Laissez les bontemps roulez

My review of Chappy's today made me cogitate a little about Louisiana restaurants. At the end of July, New Orleans’s Times-Picayune started doing something it hadn’t done since Hurricane Katrina three years ago. It started running restaurant reviews again. After the storm, the paper’s award-winning restaurant critic, Brett Anderson, retooled his job, forgoing critiquing the local restaurants to report on their rebuilding. By some people’s calculations, the Big Easy has 100 more restaurants than it did before Katrina. Even Alan Richman (who, not long after Katrina, wrote a searing rant about the mediocrity of New Orleans restaurants, a piece was was effectively debunked here by Brett Anderson) and the rest of the country's food writers seem to be enthusiastic about the culinary direction the city's moving in. Hm, maybe it's time for a road trip...

Comments

[John McNeilly]

I love all things cajun and creole and therefore can't wait to try Chappy's!

I certainly hope it's as delicious as Brett Anderson's ripping Alan Richman a new one over his GQ NOLA article. I hadn't seen it before (thanks!) and loved this closing line from Anderson about Richman's poorly researched article:

"People in the news business have a word for refining their viewpoint through discussion: It's called reporting."

Ouch. Better rub some beignet powder in that gaping wound.

[Old Chef Dude]

OUCH!!

[Rebekah]

Someone else skewered Richman recently. If I remember I will come back and post...

[Rebekah]

Oh yes, he gave Les Halles a rotten review and Bourdain and Ruhlman gave him a golden clog award lol.

http://www.seriouseats.com/2008/03/alan-richman-is-pissed-at-bourdain-les-halles-review.html

[John Mc]

Thanks Rebekah, great post.

My favorite reader comment of Richman's nasty Les Halles review (and there are several)?

"I didn't know Charlie Rangel had a blog."

You have to admit, the resemblance is uncanny!

cheers ~ john