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Where Y’Eat: Tribute Dishes to Our Dining Past

By docjones January 24, 2013Business, City News, Jazz, Music, R&B, Sports, Tech

Famous "lost dishes" from New Orleans' dining past are turning up again at newer restaurants around town. Listen The appeal of the new holds powerful sway in food and dining, as the excitement over new restaurants, the interest in new flavors and the buzz of new food trends reminds us constantly. But, to paraphrase liberally from William Faulkner’s immortal quote, the dining of the past is not dead. In fact, in New Orleans at least, it's often right there on your plate.Sure, the famous old-line restaurants are celebrated for hardly ever changing a thing, besides maybe their prices. And plenty of neighborhood joints around town offer a similar time warp dining experience. But lately, the New Orleans obsession with the past, even in its food, has been turning up more and more and at restaurants that otherwise have a modern bent.It’s taking the form of retro dishes and tribute recipes that are either heavily influenced by, or taken straight from, the menus of extinct but well-remembered New Orleans restaurants. One of the most prominent in that category has to be Uglesich’s, which closed in 2005, before Hurricane Katrina, but is still much talked about for the way its superlative local seafood lured diners to an otherwise unlikely Central City address. One of its signature dishes was called trout muddy waters, with a sauce of broth, anchovies and jalapenos that was more about flavor than heat. If that sounds tasty to you, well, today you can find a tribute version on the menus of at least three New Orleans restaurants — Mondo in Lakeview, and at the Uptown fine-dining spots Martinique Bistro and Clancy’s.Restaurant Mandich in the Bywater was another quirky destination for Creole cooking that had a history beginning in 1922, but ending in 2005 with Hurricane Katrina. And again, one of its better-known dishes, oysters Bordelaise, today lives on at the Uptown restaurant Upperline, where these spicy fried oysters with garlic and oil are known as oysters St. Claude — the name a nod to the old Mandich address. At Brigtsen’s in the Riverbend, the legacy of the former West Bank standout Leruth’s Restaurant is remembered in baked oysters LeRuth, topped with shrimp and crabmeat.Meanwhile, Restaurant R’Evolution in the French Quarter has crafted a whole roster of tribute dishes, served as specials during weekday lunch. These range from red beans and rice inspired by the Creole soul food legend Buster Holmes to a weiner schnitzel in homage to Kolb’s, the German restaurant that operated for almost a century in the CBD. Dishes from Maylie’s, La Louisiane, Elmwood Plantation, the Caribbean Room, Toney’s Pizza and Spaghetti House, the Andrew Jackson Restaurant and again Leruth’s are found among these tribute specials too. What’s behind it all? Maybe a sociologist would tell us it’s a blowback against the increasingly modern trends taking root or the rapid pace of change across our city. Or maybe it goes deeper still. Our traditional cuisine is entwined with history and culture, but it’s also fueled by chefs and restaurateurs who both inspire and mentor the next generation of chefs and restaurateurs. The impact of chefs, of restaurants and even of their signature dishes runs deep. So here we do more than just pay lip service to our past, sometimes we even fill our bellies with it.

The ‘True Story’ Inside Aaron Neville’s Doo-Wop World

By docjones January 24, 2013Business, City News, Jazz, Movies, Music, R&B, Sports, Tech

At 72, the prince of R&B has reverted to childhood. Aaron Neville has a new album called My True Story, and it's a collection of the songs he sang growing up in the projects of New Orleans in the 1950s and '60s, back when doo-wop was king. "I've been into every doo-wop there is," Neville says. "I think I went to the university of doo-wop-ology." Neville got his education from groups like The Drifters, The Clovers and The Flamingos. They'd had such an influence on him that their sound has kept popping up throughout his more than 50 years in music — from his family group, The Neville Brothers, to his long solo career. Here, Neville speaks with NPR's Renee Montagne about the ups and downs of his youth — which include an arrest for car theft and a marriage at 17 — and staying faithful to the songs that inspired him during that time.Interview HighlightsOn growing up in the projects "The project was great. If we were poor, we didn't know it, 'cause I guess you don't miss what you never had. So, you know, we made do with whatever. We used to make our own toys, and we used to play with spinning tops and marbles. A pocket full of marbles and you were rich — you didn't worry about no money." On singing with his brother "My brother Art was a doo-wopper. He had a group that sat out on a park bench in New Orleans and sang harmonies at night, and they'd go around and win all the talent shows and get all the girls, you know. So I would run up and try to sing, and he'd run me away — 'Get away from me, kid' — until they figured I could hold a note, and they let me sing with them." On bartering with his voice "I used to always sing my way into the movies and the basketball games or whatever. I'd sing for whoever's on the door and they'd let me in. I used to think I was Nat King Cole back in the day, you know. So I'd sing something like, 'Mona Lisa, Mona Lisa, men have named you,' and they'd let me in."Copyright 2013 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/.Transcript RENEE MONTAGNE, HOST: Today is Aaron Neville's birthday, and at 72 you could say he's reverted back to his childhood. He's recorded a new album called "My True Story," and it's a collection of songs he used to sing growing up in the projects of New Orleans, back in the 1950s and '60s, when doo-wop was king. AARON NEVILLE: I've been into every doo-wop there is. And I think I went to the University of Doo-Wopology. (SOUNDBITE OF SONG) MONTAGNE: Aaron Neville got his education from groups like the Drifters, the Clovers and the Flamingos. They had such an influence on him that their sound has kept popping up throughout his more than 50 years in music, from his family group, the Neville Brothers, to his long solo career. NEVILLE: Everything I've done, if you're listening, you hear some kind of doo-wop in it. I'm doing one of those things on the end of it, you know. MONTAGNE: What do you mean? One of those things on the end of it? NEVILLE: (Humming) You know. MONTAGNE: That's doo-wop. NEVILLE: Yeah. MONTAGNE: For a long time, of course, you would have been listening to this music as a kid. NEVILLE: My brother Art was a doo-wopper; he had of a group that sat out on a park bench in New Orleans and sang harmonies at night. And they'd go around and win all the talent shows and get all the girls, you know. So I would run up and try to sing and they'd run me away - get away from me, kid, you know. Until they figured I could hold a note and they let me sing with them. MONTAGNE: So for a kid, a nine, 10-year-old, you would have had to have a voice at that age. NEVILLE: They wouldn't have let me sing if they didn't think I had a voice. I used to always sing my way into the movies and the basketball games or whatever. I'd sing for whoever was on the door and they'd let me in. MONTAGNE: The people at the door would say - they knew you at that point? NEVILLE: Yeah. I used to think I was Nat King Cole back in the days. You know, so I'd sing something like - (Singing) Mona Lisa, Mona Lisa, men have named you - (Speaking) and they'd let me in. MONTAGNE: In this album, you can hit the high notes in this way that was really supreme in the world of doo-wop. NEVILLE: Yeah. That was the thing. The doo-wop was like - had a bass singer, had the guy doing the harmonies, the lead, and somebody doing the high notes. MONTAGNE: Let's play an example of those notes. (SOUNDBITE OF SONG) MONTAGNE: Your brother used to work in a record store there in New Orleans. NEVILLE: Right. It's called Tickles Record Shop. MONTAGNE: Tickles? NEVILLE: Yeah. MONTAGNE: And so he had access probably more than most young people to everything. NEVILLE: He would bring stuff home by Clyde McFadden, Domino's and Senator and the Orioles, and the Clovers, and just all kind of groups. And it was like, oh wow, I couldn't wait to get that and put it on a turntable and start playing it, you know? (SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) MONTAGNE: Let's make a comparison here. Let's hear a Little Anthony's original of the song "Tears on My Pillow" and make a comparison to what you're doing... NEVILLE: Okay. (SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "TEARS ON MY PILLOW") LITTLE ANTHONY: (Singing) You don't remember me but I remember you, 'twas not so long ago, you broke my heart in two. Tears on my pillow, pain in my heart, caused by you... MONTAGNE: And now we'll hear what - we'll hear your version. NEVILLE: Cool. (SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "TEARS ON MY PILLOW") NEVILLE: (Singing) You don't remember me, but I remember you, not so long ago, you broke my heart in two. Tears on my pillow, pain in my heart caused by you, you... MONTAGNE: You're faithful, very faithful to the song. Did you listen a lot to the originals again in order to do this album? NEVILLE: They were already in my head. They've been in my head since I can remember. So I didn't really, you know, record and I didn't really need the words. (SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "THIS MAGIC MOMENT") NEVILLE: (Singing) This magic moment, so different and so new. It's like any other, until I kissed you... MONTAGNE: You say you grew up in the projects, but it was homey there in New Orleans when you were a kid. NEVILLE: The project was great. If we were poor, we didn't know it. 'Cause I guess you don't miss what you never had, so you know, we made do with whatever - we used to make our own toys and we used to play with spinning tops and marbles. A pocket full of marbles, you were rich. You didn't worry about no money. MONTAGNE: Well, you did get into some trouble though as a slightly older teenager. NEVILLE: Yes, I did. MONTAGNE: Caught and went to prison for car theft. NEVILLE: Right. Joy riding. MONTAGNE: Joy riding. NEVILLE: Yeah. MONTAGNE: That's what they called it. NEVILLE: That's what they called it. MONTAGNE: And it sort of was that though, right? NEVILLE: Yeah, it was, until you got caught. Then the joy was over. MONTAGNE: You had ups and downs after that. NEVILLE: Yep. I got married at an early age. I was 17 when I got married. MONTAGNE: And Joelle was her name? NEVILLE: Joelle, yeah. And she raised me, really. You know, like, we stayed together 48 years. MONTAGNE: She just passed on a few years... NEVILLE: In '07, right. But I think if I wouldn't have been married, I don't know where I would be. MONTAGNE: If there was a tune on here that would speak to that moment in your life - young, married, still potentially could be in a little bit in trouble, but you have your gift, your voice - what one would that be here? NEVILLE: Maybe "Goodnight My Love." (SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "GOODNIGHT MY LOVE") NEVILLE: (Singing) Goodnight, my love, pleasant dreams and sleep tight, my love, may tomorrow be sunny and bright, and bring you closer to me. MONTAGNE: Aaron Neville, thank you very much for joining us. NEVILLE: It's been a pleasure. Brought me down memory lane. (SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) MONTAGNE: Aaron Neville has a new album of the songs he grew up with, and it's produced by two other musicians who grew up on doo-wop - Keith Richards and Don Was. You can hear that CD, "My True Story," at NPR.org. (SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "UNDER THE BOARDWALK") NEVILLE: (Singing) Under the boardwalk, down by the sea, on a blanket with my baby is where I'll be. Under the boardwalk, out of the sun, under the boardwalk, we'll be having some fun, under the boardwalk, boardwalk. MONTAGNE: This is NPR News. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.