Palm & Pine

Tracie had told me that she had had a good dinner at Palm & Pine earlier in the conference.  I always appreciate a recommendation, and a glance at the menu online suggested that I would be happy there.  So when my meetings ended on Monday, I decided to just enjoy a dinner by myself at the bar there.  I got there shortly after opening and parked myself.

It wasn't too far from the hotel, so it was a nice little walk over.  The place wasn't too busy that early.  It was loud.  Interesting music, as far back in the 80s as Asia, of all things.  I read news and such on my phone and sipped my first drink (essentially a variation on a New York sour). 

I was almost done it when the sticky grilled rib tips came out. 

Yep, sticky.  Also, tasty.  And a nice, little heat to them.  I finished my drink, ordered another, the House of the Raisin Sun (I didn't get the name of the first, alas, and I cannot find it online). 

The corn babies came out,

and I started on them.  Then I nursed the (not as sweet as I thought it might be) second cocktail a loooong while.  The restaurant lagged a little, I have to say.  Small kitchen, they were busy, but the third item (from the small bites menu) I ordered was the corner store crudo. 

I read, and sipped carefully, and waited.  Finally, it came.  The crudo was tasty, truly, but wow, three small bites and two cocktails, and that was almost an hour and a half.  I paid up politely and left.

I appreciated Tracie's recommendation, to be sure, but I am glad I wasn't ravenous.  I'd go back, though - good food and interesting drinks.  Next conference, perhaps.

fog

Oh man.  This photo is from early Monday morning.  That fog!  It lifted later, but remained cloudy all day.  This will post Tuesday, and I hope that when it does post, I am back home with Conrad and Van and Olive in Pasadena.  Fingers crossed.  I need to make it home for my vacation on Thursday!

two Peters are better than one

I am not the only Peter out there, you know.  Shocking, yes, but believe me.  There are others.

My favourite other Peter and I had dinner last night.  We've seen plenty of each other at conference these past days, but it was terrific to get together and just have the two of us enjoy food and gossip about everyone else.  I exaggerate a little, only a little.  Certainly, we enjoyed food!

Peter and I hopped in a car and headed to a neighbourhood away from where I normally get whilst in New Orleans.  Our destination:  Toups' Meatery. 

Isaac Toups was a contestant several years back on Top Chef.  He was kind of fun, and he did win Restaurant Wars, though I admit that I rolled my eyes at the conversation he had with his wife on one episode where they talked about him making sure he didn't come home all Californian or something, as if New Orleans is all and only good and California has nothing of merit to offer.  No matter.  I'd been curious to try his food, so Peter and I set off to enjoy a meal there.

Cocktails first.  I had the Sloe Poke,

and after Peter tried it, he had that as his second dish.  We had some fried turkey necks,

pickles,

and cornbread

to start with.  And you know, those turkey necks were pretty freakin' awesome.  And plenty of food.  We should have stopped with those three items, but no, we underestimated portions and - curious for two generously-proportioned gentlemen - overestimated our appetites.  Out came my lamb neck

(necks were a theme, I guess), and oh, yep.  A lot.  No photo of the brownie we shared (it was fine, maybe a little dry), but um, yeah, we had dessert.  I also had a cocktail of pork fat washed bourbon, and that was fine, but the Sloe Poke was better.

I woke up this morning remembering that I don't usually eat that much food, let alone that much rich red meat.  Gosh.  My kingdom for a cauliflower or a big stalk of broccoli.

But in the end, hooray for seeing Peter!  I'm looking forward to the next time.

oh, so you think I'm actually seeing New Orleans?

Look, here's the truth:  when I go to ALA conferences, I do not get out much, I do not see much.  And when I do, it's in passing.  I spend so much time at the convention center

and the main conference hotel and seldom get anywhere else.

I laugh.  I mean, yes, I get to travel and accrue miles and have great meals and see friends.  But truthfully?  That's all.  Or, "all".

My rough life, right?  But I'm not here in New Orleans on tours and visits to attractions.  I barely see any conference city.  I had dinner tonight about three miles from the hotel, and I think that's the farthest afield I've ever been from the main conference facilities.

I have had time in the past to walk a little, and to take some photos.  I may yet.  But for now, I've got some lovely views from the hotel (check out the sunrise!),

and a quiet morning on Canal Street,

and, um, yeah.

But if you like, I can take more photos of the convention center!

I made it to New Orleans

Dinnertime on Thursday, after two flights and a not-as-long-as-I-think-it-was cab ride, I made it to my hotel in New Orleans.  I think I was last here for conference in 2018.  A good conference, but also, ugh.  I had just lost an election in the association, and I had a lot of sympathy to deal with.  Well-meaning, I know, and thank you everyone.  But it was a lot to have to process every day, I admit.

No matter.  I made it here.  A nice corner suite at the Marriott, and some great views from it.  More to come, I swear!  But for now, here is a glimpse of Louisiana.

back to NOLA for conference

It's turning out to be a pleasant Sunday here in Chicago. We've just been across the street for a second round of coffee, I've baked more scones and given most of them away. Still ahead: packing for the upcoming travel. But no rush. A bit of time to check in here on the blog first.

I've only ever been to New Orleans for conferences, and with a second conference there this year, my tally is now up to 4 visits. I know there is much of the city I have yet to see, and doubtless much to appreciate. Sticking close to conference hotels on and around Canal Street and the French Quarter, however, does not give the best impression of the city. I don't have a lot of scenic photos to share. My room at the Holiday Inn did have some good views, however.

I do have a few food shots. I kept them to a minimum this past trip, I'm not entirely sure why. Perhaps not in the mood? I did eat some good things, though: a pizza at Domenica, dinner at MiLA (including a rice pudding with rum-glazed dates), dinner at the bar at Sylvain where the smoked salmon rillettes were a highlight of my meal.

The conference itself? Enjoyable and rewarding. I didn't have any committee responsibilities, so I was able to sit and listen and let ideas and research findings wash over me. I drank in what I could, and the rest of the time I tried to connect with some of the people I know, like Susan (no photo, alas) and Marisa. And Carolyn, with her fabulous mane of hair.


No more conferences this year, and the remaining travel I have is to the same old, familiar and welcome places. Which means, of course, more food photos to come!

Bayona

Sometimes I am wrong.

Shocking, but true.

Bob D. (also known as RAD, pictured above) had suggested Bayona as a spot to dine while in NOLA. The Web site didn't hook me. Indian AND Mediterranean? Eesh!

I should know better. RAD was on his fourth meal there while on this trip, so that's always indicative of something. Turns out he was spot on. Almost four hours spent there, and definitely the most expensive meal I had in NOLA (but far from my most expensive meal ever, I assure you). Mary Augusta Thomas and her husband were at a nearby table, and we now all have vague plans to dine together in Seattle and/or DC next year. Given their love of food, that should be fun.

I arrived before Bob and settled in the lounge (brightly lit with daylight from the courtyard outside). A glass of sauvignon blanc in hand. Relaxing, though today was hardly trying at the conference. Bob arrived and we headed to the table. Staff came and went, all chatting with him as they had gotten to know him in the days preceding.

First up for me: asparagus salad with poached egg. I hadn't had much in the way of good vegetables here, so this was a nice treat after a handful of days in town.

The staff generously surprised us with the smoked quail salad next. We'd asked for them to give us suitable wine pairings, so while I had another glass of sauvignon blanc with the first salad (no Sauternes available by the glass), it was a half-pour each of a pinot noir rose for the unexpected course.

Dinner for me was veal sweetbreads with sherry mustard. Goodness, but that was a treat! How often does one get sweetbreads. I ate very slowly - unusual for me - because I savoured them so. Ahhhhhh. Excellent fare! A glass of a Riesling (not too floral or fruity) was a nice accompaniment.

Robbie, the waiter, recommended I not get the olive oil cake for dessert, and I will admit it was dry if light as an angel food cake. On the other hand: lavender sabayon. How lovely. A bit more of it would be enough to moisten the cake, really; the amount of blueberry compote was fine. And here's another thing: they do coffee well here. No, I'm not a conoisseur of roasts and blends, but I do like a good cafe au lait that has a good representation of milk. Bayona did it up well, even using decaf!

So, last night here. I have a somewhat early shuttle, then in the door in Chicago by mid-afternoon. I miss my SB, and I am getting sleepy. I may yet take a few days off blogging, but I'll return with a vengeance this weekend!

Back to Cochon

It does seem like a shame to go to a restaurant twice while I'm here in such a great culinary city. Call it laziness - Cochon is in Opentable, so that helps. We did have reservations for elsewhere originally, but I changed them last night. Cochon it was, and I think I'm even gladder.

I won't get into dinner last night. No, that's a lie: I simply have no photos. We dined at Redfish Grill across the street at the Chateau Sonesta Hotel. Busy place, but I had Opentabled it, so no worries. Large, cavernous, loud. If we'd been able to hear the waiter better we might have understood his accent a little more. The menu wasn't promising: any place that uses mushrooms in half or more of its entrees is hiding things through the use of those cheap bulking things.

My friend Bob and I ordered, and barely had the wine arrived than the dinner did too. Suspiciously fast, but then, mine was a mound of dirty rice surrounded by a few pieces of seared fish (not too bad, mostly good for the salt) and some shrimp. I should say that the shrimp was mostly shrimp heads and I was feeling to polite to suck them clean with gusto. Given this meal, small wonder it arrived in probably less than ten minutes. Turning tables was their ploy. A shame we had almost a full bottle of wine to kill. We stayed on and sipped and shared a rich dessert of peanut butter chocolate pie, then waited for quite some while to attract some attention and get the bill.

The kicker? That bit cost more than the meal the night before in which I'd had three courses, shared a half bottle of wine, and had coffee. My advice? If you actually like food, then don't bother going.

You can understand, then, why I wanted some place I had tried and liked for tonight.


I met Melissa (pictured with me - and isn't that a fabulously sharp-looking shirt on me?!) and Courtney at the Hilton at a reception that had a nice complement of Big Names. The two of them told me they needed to hang out with me more, but it's really all down to the connections Martin (pictured at the top) enjoys. Nice event, though. We walked over from there and settled down to dine.


I started with the headcheese. I gather they do a bunch of their own charcuterie at the restaurant. I don't think I've ever had headcheese before, but it sounded intriguing, and it proved to be a good choice. A little mustard, some toast. Yum!


I followed that with the rabbit and dumplings. Also good. I think I liked my cochon two nights ago more, but this was tasty. Martin also had the rabbit (hence the photo at top), CG enjoyed the brisket, and Melissa went for the oyster and bacon sandwich.

We washed it all down with a decent rose - South American, I think (Courtney ordered it). Pink wine, only a very light light ruby in colour instead. Dessert followed, and CG and I chose wisely: a cornmeal pineapple upside down cake with coconut sorbet and dulce de leche. Whoa! The sort of thing I want to lick clean. So good. I craved more right away. Awesome, and I worked at getting the last drops of sauce (well, melted sorbet!) poured off the plate onto my spoon without the slightest shame!


A good meal, like a change of clothing available to me, makes a difference. Ask me on Thursday at work how the conference was, and I'll offer some good reviews. The hotel room is quite nice. Two good meals out. I've seen a number of familiar faces and met a few new ones. Some great programs - I will dig up what I can on the ACRL ANSS program on the social science of food and link it because the two speakers I saw before I had to leave were really super. Oh, and I bought 5 new pairs of khakis, each a different colour, for $14.99 each at The Gap. Fun!

So, yes: it's hot, my feet hurt from my shoes, I had a bad arrival experience, the view from the room is not as stunning as it might be. Boo-hoo! I'm having a good conference, and my feelings about the city have improved dramatically from where they were following my first, tightly-budgeted trip here.

But most of all, I just really want another go round of that cake awaiting me for breakfast tomorrow morning!

:-P

Amazing what fresh underwear will do!

Yes, I'm a much happier camper today. The luggage came overnight sometime, and this morning I set off for the convention center with fresh clothes on. YAY!

I've never really been fair in my criticism of New Orleans. I still will not at all say that the city is one I especially like. The heat is oppressive. I like to walk to and from the converntion center, but I feel a slight burn from a bit of walking today. Moreover, I like not having to sweat excessively. Ah well. There's a lot of derelict storefronts to be seen, of course. I still think that people come here to try to hard to have fun or something like that.

But I also know this: the great financial corner-cutting I had to undertake on my last conference visit in 2002 meant I experiences only a cheap hotel and lame food. The weather was not great then - drab and grey. I didn't know other people at the conference other than my colleagues. This time, despite some flight and luggage issues, things are different. Nice hotel room. I am running into people from elsewhere whom I know. I need not count my pennies so.

And I had a good meal tonight. I only wish the photos had all turned out!


My meal of Louisiana cochon (pork) with turnips, cabbage, and cracklins. Not sure where the cabbage really was, but it also had some peach chunks on it. Very very very good!

David and I met for dinner at Cochon. In fact, I was early (having come from Madeleine Albright's keynote lecture - I only wish she'd mentioned her appearance on Gilmore Girls!), so I sat down with CG, Melissa, and Terry as they finished up. It's a handsome place in the Warehouse District - clean lines, blond wood, that lofty/sort of finished feel. David and I each had three courses, split a half bottle of an Argentine Cabernet Sauvignon, and had coffee to finish. Total bill with tip: $53 each. If we'd had as much food the night before at the touristy place, it would have been a similar price and nowhere near as good.

Our meal:

"link" sausage with stone ground grits and peppers (David)
smoked ham hocks with braised greens (me)

fish special - lemonfish? I wasn't paying attention. It looked good. That was David's.
My cochon.

David's dessert was some orange creamsicle/chocolate cookie thing that looked lovely. Mine was the homelier but tasty peach buckle with creme fraiche (shown below):



I actually kind of want to change a future reservation and go back and try some of the other things like the wood-fired oyster roast or the head cheese with house -made mustard or the rabbit and dumplings.

Anyway, a decent day. One program done, lunch - unexpectedly - with a GLBTRT colleague, a meeting that was kind of weird (no quorum, a little steam blown off by others), the excellent Albright speech during which I sat next to an architect from Edmonton whom I chatted with at length before it all got underway.

Shall I actually get up at 8 tomorrow for a program?

And if the luggage doesn't arrive...

..you'll see photos of me wearing this tomorrow!



I'll hold off on commenting on New Orleans so far: I've been here only a handful of hours, and it's not fair of me to judge the city on the basis of an hour and a half delay in my United flight and the failure of the airline/TSA to get my bag on the plane despite me being at the airport more than an hour and a half before the original departure time. Also an aggravatingly long ride into the city on the shuttle, stopping at a lot of hotels before mine. And I can hear Bourbon Street ww floors below my hotel room window.

Dinner, meanwhile, was pleasant for having been with CG and Melissa, but in the end it was not much more than a moderate portion of crawfish-flavoured gravy and some converted rice. Etouffe (shown here with CG), they call it (I'm too lazy to add the diacritics). Ah well....