Ending The Year For a Great Cause

After almost an entire year of failing to live up to your expectations, we are taking a breather this week to relax, recharge, and rush to meet our billable hour requirements. But before we bid farewell to 2011, we want to spread the word about a special event on Friday.

Those of us who are fans of the lunch time tapas menu at Rio Mar probably know Lorie Gandy by face but not by name. Since 2004 Lorie has been the one woman orchestra during every lunch shift at Rio Mar, cranking out plates of blistering morcilla, crispy patatas bravas, and crusty pressed sandwiches filled with jamon and manchego. More recently, Lorie could be found at local markets dishing out cochon de lait po-boys and other fare at a booth sponsored by her Bon Vivant Catering venture.

Last week during lunch at Rio Mar I was surprised to see Nic Bazan, co-owner of Rio Mar and a man of many talents, dressed in his chef whites and working the line. After our table finished a delicious meal (which was punctuated by the absolute best tasting flan that has ever touched my lips), I asked Nic why he was wearing a different hat on this particular day.

It was then that I learned that Lorie was in Houston after an overnight trip was extended indefinitely when she unexpectedly delivered twin boys, Knox and Gabriel, 3 months before her due date. Lorie and her husband Will have been in Houston since then, caring for their boys who are under 24 hour watch at Women's Hospital of Texas and will likely stay there until mid March at the earliest. Once Knox and Gabe are healthy enough for travel, the family plan on making the drive back home to New Orleans.

During lunch on Friday December 30th, the Rio Mar family is throwing a tapas fundraiser to support and assist the Gandy family. Joining the cause will be Slade Rushing and Allison Vines-Rushing from MiLa. The cost is $40 per person (which covers tapas and tax), and although there is no specific menu, you can be sure that these chefs will be feeding you well and that no one will leave hungry. Alcohol will be sold separately, and only cash and checks will be accepted.

Most of us were fortunate enough to spend this holiday season at home surrounded by our family and friends. Let's all do as much as we can to ensure that next year the Gandy family will get to do the same.

Winesday

Rene: Bright, fresh wine which tastes like biting into a melon with a little bit of citrus as well. This wine could go with a lot of dishes, but ceviche from a place like Rio Mar, a Soft Shell Crab Po Boy from The Galley, or the Shredded Pork Szechuan Style from Jung's Golden Dragon would all be contenders. 

 

Peter: Not my favorite wine, but I'm sure it has its place. Pretty dry. Not much fizz or effervescence on the tongue. Thinking a dish with lots of spice to compliment. Panang Curry with duck from Sukho Thai or maybe deep fat fried hogshead cheese from Cochon.

Joe the Wine Guy: 2009 San Telmo Torrontes from the Mendoza appellation in Argentina. This wine begins with delightful floral and orange peel notes which gives way to crisp orange, grapefruit and tropical fruit flavors and just a touch of jasmine. Pair this wine with lighter fare like smoked trout appetizers, seafood salads, and grilled white fish or chicken breasts. You can find this wine at Byblos, Tomasitos, and Dorignac's, where it retails for $10.

Weekend Roundup

With the NFL taking a breather before the Super Bowl, this weekend is flush with events for music lovers, beer nerds, and chocoholics, plus an opportunity for you to enjoy a fine meal and support an admirable non-profit organization at the same time. Here's the rundown.

Tonight, OffBeat Magazine hosts this year's Best of the Beat Awards Party at Generations Hall. The talent on stage includes the likes of Deacon John, Ivan Neville's Dumpstaphunk, and more. Besides all of the music, the price of admission also includes an impressive spread from local restaurants, including Besh Steakhouse, Martinique Bistro, and The Joint. Tickets are $29 in advance and $39 at the door.

On Saturday, Dan Stein is celebrating his own version of Festivus with the 3rd Annual Beer Day. All day long, Stein's Deli will be pouring free samples of its beers for sale and marking down all purchases of beer by 10%. Additionally, homebrewing expert Derek Lintern will be brewing up a few batches of a Belgian-style double and oak vanilla stout.


And there will be no resting on Sunday with a full day's worth of fun:

• Starting at 1:00 at The Avenue Pub, Aaron Hyde of Brewstock will be teaching a free class on homebrewing basics.
• Local public television station WYES will be hosting its Chocolate Sunday celebration at Harrah's Theatre. This event features over 50 local chocolatiers, bakeries, and restaurants doling out samples of all things chocolate. The 2 hour event begins at 3:00, but VIP ticketholders gain access at 2:00. Ticket are available online and range in price from $30 to $50.
• On Sunday night, Chef Adolfo Garcia and Rio Mar are hosting "Mixing Up Some Magic", a special dinner to benefit Liberty's Kitchen, a non-profit dedicated to transforming the life of at-risk youth through life skills taught in a culinary setting. The 3 course menu featuring Gulf seafood sausage, herb roated lamb shoulder, and roasted pear cake costs $75 per person inclusive of wine, tax, and tip. Reservations must be made online.

And, of course, if you have a hankering for a hamburger when Sunday night rolls around, you know where to go.

Saints Bye Week Makes for a Big Weekend

There is no such thing as an "off weekend" in the fall in New Orleans. The Saints bye week has left the door open for a number events to fill in the calendar, so strap on your boots for a busy weekend of eating and drinking.

On Saturday, the Broad Street Brewhaha will take place on the roof of the old Schwegmann's at 300 N Broad Street. The event will feature pick me ups from Coffee Roasters of New Orleans and beers by Abita, NOLA Brewing, Lazy Magnolia, Heiner Brau, and Bayou Teche. (Look out next year for Tin Roof to be added to the list.) Admission is free, and a $10 sample card guarantees you 10 3-ounce pours of the beers of your choice.

Sidenote: We wish we were going to the Carnivale de Vin Gala on Saturday night, but Santa did not deliver us the $1000 tickets as early Christmas presents. But if anyone wants to buy us Auction Item #16 entitled "A Few Bites of the Big Apple", we would quickly get over missing the gala. Moving on.

The premiere event of the weekend is the 4th Annual Po-Boy Festival, which will takse place along a seven block stretch of Oak Street beginning at Carrollton. The festival starts at 11:00am, and I advise you to arrive early as the crowds can get quite thick later in the afternoon. The map of po-boy purveyors can be found here, and from experience I can tell you that the booths farther from Carrollton are more likely to have shorter lines. (By the way, we are terribly disappointed that Dong Phuong is not on the list this year.) Finally, as you may recall, we served as "celebrity judges" for last year's Po-Boy Contest, but apparently our star has faded because we will not be on the panel this year. It was a good run.

Also on Sunday, La Boca will be hosting Asado Night at Rio Mar. The all you can eat meat feast features beef, lamb, pork, chicken, morcilla, and chorizo plus other La Boca favorites like provoleta and empandas. The cost is $50 per person and seating is limited, so call 525-8205 ASAP to make a reservation.

Last but not least, MVB will once again be open for business on Sunday night at Slim Goodies beginning at 5:00pm. With this week's recent shout out in the press, the MVB team is gearing up for what will hopefully be another successful burger weekend. One final note, the above linked article mistakenly listed this week's special as last week's. Just to clarify, this week's special is the "South of the Burger" - burger, blackbean and chipotle puree, guacamole, tomatillo crema, queso fresco, and grilled red onion. On The Pope's scale of deliciousness, we think it qualifies as "Lovin' in Your Mouth."

Lunch at Rambla

Before a few weeks ago, it had been quite a long time since my last meal at Rambla. The menu has somewhat evolved since the restaurant opened in October 2008. Tapas still comprise the majority of the menu, but the addition of bocadillos and sliders have made the restaurant (at least in my opinion) much more conducive to lunchtime dining.

Bocadillos are what would best be described as Spain's own version of the po-boy. Rambla offers four different versions, the best of which may be the simplest: layers of thinly sliced serrano ham topped with melted manchego and sweet onion jam (pictured right). Burgers can be a bit dry from the inclusion of ground pork, which also gives the patty an almost pale gray color. Word of advice: If the chorizo burger is offered as a special, make sure it ends up on your table.

As for the sliders, some may say their inclusion on the menu indicates some form of "selling out" to the mainstream. Maybe it is, but I'll leave judgment on that issue to the commenters and instead focus on taste. The chile braised pork shoulder came highly touted by the staff, and while the spicy shreds delivered the heat, the stale buns unfortunately detracted the great flavor of the pork. Too bad because $8 is a great deal for 2 sliders and a pile of thin and crispy french fries.

Even though burgers and sandwiches are now more the focus during lunch, tapas are still available for those wishing to sample a few different items. If you are looking for a light lunch (or even a few items to share among a group), the Tapas Trio (pictured top) offers a daily selection of tapas plus a salad for $14. Keep your fingers crossed one of those three is a pair of medjool dates stuffed with Marcona almonds and blue cheese, wrapped in bacon, and pan fried. I think that Rene said it best in our review of Rambla in OffBeat: "The stuffed dates combine in one bite the holy trinity of flavors: salty, sweet, and bacon."

One final note. Although the food is lunch-worthy, service is often not up to speed for those diners on a time crunch. My latest lunch was 80 minutes from entry to exit, though I have a feeling that a large group caught the kitchen off guard.

Lunch at Rambla - Par

PS - I don't know about you, but last night's episode of No Reservations had me on the verge of booking plane tickets for a return trip to Madrid. Since the cheapest flight leaving this week was over $1000, I am settling for the special wine dinner at Rio Mar on Thursday. I suggest you do the same. 9 dishes, 6 wines, and a whole lot of talk about Spain will make for what Chef Adolfo Garcia calls the "Spanish Wine Dinner of the Year." For menu details and information about our host, Spanish food, wine, and travel enthusiast Gerry Dawes, click here. Call 525-3474 to book your seats.

Spanish Wine Dinner of the Year

Calling all wineauxs,

If you have ever traveled through Spain, are planning a future trip to Spain, or simply cannot afford a trip to Spain and are looking for the next best alternative, then make your reservations for an extraordinary wine dinner at Rio Mar on Thursday September 16th at 7:00pm.

We at Blackened Out have been working with fellow blog character Spaniard to organize the first of what will hopefully be a recurring series of wine dinners at some of our favorite local restaurants. Hosting the first dinner will be none other than Gerry Dawes, the award-winning writer and travel guide on Spanish gastronomy, wine and culture. Affectionately known as "Mr Spain", Gerry has over 30 years experience wandering the back roads, discovering fantastic little known wineries and exploring Spanish cuisine from inconspicuous tapas bars to the work of Ferran Adria at El Bulli. Gerry has been awarded numerous accolades for his work, including Spain's prestigious Premio Nacional de Gastronomía (National Gastronomy Award) in 2003. In short, he's kind of a big deal in the Spanish food and wine world.

Gerry has worked diligently with his favorite importers and local distributors selecting 6 different wines for the dinner, which will include vintages and varietals not often seen on local menus. While Gerry has focused on filling the glasses, Chefs Adolfo and Miles have designed a special 9 course menu to match the wines. The menu will feature many specialties from the Galician region, including delicacies such as sweetbreads and stuffed squid. Before dinner and in between courses, Gerry will offer tasting notes on the wine and entertain diners with tales of his visits to the various wineries and regions throughout Spain.

The cost of the dinner is $125 inclusive of food, wines, tax and tip. Reservations are necessary and seating is limited to 60 people. Call 525-3474 to reserve your seat today, as this dinner is sure to sell out quickly. To read an interview with Gerry about the upcoming dinner, check out this nola.com article by Todd Price.

MENU

White Wines: Godellos

A Coroa

Casal Novo

Castelo do Papa

Red Wines: Mencias

Casal Novo

Peza do Rei

D. Ventura Viña Cañeiro

Food served family style in waves

Seafood

Pulpo a la feira Parillada de mariscos

(seasonal fish, mussels, shrimp, clams and hopefully razor clams)

Empanada Gallega

Sardinas Asadas

Chocos Rellenos

Other Dishes

Cecina Estilo Leon de Aqui

Caldo Gallego

Lacon con Grelos

Mollejas con Pimientos

Xarrete de Ternera con Papas

- Menu is subject to change -

Rio Mar

Long before La Boca revolutionized the New Orleans steakhouse and A Mano began curing salumi in house, Chef Adolfo Garcia had his one and only: Rio Mar. Labeled as "a seafood destination," Garcia's flagship is perhaps best known for serving Spanish fare adapted to the bounties of our local waters, as well as ceviches native to Garcia's homeland of Panama. While the majority of the menu does feature seafood, carnivorous offerings such as grilled hanger steak and blood sausage fill out a menu of a restaurant to which there is much more than what meets the eye.

Rio Mar is truly a tale of two restaurants, depending on what time of day you dine. During lunch they offer a strictly tapas menu that lists upwards of 30 items which diners check off on a sheet of paper, similar to ordering at a sushi bar. Favorites include the aforementioned blood sausage (morcilla) with its rich, beef flavor and cake-like texture, the fruity and slightly acidic piquillo peppers, crispy patatas bravas topped with a mild aioli which you simply cannot get enough of, and the small pressed sandwiches called bocadillos. If dining with a large group, the $25 "Feed Me" option is a no brainer with its never ending parade of courses, which range from the excellent (bacalaitos - light and airy cod fritters) to the average (shrimp al ajillo sauteed in garlic).

There is some menu crossover between day and night - like the tuna empanada served with a garlicky sweet romesco sauce - but for the most part, the dinner menu is broken down into conventional appetizer, salad, and entree sections. In the summer heat, the best way to start your meal is with an order of refreshingly acidic ceviche. Meat lovers can then progress to the Latino-style roast pork or the sliced hanger steak served over fried yuca and dressed with chimichurri. Of the four Calasparra rice dishes, I enjoy most the one featuring littleneck mussels and chorizo. But if you (a) came here for seafood or (b) simply want to eat the second best dish on the menu, then look no further than the pan-roasted Louisiana black drum. Cooked till perfection when the flesh of the fish flakes away from the slightest pressure of a fork, this filet is served atop fried eggplant rounds and crunchy green beans with a deliciously smoky cumin-honey vinaigrette drizzled over the entire plate. This dish gives trout amandine a run for its money as the best fish dish in town.

So if the drum is the second best dish, the obvious question is: ¿Cuál es el número uno? The answer: A simple plate of ham. The ultimate indulgence at Rio Mar is 5 thin slices of jamon Iberico, an off the menu specialty which is usually available everyday. You can almost taste the acorns which those noble pigs feed on. Best $20 you will ever spend.

The Rankings

Food - Birdie. Chef Adolfo and his team headed by Chef Miles Prescott at night and his longtime tapas chef during the day know their food inside and out. Tapas at lunch are simple yet delicious, while dinner is a full blown array of Spanish flair and flavors augmented by local ingredients. The menu is full of dishes which are either only served at Rio Mar or only worth ordering at Rio Mar. There is no replication.

Bar/Wine/Service - Birdie. The entire floor staff is friendly and very well versed in the food and wine. Service is swift unless overwhelmed by an unexpected lunch rush on any other day but Friday. The wine list offers a number of Spanish selections at affordable prices; my only suggestion is that the vino tinto spend a bit more time in the chiller. The bar is an underutilized aspect of the restaurant and is perfect for sharing a few Estrellas or a bottle of txakolina amongst friends; if only the full tapas menu was available at night.

Overall - Birdie. Rio Mar is still the best Spanish restaurant in town, with a well executed menu which is diverse enough to warrant extensive exploration both at lunch and dinner.

Fish Fridays - Rio Mar

In the nineties, the Warehouse District dining scene was like America before European nations discovered it. If Emeril Lagasse was the Christopher Columbus of the movement to the Warehouse District, Adolfo Garcia must surely be Francisco Pizarro - the swashbuckling, conquistador who has established highly successful restaurants of differing scope throughout the area. Of course, as far as we know, there has been less blood shed with Garcia's conquest than with Pizarro's.

Garcia, 48, had cooked in restaurants in New Orleans and New York for years while waiting for his chance to cook his food on his terms in New Orleans. "I was cooking in New York, and I would come back every six months to take the pulse of the restaurant scene. People like Emeril, Susan (Spicer), and Donald (Link), they paved the way for restaurants to open which were different than traditional New Orleans restaurants," says Garcia.

In 2000, the time was right and Garcia and Nick Bazan opened Rio Mar. "Everyone told us we were crazy. They said, 'You are going to do Spanish seafood? Where?'"

Since opening, Rio Mar has attracted diners with their take on Spanish and Latin American, maritime focused cuisine. "We have a bacalao dish on the menu, and Europeans and Hispanics come in and order it because for them it is a traditional dish. But just last week, a group from Pennsylvania wanted to try it," Garcia says describing the popularity of the classic which was at first a tongue-in-cheek offering on Rio Mar's menu.

The dish is named Bacalao a la Abuelita Lula, after Garcia's grandmother. Garcia explains, "My mother, God bless her, made bacalao every Friday in lent, really always in Lent. It wasn't very good, she used ketchup. But when I saw how my grandmother cooked it, I saw how great it can be."

That bacalao starts with filets of cod which have been salted and left to dry. The cod arrives at Rio Mar with a crusty, white exterior. After three days of soaking in water (the water is changed daily), the cod is then cooked in an aromatic mixture of soffrito, tomatoes, raisins, and sherry vinegar. The bacalao is sent to the table crowned with parsley, olive oil and salted marcona almonds, a true "olfactory overload" describes Miles Prescott, sous chef at Rio Mar.

The sweet and sour sauce smelling dish, with a strong presence of cod, arrives at the table bubbling and perfuming everything around it. The taste is vaguely reminiscent of early forays into Asian dining, sweet and sour pork, duck sauce, and the like, but with a similarity to Creole sauce due to the tomato. Wash it down with an effervescent glass of txakoli.

When Garcia speaks, he does so with authority; be he talking about authentic Mexican cuisine, food costs, or discussing the effects of the Unification of Catholic Kings on Catalonian cuisine. "That sweet/sour flavor profile you find all over the Mediterranean-from Venice to Sicily, Corsica to Sardinia. At one time, many of those lands were under the control of the kingdom of Catalonia. This was before Spain unified, kicked out the Moors, and started burning heretics at the stake. You know, the Inquisition wasn't such a great time for Spain," he says.

Ceviche, another area of culinary expertise close to Garcia's heart, receives great respect from his kitchen staff. "Many places are serving 'ceviche,' but we really serve ceviche," Garcia explains.

Rio Mar's appeal lies not in its location or cuisine, but in its soul as a wonderful place to enjoy seafood prepared in different ways. So if you are looking to keep faithful, while tasting something different, head to Rio Mar this evening. Consider it Lenten American cuisine.

Panamanian Ceviche

Take 3 medium size drum filets (about 2 pounds total) and remove the blood line by cutting on either side of the line. Discard. Slice long, thin strips down the length of the filet and then cut strips into a small dice.

Dice a red onion. Take two habaneros, remove the seeds and stems, and finely dice. Combine the fish, habaneros, and red onion in a bowl. Cover with fresh squeezed lime juice, about a half cup, (you can use bottled lime juice, it's ok; Garcia does) and a good amount of salt.

Garcia believes the salt is key. "The acid in the lime juice will eat up most of the salt, so you need a lot in there." He used 2 big pinches of salt. Allow mixture to marinate for at least three hours.

Serve with corn chips, popcorn, or (Garcia's favorite) ice cold beer.

Tapas & Touchdowns

Blogger's Note - Today, in honor of this post on Rio Mar, we introduce a new blog character: Spaniard. His name comes not only from his striking resemblance to Maximus, but also his love for the food and wine of España. He is the only person I know who is willing to pay the exorbitant price for jamón Ibérico, which is available at only a small number of restaurants in the city. Guess what one of them is?

The small plate craze has been in full force for quite a while now, with numerous restaurants offering mini portions of nearly everything on their menus. But let us not forget the impetus of this trend. The tapas bars of Spain have been serving tastes of octopus and olives long before boudin balls came around. Rio Mar might not have been the first restaurant in New Orleans to serve tapas (or maybe it was, I don't really know), but it's still one of the best.

In Spain, a "tortilla" is made with layers of thinly sliced potato. Rio Mar's version strongly resembles a classic French quiche, but it's still more akin to it's brethren in Madrid as opposed to Oaxaco. There is usually a "tortilla of the day" on the menu, and this one with chorizo and tomatoes is a fine example.

While in some cases I agree that foreign names on menus are merely attempts at pomp and circumstance, there are times when chefs should refuse to translate so as not to scare away less adventurous diners. For example: you may be weary to order "blood sausage," but "morcilla" sounds too exotic to resist. But whether in English or in Catalan, this stuff is just damn good. The casing is crusty from the grill while the interior has a silken texture and rich flavor.

I forgot one very important point: Rio Mar is NOT strictly a place to get seafood. As if the blood sausage was not enough of a clue, then the best choice on the lunch menu should be: hanger steak with a vibrant chimichurri and yuca fries. It's the next best choice to La Boca being open for lunch.

'

Got football fever? Office closing early today? Not sure where to go for a bite and a few beers before the game? Luckily for you and me, Rio Mar has decided to extend their hours for Monday Night Football, serving tapas straight through from lunch until kickoff. You can thank Spaniard for this, as he sent no fewer than 5 emails and made 4 phone calls begging Chef Adolfo to stay open all day.

We who are about to dine, salute you.

'

Rio Mar - Birdie

A Mano

For roughly a thousand years New Orleans has been the home to a wonderfully unique brand of Italian cooking, known as Creole-Italian. But in recent years, a few restaurants (like the Italian Barrel) have opened which present a more Italian-Italian dining experiences. Much like Chinese restaurants, which often cook the cuisine of a particular region, these restaurants focus on regional Italian cooking. The newest of the bunch is A Mano.

A Mano is the latest venture of Adolfo Garcia and Nick Bazan, following in the footsteps of the incredibly good Rio Mar and La Boca. Josh Smith is the chef-partner who is charged with producing regional Italian specialties. It is important to note that the average Italian would have little idea what Italian food is. He would know the food of his region, or even sub-region, and of course that would be the only authentic Italian food. Even the food from a village away would likely be scoffed at by him.

When we dined last Friday, the place was packed with the Fooderatti- including Dread Pirate Robert and Lorin Gaudin. Try as he might, Dread Pirate was unable to spoil our dinner. But he did step on my camera with what he called his "Special Shoes"-3-inch, zebra and turquoise Manolo Blahniks-hence there are no pictures.

The Italian language has all sorts of quirks and interesting phrases which are most readily apparent in their depictions of food. Fans of the old Molto Mario program on Food Network will remember how he always took a moment to explain the phraseology of a dish. The menu at A Mano is reflective of this Italian tradition. Take, for example, the Supli al Telefono. The name translates as telephone wires and as you take a bite of the caciocavallo cheese filled rice fritters, you see why. Thin lines of tangy cheese stretch from your mouth to the savory rice ball as if connecting two distant towns.

Or try Mozzarella in a Carriage (Mozzarella in Carozza con Salsa d'Acciughe) which is nothing more than a well-tailored grilled cheese covered in anchovy caper sauce. But the taste makes the regular grilled cheese look like a scemo.

Dishes like the Trippa alla Fiorentina show this kitchen will cook and serve anything authentic. The tender slowly braised tripe comes set in a delicious and piquant tomato sauce. Utterly delicious, just wish there would have been more bread to sop up the juices. The appetizers run from $5-$8 and you could put a nice tasting menu together with a few of them and some pastas (which range from $8-$12).

The pastas feature the lesser-known stars of the pasta marquee. There is Orrechiette Pugliese ("little ears in the style of Puglia") with broccoli rabe, dried tomatoes, sausage and ricotta salata. But the wild boar ragu simply blew our heads off. The meat was tender and delicious while just hinting at the rough and tumble structure of wild boar.

As far as entrees, we only sampled the Petto d'Anatra con Fichi e Marsala, but the duck breast was cold and the figs seemed lost against the sweet wine sauce. But hey, its early in A Mano's development.

A cheese plate comparing three sheep's milk cheeses and a bottle 2007 Guidobono Barbera d'Alba ($30) rounded out a very good first showing from A Mano. With A Mano, Garcia and Bazan have once again shown that the cuisines of the world can stand tall in New Orleans on its own merits. The hard part for you? Deciding which restaurant-La Boca, Rio Mar, or A Mano-to dine at. In bocca al lupo!

Withholding official judgment, but that night's dinner was a birdie.

My Walk With Bourdain

“You at the Rio Mar party? Is that tonight? Bourdain is there.”

Rewind: Thursday night Rio Mar had a “kegger, Basque-style” where Chef Adolfo tapped a cask of txakoli and planned on pouring the whole thing. I made reservations to go with a large group, but they all backed out and so I canceled too. Instead, I wound up with Triple B and two others at Sukho Thai, where I received the above text message from Rene.

Upon reading this message, I immediately called for the check and headed for Rio Mar. Triple B decided to tag along too. When we arrived, there were far fewer people than I expected, and the cask of txakoli was long gone. “Is Bourdain here?” I asked. “Yep. He’s in the main dining room,” replied a waiter. “Really cool guy. Go get a picture.”

I waited next to the greeting stand while Triple B powdered her nose in anticipation of her glamour shot, but next thing you know Anthony was strolling past me on his way out. I stopped him, said hello, and asked for a picture, to which he graciously obliged. Triple B was right behind me and snapped one of her own.

So now what? We walked outside to contemplate our next move, and Anthony said goodbye to his companions and made his way down Julia toward the river. “We should have asked him if he wanted to get a drink,” I said. On our walk back to the car, we noticed Anthony standing on the corner waiting for a cab. This was one of those moments. I wish I could say that I played it cool instead of acting like a 1980s Aerosmith groupie reincarnate, but we were basically stumbling over ourselves to catch him before he left. I sent Triple B in first because as a member of the light-haired female tribe, she is much more convincing than I.

“Do you want to go get a drink with us?” she asked.

“No, I am exhausted,” Anthony smilingly replied. “I’ve been on this corner for 5 minutes and already 3 people have stopped and said, ‘Hey, you gotta go to this bar.’ Plus I have a flight to Prague in the morning.... How do you catch a cab around here? When the light is on, that means there is already somebody in there?”

“Yeah. I’ll call you a cab,” I offered.

“I’m staying at the W next to the casino,” he said, " but I have no idea where I am."

“Well, that’s right there,” I pointed. “We’ll walk you over.”

So we walked. And talked. Anthony told us that he was in town to meet with writers for “the coolest f*cking thing on television,” but he was tight-lipped on the details. We told him how great it was for him to film an episode here back in 2007. I asked him what he thought about the food at Domilise's, to which he responded, “You know, you can probably get a better tasting po-boy elsewhere, but that place has history. It's been open for a long time, and it was perfect for our show. It’s the neighborhood and the people which makes that place great.”

He asked if I had ever been to Prague, and I told him yes. “How’s the food?” he asked. “Eh,” was my reply. “That’s what everyone else has told me,” he said. We talked about his daughter and how she loved olives and sardines and everything salty, and how when he gets back to New York his wife is going to handover the reigns for a while because she has been on solo duty for long enough.

But mostly we talked about New Orleans and what a special place it is. He asked if we had grown up here and told us how great it was that we stayed. “Every time I come here, it’s like a big hug,” he said. "The chef and cooking culture here… it’s like coming home. Nowhere else in the world is like it. I just feel this warm embrace whenever I am here.” Triple B and I told him why we thought NOLA is such a special place, but I’m embarrassed to say that Anthony probably said it best: “People come to New Orleans, and they either get it right away or they don’t. They either say, ‘OK, this is why this is an amazing place.’ Or they just never will.” I offered to take him to the Westbank for Vietnamese for lunch, but I’ll have to wait for another time. “In a perfect world, I would stay here for a week and eat at all of these places that everyone keeps telling me about. It would be two o’clock in the morning, and I’d be scarfing down Verti Marte.”

I wish that I could tell you that this story ended with Anthony, Triple B, and I downing Flaming Dr. Peppers at the Goldmine followed by a 4:00am feast on an All That Jazz. But I cannot tell a lie. When we got to the W, Triple B and I offered to buy Anthony a scotch, but he politely declined and thanked us for our hospitality. And then he was gone.

I’ve met Paul Bocuse. I’ve eaten at The French Laundry. Maybe I’ll make it to the Fat Duck one day. But my walk with Anthony was pretty special. I doubt it was as good for him as it was for me, but that’s not the point. And if you don’t get why, then you never will.

Please note that the camera adds 20 pounds (but apparently not for professionals like Anthony).

Rio Mar mentioned in NYT

A recent article in the New York Times profiles New Orleans raised food writer, Kim Sunee. Part of the interview takes place at Rio Mar. Man, I sure could go for some tapas right now.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/20/dining/20crumbs.html?pagewanted=1&_r=2&sq=rio%20mar&st=nyt&scp=1