Look Out Corner Bistro...

Hello from New Orleans! As it turns out it's been difficult to find time to blog while we've been out here, but there will be posts coming very soon! I thought I'd kick off the blogging by celebrating a couple of my favorite food picks from this (and other) trips:

Pick #1: The cheeseburger (medium-rare) from Port of Call, on Esplanade and Dauphine. Served along with the first baked potato I've ever loved, here it is in all its splendor:

I think what really makes it is the mountain of grated cheddar cheese. Also, in case you're curious, the drink on the right is a "Red Turtle," which I see fit to point out because of the recent success of my very own Maryland Terrapins -- GO TERPS! Others were big fans of the "Neptune's Monsoon," Port of Call's version of the Hurricane. If you find yourself in New Orleans, by all means try some Jambalaya, Gumbo and all of those local favorites, but this burger is a must. Sorry to the vegetarians out there!

Pick #2: The fried chicken and jambalaya at Coop's, on Decatur. I've been there an embarassing number of times over the past 4 trips here, but I can't help it - it's so good! The first night here Phil and I dragged Joe Cruz over to enjoy Abitas and our favorite meal, and I think we have a convert. The jambalaya has rabbit and andouille sausage. If you go to Coop's, be sure to look for PickaPeppa sauce to go with your meal (it's not always on the table). I've been known to have it shipped to my apartment (from Jamaica) because I can't seem to find it anywhere in New York. See below:

Pick #3: This is perhaps the most obvious, but a trip here is not complete without beignets from Cafe DuMonde. They pretty much speak for themselves:

And it's open 24 hours. Glorious!

Stay tuned for more updates from the Fordham SHN crew...