Where Y'at Magazine January 2021—New Year's / Sugar Bowl

January 2021

WhereYat.com

DINING • MUSIC • ENTERTAINMENT • NIGHTLIFE

SAINTS PLAYOFF PREVIEW p. 6

CONTENTS January 2021 Publisher/Editor-in-Chief: Josh Danzig

Food & Drink

Features

Creative Director: Robert Witkowski Executive Editor: Kathy Bradshaw

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Are the Saints Peaking for the Playoffs?

The Tarnished Silver Linings in the Cloud of 2020

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$20 & Under

Movie Editors: David Vicari, Fritz Esker

Restaurant Guide

Contributing Writers: Kathy Bradshaw, Phil LaMancusa, Debbie Lindsey, Kim Ranjbar, Burke Bischoff, Julie Mitchell, Greg Roques, Eliana Blum, Leigh Wright, Steve Melendez, Michelle Nicholson, Sabrina Stone, Kimmie Tubre, Emily Hingle, Ilyssa Galloway, Celeste Turner

Joan of Arc, Maid of Honor Volunteer in the New Year

Cover Photo: Mike Trummel of Eston Photography

Glass Recycling for Coastal Restoration

Director of Sales: Stephen Romero

Interns: Melanie Hucklebridge, Lawrence Bourgeois, Brhea Washington, Abbey Hebert, Blake Anderson, Amanda Gomez, Olivia G Wimberly, Annabel Morrison

Extras

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Tales From the Quarter Po-Boy Views

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Letter from the Publisher Who Dat! Let’s hope 2021 will bring a Black and Gold Super Bowl. Enjoy Andrew Alexander’s preview of all the playoff action and the return of Drew Brees.

While 2020 was a year to forget, there were some bright spots. The Where Y’at staff reflects on the positive things from this year that will help us grow. In addition, ’tis the season for giving, and Sabrina Stone presents some worthwhile charities to consider contributing to in the new year.

We also have 12th Night and the start of Carnival season to look forward to! January 6 is Joan of Arc’s birthday, and Kathy Bradshaw presents a beautiful telling of the history and lore of the Maid of Orléans.

Have a safe and healthy New Year!

–Josh Danzig, Publisher

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New Year's / Sugar Bowl | Where Y'at Magazine

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PEAKING FOR THE PLAYOFFS? Questions Loom as New Orleans Prepares for Postseason Play

By Andrew Alexander

The Saints' defense remains one of the best in the NFL

As the NFL playoffs approach, there is only one certainty: The New Orleans Saints have an invitation to the postseason party. Who they will play and where that will be is yet to be determined, but the Saints will be one of the 14 playoff teams for the fourth straight season.

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New Year's / Sugar Bowl | Where Y'at Magazine

With the final seeding still hanging in the balance, the Saints are battling several teams for the coveted No. 1 seed in the NFC and the accompanying first-round bye. In the mix are traditional NFC heavyweights: the Green Bay Packers, Seattle Seahawks, and Los Angeles Rams.

Ideally, the Saints would emerge with the best record in the NFC, capturing a first-round bye and home-field advantage (not that it really means anything this year), but New Orleans needs to keep winning and hope for their NFC competitors to slip up in the final weeks of the season.

One major obstacle standing in New Orleans’s way is Green Bay. The Packers’ 37-30 victory over the Saints earlier this year means that Green Bay holds a head-to-head tiebreaker over New Orleans, should the two teams finish with the same record.

In order to secure the top seed, the Saints need to keep winning and pray for Green Bay to falter down the stretch.

If New Orleans fails to nab the top playoff position but still clinches the NFC South, they’ll face one of the three Wild Card opponents in the first round of the playoffs. Even if the Saints miss out on a first-round bye, there’s a decent chance that they’ll be the NFC’s No. 2 seed, meaning that New Orleans would face the No. 7 seed, the lowest-

ranked Wild Card opponent, in the first round of the playoffs.

As a No. 2 seed, the Saints have several possibilities of potential opponents, including the Arizona Cardinals, Minnesota Vikings, Chicago Bears, and San Francisco 49ers. More importantly, the Saints would square off against any of these teams in the familiar confines of the Superdome.

Regardless of opponent, the question on the mind of every New Orleans Saints fan is: Will Drew Brees be ready for the postseason?

It seems likely that Brees should be ready to lead the Saints once again, prior to the playoffs, but the franchise isn’t in a hurry to rush their aging star back into action prematurely. Brees’s return is a delicate balancing act for the Saints, weighing the risk of further injury, playoff seeding, and team rhythm.

While backup quarterback Taysom Hill is doing fine in the interim, the Saints are at their best with Brees steering the ship. The former Super Bowl MVP has the experience and moxie needed to guide the Saints through a treacherous playoff run. Plus, he doesn’t fumble nearly as often.

The Saints have been insanely successful weathering Brees’s absences over the past two seasons, but those were regular-season games.

ALL PHOTOS: COURTESY MICHAEL NANCE / NEW ORLEANS SAINTS

Taysom Hill

The playoffs are different. New Orleans won’t be facing the hapless Falcons, or any team without a quarterback, once the postseason starts.

Fortunately for New Orleans, their defense remains one of the best units in the NFL, regardless of who is under center for the Black and Gold. Whether it’s Brees, Bridgewater, Hill, or Winston, the Saints’ defense has been a rock that the franchise could consistently rely on to shut down opposing teams and give their own offense a chance to win any game.

The one caveat is that the Saints’ schedule hasn’t been particularly daunting. Through no fault of their own, New Orleans has faced only a handful of surefire playoff teams so far this season, with mixed results against those opponents. Nine straight wins is impressive, but it’s very possible that the only victory in the dominant winning streak involving a future playoff team was the 38-3 trouncing of Tampa Bay in early November.

Yes, the Saints beat Tom Brady and the Buccaneers twice, but they also lost to potential top-seed Green Bay and the potential AFC Wild Card Las Vegas Raiders. Besides Tampa Bay, what is the most impressive win on New Orleans’s schedule? If you’re struggling to find the answer, it’s because the answer doesn’t exist. The Saints have beaten up on a bunch of non-playoff teams, and even considering the “any given Sunday” adage, their body of work isn’t actually that impressive.

That first-round bye is paramount for New Orleans because despite what Saints fans might believe, the 2020 incarnation of their beloved squad isn’t battle-tested. This team has won an incredible number of games the past four seasons and multiple division titles and has experienced the agony of not one, not two, but three heartbreaking postseason defeats. Last season, however, doesn’t matter. History doesn’t matter. The only relevant games that matter are those played in the wild, unpredictable 2020 season.

Every Saints fan is praying for another Super Bowl win, not only to celebrate the coronation of this franchise’s remarkable four-year run, but because these people, these fanatics, crave some sort of catharsis for what seems like years of NFL injustices, dating back as far as Sean Payton’s year-long suspension in 2012 to the more-recent egregious NOLA No-Call in the NFC Championship game against the Los Angeles Rams two seasons ago.

The Saints have the players, the pedigree, and the baggage to hoist the Lombardi Trophy in Tampa’s Raymond James Stadium next February. Brees’s health remains the largest question mark when evaluating this team’s postseason success, but is it possible that the Saints’ previous playoff post-traumatic stress disorder will limit this year’s squad from achieving their ultimate goal?

As sweet as winning a Super Bowl on a division rival’s home soil would be—in Tom Brady’s locker room, no less—the Saints will have to elevate their play if they hope to end Brees’s career on a winning note and bring back another title to New Orleans.

The ball hasn’t bounced the Saints’ way during the prior three playoff runs, but in a year when nothing surprises us anymore, maybe New Orleans has a little voodoo left in the tank.

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THE TARNISHED SILVER LININGS IN THE CLOUD OF 2020

By Kathy Bradshaw and Contributing Staff

So, we asked our writers to find the silver linings in this overall abysmal period.

The bright sides. The blue sky among the clouds. And even though the lemons that 2020 handed us make pretty lousy lemonade, we’re going to spike ours with vodka and toast to the end of this horrible year.

DESPITE EVERYTHING, NAME SOMETHING GOOD ABOUT 2020: One of the best things about 2020 was the “crossing things off your bucket list” aspect of quarantine. Having extra downtime allowed many people to finally get those procrastinated projects done, such as planting an herb garden, cooking vegan chili, or adopting a pet chihuahua. And yet, for those of us who didn’t read Gone With the Wind three times, memorize the dictionary, or learn Chinese, the pressure to accomplish impressive tasks also caused some amount of anxiety.

Personally, I feel unworthy, since I didn’t bake a soufflé, alphabetize my spice cupboard, or take up basket-weaving, but I did paint my steps in rainbow colors, hone my online shopping skills, and lose about 10 pounds. So I still consider it a win. –Kathy Bradshaw The brilliance and resilience of local musicians, artists, and event producers have offered a life to so many trapped at home with no other connection to live music within a healthy vicinity. Their use of livestreams in particular meant that New Orleans's live music still reached the ears of not only long-time fans quarantined at home in nearby neighborhoods, but also fans new and old living around the world. Making the most of an inarguably challenging set of circumstances, New Orleans musicians transformed the pandemic into an opportunity to elevate the music and voices of New Orleans to a new tech-savvy level and global audience.

And we are grateful. –Carolyn Heneghan 2020’s undeniable silver lining? Working from home. First, count the hundreds of dollars saved each month on gas and overpriced dining away from home. Next are the hours of transit time taken back each week—time, life’s unrenewable resource.

You can now redirect these redeemed benefits into hobbies, evenings with family and friends, whatever—any of the things you work to be able to do in the first place. Once the COVID-19 dust clears, I doubt many white-collar workers will care to return to their old normal, nor will their employers, who realize the cost-cutting benefits of no longer having to board staff every day. –Greg Roques 2020 has brought an awareness to the human race of what is truly important and has made us all question the difference between want and need by highlighting the other essentials that have been deemed as "luxuries." Things that make life worth living—art, music, celebration—have proven just as crucial for survival.

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New Year's / Sugar Bowl | Where Y'at Magazine

People realize that if we do not have outlets to share in the human experience, we merely exist. Silence becomes palpable. Thank you, 2020, for reminding us that the reasons why we get up in the morning span further than filling our bellies or clothing our backs. –Ilyssa Galloway If there's a light to be seen at the end of this 2020 tunnel, it's the realization dawning on many of us that things aren't “hunky dory.” We all have a lot of work to do to get better and to be better—as individuals, as members of our community, and as participants in a global society. I know this illumination has occurred in the past, but it seems we’d forgotten, or perhaps our eyes weren't all the way open. As we near the unfolding of a new year, I'm clinging to that miniscule ray of hope that we can all move forward again, together. –Kim Ranjbar I suppose that in a year that gave me unemployment, deaths in my extended family, tensions with my immediate family, a failed romantic relationship, and almost constant amounts of stress from isolation and political BS, I guess the closest thing to a silver lining I’ve had in the scourge of 2020 is a renewed sense of purpose: a need to better my health, to make myself happy instead of others doing it for me, to be patient with others because we’re all in the same sinking ship, and to work harder to preserve my family’s and friend's love and adequately return that same love back to them. –Burke Bischoff 2020? Hmm… What can I say? We’ve had our ups and downs this year. But with all of the negatives, there’s one excellent skill that I’ve gained, and that's the ability to hold in my sneezes. For most of my life, I’ve suffered with what the older folks call “hay fever,” which has contributed to my constant sneezing. For years, I have sneezed openly and freely (of course, while covering my mouth), while assuming that there was no cure for this affliction and no possible way to stop my sneezes. One thing my dear friend COVID has shown me is that sneezes can definitely be held in, especially when concerned onlookers are around. Since I’ve mastered the skill of sneeze-holding, my life has been forever changed.

–Kimmie Tubre For me, the silver lining of 2020 was spending six months at home with my family and friends from high school. As someone who adored high school (unpopular opinion, I know), I’ve always been concerned about which friends I would overlap with during breaks and which friends I would have to wait until summer vacation to see. Although the circumstances were dire, it was comforting to have everyone in one place again. Since graduation, my friends have spread out across the country.

I am thankful that quarantine brought us back together and for the time we had to rekindle. –Camryn Cohen While many have felt isolated, bored, and stressed during this pandemic, I have been enjoying the freedom it gave me. Thanks to the earlier lockdown, when most employment was unavailable (and still is, in many sectors), I was given permission not to search for a job, find and train for a job, and punch some damn time clock.

I was given a taste of the dreaded word retirement—a concept that I equated with being old or, worse, having failed (our beloved business closed prior to COVID due to financial failure). Surprise! I have never felt so engaged and free. Now, I need a job to support this freedom. –Debbie Lindsey As this year unfolded, buffeting me with confusion, befuddlement, and anguish, I found calm in caring. Small things: cleaning storm drains, picking up groceries and prescriptions for a neighbor, taking stuff to storage for one person, being a ride to and from the doctor for another, providing an extension cord for someone’s refrigerator when the power went off, donating to charities, working the food-bank line, buying gift certificates from a local small business and giving them away. It’s the little things that enable me to believe that I did make a difference in someone’s life by being a giver. –Phil LaMancusa

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WhereYat.com | January 2021

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Joan of Arc is probably one of the best-known and most prominent historic figures. She has left behind quite a legacy, having infiltrated the arts and history books, culture and geography everywhere. There are songs and books written about her, movies made about her life, ships named after her, and paintings and statues done in her likeness (including our very own “Joanie on the Pony” statue here in New Orleans). And it’s hard to set foot in any French city without some plaza, street, or building bearing her name or some tourist attraction showing off her former haunts. In fact, Joan of Arc has been canonized and sainted, and the Catholic Church declared her to be divine. Napoleon made her an official symbol of France, and she is now one of their patron saints and has her own national holiday. Joan has got to be one of the most widely recognized things to come out of France, next to champagne and Chanel.

But who is this legendary figure, and why do we still remember and celebrate her nearly six centuries after she died?

Joan of Arc was born in the northeast of France in 1412, in the midst of the Hundred Years’ War between France and England. At the age of just 13, Joan was out in her garden one day, when she claimed that several divine saints appeared to her in a vision and told her to rescue France from the English invaders, drive them out of the country, and bring the future king of France, Charles VII, to the city of Reims to be crowned. Allegedly, the saints were so beautiful, and Joan was so moved by them, that she cried.

Encouraged by this celestial nudging, Joan did what most people do whenever the apparition of a saint calls in a favor: She did precisely what they asked. Joan led France into battle some 13 times and helped capture at least 30 cities. When she was only 17, she chopped off most of her hair, dressed up in male solider garb, and, disguised as a man, led the French army to the city of Orléans. There, despite being injured several times, she succeeded in helping defeat the English troops in May of 1429. She was declared a hero by the French and has been referred to as the Maid of Orléans ever since.

However, just a year later, under pressure from the English, French church officials brought Joan of Arc up on as many as 70 charges of wrongdoing. Due to her insistence on her divine visions and guidance and her manly military disguise, she was ultimately charged as a heretic cross-dressing witch and found guilty. On May 30, 1431, approximately 10,000 people stood by as the 19-year-old Joan was burned alive in the marketplace in Rouen, in Normandy. One story says that her heart refused to burn.

Sadly, despite her efforts and sacrifice, the Hundred Years’ War between France and England raged on for another 22 years after Joan was no longer around to help. In 1456, both King Charles VII, whom she had helped bring to the throne, and the pope demanded that Joan of Arc’s accusations and trial be reexamined. In the end, all charges were reversed and dismissed, and Joan was found not only guilt-free, but virtuous, pure, and holy. She was labeled a martyr.

There are many reasons Joan is still held in such high regard, including her piety, bravery, and strength. She was uneducated, illiterate, young, and female, and yet she overcame all obstacles to do something monumental, unforgettable, and seemingly beyond her means. For these reasons, many consider her to be a role model.

“She was a young woman who changed the course of history,” explained Antoinette de Alteriis, co-captain of the Krewe de Jeanne d’Arc here in New Orleans. “We all want to be the superheroes of our communities, our world, to create good—she did that. And, like most superheroes, she came to a tragic end.

Truthfully, most fiction writers would kill for a meaty storyline as good as her real life.”

The Krewe de Jeanne d’Arc is just one example of a group who regularly honors Joan of Arc and her accomplishments.

Founded in 2008 by Amy Kirk Duvoisin— who was officially knighted by the French government for her promotion of French culture in New Orleans— the krewe’s goal is to “find and offer as many ways possible to celebrate Joan of Arc’s story, mystery, power, and appeal.” The group puts on a whole range of Joanie-inspired events and activities, including an art contest, book club, film festival, workshops, monthly socials, and an annual academic conference. But the Krewe de Jeanne d’Arc is primarily known for its annual Joan of Arc parade held on Joan’s birthday every January 6. This parade has become an ever-increasingly large and elaborate event, complete with king cake and coronations, which celebrates not only Joan of Arc and her legacy and statue, but Carnival season, Mardi Gras parading, and the city’s French origins.

“We parade through the streets of the French Quarter where Joan’s statue lives, to honor her and the golden statue, the French Quarter itself, and all things French in New Orleans,” said Duvoisin. “Our parade honors the fact that Joan’s birthday falls on Twelfth Night, so it’s a celebration of her life as well

MAID OF HONOR

By Kathy Bradshaw

January 6 is a very important day. Perhaps most notably, it marks the Epiphany, or the day that the famous Three Kings finally arrived in Bethlehem to pay their respects to the Baby Jesus, on the song-worthy 12th day after Christmas (aptly referred to as Twelfth Night). But it’s so much more than that, especially this coming year. January 6 also means that you’re now a safe social distance of six days apart from 2020. Carnival season has now begun, so you can “legally” eat king cake without risking the curse of bad luck. (Since they can’t cancel king cake, indulge in some Mardi Gras fun where you can get it.) And, finally, it’s Joan of Arc’s 609th birthday.

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KATHY BRADSHAW

Celebrating Joan of Arc, Maid of Orléans, 600 Years Later

Joan of Arc sites in France

Statue of Joan of Arc in Orléans, France

TOP PHOTOS: KATHY BRADSHAW (3); BOTTOM PHOTOS, CLOCKWISE FROM RIGHT: COURTESY CAROL LYNCH; COURTESY KREWE DE JEANNE D'ARC; COURTESY ANTOINETTE DE ALTERIIS

Monument to Joan of Arc in Orléans, France

Rouen Town Square where Joan was burned at the stake, May 30, 1431

as our city’s eclectic, artistic parading culture—and French heritage.”

The famous “Joanie on the Pony” statue, which stands in all its gilded splendor near the French Market on Decatur Street, serves as a centerpiece of both the parade and the city’s Frenchness. “I would not have founded a parade about her if it weren’t for that statue, which is beloved by so many locals, some of whom didn’t know anything about Joan until the parade came along to tell her story,” Duvoisin explained.

A gift from France in 1972 meant to honor our connection to the French “motherland,” the Joanie statue is a twin to another one located in Paris, and very similar to one in Joan’s own beloved Orléans (after being damaged in WWII, the Orléans statue was repaired with money donated by the people of New Orleans).

“It’s amazing to know that art connects us in a way that politics cannot,” said de Alteriis.

Besides sharing a Joan of Arc statue and a name (both city’s names are related to King Philippe II, the Duc d’Orléans), Orléans and New Orleans are also connected by an official agreement. On Joan’s birthday in 2018, the year of our tricentennial, we became sister cities. The Krewe de Jeanne d’Arc has since been invited to Orléans to join them in their own parade, which has been taking place there for almost 600 years now—a fact that influenced Duvoisin’s decision to start the parade locally.

Today, both Orleans cities, the old and the new, continue celebrating a shared history and the common denominator we have in our love for Joan of Arc. “Joan of Arc means so many things to so many people around the world,” Duvoisin said.

“This is our own unique tribute to her. I think she’d be shocked and delighted—and confused, in hopefully a good way—to see that 600 years after her birth, we continue to celebrate her birthday this way.”

Due to COVID restrictions, the annual Joan of Arc parade will not be taking place on January 6, 2021. However, the Krewe de Jeanne d’Arc still intends to honor her on her birthday through other, safe means, still being developed as of press time.

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Krewe de Jeanne d'Arc co-captains Antoinette de Alteriis and Amanda Helm, and founder Amy Kirk Duvoisin in Orléans, France

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Local Charities That Need Your Help

By Sabrina Stone

“New Year, New You” is a concept that we’re all familiar with.

January 1 is often the arbitrary day when we decide to get highlights, join a gym, call an old friend, make a new one... But what if we took the concept more seriously? What if we decided to challenge ourselves in a big way? What if we chose to do better, to be better, in the upcoming months?

A good place to start is by volunteering within your community. There are so many places in need, so many places that would be grateful for your help: Every community center, every place of worship, every hospital, every school could use a boost. This list is a launchpad of ideas and a chance to spotlight a few hard-working organizations.

TULANE MEDICAL CENTER Did you know that you can volunteer at hospitals? It’s extraordinarily rewarding. No special skills or training are required to lend a helping hand. You’ll be matched according to your interests and talents. You can work at the Information Desk or in pediatrics, in patient relations, in the emergency department, the surgery waiting room, the cancer center, discharge, or as an admit escort. Sign up to volunteer at TulaneHealthcare.com.

If you’re short on time, donating blood is always a valuable gift and can be done at Ochsner Blood Banks, where they state that they are “in urgent need of donations”; at The Blood Center, a nonprofit community service organization linked to UMC Hospitals; or at several other locations.

You can also pick up volunteer shifts at the Children’s Hospital of New Orleans. Their hospital gift shop is run by volunteers, and they could always use help organizing fundraising and service projects.

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New Year's / Sugar Bowl | Where Y'at Magazine

HOUSE OF TULIP House of Tulip is literally building a community.

They’re raising funds to buy and restore a centrally located multi-unit property, near all essential resources, that will serve as their pilot permanent housing campus, to house transgendered and gender-nonconforming people (TGNC) in need of assistance. They’re also working to acquire and develop a community center where TGNC people can safely access social safety net navigation, community programming, a hot meal, a shower, or a safe place to just hang out or do schoolwork.

Their mission statement is: “According to the U.S. Trans Survey, 1 in 3 trans people in Louisiana report experiencing homelessness at some point in their lives.

House of Tulip will provide zero-barrier housing to trans and gender nonconforming people in need of a safe place to stay, while growing the supply of affordable housing in New Orleans. It’s a long-term investment in housing solutions. The path from homelessness to home ownership is long and hard, but we will be there every step of the way for TGNC Louisianans. Meanwhile, House of Tulip will continue to own the land, ensuring our housing stays affordable forever.”

Co-founders Mariah Moore and Milan Nicole Sherry are featured in this year's Gambit “40 Under 40.” They

THE GREEN PROJECT & GREEN LIGHT NEW ORLEANS It’s easy being green with these two organizations!

The Green Project runs a retail store out of a large warehouse space in the Marigny, with the mission of selling recycled building materials to local residents. Their salvage store is 100-percent donation-based, with an emphasis on keeping historic architectural pieces in New Orleans and providing affordable building materials. Buying from them supports the nonprofit, as does donating time or materials. You can donate tools, siding, garden supplies, house paint, lumber, tile, plumbing, light fixtures, doors, or windows. They also run an edible garden and oversee a paint-recycling program. There are many different opportunities for volunteering.

To do so, email lpaul@thegreenproject.org. The Green Project accepts drop-off materials at 2831 Marais St., 11:00 a.m. - 5 p.m., Thursday through Saturday. Go to thegreenproject.org/donate-materials for do’s and don’ts.

At Green Light New Orleans, there are plenty of hands-on, crafty ways to volunteer. You can paint and personalize a rain barrel, plant in the teaching garden, or install energy-efficient light bulbs. You’ll be able to help others while learning how to offset your own carbon footprint. Go to greenlightneworleans.org/ volunteerapply to sign up.

NEW ORLEANS MUTUAL AID SOCIETY The New Orleans Mutual Aid Society was founded at the beginning of the pandemic by six friends living in the Bayou St. John neighborhood. They pooled their resources and rented a house at 3122 Cleveland Ave. They started by delivering groceries to people who were at high risk of infection and could not leave their houses. Since then, they’ve grown to over 30 regular volunteers and have made a massive impact on the community. If you need warm meals, groceries, toiletries, clothing, or other things, you can stop by their house on weekdays, from 5 p.m. – 7 p.m., or Saturdays, from 2 p.m. – 7 p.m.

Everything they provide is based on what neighbors and volunteers are able to give. They could use extra volunteers to help cook meals, volunteers to deliver meals, volunteers to grocery shop, to coordinate produce-overflow pickups, and to manage the space, as well as donations of food supplies. The best way to contact them is through email: neworleansmutualaid@gmail.com

ONE BOOK ONE NEW ORLEANS One Book One New Orleans runs a campaign for literacy and community for all of its residents. They partner with the Pirate’s Alley Faulkner Society, the New Orleans Public Library, and WRBH Reading Radio to provide adult literacy programs and access to books and to host quality community programming for those with visual impairment.

Through the Literacy Alliance of Greater New Orleans, Louisiana Books 2 Prisoners, and the Center for Educational Excellence in Alternative Settings, they help run book drives for extraordinary organizations such as Travis Hill, located inside of the juvenile detention center, which provides legitimate, interactive education behind bars and helps students re-engage with school upon release. They are always looking for volunteers in several capacities and are flexible and accommodating about schedules and physical challenges. Sign up at onebookonenola. org/#volunteer

SABR INA STONE

VOLUNTEER IN THE NEW YEAR

run a remarkable organization and make volunteering fun. So far, they’ve done voter registrations, clothing drives, virtual galas, resilience marches, shopping donation partnerships, raffles, and giveaways. Go to HouseOfTulip.org to volunteer.

A Mardi Gras Party in a Box!

Haydel’s King Cake package has all the ingredients for a Mardi Gras party: A shipper size king cake (serves 35 based on a 1” slice), a pack of French Market Coffee and Chicory, a pack of Beads & Doubloons, a King Cake History Scroll, and this year’s porcelain collectible(while supplies last)

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RAISE YOUR GLASS TO COASTAL RESTORATION Glass Half Full Turns Glass Garbage Into Coast

By Michelle Nicholson

According to Trautmann, the idea was born organically, over drinks with Steitz—drinks excited about this particular expansion: “This move was so intentional—to move across that, over the course of their years at Tulane, had created quite a lot of glass waste. “Why New Orleans and make recycling more accessible.” are we letting this go to a landfill where it’s not going to decompose?” is the question Residents may bring and sort their glass personally, for free, between 9 a.m. and 5:30 Trautmann posed. “It’s not going to do any good there.” p.m., on Wednesdays at their Joliet Street location and on Mondays and Saturdays at their Trautmann and Steitz quickly discovered a machine that would crush glass into sand.

Louisa Street location. To make recycling with Glass Half Full even easier, they launched Trautmann recalls, “Something told us that we should just go for it, and we launched a a residential pick-up program this past November. Curbside pick-up occurs monthly; the fundraiser. The community just responded. They’re so ready for something like this, ready first crate is $25, and each additional crate is $10. Glass Half Full provides the crates. for New Orleans to be more of a leader in sustainability instead of always lagging behind— There are other ways to join the Glass Half Full movement to turn garbage into coast. and why aren’t we recycling glass as much as we should when we drink the most? I think Both drop-off hubs offer consumers the opportunity to purchase the sand products they the community and the support we got from New Orleanians are the reasons we were make at their Louisa Street facility. Coarse sand can be mixed with compost for gardening, able to get this far and keep going.” and fine sand also may be used for landscaping. They sell colorful powders that artists use The innovative process implemented by Glass Half Full is a for pigments. And, of course, they have sandbags for protecting source of hope for New Orleans and South Louisiana’s wetlands. homes and businesses from floodwaters.

Trautmann clarifies the difference between conventional glass However, one of the most significant ways a person can recycling and their approach: “The main way glass is recycled is support Glass Half Full in their goal to donate their excess sand through a circular economy, where it’s crushed down and then product to charitable causes—to coastal restoration and disaster re-melted into new glass—but that’s extremely expensive, and relief—is to donate to their GoFundMe campaign. Currently, their it would be environmentally taxing to drive it to a place where Louisa Street location houses 120 tons of glass waiting to be they make new glass. So, we decided, why not crush down recycled. Trautmann says, “This glass mountain is the reason we and stop there and use it as a resource that New Orleans does are having a fundraiser right now, in order to get a machine that need? We need sand.” can crush this at a reasonable rate.”

Louisiana’s coastal restoration projects, which have “We’re working with machines from the 80s,” Trautmann relied on a costly dredging process to obtain sand and silt explains. “From the old machines, it’s a larger crushed glass to redistribute at the coast, are coming to a grinding halt. product, which can be re-melted and made into new glass— Trautmann asserts that by converting New Orleans’s glass it’s called gullet. But our bread and butter and the reason we waste to sand, Glass Half Full’s “ultimate goal is to be able to started this was to make sand from glass, and that’s with the replenish our sand resource that is being rapidly depleted and tiny machines. They are handfed, so we can only do one bottle be an alternative to dredging our waterways. Ideally, we’ll be at a time. That’s the main way we get our sand product, so able to get to a point where we’re selling enough products that we are running on an extreme backlog—there’s just no way to the excess sand we have will go towards the disaster relief keep up.” sandbags, coastal restoration, things like that—we’ll be able to The prospects offered by the new machine, which is able to give that away to more charitable causes,” he says. process two tons per hour, are promising. At that rate, the glass Glass Half Full is off to a strong start, having grown in the mountain may be transformed into sand in about two weeks. past year from a single backyard drop-off on Broadway Street More product in less time and with lower costs means that they to multiple hubs throughout Uptown, before opening their first can build their business and reach their ultimate goal of helping centralized location at 911 Joliet St. Since then, they have to rebuild Louisiana’s coast and wetlands. established a second warehouse drop-off hub at 3935 Louisa If your glass is full, get involved today by visiting St., in the Desire/Gentilly East neighborhood. Trautmann is glasshalffullnola.org.

Glass Half Full founders Max

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New Year's / Sugar Bowl | Where Y'at Magazine

Steitz and Franziska Trautmann, with Miss Tchoupitoulas

P H O T O S, F R O M T O P: A D O B E S T O C K ; C O U R T E S Y J I M E N A PA DI L L A /C A R E O F G L A S S H A L F F U L L

In February of last year, while the world was heading into lockdown, two college students at Tulane University, Franziska Trautmann of Lafayette and Max Steitz of New York, were hunkering down to hatch their latest project promoting sustainability and restoration: Glass Half Full. Their prior project, Plant the Peace, has succeeded in planting over 88,000 trees in sub-Saharan Africa. In 2021, Glass Half Full hopes to create new land in coastal Louisiana through an innovative glass-recycling program accessible to people throughout New Orleans.

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17

$20 AND UNDER Adventures in Eating

By Kim Ranjbar

Iskender from Anatolia Mediterranean Cuisine

The only way to break out of these doldrums is to do something different, to break the routine. It's a new year with a new president and new possibilities on the horizon.

While many of the pre-pandemic diversions continue to be unsafe, there are still things we can do to get out of our own ruts. We can try reading fiction instead of non-fiction, watch sci-fi instead of the news, exercise in the evening instead of the morning, or even try a completely different type of workout. And, while it's comforting to order the same sushi rolls from your favorite Japanese restaurant every Thursday night or get that large pepperoni pie from the oh-so-familiar pizza joint on the corner, why not try a dish you've never tried before? It's entirely possible that the flavors and textures will be unlike anything you've had, creating an entirely new experience, and regardless if it's good or bad, it will offer that much-needed change of pace, breaking up the seemingly endless dreariness, while at the same time making a memory.

One of the simplest ways to expand your dining adventures is to try something new at a familiar place. For example, since it opened, you've probably visited Wishing Town Bakery in Metairie, or possibly enjoyed their foodstuffs previously from their Yami food truck. It's certainly hard to resist another order of their minipork bao or a slice of the green tea mille crepe cake, but instead of falling back on the familiar, why not sink your teeth into a pork-floss cake? Both savory and sweet, it's an airy, rich chiffon cake frosted with mayonnaise and covered in fluffy pork floss—almost like a chewy, salty, porkflavored cotton candy. Plus, at Wishing Town's most reasonable prices, you can have your pork bao and eat pork floss cake, too!

Though it's one of the best-known dishes of Turkey, Iskender kebab is certainly not commonly found fare in New Orleans, despite the city's many Mediterranean-style restaurants. At Anatolia Mediterranean Cuisine on the corner of Eighth and Magazine Streets, they offer this iconic meal of thinly sliced lamb döner kebab smothered in a spicy tomato and pepper sauce served atop torn pieces of pita and a generous, tangy dollop of yogurt. Though opting for this dinner will set you back almost $18, the portion sizes at Anatolia are uncommonly lavish, and the Iskender comes with rice, salad, pickled cabbage, hummus, and more warm pita bread. You can easily split it with your DC (dining companion) or save half for tomorrow's lunch.

Over the years, it has become increasingly common to encounter goat on various

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New Year's / Sugar Bowl | Where Y'at Magazine

restaurant menus, especially in South Asian or Caribbean cuisines. Just think of the curried goat at Jamaican spots like 14 Parishes and Boswell's, or the wildly popular version served atop sweet-potato gnocchi at Nina Compton's Warehouse District restaurant Compère Lapin. If it's your first time or 41st time eating curried goat, you should still try the Herndon's interpretation at French Quarter spot Palm & Pine. Chef/ owners Jordan and Amarys Herndon have taken that extra step with a dare-we-say addictive rendition that is delightfully on the spicier side of life, tossed with fideos, and topped with mango yogurt, a generous sprinkling of puffed rice, and Elmer’s Hot-NSpicy CheeWees.

Indian cuisine is a rare commodity in the Crescent City restaurant community, and when a new one pops up, both fast fans and noobs alike should be lining up to give it a try. Such is definitely the case for the new Westbank house-turned-restaurant Plume Algiers, launched by Carrollton Market alums Tyler Stuart and Merritt Coscia. Their menu is always changing, but it is also always offering unique (novel particularly to New Orleans) tastes of Indian street food at awfully reasonable prices, from the rabbit naan with caraway butter ($10) and savory coconut appam ($2) to tandoori pork with apple and ginger chutney ($12). We promise you've never tasted anything like this before.

It's been a long time coming, but in the past couple of years, the city has been miraculously blessed with a couple of Persian food pop-ups. Although this cuisine is found readily in places like Los Angeles or Washington D.C., it has all but been a dream in New Orleans—until now. One such installment is Sabzi (@sabzipersianpopup) that has been popping up at breweries around town, such as Second Line and Miel Brewing, and most recently at Happy Raptor Distilling. In keeping with safety precautions, Sabzi has only been offering pickup, but you can go online and order dishes such as “ash reshte,” a festive noodle soup made with fresh herbs, chickpeas, and pinto beans (a dish frequently served to celebrate the New Year); dolmeh, or stuffed grape leaves with rice and lentils—a much tangier, tomato-ier version than you've ever tasted before; and “kashkeh bademjan,” an eggplant dip devoured best with thick, herbed hunks of “barbari,” or Persian flatbread.

There's a whole world of exciting new flavors to explore, all of which are not all that far from your doorstep. What are you waiting for?

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The alarm goes off, and you roll out of bed. Maybe you have time to take the dog out for a walk or a half hour on the stationary bike, a quick shower, and a cup of coffee before you slide in front of your computer for another day working from home—that is, if you're one of the lucky ones still working. Day in and day out, it's the same old routine with nothing to break up the tedium, nothing to stop the monotony. There are no live concerts to attend, no festivals to mark on the calendar, no sporting events to tailgate. So, on top of the anxiety, depression, and worry is an almost unbearable level of boredom that makes the days, weeks, and months bleed into one another, making it feel as if time has slowed to a snail's crawl with nothing but a blurry smear to mark its passage.

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RESTAURANT GUIDE AMERICAN Lakeview Harbor boasts great steaks, seafood, and other classics, while providing a comfortable pub atmosphere on Lake Pontchartrain. They offer delectable steaks, such as a 10-ounce smoked prime rib with grilled asparagus and loaded potato croquettes, and a 12-ounce ribeye with grilled asparagus and rosemary roasted new potatoes. 8550 Pontchartrain Blvd., 504-486-4887, lakeviewharbor.us Legacy Kitchen’s Craft Tavern serves refined American cuisine and spins on all of your favorite dishes. Their brunch menu is served daily to save you from having to wait for the weekend. Their All-American Beignet-Wich is a Southern take on the classic breakfast sandwich, with eggs, cheese, and bacon in a beignet. 700 Tchoupitoulas St., 504-613-2350, legacykitchen.com

also caters to fortune-cookie lovers by selling the iconic cookie in groups of four. 3001 Napoleon Ave., 504-899-8005, greenteanola.com Mikimoto creates a modern and tidy atmosphere with dim lighting and updated decor, a perfect setting for a meal of sushi, edamame, baked yellowtail neck, or whatever else you might be in the mood for. Their drive-thru allows you to grab some great sushi without even unbuckling a seatbelt. 3301 S. Carrollton Ave., 504-488-1881, mikimotosushi.com MoPho merges Vietnamese and Louisiana cuisine together to create an experience that all should try. This restaurant features incredible appetizers, such as crispy chicken bites, as well as don’t-miss daily specials, including hot chicken vindaloo on Tuesdays and their smoky pork pho on Wednesdays. 514 City Park Ave., 504-482-6845, mophonola.com

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The Steakhouse at Harrah’s is an esteemed steakhouse that doesn’t skimp on the shrimp— try topping your steak with seafood to make it “surf and turf” style. Want something exciting to drink with your meal? They offer cocktails by the bottle and champagne specials. And after tasting the food, you’ll understand why the Steakhouse’s chef, Ryan Wichter, has won awards. 1 Canal St., 504-533-6111, caesars.com/harrahs-new-orleans/ restaurants/the-steakhouse

ASIAN 601 POYDRAS | 504-608-FISH (3474) PAN AM BLDG 20

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SERVINGSUSHI.COM

New Year's / Sugar Bowl | Where Y'at Magazine

Green Tea serves healthy Chinese cuisine and insists on being vegan-friendly and using local ingredients. They offer large portions of family meals, so your Chinese-food run can be enjoyed by the whole family. The restaurant

Tsunami features an impressive array of seafood dishes and sushi that are full of waves of flavor. The restaurant offers a fried sushi roll called the Big Easy, full of crawfish, snow crab, crab stick, crunchy shrimp, cucumber, and scallions. They also have a selection of delectable daily specials. 601 Poydras St., 504-608-3474, servingsushi.com

BARS WITH GREAT FOOD 5216 Table & Tap is a great bar that has food just as good as its drinks. In addition to an impressive selection of amazing cocktails, they offer a variety of speciality burgers, such as the Southern Drawl, which is loaded up with a fried green tomato, pimento cheese, and bacon. 5216 Veterans Blvd., Metarie, 504-766-1417, 5216tableandtap.com Fulton Alley isn’t only a bar, but also a bowling alley, so you can spend the evening there drinking and scoring spares. Bowling is even more fun with an order of their Loaded Baked Potato Tots, which are oversized tater tots with cheddar cheese, bacon, and green onions. 600 Fulton St., 504-208-5569, fultonalley.com

S TA F F P H O T O S

Sala is a family-owned restaurant that focuses on making their stylish atmosphere on the lake a place to be enjoyed with family and friends, especially since their food is meant to be shared. Sala also features a fantastic cocktail menu as well as a Happy Hour Tuesday through Friday. 124 Lake Marina Ave., 504-5132670, salanola.com

Orleans Grapevine has been serving highquality cuisine and fine wine for many years. The building is over 200 years old, but their food is fresh and modern, especially the Grapevine Black Angus house filet, an eight-ounce filet that comes with your choice of crawfish demi-glaze or a cream sauce. 720 Orleans St., 504-523-1930, orleansgrapevine.com Rivershack Tavern calls itself the most unusual bar in New Orleans, and with good reason. Known for its collection of both “bar legs” barstools and tacky ashtrays, the Rivershack Tavern also has one of the best beer selections in town. It offers fantastic dinner specials that include steaks, ribs, and even tacos. 3449 River Rd., Jefferson, 504-834-4938, rivershacktavern.com Rum and the Lash is tucked into Mick’s Irish Pub and offers great food to go with its beers.

Try a basket of their fries, which come plain, with cheese, loaded, or with curry sauce. Their everchanging list of weekend specials and rotating menu items include a pork sandwich and a pimento cheese and collard melt. 4801 Bienville St., 504-482-9113, rumandthelash.com Stumpy’s Hatchet House provides customers an unusual and fun experience: throwing a hatchet at a target! Both seasoned throwers and newbies are welcome. Stumpy’s features a selection of bar bites to snack on while hatchetthrowing, such as their delicious hot dogs and cheesy nachos.

1200 Poydras St., 504-577-2937, stumpyshh.com/neworleansla

CAFÉS Bearcat Cafe focuses on serving high-quality dishes for breakfast and lunch, as well as sustainable coffees from Equator Coffee Co., loose-leaf teas, and house-made bottled beverages. They offer both light and indulgent dishes, with a “Good Cat” menu for when you’re going healthy and a “Bad Cat” menu for those splurge days. Multiple locations, bearcatcafe.com Jimmy J’s Café makes everything from scratch with the freshest ingredients, and their staff prides themselves on knowing how to both cook and serve good food. This restaurant has a wide variety of delicious French toast options, such as their blueberry-brandy glazed, Bananas Foster, Cap’n Crunch, and cinnamon-spiced varieties. 115 Chartres St., 504-309-9360, jimmyjscafe.com Misa focuses on serving global cuisine with authentic Mediterranean influences, which goes wonderfully with their impressive wine list.

Customers can sit outside on the patio and enjoy

excellent dishes such as their sweet potato ravioli and cauliflower curry. Their fantastic desserts include a perfect chocolate tart served with ice cream. 4734 Magazine St., 504-510-2791, misanola.com

CARIBBEAN Carmo built its menu upon a multi-cultural culinary experience that gives diners a taste of the Caribbean, West Africa, and beyond, for vegans and omnivores alike. Their delicious Rico entree features grilled plantains topped with panela cheese, housesmoked wild boar, and their Rico sauce. 527 Julia St., 504-875-4132, cafecarmo.com NOLA Caye is a Caribbean-style restaurant that not only has delicious food, but also a great atmosphere for you to enjoy their cuisine, both indoors and out. Their house salad, deliciously filled with mangoes, pineapples, and avocado, is just one of many recommended dishes, and their Happy Hour is top-notch. 898 Baronne St., 504-302-1302, nolacaye.com

ITALIAN Josephine Estelle marries Italian cuisine with Southern influences to create a menu of unmatched flavor and quality. They are open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, giving you plenty of opportunities to stop by. Their Pork Milanese, served with radishes and a Meyer lemon aioli, is the star of the dinner menu. 600 Carondelet St., 504-930-3070, josephineestelle.com Mosca’s is a family-owned restaurant that has been in operation for over 60 years. Guests can enjoy delicious Italian specialties and signature dishes, such as Oysters Mosca. Mosca’s even shares their recipes for favorites such as Shrimp Mosca and Chicken a La Grande, so customers can try making them on their own. 4137 US-90 West, Westwego, 504-436-8950, moscasrestaurant.com Nor-Joe Imports doubles as both an Italian import grocery store and fantastic restaurant.

The restaurant offers a range of tasty options, such as the creamy carbonara pasta, served with fresh garlic bread and a side salad, and the “cheese wheel pasta,” made by putting hot pasta and sauce into a hollowed-out cheese bowl.

505 Frisco Ave., Metairie, 504-833-9240, facebook.com/norjoeimport Pascal’s Manale has been serving New Orleans since 1913, offering delicious and authentic Creole and Italian dishes. Famous for being the original creator of New Orleans-style BBQ shrimp, this restaurant also features multiple private rooms that are perfect for small gatherings with friends during the holidays. 1838 Napoleon Ave., 504895-4877, pascalsmanale.com

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Red Gravy has been listed in Open Table’s Top 100 Best Brunches in America and is celebrating its 10th anniversary. On the brunch menu, they feature delicious cannoli pancakes, which are thin pancakes with cannoli cream, pistachios, and chocolate.

You don’t want to miss this Italian twist on brunch. 4206 Magazine St., 504-561-8844, redgravycafe.com Tavolino is sometimes referred to as the “hidden gem of Algiers” and is best known for its incredible handmade pizzas and excellent wine. Their prosciutto brie pizza is topped with tomato sauce, mozzarella, prosciutto, brie, and arugula. End your visit with their deliciously creamy pistachio cheesecake. 141 Delaronde St., Algiers, 504-605-3365 Venezia Restaurant has been creating authentic Italian handmade pizza in their original stone oven since 1957. Don’t miss their fantastic veal, seafood, chicken, and pasta dishes. Get your meal topped with shrimp and crawfish in a dill cream sauce, or make it a classic spaghetti-andmeatballs night. 134 N. Carrollton Ave., 504-488-7991, venezianeworleans.net

NEW ORLEANS CUISINE Apolline is in a renovated double-shotgun cottage that creates a homey and welcoming feeling for every customer who enters. Their dinner menu has mouthwatering dishes, such as the brown butter and pecan-roasted Gulf fish. But Apolline is also famous for its brunch, complete with bottomless mimosas and Bloody Marys!

4729 Magazine St., 504-894-8881, apollinerestaurant.com Café 615 was voted “Best Restaurant Westbank” by Where Y’at Magazine readers. This restaurant offers large portions of authentic New Orleans cuisine and an extensive list of beer, wine, and cocktails—just the way we like it! Café 615 also has great catering options for all your party needs. 615 Kepler St., Gretna, 504-365-1225, cafe615.com Chef Ron’s Gumbo Stop offers a variety of Chef Ron Iafrate’s delicious gumbo dishes, such as Freckled Gumbo, with fried oysters on top, or Gumbo Monceaux, topped with a poached egg and potato salad. They also serve other classic New Orleans dishes, including crawfish etouffee, jambalaya, shrimp creole, and red beans and rice. 2309 N. Causeway Blvd., 504-835-2022, gumbostop.com

Red Gravy Lebanon’s Café creates an exciting and colorful atmosphere and serves authentic Middle Eastern cuisine, so you’re sure to enjoy both the food and the location.

Lebanon’s was voted Best Middle Eastern Restaurant by the readers of Where Y’at Magazine. Be sure to try a few of their hummus varieties. 1500 S. Carrollton Ave., 504-862-6200, lebanonscafe.com Tal’s Hummus offers a pledge of hospitality to its customers, promising to treat all guests like family. They serve Israeli-inspired food, including hummus, pita sandwiches, and kebabs, all using the freshest ingredients. Order their hummus alone or topped with anything from chicken to grilled veggies to falafel.

4800 Magazine St., 504-267-7357, ordertalsonline.com

MEXICAN Carretta’s has been serving authentic Mexican food since 1999 and aims to make customers feel at home in their restaurant. Although you can always get all the classics, such as burritos and margaritas, a new item on the appetizer menu is their avocado fries: breaded and fried avocado slices, served with their house chipotle sauce. Multiple locations, carretasgrillrestaurant.com

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New Year's / Sugar Bowl | Where Y'at Magazine

The Creole Cookery features divine New Orleans cuisine and drinks. They offer a delicious list of appetizers, such as gator bites and Cajun calamari, as well as impressive entrees.

Both their food and Hurricane cocktails will make you fall in love with New Orleans all over again. 508 Toulouse St., 504-524-9631, neworleanscreolecookery.com Daisy Duke’s provides a truly Southern experience, serving Cajun-inspired cuisine and providing customers the classic Southern hospitality that New Orleans is known for. Their breakfast menu is available at all times, offering such dishes as an alligator omelet, Cajun omelet, and biscuits and gravy. Multiple locations, daisydukes.com Jazzy Pete’s is a hip restaurant that serves traditional New Orleans dishes and great po-boys. Jazzy Pete’s signature item is the Jazzy Pete Poboy, which comes with grilled hot sausage, American cheese, fried shrimp, pickles, greens, and Jazzy sauce, in either a large 12-inch or half-sized 7-inch variety. 8201 Oak St., 504-766-0420, facebook.com/ jazzypetesnola Mandina’s was founded as a grocery store in the late 1890s and was later turned into a restaurant in the 1930s. The restaurant features numerous fantastic daily specials every day. For instance, on Tuesday, you can choose from beef stew, corned beef and cabbage, and delicious stuffed

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MIDDLE EASTERN

menu, prepared over bricklike “briquettes” covered in fine oils. The Snapper Pontchartrain, served with hollandaise sauce and lump crab meat, is an otherworldly experience. 701 S. Peters St., 504-460-3886, briquette-nola.com Desire Oyster Bar allows oyster-lovers to watch as experts shuck oysters that are fresh from the Gulf.

Customers can’t get enough of this restaurant’s oyster options, whether they’re on the half shell, chargrilled, or between the bread in their famous “Peacemaker” fried oyster and shrimp po-boy. 300 Bourbon St., 504-553-2281, sonesta. com/us/louisiana/neworleans/royal-sonestanew-orleans/desireoyster-bar The Galley is a seafood restaurant with excellent dishes made with quality ingredients. They’ve been serving their iconic soft-shell crab and catfish po-boys at Jazz Fest since 1977.

House specials include blackened or grilled redfish, topped with shrimp and crabmeat and served with potatoes and veggies; and veal parmesan with angel hair pasta. 2535 Metairie Rd., Metairie, 504-832-0955, thegalleyseafood.net

Willie Mae's Scotch House chicken breast. 3800 Canal St., 504-4829179, mandinasrestaurant.com Short Stop Po Boys is a dedicated po-boy restaurant that offers 30 different types of delicious po-boys in total, including roast beef, hot sausage link, Italian sausage, meatball, oyster, and soft-shell crab, among many others. Their sandwiches come in 6-inch, 9-inch, and king-size 14-inch options, and you can even get whole wheat po-boy bread. 119 Transcontinental Dr., Metarie, 504-885-4572, shortstoppoboysno.com Willie Mae’s is a classic Southern restaurant that is known for its world-class fried chicken, which was voted as “America’s Best.” They also won a James Beard Award in 2005. The most popular meal here includes three pieces of chicken with one of their excellent sides, such as green beans, macaroni and cheese, or fries. Multiple locations, williemaesnola.com

SEAFOOD Briquette is a contemporary restaurant with an open-kitchen layout in a converted molasses factory. Their fresh fish is the highlight of the

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Seaworthy is a seafood spot hidden in a Creole cottage. This restaurant devotes itself to serving “wild-caught and sustainably harvested oysters from American waters,” including the Gulf, so you know their food is fresh. Their “Chilled & Cured” special features mahi mahi, Gulf shrimp, fresh cobia, and poke-style tuna. 630 Carondelet St., 504-930-3071, seaworthynola.com Tito’s Ceviche & Pisco has a vibrant atmosphere, with upbeat music, art scattered throughout the restaurant, and an energetic and knowledgeable staff. They offer a fantastic dish known as Pescado a lo Macho, which includes pan-seared fish, mixed seafood, and a spicy Peruvian cream sauce, served over rice. 5015 Magazine St., 504-267-7612, titoscevichepisco.com

The winter season in Baton Rouge is nothing short of magical.

Although our celebrations might

F R O M T O P: R O B E R T W I T KO W S K I; S TA F F P H O T O

seem different this year, we’re still full of holiday spirit. From local shops perfect for gift-giving to delicious food made with seasonal ingredients, Louisiana’s Capital City knows how to celebrate all season long.

Head to visitbatonrouge.com/ holiday to make the most of the holiday season in Baton Rouge.

Seaworthy VBR20-03r Where Y'at 1/3 pg_PRELIM3.indd 1

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New Year's / Sugar Bowl | Where Y'at Magazine

kay, let’s be real. Do you keep those lofty and totally inspired New Year’s resolutions? You know what I’m talking about: those pledges to make amends with your health and welfare and to just be a better person. And despite the most noble and valiant commitments and dedicated jump-starts, do you find that by, say, mid-January, you are suffering the self-recriminations of being a slacker, and by month’s end, realizations of failure-to-stay-thecourse have taken root? Can I hear an “amen”? Can I get a witness?

Yep, every New Year’s Eve, we collectively toast to new beginnings, do-overs, makeovers, and vows to kick bad habits to the curb, while swearing to climb those mountains of righteous good deeds—and yet we know deep down inside that it just ain’t gonna happen. So, does this mean that we shouldn’t make those feel-good resolutions? No. But perhaps we just need to be a bit more realistic.

You say you are really psyched to run that marathon this spring. Well, honey, maybe you should consider that you don’t even jog, and those epic walks on the treadmill once a week might not quite cut it. No shame, no blame—we all gotta start somewhere, but maybe shoot for the “fun run,” which is about 23 miles shorter. Be honest about your athletic prowess.

I remember once when I was determined to begin a new year with a positive exercise agenda. Let it be said that being hungover from a New Year’s Eve celebration is not exactly a proper warm-up for running. Good intentions wanted to persevere (I even turned down a mimosa brunch), but four blocks into my course, my run took flight and had an emergency landing over the treacherous terrain of a sidewalk long overdue for pothole repairs. My Olympic-gold-medal dreams were replaced with a cast and crutches.

Many self-improvement projects include weight loss. Yes, we all could do with an honest self-assessment of our weight and should strive towards eating a diet that puts us on a healthy course. But girl, don’t go buying that size-6 sexy little dress for motivation, especially when you are a size 18.

Do you need to lose some weight so as to prevent diabetes, high blood pressure, unhealthy cholesterol levels, and hips and knees that are gonna give you grief years from now? Absolutely! So go for it, but be realistic. Set goals that are healthy and attainable. Maybe that wimpy little size 6 is too small for the sexy

woman you were meant to be, curves and all—how about a size 12?

It seems that most resolutions focus on lofty advancements in terms of careers—hell, just get a damn job and then clock in on time. But let’s say you have a serious commitment to a current job and want to “go places” within that company. Then, of course, focus on the long-term and the things you might need to do to advance your pay grade and position. But take it slow and steady and find ways to make this job rewarding and enjoyable, other than with a title and pay raise. I, for one, prefer being a grounded and happy employee, rather than aggressively climbing up a corporate ladder—I never did like heights. Anyway, set realistic goals for your work place, tighten up on your work ethic, give a little more effort, and, above all, cultivate those workplace friendships. Most of my lasting and most rewarding friendships were developed on the job—often a job that was less than satisfying or short-lived—but the benefits package gave me relationships that have stayed steady.

Speaking of relationships, now that is an area we all could work on. Being a bet ter friend, bet ter neighbor, or even a kinder person to strangers is easy-breezy, and the goal can be accomplished with small gestures and actions. But sometimes being there for someone gets put of f, postponed, and then forgot ten. That let ter you meant to write to a friend’s mom should be put in the mail before you stumble across an obituar y telling you that it ’s too late. Make a small list each week of two people to call or write to. Of fer a neighbor something from your garden, bring over a plate of your home-cooked dinner or a slice of cake, or leave a bot tle of wine at their doorstep. Heck, just bring in their garbage can for them.

My goals for the New Year are a little less dramatic than in years past.

I want to pledge to take my vitamins every single day (they are called One A Day for a reason, not Once in a Blue Moon). Also, those damn three-pound free weights need to be lifted off the floor and placed in my hands to signal to my flabby triceps that there’s a new sheriff in town, and she ain’t gonna put up with upper arms that flap in the wind. Another resolution is to write and submit this monthly column earlier than the 11th hour of my deadline.

Yep, I am choosing goals that, maybe, I will achieve.

Happy New Year to you! Be safe, be sane, and strive for some modicum of contentment.

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WhereYat.com | January 2021

25

PO-BOY VIEWS

By Phil LaMancusa

T

he Duchess of Lincolnshire is 24 years old and has seen a lot in her few years. Of course, if you measured her in human years, she would probably be as old as your new president. She is sleek, fast, and cheap (much like myself); she’s at home in any neighborhood and gets waves and whistles as she passes by. She can cruise the hood or take to the road like a warrior, she’s thrifty on gas, her brakes are good, and the tires are fair. She’s got 205,000 miles on her, and she roars like a tiger when pressed. She’s got power under the hood and in her spirit. I wouldn’t trade her for a yard full of Jaguars.

The Duchess came to us a few years ago after the demise of her predecessor, who was a few years her senior and had to be put to pasture as an organ donor. They both came from the same family: the Fords of Detroit.

Her predecessor was simply named the Stinkin’ Lincoln and was retired at 253,000 miles because (much like myself) the engine ran like a teenager, but the body was quickly falling to pieces.

Both were/are four-door, power-everything, boatlike maneuverability, and equipped with Mafia trunks that had/have a four-body capacity.

I come from a time of “old iron”: cars that idled high and traveled well, in which families comfortably took on long trips. Vehicles with names like Roadmaster, Bonneville, and Cougar, the Bel Air, Coupe de Ville, Fairlane, Camaro, Monte Carlo, Stingray, and Impala. They were all made of heavygauge metal and had speedometers that read up to 130+ and were not kidding!

Well, that was then, and this is now.

A program called Cash for Clunkers took most of the old iron off the road, and people started settling for smaller, more-efficient, cramped, fiberglass and tin midgets that cannot be distinguished one from the other as far as I can tell. I swear, sometimes I look at some of these pieces of miniature motorcars and think, “Boy, you get hit in that thing, and the next thing you’ll be driving is a pine box!”

Here’s another one of my “in my day” stories: In my day, people went out for “drives.” There were drive-in movies, diner and ice cream pull-up-and-get-served destinations, full-service gas stations where they’d check your oil and tires (gratis), and open roads where you could sit back and guide the car with one hand completely relaxed in the driver’s seat, while whoever was riding “shotgun” could easily slouch with their feet out the window. Air conditioning was the rolling down of windows and vents; heat was a fan connected to the motor. Cars came in primary colors and were long enough to haul lumber. You could make your car into a pickup truck by sawing off the back half,

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New Year's / Sugar Bowl | Where Y'at Magazine

which gave manufacturers the idea for the El Camino and Ranchero, which you could close in to make a station wagon (another dinosaur).

Those were the days of 501s, pomaded hair, and unfiltered cigarettes—before seatbelts and motorcycle helmets. Dangerous days. They were also the days of kids with skinned knees and bruises from playing games now thought of as lethal. Days of playground equipment that could (and did) really put a hurt on you: seesaws, monkey bars, metal slides that could get really hot in the summer, and those little merry-gorounds that you’d have to run and push to get started and then hop on quickly before you were jettisoned. Fun. So, you, now that you’re still hampered by the plague and have only electronic devices to amuse, tutor, and instruct you, here’s something that you can and might find fun to do: Call up a person of a certain age and ask what it was like when they only had dial-up phones, played board and card games, jumped rope, threw jacks, and played something called “Red Rover, Red Rover, let me cross over!”

Ask what car they had. If you want to really start a conversation, ask what it cost to fill up the tank.

It’s a new year and you’re bored. I’m so sorry.

Why don’t you take a drive to, say, Fairhope and back, throw some drinks in a cooler, pack a blanket, take Old Highway 90 and slow the heck down, stop at Dong Phuong for sandwiches, cruise through the Rigolets, and stay off the freeways and interstates. Or drive up to Memphis for some barbecue and take the Blues Trail (Highway 61). See some country, crank up the tunes, hang your head out the window, leave your cell phones in the trunk, and talk to each other. Evacuate your mind. Drive to a beach, bring some egg salad sandwiches or stop at a Waffle House for a stack and a couple of over-easies, put your feet in the sand, take the dog. Then come home and use your bike for the next week to assuage your “carbon footprint” guilt.

Every time I get behind the wheel of the Duchess, I feel like taking a drive, hit the open road, put the pedal to the metal, and driving it like I stole it. And here’s a little secret: I have a ’97 Lincoln Towncar that runs like a top and is as comfortable as a sofa. The mechanic gives it a thumbs up with every visit, and you know what? She cost me less to purchase than six months’ payment on your new sissy car.

So, this New Year, when you spy the Duchess rollin’ smooth, easy, and loud, resolve to get some old iron in your life and, like me, live the dream—don’t just dream about living. Happy New Year!

PHIL L AMANCUSA

Old Iron or The Duchess