Evening star., 1942-11-10

- New Orleans q
Henry MeLeners. wide berth, be-
cause word has gone out as to what
happens to them here. Chefs OF
other cities stand in awe OF the
yitamin. They treat him as II he
were q royal prince with q weak
heart. He is not boiled enough TO-
hurt him, and they never let the
poor little fellow get fried. HIS
original character is preserved AZ
all costs.
Not so way down yonder here IN
New Orleans. The chefs here give
the vitamin a going over that makes
a police third degree seem like a
christening. They slap him IN the
face with sauces. They frizzle. try
and fricassee him. When he yells
uncle" they shut him up with a.
chunk Of butter, a cupful OF cream
and a dash Of cognac. When they
get through with the vitamln no
won't make your muscles grow. but
he'll make your taste buds break
into bloom.
It's a foolhardy thing for q man
of my dimensions to come to New
orleans. A few more days here and
I'll be in the market for some OF
ex-President Taft's old trousers, II
they are still In the family estate.
This is the one town where a man
can watch himself gain weight.
You don't have to hop on and on
scales to check your weight. It's q
visual process here. You can loos
in a mirror and with your own eyes
see yourself broaden. I left the
hotel yesterday in a suit that fit me
perfectly and when returned after
dinner in the evening 1t was touch
and 60 as to whether would be
able to peel that tiny suit of OF
myself.
The major distinction Of New
Orleans dishes is that no matter
what you order you have to eat for
upward Of half an hour before you
have eaten to the thing you ordered.
For luncheon yesterday I ordered
brook trout. At 1890 q monstrous
platter was set before me, and I
began eating away. ate layer OF
oysters; then layer Of sauce. Then
unearthed a layer Of shrimp, and
after that I came on q great deposit
Of mushrooms. I plowed on and on.
and at 1855 I came on my hrst bite
Of trout. 1t was then that startled
my fellow diners with q loud cry Of
Excelsior" 2
The same thing happens when you
order chicken or steak or anything
else. The story goes-a fine old
Creole legend-that q New Orleans
chef once was ridden out Of town
on q rail for serving = dish that
could be recognized for what 1t was
at two PAGES.
Even the vegetables are part Of
this masquerade. You order egg
plant and you'd never know 1t was
eggplant. It is 80 much better than
eggplant has any right to be. In
New Orleans you can order the
vegetable you like the least and
wind up having second helping.
So help me, I've enjoyed carrots in
this town and I am one OF the fore
most carrot haters in this country.
Now for q wartime observation:
When food rationing becomes really
strict, and housewives run out Of
ideas as to how to make food pala-,
table, 1t would be wise for the Gov
ernment to enlist the services Of
the New Orleans chefs and have
them go about the country giving
recipes to the gals. have never
eaten shingle in this town, but I
am willing to bet that q New
Orleans chef can take shingle and
make . superb dish Of 1t. And what
they couldn't do with things that
really yield themselves to cooking,
such Is old sofa pillows, lamp
shades, sewing basket tops and
ostrich feather fans!
Enough Of this, however. I
haven't had a single thing to eat in
the last hour and ask you-if you.
were in New Orleans with me right
now wouldn't you say, stop bang
ing at that typewriter and let's go
get something to eat?"
Distributed by McNauEht Syndicate, Incl :