Czech in the Kitchen

Culinary Bicycle Ride in NOLA

Posted by Pussycat in About Me, Reviews | Leave a comment

23June2014

There is nothing like a leisurely bike ride through a beautiful city …. stopping for home made local food … several times in the afternoon. This is what we did this day in NOLA. I had done my internet searches prior to coming here and was very eager to experience what others had raved about. Local experience. Local restaurants. Local food. The kinds of places a tourist would only find if they were walking for hours and got lost.

The kind of ride that will remind you of Katrina and the horrible loss that NOLA faced. This is the way they marked the buildings after Katrina. According to Cassandra, our tour guide from the Confederacy of Cruisers, txi – Texas Rangers; 9.6 = September 6th; NE = No Entry; 0 = no bodies found. Buildings were labeled this way in the weeks following the storm to signal who entered and when and what if anyone was found. Many of the buildings have long since been painted over, beautifully might I add…. but remnants of the storm are still around. Our tour included various bits of information and history but primarily our tour consisted of food. Glorious food!

Our first stop was Bennachin’s – West African Cousine on Royal Street West.

Really a small hole in the wall kind of restaurant but they know how to fry plantains and sauté spinach.

They serve the plantains with a tomato sauce with ginger that is seriously good!

Next stop the Confederacy of Cruisers office….. to get in from the rain. Seriously the sky rumbles on a daily basis in the summer here in NOLA so after a little drizzle (HA) and a few moments to snap pic amidst a whole bunch of bikes…

Off we went, in a little rain… to Elizabeth’s. Home of praline bacon…. YUP…. PRALINE BACON my friends. We also had Boudin Balls in Creole Mustard Sauce, Fried Green Tomatoes, N.O. Boiled Shrimp in Remoulade Sauce and did I mention the Praline Bacon!?

The Boudin Balls were okay… but the real stars here were definitely the bacon and fried tomatoes…. again… did I mention the Praline Bacon…. do you see an obsession coming on here?????

The next stop on our ride was The Joint…. This one is on Bon Appetit’s Top 10 and it’s not hard to see why.

Time for a little smoked ribs and macaroni and cheese….

… and a little something they like to call….Ginger Cat?…. seriously … I can’t remember but it was with honeysuckle vodka, lemon juice and ginger beer… seriously YUMMY!

Last stop the Meltdown…. home made, home sourced ingredients for the most luscious popsicles you have ever had….

Just another day in Nawlins… and we haven’t even had dinner yet!

Thanks to the Confederacy of Cruisers we now have a list of other places we should go. If you’re ever in NOLA this is a great way to get a taste of the local food… and amazing food…. and find other places to go… they give you a list of their favourites… and are happy to answer questions if you’re out and about…. find yourself somewhere in town… with no idea of what to eat…. these are your folks!

Nawlins I Love You!

Posted by Pussycat in About Me, Reviews | 2 Comments

23June2014

There really is something pretty cool and amazing about New Orleans but I haven’t yet figured out what it is…. is it the food? We walked 4 miles to the District this morning because I really wanted to try their food.

You can find them at 2209 Magazine Street and I have to admit that I didn’t see much on the way there…. I was in a hurry… I didn’t want to spoil my appetite because this is what we were greeted with!

Seriously people…. how in the world does it get any better than this? Well actually it does because though dessert greets you at the door… we hadn’t eaten yet and really needed to get some food BEFORE the dessert.

Meet the Monte Cristo… Monte Cristo meet ME! There. Are. No. Words.

Course if you don’t want ham with jam and all the fixings you can have a tame version of a donut with turkey and cheese…. yes…. go back up and have another look at the Monte Cristo…. it was that good… how does it get better than this…. well… dessert after breakfast makes the whole day seem worth living doesn’t it? I have to promise myself that I’ll only have dessert after breakfast here… in Nawlins…. and really how can we NOT.

7 Layer for me…. chocolate for P… and two black cherry sodas…..

Does this not just make you go weak in the knees? 7 Layers… caramel, pecans, toasted coconut, graham wafers, chocolate…. and I’m missing something….

YUP… two donuts… in one meal…. and breakfast no less! And now we have 4 miles to walk back to the hotel…. thank Christ because otherwise what we just indulged in would be utterly shameful!

The beads….the trees…. and the fun signs… does it not feel like you’re right here? I know it actually doesn’t because if you were here…. you’d be so full…. that all you could do now is walk…. and hope that you could somehow step away from the guilt… 😉 And I do that by showing you all some other wonderful things.

Then a little shopping…. 😉 and don’t you know we got caught in a NOLA shower?

It came down so hard for a couple of hours we got lost walking back to our hotel….. a couple got married in the middle of Bourbon Street…. sorry… I lost my place in the crowd but this will give you some idea of the insanity….

Yup… everyone’s a photographer.

Then off to Coop’s for dinner…..

And there’s Coop! LOL…. can’t show you the food here… just too dark in the place for the camera to focus…. now off to walk some more…….

Cause there’s just one more donut we have to try…. here

Beignets…… now most people would each have their own orders. After all, three small beignets…. who would even think to share?

We would of course…. because it’s not like we haven’t had enough donuts today!

When you’ve walked more than 10 miles… I think starting and finishing your day off with donuts is warranted don’t you? Nawlins….. I love you!

NOLA Bath

Posted by Pussycat in About Me | Leave a comment

21June2014

Coming into New Orleans is like slipping into a hot bath. The city’s arms engulf you in a heat that is just enough to comfort you until the breath of it makes its presence known on your skin. The streets have an energy all their own, sprinkled with bars and shops, doors open wide, cool air whisking through the openings. It’s as though they are trying to suck you into their establishments, luring you with what you perceive to be a reprieve. Air conditioners run full speed, the cool air spilling onto the street, licking you every few steps as you pass by, teasing you, tickling your skin, making the heat all the more intense. It almost makes it worse as you alternate between the warm and coolness of the French Quarter. Even the trees seem to be blistering with the heat, peeling back the layers of their clothing in an effort to cool themselves.

The buildings bulge with tropical plants, thriving in the humidity, their leaves intensely green as they outgrow their surrounding. With little to no yards people pack their balconies with greenery, giving the impression of a green space, high above the streets. Each individual home a luscious tropical garden.

For others it’s the beads that adorn the balconies, dripping from the wrought iron trellis, too entangled for anyone to bother to remove them. Or perhaps its a way for the people here to constantly be reminded of the festivals and parades that NOLA is so well known for, whatever the reason, there is no escaping Mardi Gras and the culture that is so synonymous with New Orleans.

Downstairs the shutters are drawn closed, insulating people from the heat and the hurricanes and plague this area. The stoops providing a way in and a place to sit and watch the people go by as they walk to and from the parts of the city that are crawling with tourists and locals alike.

Trolleys crawl along the streets, pushing the heat back and forth from person to person as bodies fill them up, wide open windows not enough to allure us. We chose to walk, not wanting to feel the heat from another person emanating close to our skin.

Just a couple of blocks from Bourbon Street and Esplanade… that’s where we will begin our daily adventures… for the next two weeks! Some of you are looking for the food that is so intrinsic to our days here…. I would have shared it but we were so eager today… hungry today… and it smelled so good… a cajun crab and shrimp boiled with potatoes and corn on the cob with a little andouille sausage… you’ll have to just trust me when I say it was really good! 😉 Next time I’ll refrain from digging in until I snap a shot or two….

HOMEGROWN TRAIL – Winnipeg!

Posted by Pussycat in Reviews | Leave a comment

18June2014

I had the fortunate pleasure of being invited to the kick off of the Homegrown Trail Trolly on earlier today. It was a mini-version of the new tour of Manitoba regional cuisine sponsored by Peg City Grub through Tourism Winnipeg. Taking off from The Forks you board this beautiful trolly and get whisked away to several of Winnipeg’s finest eateries.

Certainly worth mentioning is that in interior is just as cool and funky as the exterior and YES…. it is air-conditioned…. for those of you not aware… It can get mighty hot here in the city…. As much as we get called ‘winterpeg’ we can sure pack a heated punch in the summer!

This was the first time I had attended any of these kinds of events. I typically go out, eat and enjoy or sometimes, don’t enjoy food…. sharing the experiences with my family and yes… occasionally you… my reader. Since my day job consists of some pretty intense encounters with the general public I have often stayed away from too many crowds on my off hours.

This though, was an adventure… so many wonderful like-minded people from tourism, magazines, and bloggers who also love food and are generally very vocal about it… or maybe it was just a general loudness as about 16 of us boarded the trolly…. it was like someone had let the animals out… all laughter, jokes, smiles, hellos and dare I say there was even the threat of twerking… 😉 Thank goodness that didn’t actually happen… but certainly all in very good fun.

It was so nice to go out to eat and NOT have the anxiety of pulling out a camera and taking pictures… not wanting to freak or stress or inconvenience anyone… yes… I do care about those things… and I do sometimes feel awkward… So going out with a bunch of lovely people whose expectations were that we all do these things was so refreshing and liberating. Thanks to all of you who were on the bus with me today…. it was a fabulous pleasure meeting you… and to those of you who I didn’t get a chance to speak to… I’m sure we’ll get a chance to meet next time.

Before I go on to give you a brief overview of the three places we ate today I’d also like to take an opportunity to thank Tourism Winnipeg for having the good sense to start this amazing initiative… (and thanks so much for inviting me… It was a wonderful tasty break from my day to day life…) our summers though beautiful are so short that it would be a shame to not have this kind of opportunity to showcase some of the great places to eat for tourists and locals alike. I have to say… who knew that I didn’t have to go outside of this wonderful city of ours to get on a culinary tour. Had I known this earlier maybe I wouldn’t have booked a trip to New Orleans…. and a bike tour to various NOLA local restaurants…. okay…. not true… I still would have done that and watch for the posts over the next couple of weeks…. All I’m saying is… Good on you Winnipeg… this was a great idea!

Our first stop on the trail was Fusion Grill, this little place is on Academy and though small is amazing. I have to admit that I hadn’t gotten here before this day and I’m sure I’ll be back. We had a wonderful mini-meal that consisted of Panko Fried Pickerel Cheeks with Pickled Fiddlehead Aioli, beautifully Crispy Sweet Potato Frites and a Coleslaw that was unlike any other I’d had before….the addition of kale and a horseradish dressing were fantastic.

YES… I KNOW… this isn’t the greatest picture… I apologize… but I was just getting my bearings and neglected to snap this when it was still beautifully wrapped in paper… I was eager… I was starving… I admit… make no mistake this is a stop worth making.

For those of you who aren’t aware Pickerel is a very Manitoba fish, it is also known as Walleye by many Americans … and some Canadians… and yes… they are the cheeks of the fish… mild, tender, boneless…. and at least at Fusion Grill… fried to perfection… crisp and coupled with crispy and perfectly fried sweet potatoes… hmmmmm… seems to be a theme here… they are so darn good at frying things! I also had the lemonade and was pleasantly surprised to find it actually tasted like fresh lemonade. For those of you who don’t like a little pucker with lemonade… maybe add a little sugar… I like anything ‘lemon’ to be tart… adding sugar to taste is easy…. taking it away… not so much. Needless to say this was an impressive first stop!

Our second stop on the trail was Prairie 360 a beautiful revolving restaurant in the heart of downtown Winnipeg. I have to admit that I’m not that well-versed on the history of the restaurant but it has been taken over by new owners in the last couple of years but the view from the 36th floor is amazing. And yes… it revolves…. you get a full view of the whole (okay almost whole) of the city in the hour that you have for lunch. If you look closely at the glass you can actually see it moving… for some who have issues with dizziness… this can be a bit anxiety provoking… but there are ways to make it work… it moves very slowly folks… and just don’t watch the rail. By the way… that’s the view of the Human Rights Museum as we took our seats. The view from most of the seats is stunning… we really are a beautiful city…. but who am I? You should see for yourself!

I had been here before, in the last year for lunch and had a burger and salad that were wonderful… as part of this trail we were served Bison Prosciutto Perogies with a Garlic Cream Sauce and Green Onion Sour Cream.

I have to admit that this was not as impressive as I’d hoped. The perogies were a little doughy for my liking and I would have liked the filling to have been seasoned more but the sour cream and garlic cream sauce were lovely and the fried onions and picked red pepper were a nice touch.

Last stop… Whew… I have to say this was a bit of a whirlwind… Last stop was Tall Grass Prairie.

The owners at Tall Grass Prairie believe that food is sacred and shouldn’t be a commodity and that is partly why they began this endeavour in 1990… during a recession… when the grain growers in Manitoba were struggling. This place has been a hit ever since. Though instigated by their commitment to providing healthy and tasty bread that supports the local farmers by giving them 14 cents as opposed to 2 cents per loaf it is actually their Cinnamon Buns that have become world famous. Seriously… I dare you to find better Cinnamon Buns ANYWHERE!

The cookie above is a spin off the multigrain bread, it is the FolkFest Cookie and if you like multigrain bread this will be one of your favourites…. not too sweet and just grainy enough to make you feel less guilty about having dessert!

And if it’s bread that you’re looking for… look no further… they have a wide variety of breads made fresh daily (as everything else here). It used to be that their multigrain loaves were the top seller but lately their spelt bread has taken over. Not part of this taste adventure…and not pictured here… but certainly something I’m familiar with is their veggie bread pudding… seriously… bread pudding with roasted veggies… so soft and luscious… and healthy…. you have to try it if you’re in the neighbourhood. I know it sounds a little strange… but it is very VERY good… almost as good as their Cinnamon Buns.

I’m sorry to say that I had to rush off back to work and wasn’t able to partake in the tour of their processing area…. but I’m sure if anyone is interested in more on any of these great places… all the staff were helpful, informative and just plain friendly… after all… we are and will always be…. “Friendly Manitoba”.

Thanks again to the folks at Tourism Winnipeg and Peg City Grub…. and a special thanks to Gillian for finding and inviting me to this fun adventure… though we had a mini-version the full version includes Mise, Market Burger, Fude, Peasant Cookery and Sonya’s… all great places… for more details…. go here….

And for more food adventures… including ones coming up in NOLA… come back and see me in the weeks to come!