Dispatch From New Orleans

Healthy eating in New Orleans

You are right to associate New Orleans with rich food that is emotionally and spiritually nourishing but perhaps not that physically healthy.

But there are a whole bunch of New Orleans restaurants that are healthy on all three levels. They include:

Green Goddess: This tiny place just opened May 2009 in the French Quarter and is a hit with local vegetarians. (307 Exchange Avenue, The menu is described as globe-trotting and includes Sweet Potato Biscuits with Pepper Jelly, the Green Goddess Wedge Salad, and Abado Mess 'o Greens Cuban Sandwich. Lots of meat dishes too. Download lunch menu and dinner menu. (307 Exchange Place, 504-301-3347)

Fair Grinds Coffeehouse: A hip coffee place off Esplanade Avenue in Mid-City, not too far from the New Orleans Museum of Art and City Park. At Fair Grinds, efforts are made to serve organic and fair-traded foods and coffees. My favorite is a little bowl of chickpeas with raisins and spices that you can eat hot or cold. The environment is wholesome as well, with Scrabble games on Mondays, yoga upstairs and all sorts of art and music events. See Vegan News (3133 Ponce De Leon, 504-913-9073)

Bennachin: A West African restaurant in the French Quarter, Bennachin serves plenty of meat, but you can find very delectable vegetarian dishes, wilted spinach, fried plantains and exciting ginger drinks.Very casual. (1212 Royal St., 504-522-1230)

Photos by Jedd Haas

A to Z through New Orleans restaurants

With more than 1,000 restaurants in the New Orleans area, you need to alphabetize them just to keep up. I got this idea from Tamara Palmer, Tripvine food blogger for San Francisco, which is the other great food city in the country. 

There are so many great restaurants in New Orleans that I had trouble deciding which to include. Here's the first A-Z list. Several more will follow.

A is for Acme Oysterhouse - A casual place for oyster lovers. Great robust service.
B is for Bennachin - West African and vegetarian-friendly cafe in the French Quarter, casual and very exotic.
C is for Cafe Du Monde - Where chicory coffee and beignets are served 24 hours a day.
D is for Dragos - Another oyster-centered restaurant, with charbroiled delicacies.
E is for Emeril's Delmonico - One of the greatest restaurants in the world.
F is for Five Happiness - A Mid-City Chinese restaurant with to-die-for egg foo young.
G is for Green Goddess - Fairly new and very tiny vegetarian-friendly eatery. Very cool. Very hip.
H is for Hansen's SnoBliz - Since, 1939, the best snowballs in New Orleans. Open May to August.
I is for Irene's - Creole Italian in a cozy and romantic French Quarter locale.
J is for Juan's Fyling Burrito - Plentiful, fresh Mexican fare, vegan and vegetarian selections.
K is for K-Paul's Louisiana Kitchen - There may be no better gumbo anywhere on Earth.
L is for La Petite Grocery - French bistro without the attitude. An Uptown favorite.
M is for Mat & Naddie's - Surprisingly tasty out-of-the-way place in Riverbend.
N is for Nirvana Indian Cuisine - A taste of India Uptown. Good deal on lunch buffet.
O is for One Restaurant & Lounge - Uptown local's place that is delicious and welcoming.
P is for Palace Cafe - At Canal and Chartres, lively and elegant restaurant with amazing service.
Q is for a future restaurant whose name begins with Q.
R is for Ralph's On the Park - Consistently elegant, great service, lavish Sunday brunch.
S is for Slice Pizzeria - Darn good pizza and service that aims to please.
T is for Theo's Pizzeria - One fave place the locals go for thin-crust pizza.
U is for Upperline - Warm and cozy meets Uptown. Try the grits.
V is for Venezia - Neighborhood Mid-City Italian place, great for take-out.
W is for Willa Mae's Scotch House - Perhaps the best fried chicken in town.
X is for a future restaurant whose name begins with X.
Y is for Ye Olde College Inn - Classic Creole dishes plus fried bread pudding.
Z is for Zea Rotisserie - Try the rotisserie chicken and Thai ribs.

Brad and Angelina's favorite family restaurant?

When Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie visit New Orleans - which is quite often seeing as how they bought a home here and he's going to be our next mayor (not really on the latter count, but we can dream) - they have been seen at a favorite spot for them and their kids.

Angeli on Decatur is pizza and vegetarian joint in the French Quarter (1141 Decatur St.) that is known for its fresh fare, large portions, reasonable prices and friendly servers with a piercing or two. The service is swift and the servers polite. You can tell this is a place with good management. 

Angelina must have noticed the service, and maybe the fact that Angeli is like her own name (just add "na" to the end). She has been seen there with her kids carbo-loading on pizza.

If you go, try the Mystical Pizza with sun dried tomatoes, roasted garlic, onions and goat cheese. You might also like the generous portions of the hummus and pita plate. In general, the food here is pretty healthy, perfect for those from out-of-town who are not accustomed to the rich dishes found in New Orleans.

Plus, in case you're staying in the Quarter, Angeli will deliver to your hotel room door. Phone: (504) 566-0077.

The 25-cent martini

Who says you have to be filthy rich and go back five generations in New Orleans to lunch at Antoine's?

Truth be told, even mortals like you and I are welcome there.

Furthermore, we can enjoy the lunch specials at this venerated, world-famous establishment that's been feeding the powerful and not-so-powerful since 1840. You'll want to start (and finish?) your lunch with an Absolut flavored vodka martini for only 25 cents!

After that, you can order a complete lunch for $20.10. (Get it?)

Here's the special menu:

Starters (choose one)

• Butternut Squash & Shrimp Soup
• Cognac Baked Oysters
• Fried Crayfish Salad

Main Dish (choose one)

• Chicken Clemenceau
• Louisiana Gulf Speckled Trout
• Shrimp Creole

Dessert (choose one)

• Classic Strawberry Cheesecake
• Pecan Bread Pudding
• Chocolate Moose

Antoine's is at 713 S. St. Louis St. in the French Quarter. For reservations: (504) 581-4422

Whatcha Eatin'? — New Orleans Saints Quarterback Drew Brees

 After watching quarterback Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints dominate the New England Patriots on Monday Night Football (38-17), you've got to wonder:

What is this guy eating?

Not too long ago, Men's Journal asked Drew about his favorite foods, among other things. And down here in New Orleans, whatcha eatin' is often the topic of the day, interspersed with whatcha eat yesterday and whatcha planning to eat tomorrow.

See the whole story at theinsider.tripvine.com

Changes come to landmark restaurant: Antoine's translates menu

There's an old story in New Orleans about a society matron who heard about a friend's death. Grief-stricken but practical, the matron immediately wondered if the waiter at Antoine's, whom her friend had relied on for years, was up for grabs, or if someone had already claimed him.

"I believe it," said Sterling Constant, 58, who has been a waiter at the famous French Quarter restaurant for 42 years. "One of my customers had me go to his house and serve him a meal the day before he died. They're a very loyal group."

Since Antoine's opened its doors in 1840, it has been a New Orleans hallmark for fine dining, a bastion of French Creole food and an island of grand tradition.

But times, the economy and renovations following US$14 million in damage from Hurricane Katrina have brought changes to Antoine's.

The restaurant has added a jazz brunch for the first time. Its traditional Creole menu now carries English translations, and the once-voluminous listings have been pared down.

via www.google.com