Evening star., 1937-04-18
comes to New Orleans!


President Herbert Clark Hoover was
Secretary Of Commerce when, in the
midst of the 1927 Mississippi Valley
flood horror, he came to New Orleans.
A dinner was given in his honor at
Antoine's. His autographed menu is
in their archives.
That night Herbert Hoover started
with an absinthe frappe, in spite OF
the noble experiment. Then a dish
created in his honor, Shrimp a Ia
Hoover, was set in front of him.
Jules Alciatore for this took selected
Lake Pontchartrain shrimp, removed
their heads and peeled them raw, q
very difficult job. He compounded q
new sauce OF ground carrots, chopped
shallots and cherville He cooked the
shrimp 20 minutes in white wine,
seasoned them highly with pepper
salt and Louisiana tabasco and poured
on the sauce. And Herbert Hoover
mopped his plate clean. With that
dish he drank an Alsatian white wine,
Clos st. Odile, vintage of 1920. Then
Az NStASAAoifSo ouotSlS 1Illlc Id
Antoine. A buster is a soft-shell
crab that is Just busting" out of
his shell. Nobody can tell you how
they taste grilled. You've got to eat
one or more served on toast with
drawn butter sauce, and Pommes de
Terre Parsienne.
Then Herbert Hoover tackled Nois-
cites d'agneau la Hawaiian, tender
lamp chops ringed with bacon and
served with a slice OF pineapple
and the golden Sauce Bearnais
poured over all. With them Mr..
Hoover drank red Burgundy, Pom
mard, vintage of 1919 Then he waded
into Souft1ee de Fromage q Ia Re-
gence. a cheese souff1e, light IS a
Spring zephyr; ate an endive and
water-cress salad and started on the
Crepes Suzette. These French pan
cakes, burned with old brandy and a
combination Of guarded-secret liq-
ueurs at Antoine's, were accompanied
for Hoover by Gordon Rouge cham
pagne, vintage Of 1915. And then
black coffee and Napoleon brandy as a
llqueur. 1t may have been a noble
experiment to Hoover. 1t sounds like
swell dinner, too.
But all that's history The posi-
bility OF New Orleans visit by
President Franklin Delano Roose-
welt is what looms as news, New
Orleans" chefs hail F. D. r. as the
savior of fine restaurants for his ad-
ministration's repeal of the eighteenth
amendment. Under prohibition, they
say, great cooking died. Repeal
brought it to life again. For fine wines
and fine food 60 side by side, they
contend.
So Roy Alciatore, son of jules,
grandson of Antoine, has held a hud-
die with his staff and this is the meal
they're hoping to serve President
Franklin Delano Roosevelt in New
Orleans to show their gratitude by
giving him the perfect dinner:
TENDER young celery, tender young
radishes, olives stuffed with an
chovies would be the appetizers. Then
champagne cocktail Ito warm the
stomach and prepare it for the fine
things to come"
Then, Huitres en- Coquille a Ia
Rockefeller-bayou cook oysters, sea-
soned with the Rockefeller-rich sauce
the late Jules Alciatore invented,
baked in their own half-shells in pans
of crushed rock salt to keep them pip
ing hot. And the white wine with
the oysters, Grand Chabls, vintage
of 1923.
Then, Bisque decrevisse a la Car
dinal-the thick soup of Louisiana
crawf1sh cooked with herbs and sea-
sonings obtainable only in or around
New Orleans. The cardinal-red hue
OF the finished bSque gives it its
name
Then, Filet de Pompano, la Mari
niere-a tender filet of pompano
cooked in a dry white wine, with the
proper seasonings of shallots, bay leaf,
lemon juice and tarragon vinegar, and
served in q sauce made Of the liquors
in which the fish was cooked. And
with this very dry Rhine wine,
Scholss Johannesburger, vintage of
1921.
And with the pompano, Pommes de
Terre Souflees. 1t is the one differ
ent way under the sun" to cook pota-
toes. 1t was discovered by accident
In Fro IL, thu Io1, of
kings, by the famous chef, Vatel, the
same chef who committed suicide in
despair when a rare fish he had or
dered to meet the request of a royal
guest failed to arrive. Vatel's dis
covery came when a kingly guest, who
loved his potatoes as what today we
call Saratoga chips, was late to din
ner. Lest the potato chips grow cold,
Vatel took them, partly cooked, out Of
the boiling fat. When the king ar
rived, he popped them in again. To
his delight, and the kings, they
puffed up like tiny dirigible gas bags.
The world has had Pommes de Terres
Souff1ees ever since.
Then, Terrine de Tortue Molle Z la
1coScOf1-Soft-Shell turtles from
the Tchefuncta River, in st. Tam
many Parish, La, made with . de-
licious sauce of sherry and season.
ings impaired in Russia to the late
Jules Alciatore by Rupinicoscoff, one
time chef to the Gar of Russia.
Then, Pigeonneaux, Sauce Paradis-
a l-breasted baby SQUAD stuffed
with pate de fois gras, and basted
with old cognac while being roasted
to turn. The sauce Is made of red
wine, tender young grapes, hearts Of
celery and julienned bacon-the whole
blended with the natural juices Of the
cooking squad. And to drink with
the SQUAD, = superb red Bordeaux
wine, Chateau Lafitte, vintage Of 1908.
Broccoli, Hollandaise sauce, goes
With thsl l)quab, too tender. selected