Back from New Orleans

On Mon 02 Jan 2006 04:32:43p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it The Bubbo?

Quoted message said:

I got back from New Orleans this afternoon and sadly, I've nothing
interesting to report foodwise. The bulk of my time was spent up in
Slidell with David and his friends and family. Any places of note or
interest in Slidell are pretty much wiped out. I ate at a 'Lebanese'
place one night (they served kaiser rolls with plates of dipping oil
liberally sprinkled with canned parmesan) and a 'mexican place that used
fake cheese in the quesadilla. I did manage some pretty good sushi last
night, however.

My favorite Indian restaurant in the world had just recently re-opened,
but they only had buffet service as there just was not enough staff or
supplies. Sadly, it seems they have new ownwers and the owners were what
made me love that place.

I had a passable shrimp po' boy, but nothing compared to what I have
eaten before.

I rang in the New Year at Jackson Square in the French Quarter, a
completely unexpected trip (I was expecting to watch David and his
friends blow things up).

All in all, the trip was hard (it was heartbreaking to see the
destruction) but there were many highlights. David and I had a great
time together. Now I just have to wait patiently for him to come home.

It sounds like a very bittersweet experience, Heather. I used to have
family in Metairie, but they had moved away years ago. Despite all the
television coverage, I still cannot imagine what it must still be like.

--
Wayne Boatwright *¿*
__________________________________________________________________
And if we enter a room full of manure, may we believe in the pony.

Wayne Boatwright said:

It sounds like a very bittersweet experience, Heather. I used to have
family in Metairie, but they had moved away years ago. Despite all the
television coverage, I still cannot imagine what it must still be like.

there are still huge parts of the city without power. Over where the levee
failed there was a house in the street, moved by the force of the water. Trees
everywhere, trash everywhere. The cars abandoned on the freeway are still
there.

David's family is slowly rebuilding he lower level of their house. Luckily
insurance covers everything, but the process is slow and frankly rather
demoralizing. David is still down there helping to install the new flooring.
The insurance would pay for contractors, but if they waited for contractors
they'd be waiting for years.

The strangest thing I saw was when we took the canoe out. His parents live on
the bayou and as we turned a corner at what would be the end of their block
there was a back hoe. A GIANT back hoe, half in the swamp, all beat up. No one
knows where it came from, there's no path through the trees, they can't figure
it out. Of course I stupidly forgot my camera and did not want to turn back as
the sun was going to set soon and we had to get out to David's Island and I
did not want to be in the swamp after dark.

--
..:Heather:.
www.velvet-c.com
Step off, beyotches, I'm the roflpimp!

On Mon 02 Jan 2006 07:24:48p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it The Bubbo?

Quoted message said:

Wayne Boatwright said:

It sounds like a very bittersweet experience, Heather. I used to have
family in Metairie, but they had moved away years ago. Despite all the
television coverage, I still cannot imagine what it must still be like.

there are still huge parts of the city without power. Over where the
levee failed there was a house in the street, moved by the force of the
water. Trees everywhere, trash everywhere. The cars abandoned on the
freeway are still there.

David's family is slowly rebuilding he lower level of their house.
Luckily insurance covers everything, but the process is slow and frankly
rather demoralizing. David is still down there helping to install the
new flooring. The insurance would pay for contractors, but if they
waited for contractors they'd be waiting for years.

The strangest thing I saw was when we took the canoe out. His parents
live on the bayou and as we turned a corner at what would be the end of
their block there was a back hoe. A GIANT back hoe, half in the swamp,
all beat up. No one knows where it came from, there's no path through
the trees, they can't figure it out. Of course I stupidly forgot my
camera and did not want to turn back as the sun was going to set soon
and we had to get out to David's Island and I did not want to be in the
swamp after dark.

It must be bad enough to have to go through the rebuilding process even if
it is covered by insurance, not to mention those who literally lost
everything. I don't think I could go back.

--
Wayne Boatwright *¿*
__________________________________________________________________
And if we enter a room full of manure, may we believe in the pony.

Wayne Boatwright said:

It must be bad enough to have to go through the rebuilding process even if
it is covered by insurance, not to mention those who literally lost
everything. I don't think I could go back.

I understand going back. I love New Orleans and occasionally entertain
thoughts of moving there. It's like no other city I've ever been to. Still,
the rebuilding is hard, the loss of everything is hard. Not only is there the
loss and rebuilding, but the lack of resources in town, it's hard t find even
some of the simplest pleasures at times.

--
..:Heather:.
www.velvet-c.com
Step off, beyotches, I'm the roflpimp!

Wayne wrote about New Orleans:

Quoted message said:

It must be bad enough to have to go through the rebuilding process even if
it is covered by insurance, not to mention those who literally lost
everything. I don't think I could go back.

A dear friend of mine lost almost everything she had. My friend is a
participant in the Goth subculture, and every year there's a gathering of
Goths called "Convergence." The city changes from year to year, with online
voting determining which city gets to host Convergence for that particular
year.

New Orleans won the vote for the 2006 Convergence. Then Hurricane Katrina
hit, and the town was devastated. Rising from the rubble, the Convergence
organizers declared that Convergence would continue as scheduled. It will
take place in April 2006. The hotel wasn't too badly damaged, so it will
still host the gathering, but a second venue where nightly musical
performances were supposed to take place fell by the wayside.
(http://www.convergencexii.com/)

My friend has attended Convergence with me for the last four years, but she
won't be coming to this one: It's not that she LOST so much, but she had to
come back to her shambles of an apartment and sort through things which had
been precious to her but which were now utterly ruined. And on a grander
scale, she had to see so many of her favorite places irrecoverably damaged.
She doesn't want to see them again, at least not until she's had plenty of
time to grieve for the loss, both her loss and the loss to the world. She's
living in Seattle now.

(I'm helping her rebuild: When I asked her what she felt worst about losing,
she said that she was moved to tears by the loss of her game collection, her
Disney videos, and her Christmas ornaments. I'm replacing the games and the
videos, and I shared my own Christmas ornaments with her so that she would
have SOME ornaments this Christmas.)

Bob

On 2 Jan 2006 21:17:03 -0600, "Bob Terwilliger"

virtualgoth@die_spammer.biz said:

A dear friend of mine lost almost everything she had.

(I'm helping her rebuild: When I asked her what she felt worst about losing,
she said that she was moved to tears by the loss of her game collection, her
Disney videos, and her Christmas ornaments. I'm replacing the games and the
videos, and I shared my own Christmas ornaments with her so that she would
have SOME ornaments this Christmas.)

You are a very good friend, Bob! :o)

Carol

On Mon 02 Jan 2006 08:17:03p, Thus Spake Zarathustra, or was it Bob
Terwilliger?

Quoted message said:

Wayne wrote about New Orleans:

Quoted message said:

It must be bad enough to have to go through the rebuilding process even
if it is covered by insurance, not to mention those who literally lost
everything. I don't think I could go back.

A dear friend of mine lost almost everything she had. My friend is a
participant in the Goth subculture, and every year there's a gathering
of Goths called "Convergence." The city changes from year to year, with
online voting determining which city gets to host Convergence for that
particular year.

New Orleans won the vote for the 2006 Convergence. Then Hurricane
Katrina hit, and the town was devastated. Rising from the rubble, the
Convergence organizers declared that Convergence would continue as
scheduled. It will take place in April 2006. The hotel wasn't too
badly damaged, so it will still host the gathering, but a second venue
where nightly musical performances were supposed to take place fell by
the wayside. (http://www.convergencexii.com/)

My friend has attended Convergence with me for the last four years, but
she won't be coming to this one: It's not that she LOST so much, but she
had to come back to her shambles of an apartment and sort through things
which had been precious to her but which were now utterly ruined. And
on a grander scale, she had to see so many of her favorite places
irrecoverably damaged. She doesn't want to see them again, at least not
until she's had plenty of time to grieve for the loss, both her loss and
the loss to the world. She's living in Seattle now.

(I'm helping her rebuild: When I asked her what she felt worst about
losing, she said that she was moved to tears by the loss of her game
collection, her Disney videos, and her Christmas ornaments. I'm
replacing the games and the videos, and I shared my own Christmas
ornaments with her so that she would have SOME ornaments this
Christmas.)

You're doing a good thing. You're a good friend, Bob.

--
Wayne Boatwright *¿*
__________________________________________________________________
And if we enter a room full of manure, may we believe in the pony.

"The Bubbo" wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I got back from New Orleans this afternoon and sadly, I've nothing interesting
to report foodwise.

I'm from New Orleans and have been back living here since 11/1. Believe it or
not the restaurant situation here isn't all that bad. More than 350 restaurants
have reopened. Of course, there are huge sections of the city that are nowhere
near ready for any businesses to open. One of my favorite restaurants (Sid-Mars)
was washed away and another of my favorites (Mandina's) got about five feet of
water and is a long way from reopening.

Quoted message said:

I had a passable shrimp po' boy, but nothing compared to what I have eaten
before.

There are good po-boys around in New Orleans. I don't know about Slidell.

Quoted message said:

All in all, the trip was hard (it was heartbreaking to see the destruction)
but there were many highlights.

It's hard seeing what has happened to the city. I see it every time I set foot
outdoors. Even the so-called good areas are in rough shape. On the other hand
it's great being home and seeing my friends and neighbors again. New Orleans has
always been a friendly place but never more so than right now.

Come back soon.

-Mike

Mike Pearce said:

"The Bubbo" wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I got back from New Orleans this afternoon and sadly, I've nothing

interesting

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

to report foodwise.

I'm from New Orleans and have been back living here since 11/1. Believe it

or

Quoted message said:

not the restaurant situation here isn't all that bad. More than 350

restaurants

Quoted message said:

have reopened. Of course, there are huge sections of the city that are

nowhere

Quoted message said:

near ready for any businesses to open. One of my favorite restaurants

(Sid-Mars)

Quoted message said:

was washed away and another of my favorites (Mandina's) got about five feet

of

Quoted message said:

water and is a long way from reopening.

Quoted message said:

I had a passable shrimp po' boy, but nothing compared to what I have eaten
before.

There are good po-boys around in New Orleans. I don't know about Slidell.

Quoted message said:

All in all, the trip was hard (it was heartbreaking to see the destruction)
but there were many highlights.

It's hard seeing what has happened to the city. I see it every time I set

foot

Quoted message said:

outdoors. Even the so-called good areas are in rough shape. On the other

hand

Quoted message said:

it's great being home and seeing my friends and neighbors again. New Orleans

has

Quoted message said:

always been a friendly place but never more so than right now.

Come back soon.

-Mike

Part of me is rolling around the idea of moving there, but I am not entirely
sure that's a good idea. I need to leave minnesota in the next couple of
years, the winters are just too much for me. Savannah is by far my favorite
city, but David is from New Orleans and if things go long term for us I know
he'd be happier there than in Savannah.

Sadly, we did not get into New Orleans proper as much as I would have liked.
The traffic situation on the bridges was daunting at times and after working
on his parent's house we were pretty tired in the evening. I can tell you that
the food situation in Slidell is pretty dismal. I wish I'd had a chance to see
if Liuzza's was open and if so, get in there to eat.

--
..:Heather:.
www.velvet-c.com
Step off, beyotches, I'm the roflpimp!

"The Bubbo" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Part of me is rolling around the idea of moving there, but I am not
entirely
sure that's a good idea. I need to leave minnesota in the next
couple of
years, the winters are just too much for me. Savannah is by far my
favorite
city, but David is from New Orleans and if things go long term for
us I know
he'd be happier there than in Savannah.

Well, New Orleans will never be what it was, but that doesn't mean it
won't be as good or better. It is kind of difficult living here right
now. There is destruction everywhere. There are still very few people
here. There are only four people living in my block which has about
twenty houses. I was the first one back on the block. On the other
hand there are an awful lot more people here in the neighborhood since
I came back two months ago. Since I've been back three restaurants,
and a corner grocery store have re-opened within a couple of blocks of
my house. Having those local places open did a lot to reviatalize the
neighborhood.

Quoted message said:

Sadly, we did not get into New Orleans proper as much as I would
have liked.
The traffic situation on the bridges was daunting at times and after
working
on his parent's house we were pretty tired in the evening. I can
tell you that
the food situation in Slidell is pretty dismal. I wish I'd had a
chance to see
if Liuzza's was open and if so, get in there to eat.

Which Liuzza's? The Liuzza's on Bienville is not open. That area got a
lot of water. Liuzza's By The Track over by the Fairgrounds is open
and the gumbo is as good as ever. I live very close to LBTT and was
there within five minutes of them reopening. The day LBTT reopened was
a great day. That day I saw so many people I hadn't seen since before
the storm. I was at Liuzza's three separate times that day.

-Mike

Mike Pearce said:

Quoted message said:

Well, New Orleans will never be what it was, but that doesn't mean it
won't be as good or better. It is kind of difficult living here right
now. There is destruction everywhere. There are still very few people
here. There are only four people living in my block which has about
twenty houses. I was the first one back on the block. On the other
hand there are an awful lot more people here in the neighborhood since
I came back two months ago. Since I've been back three restaurants,
and a corner grocery store have re-opened within a couple of blocks of
my house. Having those local places open did a lot to reviatalize the
neighborhood.

A lot of people I know say the place should just be bulldozed but I think
anybody who has spent any time there knows why you can't do that. I've always
loved New Orleans, but I never considered living there until this trip. I'm
not sure what's changed in me, but I am seriously looking at it.

And once they re-open the aquarium then everything will be perfect. I loved
that place, I think it's one of the best aquariums in the country, but I got a
love of aquariums.

Quoted message said:

Which Liuzza's? The Liuzza's on Bienville is not open. That area got a
lot of water. Liuzza's By The Track over by the Fairgrounds is open
and the gumbo is as good as ever. I live very close to LBTT and was
there within five minutes of them reopening. The day LBTT reopened was
a great day. That day I saw so many people I hadn't seen since before
the storm. I was at Liuzza's three separate times that day.

-Mike

You know, I'm not positive. I think it was the one by the track. It was futzy
to get to, not easy to find. It was near my friend's place and he lived off
Esplanade, not far from City Park (iirc). I loved that place, but I loved how
they brought you a beer and for about 30 seconds you felt like you were
drinking the biggest beer ever until you realized the glass was so thick, then
it wasn't really so much beer in there.

But the po' boy with the shrimp in the pepper sauce....oooooh I miss that.

--
..:Heather:.
www.velvet-c.com
Step off, beyotches, I'm the roflpimp!

Mike Pearce said:

Well, New Orleans will never be what it was, but that doesn't mean it
won't be as good or better. It is kind of difficult living here right
now. There is destruction everywhere. There are still very few people
here. There are only four people living in my block which has about
twenty houses. I was the first one back on the block. On the other
hand there are an awful lot more people here in the neighborhood since
I came back two months ago. Since I've been back three restaurants,
and a corner grocery store have re-opened within a couple of blocks of
my house. Having those local places open did a lot to reviatalize the
neighborhood.
-Mike

Mike -
I was gratified to read you post. It's a real glimmer of hope amid the
media's reportage of the destruction. I certainly wish you and your
neighbors the very best of luck. (And watch out for the sharks and
carpetbaggers. ;=} ) Which is your neighborhood? Do you have any idea
how Mandina's fared? Oh hell - I could go on and on asking that kind of
question. It's all going to take time. But again, San Francisco
recovered from incredible destruction after the earthquake and fire of
'06 in not that many years. I guess if enough will is there it can
happen. And if *all* citizens can be part of the process. Have a much
happier New Year,
D.M

"The Bubbo" wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Mike Pearce wrote:

A lot of people I know say the place should just be bulldozed but I
think
anybody who has spent any time there knows why you can't do that.

The bulldozing isn't going to happen. It's quite possible that close
to a third of the homes in the city will be demolished and there will
likely be large portions of the city which won't be repopulated for a
long time if ever.

Quoted message said:

And once they re-open the aquarium then everything will be perfect.
I loved
that place, I think it's one of the best aquariums in the country,
but I got a
love of aquariums.

I know that they've been repopulating the aquarium with fish. I don't
know when it's supposed to be open. The zoo has been open on weekends
for a month or so now.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Which Liuzza's? The Liuzza's on Bienville is not open. That area
got a
lot of water. Liuzza's By The Track over by the Fairgrounds is open
and the gumbo is as good as ever.

You know, I'm not positive. I think it was the one by the track. It
was futzy
to get to, not easy to find. It was near my friend's place and he
lived off
Esplanade, not far from City Park (iirc). I loved that place, but I
loved how
they brought you a beer and for about 30 seconds you felt like you
were
drinking the biggest beer ever until you realized the glass was so
thick, then
it wasn't really so much beer in there.

That sounds like Liuzza's By The Track. It's a great place. One of the
reasons I bought my house was it's proximity to LBTT.
Does this look familiar?
http://www.nola.com/sites/liuzzas/

Quoted message said:

But the po' boy with the shrimp in the pepper sauce....oooooh I miss
that.

Are you talking about the BBQ Shrimp po-boy with the hollowed out
bread filled with BBQ Shrimp? Lots of people love the BBQ Shrimp
po-boys from LBTT. I think they are very messy.

-Mike

"D.A.Martinich" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Mike -
I was gratified to read you post. It's a real glimmer of hope amid
the
media's reportage of the destruction.

There is a hope. New Orleans still needs all the help it can get.

Quoted message said:

I certainly wish you and your neighbors the very best of luck.

Thanks.

Quoted message said:

Which is your neighborhood?

I live in Midcity near the New Orleans Fairgrounds not far from City
Park.

Quoted message said:

Do you have any idea how Mandina's fared?

Mandina's was flooded pretty good. The word is that they'll be
reopening but I have no idea when. Mandina's is one of my favorite
places in the city. Here's a picture of Mandina's after the water
receeded:

http://static.flickr.com/29/54692642_80f1b00ae7.jpg

The water lines are pretty high.

Quoted message said:

Oh hell - I could go on and on asking that kind of question.

Ask, it's fine with me. You might be suprised and get good news. An
awful lot of the restaurants, especially those near the river, are
open and as good as ever. My first night back (11/1) a friend and I
tried to go to K-Pauls for dinner but it was packed. Paul Prudhomme
had hired a band to play on the sidewalk outside the restaurant and
was out there listening to them. He told me that it just didn't seem
right for the French Quarter to be so quiet and he needed to hear some
music.

-Mike

On Tue, 3 Jan 2006 18:36:15 -0600, "Mike Pearce" <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

Well, New Orleans will never be what it was, but that doesn't mean it
won't be as good or better. It is kind of difficult living here right
now. There is destruction everywhere. There are still very few people
here. There are only four people living in my block which has about
twenty houses. I was the first one back on the block. On the other
hand there are an awful lot more people here in the neighborhood since
I came back two months ago. Since I've been back three restaurants,
and a corner grocery store have re-opened within a couple of blocks of
my house. Having those local places open did a lot to reviatalize the
neighborhood.

-Mike

The idea of rebuilding a city that sits below sea-level seems dumb.
The idea of pouring money into an area where public funds dissapear,
seems dumber still.
The idea of having the US taxpayers pick up the tab, seems positively "Bush".

<rj>

"<RJ>" wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Mike Pearce said:

Well, New Orleans will never be what it was, but that doesn't mean
it
won't be as good or better. It is kind of difficult living here
right
now. There is destruction everywhere. There are still very few
people
here. There are only four people living in my block which has about
twenty houses. I was the first one back on the block. On the other
hand there are an awful lot more people here in the neighborhood
since
I came back two months ago. Since I've been back three restaurants,
and a corner grocery store have re-opened within a couple of blocks
of
my house. Having those local places open did a lot to reviatalize
the
neighborhood.

-Mike

The idea of rebuilding a city that sits below sea-level seems dumb.
The idea of pouring money into an area where public funds dissapear,
seems dumber still.
The idea of having the US taxpayers pick up the tab, seems
positively "Bush".

Not that I brought up any of this stuff in the post my post but...

Much of the city does not sit below sea level though the areas with
the worst damage are below sea level. My neighborhood is above sea
level and was flooded. Had there been no flooding at all New Orleans
would still be in pretty bad shape. The flood water in my neighborhood
was not deep enough to get into most houses yet close to half the
houses have significant water damage as a result of roof damage and
rain.

A while back the local paper published two maps, one was of the city
from back in the 1870s and the other was a map of the flooding. The
parts of the city which were populated in the 1870s were almost
exactly the same areas which had little or no flooding from Katrina.

I don't want to get into the political stuff, but if you want to talk
about the food situation in New Orleans I'd be happy to join you.

Take care,
-Mike

"Mike Pearce" in news:pHRuf.31851$Ou3.4028@dukeread09:

Quoted message said:

... An awful lot of the restaurants, especially those near the river, are
open and as good as ever.

FYI, for anyone interested who doesn't know about this already, Tom
Fitzmorris (the local restaurant critic) has maintained since September an
online list of New Orleans restaurants open, updated every couple of days or
so.

http://www.nomenu.com/RestaurantsOpen.html

-- Max

RJ said:

On Tue, 3 Jan 2006 18:36:15 -0600, "Mike Pearce" <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

Well, New Orleans will never be what it was, but that doesn't mean it
won't be as good or better. It is kind of difficult living here right
now. There is destruction everywhere. There are still very few people
here. There are only four people living in my block which has about
twenty houses. I was the first one back on the block. On the other
hand there are an awful lot more people here in the neighborhood since
I came back two months ago. Since I've been back three restaurants,
and a corner grocery store have re-opened within a couple of blocks of
my house. Having those local places open did a lot to reviatalize the
neighborhood.

-Mike

The idea of rebuilding a city that sits below sea-level seems dumb.
The idea of pouring money into an area where public funds dissapear,
seems dumber still.
The idea of having the US taxpayers pick up the tab, seems positively "Bush".

Katrina was the best thing that ever happened to New Orleans. In one
fell swoop the city was pretty much emptied of it's shiftless negro
criminal/welfare class. This is a SPLENDID opportunity to not only
rebuild New Orleans into a more dynamic place but also to engage in a
bit of much - needed "social engineering"...

Notice that Houston is now having problems with the New Orleans human
flotsam and jetsam that decamped to Houston after the evacuation, e.g.
increased murder and other crime rates, increased gang problems, etc...

--
Best
Greg

"Max Hauser" wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Mike Pearce" wrote:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

... An awful lot of the restaurants, especially those near the
river, are open and as good as ever.

FYI, for anyone interested who doesn't know about this already, Tom
Fitzmorris (the local restaurant critic) has maintained since
September an online list of New Orleans restaurants open, updated
every couple of days or so.

http://www.nomenu.com/RestaurantsOpen.html

Thanks for posting the list. I should have thought to post it.

I check out the list every few days or so. Tom does a lot to pass on
information about and promote the restaurant industry in New Orleans.
There are a number of restaurants open which haven't made it to the
list. My understanding is that he doesn't add a restaurant to the list
until he's spoken to the owner/manager to confirm that they are open.
I've eaten at a few restaurants which aren't on the list yet.

-Mike