latin Restaurant of the Year. $$ Five Happiness 3605 S. Carrollton Ave., 482-3935, Mid-City, FiveHappiness.com. L, D daily. This longtime Chinese favorite offers up an extensive menu including its beloved mu shu pork and house baked duck. It is a popular choice for families as well. $$

Flaming Torch 737 Octavia St., 895-0900, Uptown, FlamingTorchNola.com. L, D daily, Br Sun. French classics including a tasty onion soup make this a nice place for a slightly upscale lunch while shopping along Magazine Street. $$

Frank’s 933 Decatur St., 525-1602, French Quarter, FranksRestaurantNewOrleans.com. L, D daily. Locally inspired Italian sandwiches such as muffulettas and Genoa salami poor boys are served here in the heart of the French Quarter. $$$ Galatoire’s 209 Bourbon St., 525-2021, French Quarter, Galatoires.com. L, D TueSun. Friday lunches are a New Orleans tradition at this world-famous French-Creole grand dame. Tradition counts for everything here, and the crabmeat Sardou is delicious. Note: Jackets required for dinner and all day Sun. $$$$$ Galatoire’s 33 Bar & Steak 215 Bourbon St., 335-3932, French Quarter. L Friday, D daily. Steakhouse offshoot of the venerable Creole Grande Dame offers hand-crafted cocktails to accompany classic steakhouse fare as well as inspired dishes like the Gouté 33 – horseradish-crusted bone marrow and deviled eggs with crab ravigote and smoked trout. Reservations are accepted. $$$ Galley Seafood 2535 Metairie Road, 8320955, Metairie. L, D Tue-Sat. A great local place for seafood, both fried and boiled. Famous for its softshell crab poor boy, a Jazz Fest favorite. $$ Gautreau’s 1728 Soniat St., 899-7397, Uptown, GautreausRestaurant.com. D, Mon-Sat. Upscale destination serves refined interpretations of classics along with contem-

porary creations in a clubby setting nested deep within a residential neighborhood. New Orleans Magazine named Sue Zemanick Chef of the Year 2008. $$$$$

Gott Gourmet Café 3100 Magazine St., 373-6579, Uptown, GottGourmetCafe.com. B Sat-Sun, L, Tue-Sun, D Tue-Fri. Upscalecasual restaurant serves a variety of specialty sandwiches, salads and wraps, like the Chicago-style hot dog and the St. Paddy’s Day Massacre – Chef Gotter’s take on the Rueben. $$

Gracious Bakery + Café 1000 S. Jeff Davis Parkway, Suite 100, 301-3709, MidCity, GraciousBakery.com. B, L Mon-Sat. Boutique bakery in the ground floor of the new Woodward Building offers small-batch coffee, baked goods, individual desserts and sandwiches on breads made in-house. Catering options are available as well. $

The Green Goddess 307 Exchange Alley, 301-3347, French Quarter, GreenGoddessNola.com. L, D Wed-Sun. Located in a tiny space, the Green Goddess is one of the most imaginative restaurants in New Orleans. The menu is constantly changing, and chef Paul Artigues always has ample vegetarian options. Combine all of that with a fantastic selection of drinks, wine and beer, and it’s the total (albeit small) package. $$ The Grill Room Windsor Court Hotel, 300 Gravier St., 522-1994, CBD/Warehouse District, GrillRoomNewOrleans.com. B, L, D daily, Br Sun. Jazz Brunch on Sunday with live music. Featuring modern American cuisine with a distinctive New Orleans flair, the adjacent Polo Club Lounge offers live music nightly. $$$$$

GW Fins 808 Bienville St., 581-FINS (3467),

French Quarter, GWFins.com. D daily. To ensure the best possible flavors at GW Fins, owners Gary Wollerman and New Orleans Magazine’s 2005 and 2001 Chef of the Year Tenney Flynn provide dishes at their seasonal peak by flying in products from around the globe. That commitment to freshness and quest for unique variety are two of the reasons why the menu is printed daily. $$$$$

Herbsaint 701 St. Charles Ave., 524-4114, CBD/Warehouse District, Herbsaint.com. L Mon-Fri, D Mon-Sat. Enjoy a sophisticated cocktail before sampling Chef Donald Link’s (New Orleans Magazine’s Chef of the Year 2009) menu that melds contemporary bistro fare with classic Louisiana cuisine. The banana brown butter tart is a favorite dessert. $$$$$

Horinoya 920 Poydras St., 561-8914, CBD/ Warehouse District. L Mon-Fri, D daily. Excellent Japanese dining in an understated and oft-overlooked location. The chu-toro is delicious and the selection of authentic Japanese appetizers is the best in the city. $$$ Hoshun Restaurant 1601 St. Charles Ave., 302-9716, Garden District, HoshunRestaurant.com. L, D daily. Hoshun offers a wide variety of Asian cuisines, primarily dishes culled from China, Japan, Thailand and Malaysia. Their five-pepper calamari is a tasty way to begin the meal, and their creative sushi rolls are good as well. $$

House of Blues 225 Decatur St., 310-4999, French Quarter, HouseOfBlues.com. L, D daily. World-famous Gospel Brunch every Sunday. Surprisingly good menu makes this a complement to the music in the main room. Patio seating is available as well. $$

Il Posto Café 4607 Dryades St., 895-2620, Uptown, ilPostoCafe-Nola.com. B, L, D Tue-Sat, B, L Sun. Italian café specializes in pressed panini, like their Milano, featuring sopressata, Fontina, tomatoes and balsamic on ciabatta. Soups, imported coffee and H&H bagels make this a comfortable neighborhood spot to relax with the morning paper. $ Impastato’s 3400 16th St., 455-1545, Metairie, Impastatos.com. D Tue-Sat. Bustling Italian restaurant on the edge of Fat City serves homemade pasta in a convivial atmosphere. Chef/Owner Joe Impastato greets guests warmly and treats them like family. The prix fixe options are a good way to taste a lot for not much money. $$$$ Irene’s Cuisine 539 St. Philip St., 5298811, French Quarter. D Mon-Sat. Long waits at the lively piano bar are part of the appeal of this Creole-Italian favorite beloved by locals. Try the oysters Irene and crabmeat gratin appetizers. $$$$

Iris 321 N. Peters St., 299-3944, French Quarter, IrisNewOrleans.com. L Fri, D Mon, Wed-Sat. This inviting bistro offers sophisticated fare in a charming setting. The veal cheek ravioli is a winner. New Orleans Magazine’s Best New Restaurant 2006. $$$$ Jack Dempsey’s 738 Poland Ave., 9439914, Bywater, JackDempseysLLC.com. L Tue-Sat, D Wed-Sat. Local favorite nestled deep in the heart of the Bywater is known for its stuffed flounder and baked macaroni served in generous portions. $$$

Jacques-Imo’s Cafe 8324 Oak St., 8610886, Uptown, JacquesImosCafe.com. D Mon-Sat. Reinvented New Orleans cuisine served in a party atmosphere are the cornerstones of this Oak Street institution. The

deep-fried roast beef poor boy is delicious. The lively bar scene offsets the long wait on weekends. $$$$

Jamila’s Mediterranean Tunisian Cuisine 7808 Maple St., 866-4366, Uptown. D Tue-Sun. Intimate and exotic bistro serving Mediterranean and Tunisian cuisine. The Grilled Merguez is a Jazz Fest favorite and vegetarian options are offered. $$

Jeff’s Creole Grille 5241 Veterans Blvd., 889-7992, Metairie, JeffsCreoleGrille.com. L, D Mon-Sat, Br Sun. This quaint, upscale restaurant offers a variety of classic New Orleans cuisine, fresh fish and homemade soups and salads with early bird and daily chef specials. $$ Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville Café 1104 Decatur St., 592-2565, French Quarter, MargaritavilleNewOrleans.com. L, D daily. Parrotheads and other music lovers flock to Jimmy’s outpost along the more local-friendly stretch of Decatur. Strong bar menu and stronger drinks keep them coming back. $$

Joey K’s 3001 Magazine St., 891-0997, Uptown, JoeyKsRestaurant.com. L, D MonSat. A true neighborhood New Orleans restaurant with daily lunch plates keeps it real; red beans and rice are classic. $ The Joint 701 Mazant St., 949-3232, Bywater, AlwaysSmokin.com. L, D Mon-Sat. Some of the city’s best barbecue can be had at this locally owned and operated favorite in Bywater. $ Juan’s Flying Burrito 2018 Magazine St., 569-0000, Uptown; 4724 S. Carrollton Ave., 486-9950, Mid-City. L, D daily. Hard-core tacos and massive burritos are served in an edgy atmosphere. $

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T HE M E N U Jung’s Golden Dragon 3009 Magazine St., Uptown, JungsGoldenDragon2.com. L, D daily. This Chinese destination is a real find. Along with the usual you’ll find spicy cold noodle dishes and dumplings. This is one of the few local Chinese places that breaks the Americanized mold. New Orleans Magazine’s 2010 Chinese Restaurant of the Year. $ Kosher Cajun New York Deli and Grocery 3519 Severn Ave., 888-2010, Metairie, KosherCajun.com. L Mon-Fri & Sun, D Mon-Thu. Great kosher meals and complete kosher grocery in the rear make this Metairie eatery a unique destination. The matzo ball soup is a winner and catering is available for parties of any size. $

K-Paul’s Louisiana Kitchen 416 Chartres St., 596-2930, French Quarter, ChefPaul. com/KPaul. L Thu-Sat, D Mon-Sat. Paul Prudhomme’s landmark restaurant helped introduce Cajun food to a grateful nation. Lots of seasoning and bountiful offerings, along with reserved seating, make this a destination for locals and tourists alike. $$$$

Kyoto 4920 Prytania St., 891-3644, Uptown, KyotoNola.com. L, D Mon-Sat. A neighborhood sushi restaurant where the regulars order off-the-menu rolls. $$

La Boca 857 Fulton St., 525-8205, Warehouse District, LaBocaSteaks.com. D Mon-Sat. This Argentine steakhouse specializes in cuts of meat along with pastas and wines. Specials include the provoleta appetizer and the Vacio flank steak. New Orleans Magazine’s Chef of the Year 2006 & 2010 Steakhouse of the Year. $$$ Lakeview Harbor 911 Harrison Ave., 486-4887, Lakeview, BestNewOrleansBurger. com. L, D daily. Burgers are the name of the game here at this restaurant which shares a pedigree with Snug Harbor and Port of Call. Rounded out with a loaded baked potato, their half-pound patties are sure to please. Daily specials, pizza and steaks are offered as well. $

La Macarena Pupuseria & Latin Cafe 8120 Hampson St., 862-5252, Uptown. L, D Mon-Fri, Br, L, D Sat & Sun. This cash-only and BYOB restaurant has recently overhauled their menu, now including a large selection of vegan and vegetarian items, as well as a tapas menu. $$

La Petite Grocery 4238 Magazine St., 891-3377, Uptown, LaPetiteGrocery.com. L

DINING GUIDE Tue-Sat, D daily. Elegant dining in a convivial atmosphere quickly made this place an Uptown darling. The menu is heavily Frenchinspired with an emphasis on technique. $$$

Spot local and national politicos dining at this favored Creole soul restaurant known for homey classics like fried chicken and Trout Baquet. $

serving Mediterranean-inspired pastas and Italian-style entrées, along with heartier fare such as duck and filet mignon. $$

La Provence 25020 Highway 190, (985)

Lilette 3637 Magazine St., 895-1636,

St., 945-4472, Faubourg Marigny, MarignyBrasserie.com. L, D daily. Chic neighborhood bistro with traditional dishes like the Wedge of Lettuce salad and innovative cocktails like the Cucumber Cosmo. $$$

626-7662, Lacombe, LaProvenceRestaurant. com. D Wed-Sun, Br Sun. John Besh (New Orleans Magazine’s Chef of the Year 2007) upholds time-honored Provençal cuisine and rewards his guests with a true farm-life experience, from house-made preserves, charcuterie, herbs, kitchen gardens and eggs cultivated on the property, an elegant French colonial stucco house. $$$$$

La Thai Uptown 4938 Prytania St., 8998886, Uptown, LaThaiUptown.com. L, D TueSun. Uptown outpost of the Chauvin family’s ingredient-driven Thai-Cajun fusion cuisine. The summer rolls are good as is the tom kar gai soup. Lunch specials are a good deal and vegetarian dishes are offered as well. $$ Latil’s Landing Houmas House Plantation, 40136 Highway 942, (225) 473-9380, Darrow, HoumasHouse.com. L Sun, D WedSun. Nouvelle Louisiane, plantation-style cooking served in an opulent setting features dishes like rack of lamb and plume de veau. $$$$$

Le Meritage 1001 Toulouse St., 522-8800, French Quarter, LeMeritageRestaurant.com. D Tue-Sat. This restaurant blends fine wines with Southern-flavored cuisine for a memorable fine-dining experience in a casual environment. Chef Michael Farrell’s well-rounded menu features suggested wine and food pairings, along with full or half servings both by the glass and by the plate. Complimentary valet parking. $$$ Le Salon Windsor Court Hotel, 300 Gravier St., 596-4773, CBD/Warehouse District. Afternoon Tea, Thu-Fri, seating at 2 p.m., Sat-Sun, seating at 11 a.m. & 2 p.m. Formal afternoon tea with harpist or string quartet served in a sophisticated atmosphere. A local mother-daughter tradition. $$ Liborio’s Cuban Restaurant 321 Magazine St., 581-9680, CBD/Warehouse District, LiborioCuban.com. L Mon-Sat, D Tue-Sat. Authentic Cuban favorites such as Ropa Vieja and pressed Cuban sandwiches along with great specials make this a popular lunch choice. $$$ Lil’ Dizzy’s Café 1500 Esplanade Ave., 569-8997, Mid-City. B, L daily, D Thu-Sat.

Uptown, LiletteRestaurant.com. L, D Tue-Sat. Chef John Harris’ innovative menu draws discerning diners to this highly regarded bistro on Magazine Street. Desserts are wonderful as well. $$$$$

Lola’s 3312 Esplanade Ave., 488-6946, Mid-City. D daily. Garlicky Spanish dishes and great paella make this artsy Faubourg St. John boîte a hipster destination. $$$

Lüke 333 St. Charles Ave., 378-2840, CBD, LukeNewOrleans.com. Br Sat-Sun, B, L, D daily. John Besh (New Orleans Magazine’s Chef of the Year 2007) and executive chef Matt Regan characterize the cuisine “Alsace meets New Orleans in an authentic brasserie setting.” Germanic specialties and French bistro classics, house-made patés and abundant plateaux of cold, fresh seafood. New Orleans Magazine’s Best New Restaurant 2007 and 2012 Raw Bar of the Year. $$$

Mahony’s 3454 Magazine St., 899-3374, Uptown, MahonysPoBoys.com. L, D MonSat. Along with the usual poor boys, this sandwich shop serves up a Grilled Shrimp and Fried Green Tomato version dressed with remoulade sauce. Sandwich offerings are augmented by a full bar. $

Mandina’s 3800 Canal St., 482-9179, Mid-

9600, Uptown, MatAndNaddies.com. D MonTue, Thu-Sat. Cozy converted house along River Road serves up creative and eclectic regionally-inspired fare. Crab cakes with cucumber slaw makes for a good appetizer and when the weather is right the romantic patio is the place to sit. $$$$

Maximo’s Italian Grill 1117 Decatur St., 586-8883, French Quarter. MaximosGrill. com. D Daily. Italian destination on Decatur Street features a sprawling menu including housemade salumi and antipasti as well as old school classics like Veal Osso Bucco. Private dining is offered for special events. New Orleans Magazine’s 2012 Continental Italian Restaurant of the Year. $$$

Warehouse District. L, D daily. Born of a partnership between New Orleans’ First Family of Football and Harrah’s Casino, Manning’s offers sports bar fans a step up in terms of comfort and quality. With a menu that draws on both New Orleans and the Deep South, traditional dishes get punched up with inspired but accessible twists in surroundings accented by both memorabilia and local art. $$$

MiLa 817 Common St., 412-2580, French Quarter, MiLaNewOrleans.com. L Mon-Fri, D Mon-Sat. Latest offering from husbandand-wife chefs Slade Rushing and Allison Vines-Rushing focuses on the fusion of the cuisines of Miss. and La. Signature dishes include Oysters Rockefeller “Deconstructed” and New Orleans-style barbecue lobster. New Orleans Magazine’s Best New Restaurant 2008. $$$$

Maple Street Café 7623 Maple St., 314-

Mona’s Café 504 Frenchmen St., 485-6583,

9003, Uptown. L, D daily. Casual dinner spot

Marigny; 4126 Magazine St., 894-9800, Uptown; 1120 S. Carrollton Ave., 861-8174, Uptown; 3901 Banks St., 482-7743, Mid-City. L, D daily. Middle Eastern specialties such as baba ganuj, tender-tangy beef or chicken shawarma, falafel and gyros, stuffed into pillowy pita bread or on platters. The lentil soup with crunchy pita chips and desserts, such as sticky sweet baklava, round out the menu. New Orleans Magazine’s 2012 Middle Eastern Restaurant of the Year. $

If you can’t decide between flowers or chocolates for Valentine’s Day, combine both with new Valentine Bouquets from Edible Arrangements. Combinations of semi-sweet chocolate-dipped strawberries, heart-shaped pineapple, fresh strawberries and grapes are arranged into bundles that look great and don’t deliver a hefty calorie count. Bouquets run from $37 to $129 with a guaranteed delivery service. Not a romantic? Edible Arrangements offer a gifting alternative for any occasion in addition to their new fresh fruit cupcakes and fresh fruit truffles. – M . c . myneworleans.com

Mat & Naddie’s 937 Leonidas St., 861-

Manning’s 519 Fulton St., 593-8118,

1650 Gretna Blvd., Harvey, 367-7798, EdibleArrangements.com

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Martin Wine Cellar 714 Elmeer Ave., 8967300, Metairie, MartinWine.com. Br Sun, L daily, D Mon-Fri. Wine by the glass or bottle to go with daily lunch specials, towering burgers, hearty soups, salads and giant, delistyle sandwiches. $

Middendorf’s Interstate 55, Exit 15, 30160 Highway 51 South, (985) 386-6666, Akers, MiddendorfsRestaurant.com. L, D Wed-Sun. Historic seafood destination along the shores of Lake Maurepas is world-famous for its thin-fried catfish fillets. Open since 1934, it transitioned to its next generation of owners when Horst Pfeifer purchased it in 2007. More than a restaurant, this is a Sunday Drive tradition. $$

City, MandinasRestaurant.com. L, D daily. Quintessential New Orleans neighborhood institution reopened following an extensive renovation. Though the ambiance is more upscale, the same food and seafood dishes make dining here a New Orleans experience. New Orleans Magazine’s 2010 Neighborhood Restaurant of the Year. $$

Edible Arrangements offers new Valentine Bouquets

The Marigny Brasserie 640 Frenchmen

Mondo 900 Harrison Ave., 224-2633, Lakeview, MondoNewOrleans.com. Br Sun, L Mon-Fri, D Mon-Sat. New Orleans Magazine’s 2010 Chef of the Year Susan Spicer’s take on world cuisine isn’t far from her home in Lakeview. Make sure to call ahead because the place has a deserved reputation for good food and good times. $$$ Morton’s, The Steakhouse The Shops at Canal Place, 365 Canal St., 566-0221, French Quarter, Mortons.com/NewOrleans. D daily. Quintessential Chicago steakhouse serves up

top-quality slabs of meat along with jumbo seafood. Clubhouse atmosphere makes this chophouse a favorite of Saints players and businessmen alike. $$$$$

Mosca’s 4137 Highway 90 West, 436-9942, Avondale. D Tue-Sat. Italian institution near the Huey Long Bridge dishes out massive portions of great food family-style. Good bets are the shrimp Mosca and chicken à la grande. New Orleans Magazine’s 2010 Honor Roll winner. Note: Cash Only. $$$

Mother’s 401 Poydras St., 436-8940, CBD/ Warehouse District, MothersRestaurant.net. B, L, D daily. Locals and tourists alike endure long queues and a confounding ordering system to enjoy iconic dishes such as the Ferdi poor boy and Jerry’s jambalaya. Come for a late lunch to avoid the rush. $$

Mr. Ed’s Seafood and Italian Restaurant 1001 Live Oak St., 8380022, Bucktown; 910 W. Esplanade Ave., Ste. A, 463-3030, Kenner. L, D Mon-Sat. Neighborhood restaurant specializes in seafood and Italian offerings such as stuffed eggplant and bell pepper. Fried seafood and sandwiches make it a good stop for lunch. $$

Muriel’s Jackson Square 801 Chartres St., 568-1885, French Quarter, Muriels.com. L, D daily, Br Sun. Enjoy pecan-crusted drum and other New Orleans classics while dining in the courtyard bar or any other room in this labyrinthine, rumored-to-be-haunted establishment. $$$$

Naked Pizza 6307 S. Miro St., 8650244, Uptown (takeout & delivery only), NakedPizza.biz. L, D daily. Pizza place with a focus on fresh ingredients and a healthy crust. The Mediterranean pie is a good choice. $

Napoleon House 500 Chartres St., 5249752, French Quarter, NapoleonHouse.com. L, D Mon-Sat. Originally built in 1797 as a respite for Napoleon, this family-owned European-style café serves local favorites: gumbo, jambalaya, muffulettas and for sipping, a Sazerac or lemony Pimm’s Cup. $$ Nine Roses 1100 Stephen St., 366-7665, Gretna, NineRosesResturant.com. L, D SunTue, Thu-Sat. The extensive Vietnamese menu specializes in hot pots, noodles and dishes big enough for everyone to share. Great for families. $$

NOLA 534 St. Louis St., 522-6652, French Quarter, Emerils.com. L Thu-Sun, D daily. Emeril’s more affordable eatery, featuring cedar-plank-roasted redfish; private dining. $$$$$

Nuvolari’s 246 Girod St., (985) 6265619, Mandeville, Nuvolaris.com. D daily. Dark woods and soft lighting highlight this Northshore Creole Continental-Italian fusion restaurant famous for crabmeat ravioli, veal dishes, seafood specialties and delectable desserts. $$$$

One Restaurant and Lounge 8132 Hampson St., 301-9061, Uptown, OrleansGrapevine.com. L Tue-Fri, D Mon-Sat. Black seating and herbaceous sage-colored walls form a dining room where every seat is a view into the open kitchen and the chefs creating contemporary comfort food on a seasonally changing menu. The bar is also known for cranking out clever cocktails. New Orleans Magazine’s Best New Restaurant 2005. $$$$

Orleans Grapevine Wine Bar and Bistro 720 Orleans Ave., 523-1930, French Quarter, OrleansGrapevine.com. D daily. Wine is the

muse at this beautifully renovated French Quarter bistro, which offers vino by the flight, glass and bottle. A classic menu with an emphasis on New Orleans cuisine adds to the appeal. $$$

Palace Café 605 Canal St., 523-1661, CBD/ Warehouse District, PalaceCafe.com. L MonSat, D daily, Br Sun. Dickie Brennan-owned brasserie with French-style sidewalk seating and house-created specialties of Chef Darrin Nesbit at lunch, dinner and Jazz Brunch. Favorites here include crabmeat cheesecake, turtle soup, the Werlein salad with fried Louisiana oysters and pork ”debris” studded Palace Potato Pie. $$$$$

Parkway Bakery and Tavern 538 Hagan Ave., 482-3047, Mid-City, ParkwayBakeryAndTavernNola.com. L, D daily, closed Tue. Featured on national TV and having served poor boys to presidents, Parkway stakes a claim to some of the best sandwiches in town. Their french fry version with gravy and cheese is a classic at a great price. $

Pascal’s Manale 1838 Napoleon Ave., 895-4877, Uptown. L Mon-Fri, D Mon-Sat. Vintage New Orleans neighborhood restaurant since 1913 and the place to go for the house-creation of barbecued shrimp. Its oyster bar serves icy cold, freshly shucked Louisiana oysters and the Italian specialties and steaks are also solid. $$$$

Patois 6078 Laurel St., 895-9441, Uptown, PatoisNola.com. Br Sun, L Fri, D Wed-Sat. The food is French in technique, with influences from across the Mediterranean as well as the American South, all filtered through the talent of Chef Aaron Burgau (New Orleans Magazine’s Best New Chef 2009).

Reservations recommended. $$$

Paul’s Café 100 Pine St., (985) 386-9581, Ponchatoula, PaulsCafe.net. B, L daily. Best known for its strawberry daiquiris, Paul’s also cooks up egg breakfasts and lunches including all manner of sandwiches and poor boys. $

The Pelican Club 312 Exchange Place, 523-1504, French Quarter, PelicanClub.com. D daily. Tucked into a French Quarter alley, Pelican Club serves an eclectic mix of hip food, from the seafood “martini” to clay pot barbecued shrimp and a trio of duck. Three dining rooms available. $$$$$ PJ’s Coffee Multiple locations throughout Greater New Orleans, PJsCoffee.com. The city’s first iced-coffee spot that pioneered the coffee house experience in New Orleans and introduced us all to velvet ices, drinkable granitas and locally made Ronald Reginald vanilla. A wide assortment of pastries and bagels are offered as well as juices and fresh ground or whole bean coffees. $ Port of Call 838 Esplanade Ave., 523-0120, French Quarter, PortOfCallNola.com. L, D daily. It is all about the big, meaty burgers and giant baked potatoes in this popular bar/ restaurant – unless you’re cocktailing only, then it’s all about the Monsoons. $$

Praline Connection 542 Frenchmen St., 943-3934, Faubourg Marigny, PralineConnection.com. L, D daily. Downhome dishes of smothered pork chops, greens, beans and cornbread are on the menu at this homey Creole soul restaurant. $$ Ralph Brennan’s Red Fish Grill 115 Bourbon St., 598-1200, French Quarter, RedFishGrill.com. L, D Mon-Thu & Sun.

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T HE M EN U

DINING GUIDE

Chef Austin Kirzner cooks up a broad menu peppered with Big Easy favorites such as BBQ oysters, blackened redfish and double chocolate bread pudding. $$$$$

and Anthony Spizale’s broad menu of prime rib, stunning seafood and on weekends, a Champagne Brunch. $$$

usual suspects and a nice bar with a number of sakes from which to choose. $$$

Riccobono’s Panola Street Café 7801

Ralph’s On The Park 900 City Park Ave.,

Panola St., 314-1810, Garden District. B, L daily. This breakfast spot at the corner of Burdette and Panola streets has been waking up bleary college students for years. The omelets are good, as are the Belgian waffles. Offers daily specials as well. $

901 Veterans Blvd., 835-0916, Metairie, SammysPoBoys.com. L Mon-Sat, D daily. Bucktown transplant offers a seafood-centric menu rounded out with wraps, kid meals and catering options all at a reasonable price. $

488-1000, Mid-City, RalphsOnThePark. com. Br Sun, L Wed-Fri, D daily. A modern interior, a view of City Park’s moss-draped oaks and contemporary Creole dishes such as City Park salad, turtle soup and BBQ Gulf shrimp. The bar gets special notice for cocktails. $$$$

The Red Maple 1036 Lafayette St., 3670935, Gretna, TheRedMaple.com. L Tue-Fri, D Tue-Sat. This West Bank institution since 1963 is known for its seafood, steaks, wine list and some of the best bread pudding around. $$$$

Reginelli’s Pizzeria 741 State St., 8991414, Uptown; 3244 Magazine St., 895-7272, Uptown; 5608 Citrus Blvd., 818-0111, Harahan; 817 W. Esplanade Ave., 7126868, Kenner; 874 Harrison Ave, 488-0133, Lakeview; Reginellis.com. L, D daily. Pizzas, pastas, salads, fat calzones and lofty focaccia sandwiches are on tap at locations all over town. $$

Arnaud’s Remoulade 309 Bourbon St., 523-0377, French Quarter, Remoulade. com. L, D daily. Granite-topped tables and an antique mahogany bar are home to the eclectic menu of Famous Shrimp Arnaud, red beans and rice and poor boys as well as specialty burgers, grilled all-beef hot dogs and thin-crust pizza. $$

René Bistrot 700 Tchoupitoulas St., 613-2350, CBD/Warehouse District, LaCoteBrasserie.com. Br Sun, L Mon-Fri, D daily. Fresh local seafood, international ingredients and a contemporary atmosphere fill the room at this hotel restaurant near the Convention Center. $$$

Restaurant August 301 Tchoupitoulas St., 299-9777, CBD/Warehouse District, RestaurantAugust.com. L Mon-Fri, D daily. James Beard Award-winning chef (New Orleans Magazine’s Chef of the Year 2007) John Besh’s menu is based on classical techniques of Louisiana cuisine and produce with a splash of European flavor set in a historic carriage warehouse. $$$$$

R’evolution 777 Bienville St., 553-2277, French Quarter, RevolutionNola.com. L, D Mon-Fri, Br, D Sun, open late Fri-Sat. R’evolution is the partnership between chefs John Folse and Rick Tramonto. Located in the Royal Sonesta Hotel, it’s an opulent place that combines the local flavors of chef Folse with the more cosmopolitan influence of chef Tramonto. Chef de cuisine Chris Lusk and executive sous chef Erik Veney are in charge of day-to-day operations, which include house-made charcuterie, pastries, pastas and more. New Orleans Magazine’s 2012 Restaurant of the Year. $$$$$

Ristorante Da Piero 401 Williams Blvd., 469-8585, Kenner, RistoranteDaPiero.com. L, D Tue-Sat. Homemade pastas and an emphasis on Northern Italian cuisine make this cozy spot in Kenner’s Rivertown a romantic destination. $

Rib Room Omni Royal Orleans Hotel, 621 St. Louis St., 529-7046, French Quarter, RibRoomNewOrleans.com. Br Sat-Sun, L, D daily. Old World elegance, high ceilings and views of Royal Street, house classic cocktails

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Rio Mar 800 S. Peters St., 525-3474, CBD/ Warehouse District, RioMarSeafood.com. L Mon-Fri, D Mon-Sat. Seafood-centric Warehouse District destination focuses on Latin American and Spanish cuisines. Try the bacalaitos and the escabeche. The tapas lunch is a great way to try a little of everything. Save room for the Tres Leches, a favorite dessert. New Orleans Magazine’s Chef of the Year 2006. $$$$

Ristorante Filippo 1917 Ridgelake Drive, 835-4008, Metairie. L, D Tue-Sat. CreoleItalian destination serves up southern Italian specialties bathed in red sauces and cheese alongside New Orleans classics like pan-fried Gulf fish and plump shellfish. $$$ River 127 Westin New Orleans Canal Place, 100 Rue Iberville, 533-5082, French Quarter. B, L, D daily. Continental cuisine with Louisiana flare in a dining room that overlooks the Mississippi River and French Quarter. $$$$

Rivershack Tavern 3449 River Road, 8344938, Jefferson, TheRivershackTavern.com. L, D daily. Home of the Tacky Ashtray, this popular bar alongside the Mississippi levee offers surprisingly wide-ranging menu featuring seafood, poor boys and deli-style sandwiches along with live music. Open late. $

Rock-N-Sake 823 Fulton St., 581-7253, CBD/Warehouse District, RockNSake.com. L Fri, D Tue-Sun. Enjoy fresh sushi along with contemporary takes on Japanese favorites in this club-like setting in the Warehouse District. Open until midnight on Fri. and Sat., this makes for a unique late-night destination. $$$

Root 200 Julia St., 252-9480, CBD, RootNola.com. L Mon-Fri, D daily. Chef Philip Lopez opened Root in November 2011 and has garnered a loyal following for his modernist, eclectic cuisine. Try the Korean fried chicken wings and the Cohiba-smoked scallops crusted with chorizo. New Orleans Magazine’s 2012 Maître D’ of the Year. $$$$ Royal Blend Coffee and Tea House 621 Royal St., 523-2716, French Quarter; 204 Metairie Road, 835-7779, Metairie; RoyalBlendCoffee.com. B, L daily. Known for their frozen Café Glace and a wide selection of coffees and teas, as well as pastries, daily specials and hearty breakfasts. $

Ruth’s Chris Steak House 3633 Veterans Blvd., 888-3600, Metairie. L Fri, D daily, Br Sat-Sun; 525 Fulton St. in Harrah’s Hotel, 587-7099, L, D daily, Br Sat-Sun; RuthsChris. com. Filet Mignon, creamed spinach and potatoes au gratin are the most popular dishes at this area steak institution, but there are also great seafood choices and top-notch desserts. $$$$$ Sake Café 2830 Magazine St., 894-0033, Uptown, SakeCafeUptown.com. L, D daily. Creative and traditional Japanese food in an ultramodern décor. Sushi and sashimi boats, wild rolls filled with the usual and not-so-

Sammy’s Po-Boys and Catering

Satsuma Café 3218 Dauphine St., 3045962, Bywater; 7901 Maple St., 309-5557, Uptown; SatsumaCafe.com. B, L daily (until 7 p.m.). Two locations offer healthy, inspired breakfast and lunch fare, along with freshly squeezed juices. $

Semolina 4436 Veterans Blvd., Suite 37, Metairie, 454-7930, Semolina.com. L, D daily. This casual, contemporary pasta restaurant takes a bold approach to cooking Italian food, emphasizing flavors, texture and color; many of the dishes feature a signature Louisiana twist, such as the Muffuletta Pasta and Pasta Jambalaya. Popular entrées include Grilled Chicken Alfredo, Chicken Marsala and Veal Parmesan. $$

Serendipity 3700 Orleans Ave. 407-0818, Mid-City, SerendipityNola.com. D daily. Chef Chris DeBarr brings his eclectic and far-ranging style of cuisine and classically inspired cocktails to an outpost in American Can. A late-night option as well. $$

Slice 1513 St. Charles Ave., 525-7437, Uptown; 5538 Magazine St., 897-4800; SlicePizzeria.com. L, D Mon-Sat. Order up slices or whole pizza pies done in several styles (thin- and thick-crust) as well as pastas, seafood, paninis and salads. $

Slim Goodies Diner 3322 Magazine St., 891-EGGS (3447). B, L daily. This diner offers up an exhaustive menu heavily influenced by local cuisine. Try the Creole Slammer, a breakfast platter rounded out with Crawfish Étouffée. The laid-back vibe is best enjoyed on the patio out back. $

SoBou 310 Chartres St., 552-4095, French Quarter, SoBouNola.com. B, L, D daily. There is something for everyone at this “Modern Creole Saloon,” the latest offering from the Commander’s Restaurant Family. Decidedly unstuffy with an emphasis on craft cocktails and wines by the glass, diners will find everything from $1 pork cracklins to an extravagant foie gras burger on the accomplished yet eclectic menus. $$

Highway, 391-0053, Gretna; SunRayGrill. com. L, D daily, Br Sun (at Annunciation). This local chain offers a globally influenced menu with burgers, steaks, sesame crusted tuna, sandwiches and salads. $$

Surrey’s Café and Juice Bar 1418 Magazine St., 524-3828, Coliseum Square; 4807 Magazine St., 895-5757, Uptown; SurreysCafeAndJuiceBar.com. B, L daily. Laid-back café focuses on breakfast and brunch dishes to accompany freshly squeezed juice offerings. Health-food lovers will like it here, along with fans of favorites such as peanut butter and banana pancakes. Note: Cash only. $$

Tan Dinh 1705 Lafayette St., 361-8008, Gretna. B, L, D Wed-Mon. Roasted quail and the beef pho rule at this Vietnamese outpost. New Orleans Magazine’s 2010 Vietnamese Restaurant of the Year. $$ Theo’s Pizza 4218 Magazine St., 8948554, Uptown; 4024 Canal, 302-1133, MidCity; 1212 S. Clearview Parkway, 733-3803, Elmwood TheosPizza.com. L, D daily. The thin, cracker-crisp crust pizzas are complemented by the broad assortment of toppings which include a lot of local ingredients. Cheap prices make this an economical and delicious choice. $$ Three Muses 536 Frenchmen St., 2524801, Marigny, TheThreeMuses.com. D Sun-Mon, Wed, Fri-Sat. Three Muses is a bar-restaurant serving the eclectic cuisine of chef Daniel Esses. The menu changes, but expect Esses’ take on Italian, Spanish, North African and Korean cooking. Local bands provide music on a regular basis. $ Tommy’s Cuisine 746 Tchoupitoulas St., 581-1103, CBD/Warehouse District, TommysNewOrleans.com. D daily. Classic Creole-Italian cuisine is the name of the game at this upscale eatery. Appetizers include the namesake Oysters Tommy, baked in the shell with Romano cheese, pancetta and roasted red pepper. $$$$$

Tony Angello’s 6262 Fleur de Lis Drive, 488-0888. Lakeview. D Tue-Sat. CreoleItalian favorite serves up fare in the completely restored Lakeview location. Ask Tony to “Feed Me” if you want a real multi-course dining experience. New Orleans Magazine’s 2010 Traditional New Orleans Italian Restaurant of the Year. $$$$

Snug Harbor 626 Frenchman St., 9490696, Faubourg Marigny, SnugJazz.com. D daily. The city’s premier jazz club serves cocktails and a dining menu loaded with steaks, seafood and meaty burgers served with loaded baked potatoes. $$$$

Tout de Suite Cafe 347 Verret St., 3622264, Algiers. B, L, D daily. Neighborhood coffeehouse/café in historic Algiers Point offers a light menu of soups, salads and sandwiches for a quick meal or carryout. $$

Stein’s Market and Deli 2207 Magazine

Magazine St., 897-5413, TraeysNola.com, Uptown. L, D daily. A neighborhood bar with one of the best messy roast beef poor boys in town. The gumbo, cheeseburger poor boy and other sandwiches are also winners. Grab a local Abita beer to wash it all down. Also a great location to watch “the game.” $

St., 527-0771, Uptown, SteinsDeli.net. B, L, D Tue-Sun. New York meets New Orleans. The Reuben and Rachel sandwiches are the real deal and the half-sours and pickled tomatoes complete the deli experience. $

Stella! 1032 Chartres St., 587-0091, French Quarter, RestaurantStella.com. D daily. Global cuisine with a Louisiana blush by native son chef Scott Boswell. Dishes are always inventive and flavorful from appetizer to dessert. The wine list is bold and the service “stellar.” Boswell was New Orleans Magazine’s 2005 Chef of the Year. $$$$$ Sun Ray Grill 619 Pink St., 837-0055, Old Metairie; 1051 Annunciation St., 566-0021, CBD/Warehouse District; 2600 Belle Chasse

Tracey’s Irish Restaurant & Bar 2604

Trey Yuen 600 N. Causeway Blvd., (985) 626-4476, Mandeville, TreyYuen.com. L Tue-Fri & Sun, D Tue-Sun. Chinese cuisine meets with local seafood in dishes like their Szechuan Spicy Alligator and Tong Cho Crawfish; private rooms available. $$ Tujague’s 823 Decatur St., 525-8676, French Quarter, TujaguesRestaurant.com. D daily. For more than 150 years this landmark restaurant has been offering Creole cuisine.

Favorites include a nightly six-course table d’hôté menu featuring a unique Beef Brisket with Creole Sauce. New Orleans Magazine’s Honor Roll honoree 2008. $$$$$

Warehouse District. B, L, D daily. Chef Tom Wolfe brings his refined cuisine to the booming Fulton Street corridor. His Smoked Kobe Short Ribs are a good choice. $$$

Upperline 1413 Upperline St., 891-9822,

Ye Olde College Inn 3000 S. Carrollton

Uptown, Upperline.com. D Wed-Sun. Consummate hostess JoAnn Clevenger and talented chef Dave Bridges make for a winning combination at this nationally heralded Uptown favorite, New Orleans Magazine’s 2012 Honor Roll winner. The oft-copied Fried Green Tomatoes with Shrimp Remoulade originated here. $$$$

Ave., 866-3683, Uptown, CollegeInn1933. com. D Tue-Sat. The institution moved next door into brand-new digs but serves up the same classic fare, albeit with a few new upscale dishes peppering the menu. $$$

Vega Tapas Café 2051 Metairie Road, 836-2007, Metairie. D Mon-Sat. Innovative establishment offers fresh seafood, grilled meats and vegetarian dishes in a chic environment. Daily chef specials showcase unique ingredients and make this place a popular destination for dates as well as groups of friends. $$ Venezia 134 N. Carrollton Ave., 488-7991, Mid-City, VeneziaNewOrleans.com. L Wed-Fri & Sun, D Wed-Sun. Casual neighborhood Italian destination known for its thin-crust pizzas. Good lunch specials make this a popular choice as well. $$ Vincent’s Italian Cuisine 4411 Chastant St., 885-2984, Metairie, L TueFri, D Mon-Sat; 7839 St. Charles Ave., 866-9313, Uptown. L Tue-Fri, D Tue-Sun; VicentsItalianCuisine.com. Snug Italian boîte packs them in yet manages to remain intimate at the same time. The cannelloni is a house specialty. $$$

Yuki Izakaya 525 Frenchmen St., 9431122, Marigny. D daily. Authentic Japanese Izakaya serves small plates to late-night crowds at this unique destination. Try the Hokke Fish or the Agedashi Tofu. An excellent sake menu rounds out the appeal, as does the sexy, club-like ambiance. $ Zea’s Rotisserie and Bar 1525 St. Charles Ave., Lower Garden District, 520-8100; 1655 Hickory Ave, Harahan, 738-0799; 4450 Veterans Memorial Blvd., Metairie, 780-9090; 1325 West Esplanade, Kenner, 468-7733; 1121 Manhattan Blvd., Harvey, 361-8293; 110 Lake Drive, Covington, (985) 327-0520, ZeaRestaurants.com. L, D daily. This popular restaurant serves a variety of grilled items as well as appetizers, salads, side dishes, seafood, pasta and other entrées, drawing from a wide range of worldly influences. Zea’s also offers catering services. $$$

Wolfe’s in the Warehouse 859

Zoë Restaurant W New Orleans Hotel, 333 Poydras St., 2nd Floor, 207-5018, ZoeNewOrleans.com. B, L daily. Completely redone in both décor and cuisine, each section features a separate menu by executive chef Chris Brown. $$$

Convention Center Blvd., 613-2882, CBD/

SPECIALTY FOODS

Antoine’s Annex 513 Royal St., 525-8045, French Quarter, Antoines.com/AntoinesAnnex. Open daily. Around the corner from the oldest continuously operated restaurant in the country, Antoine’s Annex serves French pastries, including individual baked Alaskas, ice cream and gelato, as well as panini, salads and coffee. They also deliver. Bee Sweet Cupcakes 5706 Magazine St., 891-8333, Uptown, BeeSweetCupcakes.net. Open Mon-Sat. Tiny shop sells its namesake treats with a New Orleans twist. Try the Bananas Foster or the Pralines and Cream flavors. Daily specials are offered, as well as catering orders for weddings and parties. Bittersweet Confections 725 Magazine St., 523-2626, Warehouse District, BittersweetConfections.com. Open MonSat. Freshly baked cookies, cupcakes and specialty cakes. Serving handmade chocolate truffles, fudge, caramels, gelato, ice coffee, chocolate-dipped strawberries and freshly squeezed lemonade. Children’s birthday parties, chocolate tasting parties, custom chocolates and truffle party bar. Call for details. Blue Dot Donuts 4301 Canal St., 2184866, Mid-City, BlueDotDonuts.com. B, L daily. Heard the one about the cops that opened a donut shop? This is no joke. The Bacon Maple Long John gets all the press, but returning customers are happy with the classics as well as twists like peanut butter and jelly. New Orleans Magazine’s 2012 Doughnut Shop of the Year.

boutique a great place for gifts.

Calcasieu 930 Tchoupitoulas St., 588-2188, Warehouse District, CalcasieuRooms.com. Located in the second floor of a renovated warehouse, above Cochon and Cochon Butcher, is a place to host gatherings both large and small. Catering menus feature modern Louisiana cooking and the Cajun cuisine for which chef Donald Link is justifiably famous.

Magic Seasonings Mail Order (800) 4572857. Offers chef Paul Prudhomme’s famous cookbooks, smoked meats, videos, seasonings and more. Online shopping available at shop. ChefPaul.com/Seasonings. St. James Cheese Company 5004 Prytania St., 899-4737, Uptown, StJamesCheese.com. Open daily. Specialty shop offers a selection of fine cheeses, wines, beers and related accouterments. Look for wine and cheese specials every Friday.

Sucré 3025 Magazine St., 520-8311; 3301 Veterans Blvd., 834-2277; ShopSucre.com. Desserts daily & nightly. Open late weekends. Chocolates, pastry and gelato draw rave reviews at this new dessert destination. Beautiful packaging makes this a great place to shop for gifts. Catering available.

Blue Frog Chocolates 5707 Magazine St., 269-5707, Uptown, BlueFrogChocolate.com. Open daily. French and Belgian chocolate truffles and Italian candy flowers make this

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February 13, 1872 – New Orleans

For George Armstrong Custer, the occasion of the first Rex parade on Feb. 13, 1872, was one of the few marches in his adult life in which he was a spectator and not a participant. Custer, whose military service wasn’t far removed from the bloody days of the Civil War and his heroics at Bull Run and Gettysburg, now had a more civil assignment. He was accompanying the Russian Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich on his tour of the country, including hunting buffalo in Nebraska. Now the itinerary called for a stop in New Orleans where the French tradition of celebrating Mardi Gras was being embellished by the Americans in the form of a debuting parade headed by a newly created King of Carnival named Rex. Custer, whose interest in New Orleans also included the recently opened Fair Grounds racetrack, was a second-tier celebrity among the stellar folks who happened to be in town that day. First there was the Grand Duke himself, bonafide royalty seldom seen in this frontier town. There was Dan Rice, whose traveling horse show in those pre-Barnum days was one of the biggest names in American circuses. Lawrence Barrett, the distinguished Shakespearean, was performing locally and even loaned Rex his Richard III costume for his ride. There were also two renowned burlesque performers, Lydia Thompson and Lotta Crabtree, both major stars in their profession. Eventually it would be Custer’s name that would be best remembered, though for a tragic reason. That day, as the first Rex parade made its march, some concerned New Orleanians were trying to return the city to civility after the upheaval of the Civil War. Reconstruction continued, but the city, like many Southern towns, was trying to reach out to the nation by providing an event worth coming to see. The railroads did their mightiest to spread the message. Yet for all the attempts to heal wounds, the nation was filled with many young men, former soldiers from both sides of the war, who had known nothing but violence during their formative years. While New Orleans tried to be peaceful the lands to the west – Texas and beyond – were wilder. Banks and railroads, symbols of the monopolizing rich, were targets for robberies. Another problem was an internal nation of American Indians that felt betrayed,

and in many ways was. By 1872, New Orleans already had two established night parades, the Mystick CARNIVAL ’14 Krewe of Comus and Twelfth Night Revelers, but Rex would set a new template – a daytime parade designed to make something more useful out of Carnival. Later that year, on New Year’s Eve 1872, the Knights of Momus would debut. A decade later the Krewe of Proteus arrived on the streets. Those years, from 1872 to 1882, were formative periods in Carnival; they were also the peak years in the legends of the American West. The era’s most famous characters and bloodiest battles splattered the history books during that period. (In the same year as Rex’s premiere, a civilian scout who helped the Army hunt Indians and buffalo was awarded the Medal of Honor. He had also been part of the entourage when the Grand Duke went hunting for buffalo. He had arranged for him to meet local Indian Chiefs and had even lent the Duke a pony to ride for the hunt. His name was Bill Cody. More would be heard from him later.) The parallel between Carnival and the West wasn’t just coincidence – both had to do with a nation rebuilding itself and expanding after the war; both were influenced, for better or worse, by men who had fought in that war. There would be one key difference though: by 1882, the New Orleans Mardi Gras was still early in what would be rampant growth, and by that same year the days of the untamed west were ending. Two cultural phenomena had arrived at the same corner of time, then headed in different directions. Of the years between 1872 and 1882, the most pivotal was 1876. Three events happened that shaped the image of the west: “Old King Cole,” float design for Twelfth Night Revelers’ 1871 pageant.

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June 25, 1876 – Little Bighorn, Montana

August 2, 1876 – Deadwood, South Dakota

America should have been a happier place in the summer of 1872. The nation, now united again, was only nine days away from celebrating the centennial of its Declaration of Independence, however on June 25, the country suffered a tragic loss. Not only was Lt. Colonel George Armstrong Custer’s army eliminated by an Indian army consisting of Lakota, Cheyenne and Arapaho tribes, but the bodies of the 268 soldiers, some sons of church-going American moms, were mutilated so as, the attackers believed, to deny them the ability to fight in the afterlife. For Chief Crazy Horse and his tribal confederacy, it was a knock-out victory, yet it was also the beginning of the end. News of the massacre and mutilations, especially coming so close to the patriotic fervor of the Centennial celebration, created national outrage. The United States government would prove many times in the years ahead that once attacked it would come back hitting hard. Receiving the news, likely in St. Petersburg, Russia, of his former hunting companion’s death was the Grand Duke Alexei, now 26. He, too, would have a military career, though his was befitting someone whose dad was the Czar. He would eventually be put in charge of the Russian navy, for which he was given credit for modernization and blame for a key defeat in battle. His last years were spent in Paris safely away from the Russian revolution. Curiously, though French in origin, Mardi Gras was never an elaborate celebration in the French capitol. Most likely, New Orleans provided the Grand Duke the most extravagant Carnival he had ever seen.

A bullet to the back of the head, while playing poker in a saloon, ended the life of Wild Bill Hickok who, during his career, had been a crime-busting lawman and a criminal himself. During the Civil War, he had fought with the Union Army as a Teamster, soldier and spy. His exploits, including chasing out the bad guys in Hays and Abilene, Kan., made him the stuff of legend; so much so that he became one of the nation’s first dime novel and comic book characters. His soaring fame propelled him into a second career: Wild West Shows. In 1873 he had joined his longtime friend, Bill Cody, in a play called Scouts of the Plain. The West was becoming a marketable storyline and big names such as Hickok helped sell tickets. The genre of the Wild West Show was emerging and one day it would have its impact on New Orleans culture. September 7, 1876 – Northfield, Minnesota

If anyone from New Orleans happened to be on Division Street in that town on that date, they were possibly in the line of fire. They might not ever have known that what happened also had a connection to New Orleans. A gang consisting of Jesse James, his brother Frank and fellow thugs joined with the Cole Younger gang to rob the First National Bank of Northfield. For the outlaws, it was a disastrous decision. During the Civil War, James, a native of Missouri, had joined a ruthless guerrilla outfit fighting for the confederacy. He would build a post-war career of robbing banks and trains from his skills. As an outlaw he enjoyed great success, until Northfield. A bank teller was shot and killed, as was a pedestrian. The town’s people, sensing something was wrong, and many carrying rifles because it was An artist’s sketch “Boeuf Gras in the Triumph of Epicurus” for Comus,1867.

George Armstrong Custer, left, accompanied Russian Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich, above, in a Mardi Gras visit in 1872. Benjamin Butler, left, the Union commander in charge of New Orleans’ occupation, had a large interest in the Minnesota bank that Jesse James, above, and his gang attempted to rob in 1876.

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hunting season, had surrounded the bank. Two members of the James gang were killed; three of the Younger group were injured and subsequently captured. The James brothers escaped, though wounded; their outlaw career would never be the same. Why had they journeyed all the way to Minnesota to rob a bank? Well for one, they were wanted in Missouri, but also anything with Union connections was a popular target in those days. The gang had learned that a major investor in the bank was Adelbert Ames, a former Governor of Mississippi and a former Union Commander who was by then a resident of Northfield. Ames was the son-in-law of none other than Benjamin Butler, the Union General tyrant who had ruled New Orleans during Federal occupation and who, for good reason, was known as “Beast.” Butler also had large assets in the bank. Here was a chance for the gang to steal Butler’s money and his son-in-law’s too. Many southerners would have cheered the effort. This botched robbery by Confederate renegades attacking the assets of Union generals has been referred to as the “last battle of the Civil War.” It was also a pivotal moment in the history of the Wild West. The outlaws who were once cheered for robbing from the rich, were being fired at from town folk who wanted stability in their lives. Jesse and Frank James hid wounded, tired and poor from a robbery that yielded little cash. Less than three months after Little Bighorn the West was changing. For its 1876 parade Rex’s theme incorporated a Persian and Egyptian motif. Included in the march was Rex’s “Imperial army” consisting of “knights in armor.” War . Warfare, back when it was fought with lances and shields, seemed far more civilized.

Into the Future October 26, 1881 – Tombstone, Arizona

Proteus’ debut parade was Mon., Feb. 20, 1882. In the days preceding the parade surely the men of Proteus must have heard about a shootout in Arizona that occurred less than four months earlier near a place forever identified as The OK Corral. In it the Earp brothers, Virgil, Morgan and Wyatt, along with sidekick Doc Holliday, shot it out with the Clanton gang. The Earps won. The gunfight would be immortalized in books, and eventually, movies. However, for Victorian gentlemen of the upper class, such as Proteus’ founders, the legends they drew from were from another world. Their tales were of the ancient past. Eventually the world would become fascinated with stories of the American West but by 1882 the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 had made Egypt the hot topic. Proteus’s debut theme reflected that with “Ancient Egyptian Theology.” Likely among Proteus’ members were former soldiers who had marched in the Civil War. Float titles such as “Nuth, or the Festival of the Lamps,” were esoteric, as was the tradition among the early krewes. The old soldiers were just glad to be able to march in peace. December 12, 1884 – New Orleans

Bill Cody, the former scout who in 1872 (the year of Rex’s founding) had received the Medal of Honor from the U.S. Army, and who assisted in the Grand Duke’s buffalo hunt, had developed a new career. Now using the nickname “Buffalo,” he had developed a Wild West Show that tried to capture, for global audiences, some of the excitement of the Old West. On Dec. 12 of that year, Buffalo Bill’s Wild

“New Orleans Carnival,” an 1880 lithograph for the official journal of Rex. In 1881 Wyatt Earp, left, along with his brothers and Doc Holiday, prevailed in the shootout at OK Corral and henceforth were immortalized in books and movies. Below, a watercolor design for Proteus’ 1882 debut, themed “Ancient Egyptian Theology.”

Above, Sitting Bull and Buffalo Bill Cody performed their “Wild West Show” in New Orleans in 1884. In early 1885, the black-based Mardi Gras Indian tribe called Creole Wild West made its debut.

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West Show arrived in New Orleans for an extended stay timed to parallel the World Industrial and Cotton Centennial Exposition (today’s version of a world’s fair) also being held in the city. Staying in town through April 11, 1885, the show drew huge crowds despite hardships caused by blasts of bad weather. For many locals it was an awakening. There were enacted gunfights, cowboys, stage robberies, Indians and Cody himself all on one field. Among those who watched the spectacle were local blacks. Their ancestors had found some connection with native Choctaw Indians as fellow outcasts. But the Choctaws, whose wardrobe was largely pelts, were not anything like the Plains Indians who frolicked at Buffalo Bill’s shows in their feathery war bonnets. There developed a fascination between native blacks and Plains Indian culture. In early 1885 a few dozen Plains Indians, part of the Wild West Show, walked along New Orleans streets. That Mardi Gras, a black-based Mardi Gras Indian tribe called Creole Wild West made its debut. At that moment, the Old West had staged its biggest impact on the New Orleans Mardi Gras, having inspired the evolution of the Mardi Gras Indians. As the tradition evolved the chants and customs would be largely Afro-Caribbean, but the look would be that of the West.

January 22, 1879 – Isanwanda, South Africa

Probe the evolution of cultural celebrations and there is much to be revealed about history and its people. In 1879, only two and half years after Little Bighorn, something happened in another part of the world that resembled Custer’s fall. The world would be stunned that an African tribe completely wiped out a British force of 1,200. The tribe was called the Zulus. Like Little Bighorn the forces of an indigenous people had annihilated a superior largely Anglo army. Like Bighorn the battle was a temporary set back for expansion. Like Bighorn the conquered force would come back strong and eventually subdue their enemy. Like Bighorn the underdog winners would inspire the world’s other downtrodden people. Nowhere was it expressed better than in New Orleans where the black culture would honor the Indians with street dances and Zulu with a parade. Ultimately Mardi Gras in New Orleans would create theater of its own by providing a street stage for Carnival Kings influenced by Europe; Warriors influenced by Africa and Big Chiefs influenced by the American West. It would become the grandest show of all.

Two Shows, One Town

Early 1885 was a busy time in New Orleans. In December of the year before, the World Industrial and Cotton Centennial Exposition had opened at the site now occupied by Audubon Park. The event, created to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the cotton industry in America, lasted until May. Taking advantage of the expected crowds was Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show, which also arrived in late December and stayed until late April. That show was held at Oakland Park, the site of today’s New Orleans Country Club. Rex of 1885, J.H. Maury, made an official visit to the Cotton Centennial. There is no evidence that he did the same for Buffalo Bill, though he had ample time to view the show as a spectator. Though the Wild West Show was troubled with bad weather it was nevertheless a big attraction. Buffalo Bill became quite popular. A 1975 article by William Deahl Jr. in the academic journal Louisiana History quoted Times-Picayune coverage of the closing days in which Cody himself performed a shooting demonstration, hitting 47 out of 50 glass balls from a range of 18 feet. Cody than visited the grandstand and was presented with a watch as

memento of his stay, Deahl concluded: Thousands of amusement seekers passed through its gates to witness romanticized experiences of America’s western settlers and applauded the appearance of William “Buffalo Bill” Cody. Each show had its message though one was far more romanticized: The Cotton Centennial honored enterprise, but the Wild West Show was about adventure. – E . L .

Acknowledgements: Louisiana History, The Mistick Krewe (Perry Young); Krewe (Errol Laborde), Arthur Hardy, Mary Lou Eichhorn

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Day Pa r a d e s 1. Rex. “Gods of All Ages” is this year’s Rex theme. The topic reflects gods and goddesses from antiquity. Rex works hard at developing an original theme and displaying it brilliantly on its floats. To show you how seriously Rex takes its themes, its announcement says: “Since the beginning of time, man has searched for something greater, some force or entity beyond his harsh mortal sphere.” Among its regular “signature floats” look for the Butterfly King based on a design from Rex’s 1882 parade as well as His Majesty’s Bandwagon, the Boeuf Gras, the Royal Barge, and of course, the regal throne float carrying Rex himself. Having first paraded in 1872, the King of Carnival’s annual procession is the longest running parade in Carnival. Rex is about tradition, style and elegance – a classic New Orleans Carnival parade. Mardi Gras, St.

5. Carrollton. With roots that trace back to 1924, this year will mark the 90th anniversary of the group from which the Krewe of Carrollton evolved 67 years ago. There is nothing flashy here, but the krewe owns its own den and floats, and is certainly a staple in the Carnival menu. The first Sunday slot makes this a feel-good parade. For many people seeing Carrollton, the fourth oldest continuously parad-

Charles Avenue, noon 6. Pontchartrain. Lately this krewe

has had a creative approach to its theme by presenting a word game with each float offering a different puzzle, which is more fun than looking at a force-fed theme. Look for the Super Grouper float. Parading on the first Saturday of the parade season, this krewe kicks off the daytime parades. There is usually a good mix of bands. Sat., Feb. 22, St. Charles Avenue, 1 p.m. 7. Tucks. “Tucks Lives the Sportin’

CARNIVAL ’14

Life” is the 2014 theme of this krewe known for its irreverence and Animal House feel. While some krewes get their name from mythology, Tucks was named after a bar, Friar Tucks, where a couple of Loyola University students decided to create their own parade, ostensibly because they couldn’t land positions as white flambeaux. Not fancy, a bit naughty, but lots of fun. Sat., March 1, St. Charles Avenue, noon 8. Iris. Parading since

Charles Avenue, 10 a.m. 2. Thoth. Now in its 66th year, the

krewe has a great Egyptian motif among its first few floats. It is a big and festive parade. An ambitious Uptown neighborhood route takes it past several care institutions. Approximately 1,200 riders are on board a total of 40 floats ranking it among Carnival’s biggest parades.

ing group, is a tradition that begins the Carnival season. Sun., Feb. 23, St.

Carnival’s Top 25 Parades (arranged by category)

Sun., March 2, St. Charles Avenue, noon 3. Mid-City. This is a good parade

1959, though the group was founded 42 years earlier, this is the oldest and biggest of the all-female parade krewes. Look for feathery maids costumes. The krewe, named for the Goddess of the Rainbow, claims more than 1,000 active riders. Sat., March 1, St. Charles Avenue, 11 a.m. 9. Okeanos. Named after the

Greek God of rivers, Okeanos, the god, would have felt at home in New Orleans along the father of waters. The krewe first paraded in 1950 to serve

for studying float design. Float builder Ricardo Pustanio works hard to give Carnival’s only all-foil floats a unique look. This year’s theme, “50 Shades of Green,” isn’t only innovative but it’s also the kind of theme that Mid-City can do best. On a sunny day the floats can be dazzling. Mid-City is Carnival’s fifth oldest continuously parading organization. Sun., March 2, St. Charles Avenue, 11:45 a.m. 4. Zulu. This is the only organization

that selects its monarch by popular election of its membership (see Persona, pg. 20). Now in its second century, Zulu, whose mission was to give local blacks a parade of their own, is big and brassy, and lately more on time. It is a Carnival favorite. Mardi

Krewe of Rex

Gras, St. Charles Avenue, 8 a.m. M itchel O sborne P hotograph

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made its debut last year. The parade will have more than 2,700 masked riders. Sat.,

Krewe of Chaos

March 1, Canal Street, 4:15 p.m. Orpheus. Fats Domino will

the St. Claude area of town, but eventually moved to the Uptown route. Its Queen is selected at the coronation ball by lottery. There is nothing flashy, but this is a good, old-fashioned, traditional parade to enliven the Sunday afternoon before Mardi Gras. Sun., March 2, St. Charles Avenue, 11 a.m. 10. King Arthur. This krewe refers to

itself as “New Orleans’ Friendliest Mardi Gras Krewe.” While we cannot quantify that, we suppose that it speaks well for the krewe that friendliness is worth noting. Some of this parade resurfaces as the Krewe of Excalibur in Metairie. There are nice floats, especially early in the parade Sun., Feb. 23, St. Charles Avenue, follows Carrollton

S U P ER K RE W ES A three-way tie: Endymion is the biggest. Orpheus is the prettiest. Bacchus has the history. Bacchus. Actor Hugh Laurie will serve as Bacchus XLIV, leading a parade with the theme “Bacchus Salutes the Seven Seas.” (By our unofficial count, he’ll be the second British born Bacchus since Bob Hope.) Bacchus always draws a huge crowd to gaze at its towering floats. Among the signature floats, look for the Bacchawhoppa and the Bacchagator. Sun., March 2, St. Charles Avenue, 5:15 p.m. Endymion. The only parade to march

along Canal Street, the parade’s coming is a weekend-long social event. There is a lot to behold in this, Carnival’s biggest parade. There is no celebrity King (the crown is worn by a member drawn from a lottery), but there are many big names riding as grand marshals or celebrity guests, including country singer Carrie Underwood. Look for the seven-part Pontchartain Beach tandem float that 82

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be setting a new precedent in this year’s Orpheus parade. He will be Grand Marshall, but he won’t be there. Instead the reclusive R&B’er will be represented by family members, and his signature will be on commemorative posters. Orpheus has the size of a super krewe and the design elements of the old-line groups. It has great walking units, too, and is one of Carnival’s prettiest parades. Lundi Gras, St. Charles Avenue, 6 p.m.

N I GH T PARA D ES 1. Proteus. Do not be concerned with catching throws when watching this parade. By the time it passes on Lundi Gras night you should have way more than you need, anyway. Instead, appreciate Proteus for the floats – and the history. Born in the 19th century, Carnival’s only surviving nighttime 19thcentury parade is something to behold, for its design and its tradition. (Last year it staged a parade worthy of the history books as it saluted krewes from the past, though the march was mercilessly battered by rain.) Proteus is more than a parade. It is historic preservation. Lundi Gras, St. Charles Avenue, 5:15 p.m. 2. Le Krewe d’Etat. This is the only

krewe in which the throne float is ridden by a dictator rather than a king. The krewe has all original floats and its own house-made flambeaux torches. This is one of Carnival’s most popular krewes, featuring good design, biting satire and great walking groups. Fri., Feb. 28, St. Charles Avenue, 6:30 p.m. 3. Hermes. Hermes will be

celebrating its 75th presentation as a parading organization this year. This is the krewe that, in the 1930s, expanded participation in Carnival and would be the first to introduce neon lighting on floats. The parade is

always visually exciting; it’s always one of Carnival’s most glamorous. Fri., Feb. 28, St. Charles Avenue, 6 p.m. 4. Muses. Having begun in the year

2000, this organization has had a major impact on Carnival by dramatically expanding female participation. It also increased the quality and quantity of marching groups and is rich with innovations such as its decorated highheeled shoes. This witty all-female krewe is a must-see. Thurs., Feb. 27, St. Charles Avenue, 6:30 p.m. 5. Chaos. Chaos is a chance to expe-

rience what a 19th century satirical parade was like. The design may be antique but the satire is topical. With deep roots to the old-line krewes Chaos provides satire in the spirit of the former Momus parade. Thurs., Feb. 27, St. Charles Avenue, 6:30 p.m. 6. Babylon. Neither the theme nor

the identity of the person playing the role of King Sargon are revealed by this group in the tradition of the old-style Mardi Gras. (Note the proper name is the “Knights” of Babylon, not “Krewe.”) If you’re obsessed with oversized floats this isn’t for you. If however, you want to see a classic parade, see the Knights. This parade, which has smaller float beds, like they used to be, and a theme that tells a story, is a Carnival classic. Thurs., Feb. 27, St. Charles Avenue, 5:45 p.m. 7. Sparta. This is usually the best

of the first weekend’s night parades. There are lots of nice touches, such as the mule-drawn King’s float, and the “shadow captain,” a boy dressed like the captain and riding behind him to represent continuity. Floats are usually nice and visual. Sat., Feb. 22, St. Charles Avenue, 6 p.m. 8. Ancient Druids. Parading on the

Wednesday before Mardi Gras, this group, made up of parade bosses from other krewes that want to have fun without the headaches, can be very Krewe of Proteus

M itchel O sborne P hotograph S

good. Its leadership certainly knows how to put on a parade in the spirit of the old Carnival krewes, including maintaining the secrecy of its members, monarch and theme. Wed., Feb. 26, St. Charles Avenue, 6:30 p.m. 9. Nyx. This will be the third year for

this all-female krewe and it deserves a break – rain has played havoc with the first two marches. In Greek mythology, Nyx was the Goddess of the Night. The krewe is adding sparkle to the Wednesday night before Mardi Gras by creating a double-header with the Druids parade that precedes it. Nyx is, no doubt, influenced by Muses, one of Carnival’s biggest contemporary success stories. Ridership for this new krewe filled quickly so, like Muses, Nyx is expanding its niche. We will be watching. Wed., Feb. 26, St. Charles Avenue, 7 p.m. 10. Morpheus. This krewe closes a

long parade night on the Friday evening before Mardi Gras. Its website promotes itself heavily to out of town riders who might be experiencing their first parade. Seasoned leadership could make this an up-and-coming group. Fri., Feb. 28, St. Charles Avenue, 7 p.m. 11. Pygmalion. Following Sparta, the

two provide a casual Saturday night double-header without the crush of the following week’s crowds. Sat., Feb. 22, St. Charles Avenue, 6:45 p.m.

BEST O F T HE ’ B U R B S Caesar. Look for the signature Hydra float (it’s pretty cool) as part of the only krewe named after a Roman Emperor’s 33rd procession. Sat., Feb. 22, Veterans Boulevard, 6 p.m. Moving on over. Three West Bank

krewes have now shifted to the St. Charles Avenue route: Cleopatra (Fri., Feb. 21, 6:30 p.m.), Choctaw (Sat., Feb. 22, following Pontchartrain) and ALLA (Sun., Feb. 23, following King Arthur). The move shows the decline of the suburban Mardi Gras and the growth (and perhaps over-growth) of the Uptown route. One good sign is that Jefferson Parish has upped the standards for its parades: Each must have at least 200 riders and 10 floats. So, while the number of parades may be decreasing, the quality could be increasing. Best date to remember. Feb. 17, Mardi

Hermes’ 75th

Spreading the word from the messenger god

So, just what is it that the Krewe of Hermes is celebrating the 75th of this year? The group started in 1937, so that would put its age at a spry 77, two years past diamond jubilee status. Instead, the hubbub is about an event just as meaningful, and perhaps more accurate, in chronicling Hermes history. There were two years during the big war when Hermes staged neither a ball nor a parade; this year then is the 75th anniversary of Hermes’ presentations. That is good enough for us. Pop the cork. Known as the Mystic Krewe of Hermes and operating under the aegis of something called the Semreh Club (we’ll let you figure out that word’s origin), Hermes was founded during a boom period for Mardi Gras. Several parading krewes including Babylon (1939), Choctaw (’39) and Mid-City (’34) began during that decade, as well as a cotillion of groups that staged just a ball. Part of the excitement was the city’s new Municipal Auditorium, which had opened in 1930. The building was designed with two theaters, one larger than the other, each perfect for staging Carnival balls by providing ample floor space for grand marches and great sightlines from balconies. For parades there was the added advantage that the march could end along Basin Street, and then head toward the back of the building where riders would descend from their floats and head for the ball. Romping as royalty in a public building certainly demonstrated the democratizing of Carnival, as did the very existence of krewes such as Hermes. The group represented the new majority in the season, namely organizations whose membership wasn’t from the old family aristocracy, but more from the burgeoning businessbased middle class. Just as the founders of Rex had tried some six decades earlier to develop a parade to pull the city from the woes of Reconstruction, so too were business interests of the 1930s hoping to provide a tonic from the depression that would also expand Carnival activi-

ties and draw more people to the city. Among the boosters of the new krewe was Congressman F. Edward Hebert, who is said to have chosen the Hermes name. Frank Oser, a local physician, was the group’s first captain. Across the course of its 75 presentations, Hermes has distinguished itself in several ways: B It was the first parade to utilize neon lighting. B True to a krewe named after the messenger god, the parade has generally been known to travel at a well-timed pace. B It maintains the old school approach of having a theme built around a usually literary story with each float being a scene from the story. B Borrowing from the traditions of the old-line krewes, the identity of the masked Hermes King is always kept secret. B Hermes invariably stages a beautiful parade. It ranks, along with two other nighttime groups – Proteus and Orpheus – as being Carnival’s most visually enchanting. Kern Studios builds and paints the floats, which are designed by Scott Garver. Carnival aficionado Henri Schindler is the artistic director. Their efforts are seen during Hermes’ traditional march on the Friday night before Mardi Gras. For years Hermes marched alone at that spot, but since 1998 the popular Le Krewe d’Etat, a satirical parade, has followed the group. The combination of the two attract near Bacchus-sized crowds along the parade route and present an interesting mix among krewes; one known for its beauty, the other for its wit. To those who want more, the Krewe of Morpheus follows. Hermes represents the best of Mardi Gras: a classy krewe formed with a civic purpose, yet one that has been faithful to the style and tradition of the old Carnival. In the process it has grown stronger and stayed popular. All of that isn’t easy to pull off for nearly eight decades – reason enough to celebrate the year. –E.L.

Gras, 2015 myneworleans.com

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A mash-up of gems, stones and diamonds create an ideal music medley

BY Tracee Dundas Photographed by Eugenia Uhl

Heavy Metal Ethiopian opal and sapphire pendant and gold chain, both from Symmetry; sterling silver cutout cuff from Fleur D’Orléans; sterling silver and burgundy stone wrap ring, sterling silver guitar pendant and chain, both by Cristy Cali available at Adler’s.

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Rolling Stones 4.91 total carat weight fancy yellow diamond and 2.57 total carat weight white diamond bracelet, 5.35 total carat weight pavĂŠ diamond hoop earrings, 1.51 total carat weight pear-shape diamond ring, 2.01 total carat weight radiant yellow diamond surrounded by .74 total carat weight rounds and trapezoids diamond ring, all from Boudreauxâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Jewelers; 18 karat, 1.74 total carat weight pavĂŠ diamond band ring and 18 karat, 6.11 total carat weight diamond, 9.72 total carat weight emerald dangle earrings, both from Wellington & Company Fine Jewelers.

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Rock On Vintage gold and yellow pendant necklace and chandelier earrings, both from Stella & Dot; 18 karat vermeil quartz, natural stone statement ring and cutout cuff, both from Saint Germain.

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The Beat Goes On Brass-and-gold-plate lattice necklace from Stella & Dot; 14 karat and sterling topaz ring from Symmetry; chunky seafoam crystal cuff from Saint Germain; blue topaz earrings from Fleur Dâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;OrlĂŠans; gold spike bracelet from Stella & Dot.

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T o see what current tort issues fuel the

local legal community, I click on The Louisiana Record’s website a couple of times a month. The Record isn’t only a laundry list of all filed lawsuits, it also provides informative synopses of the more unusual, creative or otherwise notable court filings written in language that the non-legalminds can understand. Last October I saw a posting where a woman alleged that a Jefferson Parish hospital and some physicians missed an abnormal reading reported in a CT scan. Her husband had a scan prior to hernia surgery that showed a suspicious spot in his liver. Seven months after his hernia surgery, plagued with diarrhea and weight loss, by Brobson doctors diagnosed an advanced, metastatic cancer that may have been related to that earlier abnormal liver scan. The patient died shortly thereafter, and the lawsuit alleged a delay in diagnosis and a loss of a better outcome. “Failure to timely diagnose” malpractice lawsuits are common. While troublesome, lapses often make no difference in outcome, but sometimes delays do lead to missed opportunities for earlier effective therapies. But in this case, there was more. After her husband died, doctors diagnosed the wife with a heart problem “most commonly seen in postmenopausal women who have suffered the sudden loss of a loved one such as a spouse of many years.” The lawsuit demanded compensation both for her husband’s missed diagnosis and also for her heart condition caused by his death. Now, this was getting interesting. As is often the case, multiple physicians were named, including

the emergency room physician, the hospitalist, the surgeon and the man’s primary care physician, who is a “concierge physician:” He has limited his practice to a small number of patients who pay a monthly fee supposedly for more personalized care, while also taking care of nursing home patients. The lawsuit, which has been allotted to Judge Kern Reese’s court, identified the wife’s heart condition as Takotsubo cardiomyopathy. The name rang a bell, but I suspected the plaintiff had misspelled the condition. I remembered Takayasu’s disease, also called the pulseless disease. It was named after the Japanese physician who first described it, but it had nothing to do with stress. So then I searched for “takotsubo” on Lutz M.D. the Internet as it was spelled in the lawsuit. The result was about 220,000 hits. The first hit was a description of the condition in Wikipedia, the second hit was a Mayo Clinic maintained webpage titled “the broken heart.” My interest heightened, I emailed Dr. Edward St. Martin, the royal duke of common sense cardiology, for his take on all this. My usual emails to Dr. St. Martin go unacknowledged, or I receive a one- or two-word reply at most. I knew I had hit a hot button when I got back three whole paragraphs. “I have seen about a dozen cases over the years and remember vividly three women who had this before the condition was first described,” he wrote. “The cardinal feature is the sudden ‘in the moment’ stress. … The EKG and the striking appearance of the left ventricle by echocardiogram and angiography are striking and unmistakable. If I felt like making a PowerPoint, I could probably give a lecture on

Investigating Takotsubo cardiomyopathy

P olly B ecker I llustration , F A C I N G P A G E

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it tonight,” wrote St. Martin, who later answered some questions for me which I’ve edited below for space and clarity concerns. Lutz: Takotsubo cardiomyopathy: real or an Internet hoax? St. Martin:

Real.

What are the other names for Takotsubo cardiomyopathy?

Takotsubo cardiomyopathy was the term originally used in the Japanese literature in the 1990s. The other two names are stress cardiomyopathy and broken heart syndrome. Cardiomyopathy refers to any heart muscle disease. This disease was first described in the ’90s. The recent generation ... named it broken heart syndrome, but the scientific literature is definitive. All the cardiologists I know refer to it as “Takotsubo.” How is Takotsubo pronounced? Just say “tock – oh – sue – bow” with emphasis on “sue.” The “bow” is as in “bow and arrow” not as in “bow to the King.” Who was this Takotsubo whose name goes with the condition? A pot, not a person. The weakened left muscular chamber of the heart becomes stretched and distended. It takes on the nearly spherical shape of an octopus pot (Tako-tsubo in Japanese), a rounded globular piece of pottery that’s nearly spherical with a wide flared mouth resembling a fat pottery vase. Why did it take doctors so long to discover Takotsubo cardiomyopathy as a unique heart problem? Cardiac test-

arterial spasm including the coronary arteries supplying the heart. Blood pressure and heart rate increase. The body is calling for more work, yet the blood supply to the heart, which has had no time to warm up, is decreased. In biology, stress is defined as any change in the environment that evokes a response in the organism. Human beings are undoubtedly the king of the hill insofar as psychic stress. What happens with a classic heart attack? A classic heart attack is due to a blood clot triggered by arteriosclerosis in the coronary arteries resulting in a total blocking of a coronary artery with resultant deprivation of blood to a region of heart muscle. If the artery isn’t opened quickly, the heart muscle deprived of blood dies and is replaced by scar tissue leaving the heart weaker. Various abnormal rhythms may occur in a classic heart attack and some can be lethal. How does having Takotsubo cardiomyopathy compare to having a heart attack? These patients can be very sick on admission and

sometimes the damage to the left ventricle, the main pumping chamber of the heart, can be sufficient to put the patient into congestive heart failure. However, the outlook for total recovery is very good. The survival rate is much better than with heart attacks, and the likelihood of an ongoing or recurrent problem is close to zero. The affected heart muscle is likely The stress that would be more “stunned” than permanently damaged. Most patients undergo a claimed by most folks is chronic or nearly complete resoluday-in-and-day-out stress related to complete tion of the problem and return to a life in general. The stress that normal lifestyle.

ing advances. Immediate coronary angiography in people presenting with heart attack symptoms and precipitates Takotsubo Tell me about the cases of Takotsubo two-dimensional echocardiography cardiomyopathy you have diagnosed. were the diagnostic advances that cardiomyopathy is an acute When the initial descriptions of led to the recognition of Takotsubo stress different from that Takotsubo cardiomyopathy in the English cardiomyopathy. Early two-dimensional of daily life literature were published, I immediately echocardiography looking at the left venrecalled three women who clearly had had this tricle demonstrated the octopus trap appearing experience. syndrome. The first was a reporter who was robbed left ventricle in persons with symptoms of an acute at gunpoint in a dark parking lot after she was leavheart attack who had unexpected normal appearing ing her place of employment late at night. The next two coronary arteries by angiography. Who is at risk for Takotsubo cardiomyopathy? Most persons were women who lived alone, worked long hours, got home diagnosed with Takotsubo cardiomyopathy are middle-aged or at night, opened the door and were each met with a crowd in postmenopausal women. Virtually every patient has had a trigthe house exclaiming “happy birthday.” Each of the three undergering event causing a sudden release of adrenalin. In my expewent immediate coronary angiography revealing normal arteries. rience Takotsubo occurs relatively frequently in women who I also treated an elderly lady who experienced Takotsubo delivhave heart attack symptoms. ering the eulogy at her sister’s funeral and a number of others So what triggers Takotsubo cardiomyopathy? The people we see – about eight to 10 altogether. All of those whom I have followed with the syndrome have a sudden surprising emotional shock. long term have fully recovered. Almost all folks claim undue stress. Is it possible to be walking Suddenness, surprise, anger, fear and devastating loss are all around with stress cardiomyopathy and not even know it? The stress frequent precipitating events. The syndrome has been associthat would be claimed by most folks is chronic day-in-and-dayated with death of a family member, extremely emotional arguout stress related to life in general. The stress that precipitates ments, public speaking, devastating financial loss and surprise Takotsubo cardiomyopathy is an acute stress different from that birthday parties, among many others. Most often the stress has of daily life experience. In view of the usual presentation with to do with a family member. Tragic loss or illness, devastating acute severe chest pain and other features, such as shortness of news, marked anger and conflict are frequently present. The breath and the fact that the disease often gets much better withtriggering event isn’t always sudden or unpleasant. There was in a few days or weeks, it’s doubtful that an individual would be a case reported at a College of Cardiology meeting where an walking around with this condition and not even know it. elderly woman had inherited a huge sum of money and was Once a person has had stress cardiomyopathy will they get it again signing a check for $1 million to donate to her alma mater at a the next time they are under severe stress? Given what is known public event. So how do these triggers and stresses cause heart problems? The about the types of stress that produce Takotsubo cardiomyopatriggering event causes a sudden release of adrenalin, the “fight thy, it’s very unlikely that it will happen twice in the same indior flight” hormone. The sudden outpouring of adrenalin causes vidual. I am unaware of any such cases.

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Daily Blogs “Best Local Blog” by the Press Club of New Orleans. Restaurants Food Things To Do Home Garden Life n Style Hot Topics

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Lady of the Sea General Hospital 200 W. 134th Place, Cut Off (985) 632-6401, losgh.org Critical Access Hospital Provides Emergency Services Patient Rating: 83% Recommendation Percentage: 81%

Leonard J. Chabert Medical Center

What the Patients Say A Guide to Area Hospitals There is only one source for patient evaluation of hospitals, and that’s Medicare. Using the agency’s data, we compiled a list of those hospitals within the region that received a positive response from at least 50 percent of the patients surveyed when asked if they would “definitely recommend the hospital.” Listed here are those top-rated Louisiana hospitals within a 100-mile radius of New Orleans, excluding Baton Rouge. Under each, “Patient Rating” stands for “Patients who gave their hospital a rating of 9 or 10 on a scale from 0 (lowest) to 10 (highest)”; and “Recommendation Percentage” represents “Patients who reported that “Yes,” they would definitely recommend the hospital.” For more information, visit medicare.gov. COMPILED BY MORGAN PACKARD NEW ORLEANS/JEFFERSON

Charity Hospital & Medical Center of Louisiana at New Orleans 2021 Perdido St., 4th Floor, 9033000, mclno.org Acute Care Hospital Provides Emergency Services Patient Rating: 56% Recommendation Percentage: 60%

East Jefferson General Hospital 4200 Houma Blvd., Metairie 454-4000, ejgh.org, Acute Care Hospital Provides Emergency Services Patient Rating: 70% Recommendation Percentage: 77%

Fairway Medical Center 67252 Industry Lane, Covington, (985) 809-9888, FairwayMedical. com Acute Care Hospital Patient Rating: 85% Recommendation Percentage: 86%

Ochsner Medical Center 1516 Jefferson Highway,

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842-3000, Ochsner.org Acute Care Hospital Provides Emergency Services Patient Rating: 64% Recommendation Percentage: 68%

Ochsner Medical CenterKenner LLC 180 W. Esplanade Ave., Kenner 468-8600, Ochsner.org/Locations/ Kenner Acute Care Hospital Provides Emergency Services Patient Rating: 63% Recommendation Percentage: 64%

Slidell Memorial Hospital

Patient Rating: 70% Recommendation Percentage: 71%

Tulane Medical Center 1415 Tulane Ave., 988-5263, TulaneHealthCare.com Acute Care Hospital Provides Emergency Services Patient Rating: 67% Recommendation Percentage: 68%

West Jefferson Medical Center 1101 Medical Center Blvd., Marrero, 347-5511, wjmc.org Acute Care Hospital Provides Emergency Services Patient Rating: 74% Recommendation Percentage: 74%

1001 Gause Blvd., Slidell (985) 643-2200, SlidellMemorial. com Acute Care Hospital ACROSS THE STATE Provides Emergency Services Cypress Pointe Patient Rating: 68% Recommendation Percentage: 74% Surgical Hospital 42570 S. Airport Road, Hammond, (985) 510-6200, Touro Infirmary cpsh.org 1401 Foucher St., 897-7011, Acute Care Hospital Touro.com Patient Rating: 91% Acute Care Hospital Recommendation Percentage: 89% Provides Emergency Services

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1978 Industrial Blvd., Houma (985) 873-2200, LSUHospitals. org/hospitals/ljc/default.htm Acute Care Hospital Provides Emergency Services Patient Rating: 74% Recommendation Percentage: 82%

Louisiana Heart Hospital 64030 Highway 434, Lacombe (985) 690-7500, LouisianaHeart. com Acute Care Hospital Provides Emergency Services Patient Rating: 87% Recommendation Percentage: 90%

Lakeview Regional Medical Center 95 Judge Tanner Blvd., Covington, (985) 867-3800, LakeviewRegional.com Acute Care Hospital Provides Emergency Services Patient Rating: 70% Recommendation Percentage: 71%

Lallie Kemp Medical Center 52579 Highway 21 South, Independence, (985) 878-9421, LSUHospitals.org/Hospitals/LK/ LK.aspx Critical Access Hospital Provides Emergency Services Patient Rating: 78% Recommendation Percentage: 77%

North Oaks Medical Center 15790 Paul Vega MD Drive, Hammond, (985) 345-2700, NorthOaks.org Acute Care Hospital Provides Emergency Services Patient Rating: 63% Recommendation Percentage: 61%

Ochsner Medical Center – North Shore, LLC 100 Medical Center Drive, Slidell, (985) 649-7070, Ochsner.org/locations/north_shore Acute Care Hospital Provides Emergency Services Patient Rating: 61% Recommendation Percentage: 63%

Ochsner St. Anne General Hospital 4608 Highway 1, Raceland, (985) 537-6841, Ochsner.org/locations/ st_anne_general Critical Access Hospital Provides Emergency Services Patient Rating: 67% Recommendation Percentage: 70%

Physicians Medical Center 218 Corporate Drive, Houma, (985) 853-1390, PhysiciansHouma.com Acute Care Hospital Patient Rating: 88% Recommendation Percentage: 91%

River Parishes Hospital 500 Rue De Sante, LaPlace (985) 652-7000, RiverParishesHospital.com Acute Care Hospital Provides Emergency Services Patient Rating: 66% Recommendation Percentage: 68%

St. Charles Parish Hospital 1057 Paul Maillard Road, Luling, (985) 785-6242, stch.net Acute Care Hospital Provides Emergency Services Patient Rating: 70% Recommendation Percentage: 68%

St. Tammany Parish Hospital 1202 S. Tyler St., Covington, (985) 898-4000, stph.org Acute Care Hospital Provides Emergency Services Patient Rating: 79% Recommendation Percentage: 82%

Southern Surgical Hospital 1700 W. Lindberg Drive, Slidell (985) 641-0600, sshla.com Acute Care Hospital Patient Rating: 87% Recommendation Percentage: 91%

Teche Regional Medical Center 1125 Marguerite St., Morgan City, (985) 384-2200, TecheRegional. com Acute Care Hospital Provides Emergency Services Patient Rating: 64% Recommendation Percentage: 60%

Terrebonne General Medical Center 8166 Main St., Houma, (985) 8734141, tgmc.com Acute Care Hospital Provides Emergency Services Patient Rating: 70% Recommendation Percentage: 70%

Thibodaux Regional Medical Center 602 N. Acadia Road, Thibodaux (985) 447-5500, Thibodaux.com Acute Care Hospital Provides Emergency Services Patient Rating: 81% Recommendation Percentage: 82%

Washington St. Tammany Regional Medical Center 433 Plaza St., Bogalusa, (985) 730-6700, LSUHospitals.org/ Hospitals/bmc/bmc.aspx Acute Care Hospital Provides Emergency Services Patient Rating: 71% Recommendation Percentage: 61%

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All About Mardi Gras: Arts, Culture & Food in South Louisiana Mardi Gras isn’t all about food, parties and revelry. It’s also a celebration of the art, history and culture of a region. This year, experience all aspects of Mardi Gras—not only the ones that are now your own yearly tradition. Visit a rural destination for a traditional Courir de Mardi Gras, or the big city parade of a Super Krewe. Taste the flavors of Mardi Gras in your own kitchen as well as in those of regional restaurants and markets. Observe the art of not only the parade floats, dancers and musicians, but also of the craftsmen and their folk traditions. The following destinations and businesses ask you to join them in celebrating one of the most fun and exciting times of the year. It’s Mardi Gras season, and St. Landry Parish offers a Cajun Country experience unlike any parade or ball in the Big Easy. Plan your weekend getaway Feb. 28-March 4 and experience a Courir de Mardi Gras. Riders donned in traditional costumes, masks and hats, also known as capuchons, ride horseback from house to house soliciting "donations" of food items to culminate in a community-wide gumbo. This procession or "run" includes chicken chasing and silliness by revelers all day. The celebration takes place in Eunice, La., with daily live music, art exhibits, street and barn dances; a Sunday youth chicken run and old time boucherie; and a culmination the day before Ash Wednesday with the adult Courir de Mardi Gras (Fat Tuesday Run). For more information about the Courir or other events during Mardi Gras, please visit CajunTravel.com or call 877-948-8004. This January and February, ring in the Carnival season in beautiful Bayou Lafourche, a several-time recipient of the Southeast Tourism Society Top 20 Event designation. Mardi Gras on Bayou Lafourche features more than 15 parades, carnival balls, tableaus and parties that bring thousands to this Southeast Louisiana area. Family-oriented festivities abound in Lafourche communities beginning three weekends prior to Fat Tuesday, as well as on the day itself. In Cajun tradition, families gather in their front yards along the parade routes to barbecue, boil seafood, eat, socialize and enjoy the parades. This is also a great time of year to venture outdoors and see Louisiana’s unique wetlands on one of the area’s many available swamp tours, or

learn about the area’s history at the Jean Lafitte National Park Wetlands Acadian Culture Center. Go back in time during a visit to any of the nearby historic plantation homes. Find endless events and attractions at VisitLafourche.com and experience all Lafourche has to offer. For a season filled with food and beverages, what better place to satisfy all your Mardi Gras needs than your local grocery store? Especially one that is Louisiana owned and operated. Family owned Rouses Markets is now in its third generation. Having served Southeast Louisiana for more than 50 Mardi Gras seasons, Rouses knows king cakes and uses gourmet cinnamon dough that entices you from the moment you walk through the doors. Pick up a traditional king cake or any of your favorite flavors for a tasty Mardi Gras treat (visit www.rouses.com for shipping), but don’t forget their famous fried chicken, party trays and platters, as well as supplies for your crawfish boil. For those wanting crawfish pre-prepared, the Rouses Bayou Boys will be boiling through the season with their time-honored South Louisiana recipe. Take everything home with you in one of the Rouses reusable green grocery bags and you’ll see just how convenient they are for holding beads at every party and parade.

Rouses now boasts 43 stores, with the newest located in downtown New Orleans, Mardi Gras central, at 701 Baronne St. Visit Rouses.com. Visit an art museum or put your mail in one! The Mailbox Guy™ is the city’s only custom mailbox company. David Jeansonne and Wayne Schaub, two brothers from New Orleans, had no idea that their vision for The Mailbox Guy™ would quickly become the top destination for specialty mailboxes in Louisiana. As a member of The Mailbox Guy™ team and community, Marie Walle enjoys using her artistic talent to create beautifully faux-finished mailboxes. After six years with The Mailbox Guy™, it’s safe to say Marie has perfected how to turn the mailbox into a work of art. The Mailbox Guy™ specializes in custom/installed cast-aluminum mailboxes and also features custom faux-finish hand-painted mailboxes, including the popular classic Ol’ New Orleans and the modern Victorian. So if you’re in the market for a new mailbox or just want to refurbish your current one, you’ll be hard-pressed to do better than a handcrafted gem from The Mailbox Guy™. You can reach the company online at TheMailboxGuyNewOrleans.com or call them at 504-466-5035. myneworleans.com

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a valentine ’s d

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2 1. Allie Pierson, Independent Stylist, Stella & Dot 504.722.6058 | stelladot.com/alliep Allie has been in the fashion industry for years, and she encourages you to consider the runway trends that Stella & Dot has translated beautifully into their holiday collection—gorgeous statement pieces, scarves, stunning bags and tech accessories...something for everyone and every budget. Call Allie to inquire about getting over $250 in free product. Shop. Host. Join her team.

2. AURALUZ 4408 Shores Drive | Metairie 504.888.3313 | shopauraluz.com TEA FORTE...the perfect gift for that special person. Sourced from the world's finest tea gardens, Tea Forte offers some of the most unique blends. Every cup is a taste experience and a gift of joy and relaxation. All this and more available at AURALUZ.

3. Boudreaux’s Jewelers 701 Metairie Road | Metairie | 504.831.2602 4550 Highway 22 | Mandeville | 985.626.1666 7280 Corporate Blvd. | Baton Rouge | 225.928.6868 boudreauxsjewelers.com Celebrating 80 years, Boudreaux’s Jewelers proudly represents many quality watch and jewelry designers, as well as providing custom-designed and manufactured creations. Our fine craftsmen and professional staff can help you find the precious gift that will find its way through generations.

4. Cristy Cali 504.377.9575 | cristycali.com Cristy Cali’s Breakable Heart Pendants makes a perfect Valentine's Day gift. These pendants come soldered; it is your job to break them apart by bending them back and forth with a special someone to create a loving memory. Visit the website to find a retailer near you.

5. Edible Arrangements 1650 Gretna Blvd., Suite 5 | Harvey 504.367.7798 This February 14th, share the love with your one and only by sending Valentine’s Day or love-themed fruit arrangements, including heart-shaped pineapple, and our legendary chocolate covered strawberries. You can even add a cuddly teddy bear or custom balloon to make your romantic gift extra special!

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6. Fleur d' Orleans

3701a Magazine St. New Orleans 504.899.5585 | fleurdorleans.com

Sterling silver filigree heart surrounding a fleur d'lys, a perfect gift for your love on Valentine's Day. Complete the look with strands of rubies, garnets and red Czech glass beads. It's of many sterling silver hearts from the designers at Fleur d'Orleans 7.Grand Hotel Marriott

marriottgrand.com.

A Grand Escape. Spoil your loved one with a romantic getaway to The Grand for Valentine’s Day. Savor an enchanting dinner with stunning bay views. Take romantic a walk through the secret garden, or relax with a couples massage in our European-style spa.

8. Saint Germain

The Shops at Canal Place 333 Canal St., 2nd level 504.522.1720 | saintgermainneworleans.com For someone special, this perfect Valentine’s gift: oxidized silver and diamond heart pendant and earrings by Mizuki. These special pieces represent one of many jewelry designers at Saint Germain located in Canal Place. 9. Symmetry Jewelers

8138 Hampson Street 504.861.9925 | symmetryjewelers.com This 5000 year old Chinese symbol has been the logo of Symmetry since its’ founding in 1975. The meaning: “double happiness and good fortune." The lovely pendant is hand crafted in white palladium with top grade diamonds with a total weight of .33 carats. $1200.00 10. Trashy Diva

2044 Magazine Street | 504.522.5686 831 Chartres Street | 504.522.8861 trashydiva.com

Set hearts aflame with Valentine gifts from Trashy Diva. The Mimi Holliday Bisou Bisou collection features flambé magenta satin with delicate black eyelash lace overlay, lace scalloping and petite bows. Spoil her with vintage inspired clothing, accessories and lingerie.

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DINING & ENTERTAINMENT

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Antoine’s

Arnaud’s

713 St. Louis St., New Orleans  (504) 581-4422 antoines.com

813 Bienville St., New Orleans (504) 523-5433 arnauds.com

Since 1840, world-renowned Antoine’s Restaurant has set the standard that made New Orleans one of the greatest dining centers in the world. Antoine’s Restaurant’s excellent French-Creole cuisine, service and atmosphere have combined to create an unmatched dining experience for both locals and visitors to New Orleans.

The Ultimate New Orleans dining experience. Award-winning classic Creole cuisine in a charming French Quarter ambience. Dine in the traditional Main Dining Room or The Jazz Bistro, offering live Dixieland Jazz. Serving dinner nightly and Sunday brunch. Exquisite private dining rooms.

Café Opéra

Cheeseburger Eddie’s

Chiba

(at Four Points by Sheraton French Quarter)

4517 W. Esplanade Ave., Metairie (504) 455-5511 mredsno.com

8312 Oak St, New Orleans (504) 826-9119 chiba-nola.com

Mr. Ed’s is now open! Serving prime burgers, great seafood, fries, tacos, wings, homemade shakes and martinis in a casual counter-service atmosphere. Here we grind our beef fresh daily so you can build your burger as you like it. Enjoy our patio dining with TVs for your sporting events. Open for lunch and dinner Monday-Saturday.

Chiba offers a contemporary Japanese dining experience in a stylish, yet approachable environment. The cuisine is a balance of flavor, freshness and creativity with dishes like: Satsuma Strawberry Roll, Miso Sake Roasted Mussels, and Mirin glazed New York steak. An amazing happy hour 4-6pm daily & late night.

541 Bourbon St.,New Orleans (504)648-2331; (504) 524-7611 fourpointsfrenchquarter.com Café Opéra, our full-service restaurant, features a classic New Orleans menu of Creole and continental cuisine. Chef Philippe Andreani’s wonderful selection of culinary delights is always “music to your taste buds”! Only $5 for valet parking when you dine with us.

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Austin’s Seafood & Steakhouse 5101 W. Esplanade Ave., Metairie (504) 523-5433 • AustinsNO.com Austin’s Seafood and Steakhouse welcomes you to a casual upscale dining experience. Voted Best Restaurant in Metairie and Top 3 Steakhouses in the city. Local owner Ed McIntyre and his son, Austin, invite you and your family to enjoy his famous cuisine time and again. Great menu changes and specials for the new year. Private dining rooms are available for special occasions. Hours: Monday- Saturday 5 p.m.-’til.

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DINING & ENTERTAINMENT

Bayona

Bourbon House

Broussard's

(504) 525-4455

144 Bourbon St., New Orleans (504) 522-0111 bourbonhouse.com

819 Conti St, New Orleans (504) 581-3866 broussards.com

January 6th marks the return of the King Cake Cocktail—Old New Orleans Rum, Orgeat, Louisiana Citrus and housemade vanilla gelato with a dash of purple, green and gold sprinkles! Come into Bourbon House from January 6th to Lundi Gras for a taste of Mardi Gras!

Broussard’s Restaurant has been a fixture in New Orleans for nearly a century, and after an extensive renovation continues to provide an atmosphere of understated elegance. Chef Guy Reinbolt offers a three-course Jazz Brunch on Sundays that showcases a New Orleans interpretation of traditional Continental European Cuisine, including favorites such as Eggs Versailles, French Toast Bread Pudding and Redfish Bonaparte.

Chophouse New Orleans

The Court of Two Sisters

Five Happiness

322 Magazine St., New Orleans (504) 522-7902 chophousenola.com

613 Royal St., New Orleans  (504) 522-7261 courtoftwosisters.com

3605 S. Carrollton Ave., New Orleans  (504) 482-3935 fivehappiness.com

The USDA Prime-only menu at Chophouse New Orleans also offers notable fresh seafood such as Florida Stone Crabs – served cold, the succulent and juicy claws are accompanied with a special house sauce. The restaurant's relaxed sophistication complements the great food and bustling, live entertainment nightly.

The Court of Two Sisters, known for its large dining courtyard, serves a lavish daily Jazz Brunch buffet. At night choose from its à la carte dinner menu or a fourcourse dinner. Complete menus available at CourtOfTwoSisters.com. Reservations are recommended.

Come to Five Happiness and let the ambience and friendly staff take you to a new level of dining experience. This award-winning restaurant always strives to achieve its best. Private party and banquet rooms are available.

Downton Abbey Dinners 6:30 P.M. Tuesday, March 25 or Wednesday, March 26, 2014 My Lord and Lady request your presence at a recreation of a Grand English dinner preceded by a Champagne reception with passed hors d oeuvres. Regale in pithy conversation, alongside elegant patrons (dressed as their favorite Downton characters) with white glove service around a table of Chef Susan Spicer's brilliant dishes. Groups or individuals to make up Tables of 10. $100 +; $145++ with wine pairings. Limited seating.

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Hoshun Restaurant

Liuzza’s Restaurant & Bar

Martin Wine Cellar

1601 St. Charles Ave. New Orleans (504) 302-9717 HoshunRestaurant.com

3636 Bienville St., New Orleans (504) 482-9120 liuzzas.com

(504) 896-7350 MartinWine.com

Liuzza’s and St. Margaret’s at Mercy will once again bring food, music and fun to Mid-City with the second annual Liuzza Palooza mini-festival! The event will take place on Sunday, April 6, 2014, across the street from Liuzza’s on Bienville. Sponsorship Availability! Call for information!

From finger sandwiches to full-service custom catering and bar, Martin Wine Cellar is your one-stop-shop for all of your Mardi Gras needs. They cater events large and small and offer quality ingredients and a professional staff to make your carnival season seamless and memorable. Call (504) 896-7350 to speak with the Director of Catering or view the menu online.

Ralph Brennan

RioMar

SoBou

(504) 539-5510 ralphbrennacatering.com

800 S. Peters St. 525-3474 RioMarSeafood.com

310 Chartres St., New Orleans (504) 552-4095 SoBouNola.com

Experience seafood from a different perspective when dining at RioMar. Executive Chef/Owner Miles Prescott brings fresh Spanish and Latin American inspired seafood dishes to life by creating seasonal menus highlighted with local ingredients. Indulge in signature cocktails, Spanish wines and authentic tapas dishes!

Created by the Commander’s Family of Restaurants, SoBou is a spirited restaurant, offering cutting-edge cocktails & Louisiana street food-inspired small plates. Enjoy breakfast, lunch & dinner alongside an innovative cocktail, wine & bar program. Serve yourself from our beer and wine taps and then take your drinks outside to the patio to enjoy the cool weather.

Chinese or Japanese? Can’t decide? Hoshun is your answer! We offer an extensive menu from classic Chinese dishes to Japanese sushi and everything in between (like Vietnamese pho or pad thai). Stick with one cuisine or mix and match! Open daily till 2 a.m.

Ralph Brennan Catering & Events is now the exclusive caterer for the New Orleans Opera Guild Home, located in picturesque Garden District at 2504 Prytania St. This historic mansion comfortably accommodates up to 200 people and is available for weddings, receptions, dinners, luncheons, coffees, teas and beautiful social events. Call today to schedule a tour!

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813 1001 Live Oak St., Metairie (504) 838-0022 910 W. Esplanade Ave., #A, Kenner (504) 463-3030 MrEdsNO.com

Mr. Ed’s Oyster Bar & Seafood Restaurant 3117 21st St., Metairie (504) 833- 6310

Parkway Bakery & Tavern 538 Hagan Ave., New Orleans (504) 482-3047

Parkway Bakery and Tavern is the oldest, most entertaining poor boy shop in New Orleans, overlooking the historic Bayou St. John at 538 Hagan Ave. in Mid-City, New Orleans. Come and enjoy a Parkway poor boy in our restaurant, covered patio or our classic New Orleans bar.

Mr. Ed’s is celebrating its 24th year with two convenient locations and one great menu! Serving New Orleans home cooking from po-boys to the best fried chicken in town! Mr. Ed’s caters for any occasion and is open for lunch and dinner Monday-Saturday.

Opened in early September, Mr. Ed’s Oyster Bar & Seafood Restaurant offers a variety of fresh seafood dishes and southern cooking. Formerly Mr. Chris’ Bozo’s Restaurant since 1979, Mr. Ed’s Oyster Bar features several signature dishes including oysters on the half shell along with new grilled and baked oyster favorites.

Sucré

Tivoli & Lee

Warehouse Grille

2 Lee Circle, New Orleans (504) 962-0909 tivoiliandlee.com

869 Magazine St., New Orleans (504) 322-2188 warehousegrille.com Facebook.com/warehousegrille Twitter.com/warehousegrille

3025 Magazine St., New Orleans (504) 520-8311 shopsucre.com The Sucré King Cake is a favorite of locals and foreigners alike. Executive Chef Tariq carefully studied what locals love about the kings cake, creating the city's first 21st century king cake that has been featured on nationwide publications, from the New York Times to the Washington Post.

(At the Hotel Modern)

Chef Marcus Woodham’s menu focuses on simple preparations of southerninspired favorites including Hogshead cheese, deviled eggs, and Abita root beer braised short ribs. The food is friendly, approachable, and full of flavor with the neighborhood feel of a great bar and the best of regional dining.

DINING & ENTERTAINMENT

Mr. Ed’s Restaurant

Creativity abounds at the home of food and fun the heart of the warehouse district. Funky décor, full bar with 40 beers on tap, private courtyard, flexible event spaces and plenty of parking- great food and good times await!

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Enjoy baby food tastings, ask nutritional questions and learn the basics of baby food, including: when and how to introduce solids, the benefits of making homemade baby foods, how to make and store baby foods at home, adding new flavors and combinations as your baby ages, trouble shooting for picky eaters and more. To register, please visit touro.com/events or call 504-897-8500.

Hospital Buzz: Regional Health News The new year brings with it a host of changes to health care and the medical landscape of Louisiana. As residents scour their latest options for coverage and treatment, hospitals are expanding services and offerings, investing in research and technology, and striving to provide the highest quality care available. The Southeast Louisiana region is no different, as area hospitals ring in the new year with plenty of news to go around. Announcements range from new centers and campus facilities to community events and cutting-edge procedure offerings. Take a moment to peruse the latest from the following area health care providers.

Thibodaux Regional Medical Center, located in Lafourche Parish, will soon break ground for the new Wellness Center. The medically integrated, state-of-the-art facility is the first of its kind in the region. In addition to wellness, education and physical fitness, the Center will feature these Centers of Excellence: Orthopedic and Sports Medicine Center; Spine Center; Neurosciences Center; Rehabilitation Center; Education Center; Imaging Center; Women’s Breast Health Center; Pain Management Center; Weight Management Center; and Urgent Care Center. Thibodaux Regional is taking a proactive role, addressing the health-related challenges within the region, and enhancing the continuum of care. “We have a disproportionate incidence of diabetes, heart disease and obesity. Louisiana is ranked seventh, eighth and fourth, respectively, compared to the rest of the country. The prevalence of these diseases in our region is 100

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even higher than in the state,” said Greg Stock, CEO of Thibodaux Regional. “As community leaders, we have a responsibility to put forth our best effort and address these alarming health statistics. We are committed to improving the health of our region, and feel that we can make a positive difference.” For more information call 985-493-4326. The year 2013 was a busy year for babies in New Orleans with 3,368 babies delivered at Touro just last year. From the newborn days to walking, there are many milestones during a baby’s first year, including the introduction of food. Touro is here to support parents through the feeding journey with a new hands-on babyfood making class. Join Touro nutritionist Julie Fortenberry and guest speaker Erin Reho Pelias, owner of ZukaBaby, for Baby Food Making Class, Thursday, Jan. 30 from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Touro.

Children's Hospital is Louisiana's only fullservice hospital exclusively for children age birth to 21. A not-for-profit facility, it is governed by an independent board of trustees made up of community volunteers. Children's Hospital treats patients in more than 40 specialties, including life-threatening illnesses, routine childhood sicknesses and preventive care. Children's Hospital's medical team is trained to care for the unique health care needs of children—children needing more time, care and specialized medications and technology than adults. Critical care is provided in the hospital's Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) and Cardiac Intensive Care Unit (CICU). The hospital's Jack M. Weiss Emergency Care Center is staffed around the clock by board-certified pediatricians, with the availability of a full range of pediatric specialists. Outpatient appointments with pediatric specialists are offered on the hospital campus and satellite locations in Metairie, Baton Rouge and Lafayette. For more information, visit CHNola.org. Omega Hospital stands at the forefront of breast cancer care, offering top-notch health care in an intimate and often luxurious atmosphere. Worldclass surgeons at Omega Hospital are leaders in breast reconstruction and breast conserving procedures, giving women more options than ever before. Drs. Robert Allen and Ali Sadeghi are experts in the DIEP flap procedure, a procedure that reconstructs one’s breast from skin and fat from the abdomen. The DIEP flap procedure differs from procedures of the past in that no muscle is removed, allowing for both a quicker recovery time and eliminating any increased risk of hernias or back pain later in life. Drs. Allen and Sadeghi also perform the PAP and GAP procedures, in which skin and fat are taken from the back of the thigh, under the buttock crease (PAP), or fat and skin are taken directly from the buttock (GAP). Drs. Allen and Sadeghi work to make sure each breast is as natural as possible, and DIEP flap recipients have the added benefit of receiving new breasts and a tummy tuck simultaneously. For more information on surgeons and procedures offered at Omega Hospital, visit OmegaHospital.com or call 504-832-4200.

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After more than a couple years of providing surgical care in Greater New Orleans, Crescent City Surgical Centre (CCSC) is receiving unprecedented positive feedback on the expert care patients have received. The largest physician-owned hospital in Greater New Orleans, CCSC is conveniently located just off of Causeway Boulevard in Metairie and provides direct access to 30 skilled physicians with specialties that include bariatrics, neurosurgery, orthopedics, otolaryngology, plastic surgery, colo-rectal, general surgery, total knee and hip replacements, pain management and onsite diagnostics. World-class physicians at CCSC utilize state-of-the-art technologies, which further enhances their top quality, compassionate and individualized care. “Our philosophy is to treat every patient as if they are a family member visiting our hospital,” says Kirk Long, CEO. “That philosophy is clearly working, as the reception we’ve seen from patients has been remarkable. Our physicians ensure each patient receives the best treatment available, and our handpicked staff ensures each patient is given special treatment.” To find out more about CCSC, visit ccsurg.com or call 504-830-2500.

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Every February, the importance of heart health takes center stage as health care providers observe American Hearth Month with events, screenings and informative campaigns to promote the body’s essential life-giving organ. The heart is affected by numerous aspects of one’s health, so knowing what causes the heart to work harder or not hard enough is important in maintaining a steady, healthy heartbeat. The following local health care providers may be able to assist you or someone you love in maintaining heart health. This may be through a direct consult with a cardiologist or a specialist in reducing stress or improving blood flow, or by a provider offering a full range of skilled services. Be good to your heart this month and every month, and experience not only longer life, but also a full range of health benefits that come with keeping a steady beat. February is American Heart Month. Did you know that heart disease is the No. 1 killer of both men and women in the U.S.? Particularly in Louisiana, the prevalence of obesity and diabetes means that our communities are at greater risk of heart disease. Many have the misconception that heart disease only affects the elderly. But nearly 150,000 Americans who die from cardiovascular disease each year are under the age of 65, according to the American Heart Association. In fact, one out of every 20 people under the age of 40 has heart disease. Are you at risk? Call Cardiovascular Institute of the South and get checked today. It’s never too early to take care of your heart; don’t wait until it’s too late. With 14 locations throughout south Louisiana, CIS has an international reputation 102

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for providing state-of-the-art cardiovascular care and is known as a world-leader in preventing and treating both cardiovascular and peripheral vascular disease. To learn more, call CIS at 1-800-425-2565 or visit Cardio.com. The Tulane University Heart and Vascular Institute (TUHVI) encompasses leading clinical, educational and research programs for the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular diseases. TUHVI offers a comprehensive heart and vascular program at four locations: Metairie, downtown New Orleans, on the West Bank at Woodland Drive and in New Orleans East on Read Boulevard. TUHVI physicians include specialized medical professionals trained in treatment of arrhythmia and atrial fibrillation, heart failure, prevention services, hypertension and lipid management, as well as interventional cardiovascular procedures and cardiac and

vascular surgery. The Institute is a leader in treating peripheral arterial and venous disease (PAD), and offers the painless Endovenous Laser Treatment for varicose veins, as well as sclerotherapy for spider vein closure at their West Bank Clinic. Because TUHVI physicians and surgeons are also academicians, patients can be assured that each case is thoroughly reviewed and all available treatment options are considered. To schedule an appointment, call 504-378-5080 or 988-6113. The highly skilled cardiologists with Crescent City Cardiovascular Associates have long been known for their dedicated care, clinical excellence and technological leadership. They are among the area’s most respected specialists and are located in the heart of New Orleans at 3715 Prytania St., Suite 400. The Uptown office offers a wide array of cardiac and vascular services— from routine checkups to advanced therapies and outpatient diagnostics—in a comfortable and friendly environment. The field of cardiac medicine is truly dynamic and Crescent City Cardiovascular Associates strives to provide patients with the most effective and least invasive procedures. The group also provides cardiac services in areas with limited access to health care such as New Orleans East. The non-invasive, interventional and electrophysiology specialists that make up Crescent City Cardiovascular Associates include Roberto Quintal, M.D., Sudhanva Wadgaonkar, M.D., Royce Dean Yount, M.D., Thanh Nguyen, M.D., Murat Celebi, M.D. and Viviana Falco, M.D. With Crescent City Cardiovascular Associates, your heart is in the right place. For more information or to make an appointment, call 504-897-8276. Chartered in 1891, The John J. Hainkel, Jr. Home and Rehabilitation Center and Adult Day Health Care is located in Uptown New Orleans and provides health care services including a full range of skilled services offered in its new Parkside Red Rehabilitation Wing. These services are available to individuals with private pay, private insurance, VA benefits and Medicaid/Medicare benefits. In 1979, the facility was sold to the state. The original non-profit organization leased it back from the state on April 19, 2011. As a privately operated non-profit it exhibits the highest quality of care; Hainkel received “0” deficiencies in its most recent annual surveys conducted by the Department of Health & Hospitals in both the Nursing Home and the Adult Day Health Care. The Hainkel Home promotes quality of life as a unique and caring alternative for the elderly and those who suffer from serious illnesses and disabilities. Please call 504-896-5904 today to schedule a tour of The Hainkel Home facilities and see why it is the right choice for your family. You may also visit HainkelHome.com for more information.

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At Behavioral Health Counseling & Consulting, Sharon Heno and her team work with individuals to build on their strengths and attain the personal growth they are committed to accomplishing. An interactive, solution-focused therapist, Sharon Heno utilizes an approach that provides support and practical feedback to help clients effectively address personal life challenges. Behavioral Health Counseling & Consulting is currently expanding with the addition of a new therapist and is now accepting new clients for play therapy, marriage and family counseling, spectrum disorders and nutritional and sports counseling, in addition to what the practice already offers. Ms. Heno's work with individuals is personcentered; she meets clients where they are and collaborates with them as they move past obstacles in their lives. She has served on crisis

teams as a trauma specialist working with victims of trauma due to grief, loss or violence. Ms. Heno also works with local hospitals and community centers offering supportive services to individuals and families with degenerative and terminal illnesses. For more information, visit BehavioralHealthCnC.net or call 504-975-5104. As of December 2013, New Orleans residents suffering from pain have a new option in a group of exceptional physicians led by Dr. Eric I. Royster, founder of Integrated Pain and Neuroscience (IPN). Physicians at IPN believe that everyone deserves the opportunity to enjoy life in health and wellness. Their vision is to offer the most comprehensive treatment experience for patients suffering from chronic pain, from acupuncture to more invasive techniques offered exclusively at IPN. Physicians

with expertise in Anesthesiology, Pain Medicine, Neurology, Medical Acupuncture, Spine Surgery and Psychiatry work closely together to provide the best possible treatment and include Dr. Eric Royster, Andrea O’Leary, MD, Aaron J. Friedman, MD, and Kim Adkins, PA-C. These physicians coordinate care to determine the most suitable, individualized treatment. At IPN, common conditions such as spine pain, orthopedic pain, neurologic pain and headaches are successfully treated. Additionally, Medical Therapy, Non-Surgical Intervention, Spinal Cord Stimulation, Intrathecal Drug Delivery, Medical Acupuncture and Minimally Invasive Lumbar Decompression are available treatments. For more information, visit PainIsAPuzzle.com or call 504-300-9020. IPN in located Uptown at 2801 Napoleon Ave.

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Natasha Lewis is a 43-year-old wife and mother of three. She is also a triple bypass survivor at the age of 42. This happened, in-spite being an avid jogger, dancer and P90Xer and having a 5'3", 128 pound body frame. Many are surprised by this revelation because Natasha does not look like what is viewed as a typical heart patient. Heart attack or bypass patients are generally thought to be an older, overweight, stressed out, white male; the complete opposite of her. Once over their initial shock, she typically gets two responses. The first is that, "You are too young!" and she always replies, "Evidently, I am not!" Heart Disease is often silent, hidden and misunderstood but always a deadly killer. It does not care about: who you are married to, how young your kids are, how much money you have in the bank, what neighborhood you live in, and it certainly, does not care what you look like. Heart disease does not discriminate. The second response often comes in the form of questions: "Did you have a heart attack? What were your symptoms?" Natasha did not have a heart attack, but she did have some very atypical symptoms that would have eventually led to a heart attack. The warning signs of heart disease in women can be different than men. And tightness in the chest is not the only warning sign of heart disease. Her day started out as a typical summer day, in early May. As she attempted to start her exercise regimen, she got a very sharp burning sensation under her left collarbone. As most folks do, she shrugged off the discomfort and decided to try again later that day and also, a few days after, but she still got the same painful response. Within a few weeks that burning discomfort, started to travel midway up the left side of my neck. Eventually, she began to experience movement (or concerning multiple thumps) in her heart. The thumps went from a few times a day to escalating every two to three

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minutes, even awakening her from a deep medicated sleep; at this moment she knew she was in trouble. By this time, she had become so lethargic and sluggish, that she could not keep her head off the pillow. She was sleeping for days at a time, only to eat a small meal or use the restroom. She had absolutely no energy. “Not knowing what is happening with your body is scary,” says Natasha. “I knew that I had a history of heart disease in my family and I wanted to get answers and a solution before the situation got even more severe, such as a heart attack.” Going through this ordeal was very stressful for her and my family, but what was most scary, was that she had to convince the doctors that she was having heart complications. Natasha was going from doctor to doctor, in an attempt to get a correct diagnosis, but was told that symptoms were probably anxiety, chest muscle spasms, hot flashes and/or indigestion. It took going to six cardiologists, one internist and two emergency room (ER) visits, before being diagnosed. Natasha knew that something was not right and it was more than a hot flash or indigestion. After being turned away countless times without answers to why she was feeling poorly, Natasha started a plan to document her symptoms. She wrote down every episode with details that included: the time of the episodes, how long they lasted, how discomforting they were, and whether medication was taken or not. She had accumulated a page and a half listing episodes, back to front, within a few days. Natasha became so disheartened that she began to challenge the doctors, saying, "I am not a medical professional by any means, but I have had this body for 40 years. I know what you’re telling me is not my diagnosis." As she became more desperate, she felt it necessary to consult with the only one who really could understand, God. Natasha asked him to guide her and she got her answer loud and clear.

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On her last ER visit although the doctors still could not find anything, she told them she was not going to leave until they could tell what was wrong. Overnight, the doctors decided that the last weapon in their arsenal was to perform an angiogram. However, the cardiologist on duty made it clear that they believed that she was having chest muscle spasms. A few hours, later Natasha awoke to her name being called and another cardiologist telling her that she had three blocked arteries. She asked him if that meant that she would need to have her chest cracked; he said yes. He also delivered the news to her family. For Natasha, heart disease was genetic from her father’s side. Although her father does not exhibit any heart related illnesses, both of his parents died of heart attacks. Having to undergo a serious surgery was not what Natasha wanted but she was glad to finally have a diagnosis. Natasha is proof that there is life after heart disease, inspite of still healing, Natasha has returned to jogging, and a modified P90X program. She is now an avid dancer with a weekly regimen to continue to exercise her heart. Seven months post bypass surgery, Natasha participated in the 2013 Crescent City Classic. Even with that accomplishment under her belt, Natasha is most proud of being healthy once again so she can enjoy her husband, raise her children, and spend time with her family. Natasha has become an active ambassador for the American Heart Association’s Go Red for Women campaign. She is an example that with knowledge of heart disease comes the ability to take actions to prevent and treat the number one killer of women. “I knew that heart disease was a major concern in my family and I was able to take action,” says Natasha. “Most women do not know that heart disease is their number one threat. I am doing what I can do change that.”

one you love, so help us save a woman’s life and be a part of Go Red for Women New Orleans. Go Red for Woman is sponsored by United Healthcare, Peoples Health, Paris Parker and Harrah’s New Orleans Caesars Foundation. For more information visit heart.org or visit the New Orleans American Heart Association on Facebook, facebook.com/AHANewOrleans.

Natasha is a member of the Circle of Red. The Circle of Red and Men Go Red are a dynamic, committed and passionate group of women and men who have the resources to significantly impact the community by providing a personal commitment to help find a cure for heart disease. The Circle of Red and Men Go Red members are champions for reducing the impact that heart disease has in our lives. “The Circle of Red, has been the perfect platform to share my story with women, the community, as well as, the medical community. I am so very proud to hold this torch and help spread the word about this silent killer,” says Natasha Lewis. The 2013-2014 Circle of Red and Men Go Red members include, Annette Dowdle, Bridget Galatas, Donna Klein, Janie Glade, Virginia Eckholdt, Ivy Kushner, Rhonda Eckholdt, Tammy Gennusa, Rebecca Nortagen, Suzanne Whitaker, Beverly Matheney, Tracy Stewart, Holley Haag, Christie Mintz, Heather Evans, Kathleen Robert, Susan Kappelman, Sarah Abrusley, Dr. Robert Matheney, Glen Golemi, Natasha Lewis, Danielle Lombard-Sims, Christine O’Brien, Jennifer Clements, Barbara Turner Windhorst, Elaine Grundmeyer, Christina Sistrunk, Michele Vignes, Natasha Lewis Cathy McRae, Lucie Whitley and Lendon Noel. photography by jafar m. pierre

Each day the American Heart Association is working on research to help understand and prevent heart disease. The New Orleans American Heart Association will host the annual Go Red for Women luncheon on February 13, 2014 at the Sheraton New Orleans Hotel. The Go Red for Women campaign is more than a message. It’s a nationwide movement that celebrates the energy, passion and power we have as woman to band together to wipe out the No. 1 killer. Grandmothers, mothers, daughters, sisters and friends are dying at the rate of one per minute, because they don’t know that heart disease kills. “The American Heart Association has made many strides to improve testing and increase research efforts. Yet, there is so much work to be done. Bigger efforts are needed to make the community more aware of the symptoms and devastating effects of heart disease,” says Natasha Lewis. Through awareness and prevention heart disease can be prevented. Heart disease has already touched you or some-

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When Susan Aucoin was 29 weeks pregnant she was told that she had twin to twin transfusion, and that one of her twins would have to have open heart surgery soon after birth. The baby had transposition of the great vessels. That baby was Henry. This was devastating news to Susan and her husband. To say that she was scared was an understatement. On April 27, 2009 Henry and Benjamin were born. Henry came out first and was quickly taken to the NICU. His parents did not even get to hold him. Later that day he was transported to the NICU at Children's Hospital New Orleans. And on May 15th Henry had his first open heart surgery. To see your newborn whisked away to have open heart surgery is terrifying and something Susan hoped she would never have to see again. Henry was the smallest baby that his surgeons had ever done this particular surgery on: weighing a mere 2 kilos and his heart about the size of a quarter. But despite his size, his surgery was successful. After two months, on June 28, his family was finally able to hold him for the first time and he was able to meet his big sister, Emily. As a parent, this was one of the happiest moments of Susan’s life. On July 12, Henry was finally released from the CICU and he was able to be re-united with his twin Benjamin after 77 days apart. Then on July 13, he was finally able to

go home. It was a long and rocky road but Henry did much better than anyone anticipated. Henry was later diagnosed with supra pulmonary stenosis. His family was told that same year at Thanksgiving that he needed another surgery. On January 5, 2010 Henry had his second open heart surgery and it was also a success. As of today, doctors do not anticipate Henry requiring any more open heart surgeries but he will need procedures along the way to keep things working as they should. Henry has taught his family so very much in his short life. He is a reminder to them to be grateful for what they have. In the midst of the screaming, fighting, playing, all of it, Susan and her husband are reminded of just how lucky they are to have all three kids home with them. “I think most people associate heart disease and illness with older, overweight, inactive and unhealthy people and that is not always the case,” says Susan. “Heart disease does not discriminate. It goes after people of all ages, shapes, sizes and lifestyles. And my son, Henry, is proof of that.” The American Heart Association is working hard each and every day to fund research right here in New Orleans, that helps to save lives through advanced systems of care, medicines, treatment and prevention. Join the fight at facebook.com/AHANewOrleans.

Heart Attack Symptoms Specific to Women • shortness of breath • pressure or pain in the lower chest or upper abdomen • dizziness • lightheadedness or fainting • upper back pressure • extreme fatigue

Members of the Circle of Red

photography by Andrew Alwert

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Infusion Therapy Isn’t a Fad at The Remedy Room

H O W - TO

FOR T H E MONT H

by Morgan Packard eep down almost everyone is afraid

of needles; they remind us of trips to the doctor, hospital stays and being sick. But even though I was trepidatious before they started my treatment (and my blood pressure numbers definitely showed that), the ladies wielding the needles at The Remedy Room make getting healthy as painless as possible. The Remedy Room offers IV infusions to treat dehydration and hangovers; promote wellness post-cold and flu; and increase athletic performance. There are also B12 and B complex injections, medications to reduce nausea, acid reflux and inflammation, as well as oxygen treatments. Non-IV treatments are available for those who just can’t get past the needles. They also offer a “Mobile RR Unit” that can treat 12 people at a time, and can be reserved for any kind of group – think bachelorette and bachelor parties, athletic events and festivals. When you walk into the St. Charles Avenue clinic, you’re greeted by a calm atmosphere in a modern setting. On your first visit you have to fill out a very involved questionnaire via an iPad, and then you’re taken back to have a one-onone consultation with founder and primary physician Dr. Mignonne Mary. Hands-on, friendly and charming, Mary goes over your full medical history, talks to you about your concerns and recommends treatments. Pull the curtains around your area, curl up in the massage chair or on one of the beautiful white leather chaises with a heated blanket, close your eyes, listen to the relaxing music and get carried away, or chat with the gracious staff and the time passes before you know it – just don’t bend the arm with the IV in it. Infusion treatment takes about an hour, prices begin at $149 (I was a guest) and you can add additional supplements and

Shopping

purchase treatments in packages. You don’t have to be a believer in vitamins and supplements to believe in the results; the evening CARNIVAL ’14 after my treatment and the entire next day I was relaxed but energetic. I already made my second appointment and have added The Remedy Room to my cell phone so that the next time I overindulge – Mardi Gras, anyone? – I can get well faster and stay healthier longer. The Remedy Room is located at 1224 St. Charles Ave., Suite 1C; call 301-1670 or visit TheRemedyRoom.com to learn more and to schedule an appointment. If you have any concerns or doubts, check with your physician beforehand. C r a i g Mu l c a h y Ph o t o g r a p h

TRYTHIS

Auraluz gets ready for Mardi Gras 4408 Shores Drive, Metairie, 888-3313, AuraluzLinensGifts.com

Auraluz, the linens, gifts and children’s clothing store in Metairie, has a new collection of Carnival-themed items. For children you’ll find cute onesies and tees with Carnival designs, while grown ups can treat themselves to wine buckets, cocktail shakers, gourmet food items and more. The place is a local Aladdin’s cave for items including heirloom, embroidered clothing and funky, seasonal gifts, Auraluz also offers gift registry services for weddings and showers. – M i r e l l a c a m e r a n

Health

Founder of CIS takes on national editorship Cardio.com

Dr. Craig Walker, founder, president and medical director of the Cardiovascular Institute of the South (CIS), has become editor of the prestigious medical journal Vascular Disease Management. The title is a web-based, peerreviewed publication. Dr. Walker, an interventional cardiologist, established CIS. The group now has locations in 13 cities across south Louisiana and Alabama. Dr. Walker was also one of the founding members of one of the nation’s largest cardiovascular conferences, “New Cardiovascular Horizons.” Dr. Walker says, “Great strides are being made in diagnosing and treating vascular disease. More than ever before, it’s important to disseminate information about vascular disease and evolving therapies.” – M . C . myneworleans.com

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Carnival of the Non-Pirate

BY ERROL LABORDE f you see a pirate this Mardi Gras, don’t call

my name because it won’t be me. Most often in recent years I’ve dressed like a rogue from the seas for several reasons: CARNIVAL ’14 B I have by now collected a bag full of pirate-like costume parts. B Pirate costumes are not too cumbersome, possibly because the pirates often had to make quick getaways. B When you meet another pirate coming down the street on Mardi Gras, they often go, “Arrrggghhh!” I reply with a similar response, which is about as deep in conversation as I want to get with a passing pirate. B Though no one confuses me for Johnny Depp, I do get to wear a Jack Sparrow, Pirates of the Caribbean, wig. B I also get to wear one of those cool tri-cornered hats. Nevertheless, my act has gotten stale. “Not a pirate again?” acquaintance would say. I could have countered by saying, “No, I’m a privateer,” but that’s so UNO, no one would believe it. One year, with the help of a friend who’s a great costume maker, a new costume was made. Thinking ahead to the city’s tricentennial in 2018, I intended to be Bienville. The costume was quite imaginative, complete with a vest and breeches made with gold-colored fabric, but the tri-corner hat did me in. I could have been George Washington but people still saw me as a pirate, albeit a well-dressed one. Bienville will make an appearance again on another Mardi Gras, but this is the year I have to break the pirate image totally. For a Twelfth Night party, I searched through a costume shop not wanting to get one of those velveteen pre-made costumes of Dracula or a medieval executioner, but hoping I could find parts from which a new costume would be fashioned. I was about to give up when I spotted a pilot’s helmet like the type that the early aces, such as the Red Baron, wore. I bought that and a pair of optional flight goggles. There was no pilot jacket per se, but there were camouflage shirts that had nothing to do with flying, but that when combined with the helmet and goggles looked like something that might have been worn during a dogfight over Prussia. All aces wore a long scarf, so I grabbed one from a selection near the helmets. So there I had it, a more or less complete costume. Then I noticed that the scarf I had picked was green. Once I wrapped it around my neck I pronounced myself to be the Green Baron. At that Twelfth Night party most all of the other costumes were far better than mine, but the getup did earn a certain amount of positive reaction, if for no other reason than it was not a pirate. One woman, who actually is a pilot, was especially impressed with it. So this Mardi Gras, the Green Baron will be patrolling the streets of the French Quarter. And should he meet another flying ace the response will be obvious: “Arrrggghhh!” 120

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ART H U R NEAD ILL U STRATION