Performance Review

Last year I set out to do the impossible. My goal: Not to eat in the same restaurant more than once over the entire year. The outcome: Failure... sort of.

I did not repeat a restaurant until August 31, when I joined my co-workers at Tan Dinh for lunch during my first day on the job. That circumstance says a lot about my demise because most of my repeats in the last 4 months were weekday lunches. As you all know, time is of the essence when it comes to your work week midday meal. That's why it's called the "lunch hour." If I had an infinite amount of time and minimal responsibilities, I could have driven to different places and avoided breaking the streak. But I don't.

Regardless of my failure, I still ate at quite a few restaurants over the past 365 days, many more than I would have had The Challenge not been in effect. And even after I broke the streak, I continued to live up to the spirit of The Challenge by at least trying to avoid repeating restaurants for dinner. I stumbled on that goal too, but only twice (i.e., Galatoire's and La Boca for three meals each.) After compiling the list, I realized just how many eateries there are in this city. The sheer number of places that I didn't get to - Herbsaint, Iris, and Cochon to name a few - shows how deep our restaurant roster is. Thank God there's always next year.

I encourage everyone to break outside your comfort zone and eat everywhere you can next year. According to Fr. Tom, there are over 1000 restaurants in the New Orleans area. If we write about a place and it sounds good to you, try it. Same goes for a recommendation from a friend. What do you have to lose? And if you can beat this list over 2010, then my hat goes off to you.

Audubon Golf Club House, Back to the Garden, Baru Bistro, Between the Bread, Bistro at Maison de Ville, Bistro Daisy, Boucherie, Bud's Broiler (City Park Ave), Byblos (Metairie Road), Byblos (Magazine), Café Adelaide, Café Minh, Café Rani, Café Reconcile, Casamento's, Charlie's Seafood, Chateau du Lac, Chicken Sue's, Chinese Tea Garden, Ciro's Cote Sud, Cochon Butcher, Coquette, Coulis, Crabby Jack's, Delachaise, Dong Phuong, Doson's Noodle House, Dough Bowl, Eat, Elizabeth's, Fat Hen Grill, Felipe's, Felix's, Fellini's Café, Franky & Johnny's, Galatoire's, Galley Seafood, Gautreau's, Gordon Biersch, Gott Gourmet Café, Green Goddess, Hana, Hoa Hong 9 Roses, Hoshun, Huevos, Italian Barrel, Juan's Flying Burrito (Carrollton), Juan's Flying Burrito (Magazine), Kanno, Kim Anh's Noodle House, Kim Son, Korea House, Koz's (Lakeview), Kyoto, La Boca, La Cote Brasserie, La Guadalapeno, La Petite Grocery, Lakeview Harbor, Lebanon's Café, Liborio, Lil Dizzy's, Little Tokyo (Causeway), Little Tokyo (Mid-City), Liuzza's By The Track, Lucy's, Luke, Magazine Po-Boy Shop, Mandina's, Martin Wine Cellar, Mat & Nadie's, Maximo's, Middendorf's, MiLa, Mona's Café, Nirvana, Parkway Bakery, Patois, Phil's Grill, Pho Bang (Vets), Pho Orchid, Pho Tau Bay, Pontchartrain Point, Pupuseria La Macarena, R&O's, Rambla, Restaurant August, Rio Mar, Rocky's Pizza, Ruby Slipper Café, Santa Fe, Sara's, Satsuma Café, Semolina Bistro Italia, Shogun, Slice (St. Charles), Slim Goodies, St. James Cheese Company, Stanley!, Stein's Deli, Sukho Thai, Sun Ray Grill (Old Metairie), Sushi Bros., Taco San Miguel, Tan Dinh, Taqueria DF, Taqueria Corona, Taqueria Guerrero Mexico, Taqueria Sanchez, Thanh Thanh, The Court of Two Sisters, The Pelican Club, The Rib Room, The Rum House, The Store, Tommy's, Ugly Dog Saloon, Vega Tapas Café, Venezia (Mid-City), Walker's Southern Style BBQ, Wasabi (West End), Welty's Deli.

There might be a few others that I have forgotten.

2010 will be Rene's year for The Challenge, but the details have not been ironed out just yet. That's because we are waiting on recommendations from you readers on what exactly should be his goal. Suggestions so far have been strong to quite strong:

1. Forgoing all animal byproducts except pork.
2. A month-to-month rotation between the 30 day cleanse and the Atkins diet.
3. Living in the kitchen at Stella! (which includes bathing in the dish sink).
4. A prohibition on tweeting about anything other than food.

There are still 2 days left to send us your suggestions, so get them in by email or in the comments. We'll be back on Monday with the chosen parameters. Until then, have a happy New Year and remember: As long as you keep reading, we'll keep eating.