Louisiana Eats

The story of Abita Beer, Louisiana's first craft brewery, all began in the sleepy little town of Abita Springs. In 1986, the Blossman family ventured into the business at a downtown Abita Springs location — a 100-seat brew pub, which they completely outgrew by 1994. Today, Abita Brew Pub is owned and operated by the second generation of the Essaied family who continue to serve delicious American f...

Do you have a favorite hot spot where your family has gathered for generations? Is it still there? Sadly, when it comes to Black-owned bars and lounges, many have been disappearing from local landscapes – often without fanfare or mention. New Orleans native L. Kasimu Harris has watched with dismay as many of these vital Black establishments have closed their doors in recent years. Since 2018, he h...

Love that chicken from Popeyes! If you love Louisiana food, it’s a safe bet that you’re a Popeyes lover too. The company that has grown to over 3,000 stores stretching from one end of the globe to the other, all started right here in New Orleans. Today, Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen includes locations in more than 30 countries. You’ll find that chicken in London, Sri Lanka, the Philippines – there’s o...

On this week's show, we visit with three Louisiana chefs who have compiled many accolades and awards in restaurants across the South. First, we hear from James Beard Award-winning chef John Currence, whose upbringing in New Orleans has informed his illustrious restaurant career based in Oxford, Mississippi. John describes the through-lines of his craft, which includes a strong sense of place and a...

Foie gras – that’s French for fat liver. This celebrated luxury food is found mostly in high-end restaurants where even a small amount is quite costly. Traditionally, foie gras production has centered in the Aquitaine region of France where for hundreds of years ducks and geese have been carefully fattened in order to produce the large, ivory-colored lobes. Force-feeding is usually mentioned in co...

Where are you from? While what we eat may reveal our origins, it can also reflect our life's travels from one home to another. Chef Anh Luu was born in New Orleans to parents who emigrated to the United States from Vietnam. She discovered her love of restaurants at the age of 15 when she first began working the line. When Katrina blew Anh and her family to Portland, Oregon, she became a pioneer of...

What does family mean to you? For the folks on this week's show, when it comes to food, family means everything. NOCCA Culinary Arts student and Chopped Junior champion Retiba Hagazzi is a perfect example of that. The bright, ambitious teenager learned how to love people through food from her father, Khalid. They share that love with the world every time their food truck, Sittoo's Kitchen pulls up...

On this week’s show, we speak with three James Beard Award-winners to explore the history and culture of African American cooking and learn how African flavors are inspiring new dishes today.  We begin with soul food scholar Adrian Miller, who describes his book, Soul Food: The Surprising Story of an American Cuisine, as love-letter to African-American cooks. Since it was first published in 2013,...

On this week's show, we explore backyards, balconies, and rooftops where folks are cultivating their own food. We begin with Big Okra. That’s the name that gardener Jack Sweeney has given to his over 15-foot okra plant towering over his New Orleans backyard. We visit Jack and the Okra Stalk on site – but what made it grow so tall? Was it the seeds that spawned this Guinness World Records-worthy pl...

According to Matthew Raiford, when it comes to American haute cuisine, one need look no further than the South. On this week's show, we explore the possibilities of Southern cuisine with celebrated authors and chefs – beginning with Matthew Raiford. The self-described CheFarmer is spreading the good word of his Gullah Geechee heritage through a new book, Bress 'n' Nyam. Then, culinary superstar Se...

St. Tammany Parish is filled with family owned and family focused businesses, which exactly describes Restaurant Cote and the Maple Room in Olde Towne Slidell. Chef Jeremy Reilly and his wife Allysa opened their family business almost ten years ago and while growing the restaurant, grew their own family as well, adding two children to the Reilly family mix. Chef Jeremy’s food has deep roots in tra...

In today's fast-paced world, where virtually every recipe can be conjured up by doing a quick search online, do cookbooks really matter? After hearing this week's show, we think you'll join us in a resounding yes. Cookbooks teach us techniques and introduce us to new ingredients and cultures. They expand our palates and remind us of old-fashioned ways of doing things – ways that can evoke memories...

Tales of the Cocktail is back! After a two-year hiatus, one which was held virtually, what is arguably the biggest alcohol event in the world will take place again this year during the last week of July. In honor of the 20th anniversary of one of the wettest events to ever hit New Orleans, on this week's show, we explore all things alcohol and non-alcohol.  In recent years, Tales has become increa...

When it comes to sharing our authentic food culture, there is no family as influential over time as the Brennans of New Orleans. Almost 80 years ago, Owen Brennan got the party started at the Old Absinthe House. Since that time, the family has grown and prospered, giving us all a wonderful time along the way. On this week's show, we sit down for the first time with the fourth generation of one of...

Nick Asprodites didn’t originally intend to open one restaurant much less two. When he spotted an empty Lakeshore Drive lot for sale, his first thought was to build a fuel dock there, but once he ran the numbers, he realized he’d need the support of a food and beverage operation to make it viable. When the Blue Crab Restaurant and Oyster Bar opened in 2013, Nick revived the tradition of lakefront...

In August 1971, a food revolution was quietly launched in California with the opening of a small Berkeley bistro called Chez Panisse. At a time when pre-packaged fast food was all the rage in the U.S., Chez Panisse created dishes using locally sourced meats and farm-to-table produce. The fabled restaurant became an incubator for the Slow Food movement and sparked a change in attitudes toward food...

The life of a chef is often regarded as glamorous and exciting, but in reality, it’s a hard life – exemplified by long hours and frequent financial challenges. For many, it’s the only life imaginable. Nathanial Zimet, the ambitious chef behind Boucherie and Bourrée in New Orleans, falls directly into that category. Drawn to the restaurant business at the age of 15, the North Carolina native soon l...

On this week's show, we’re joined by seasoned spice experts who want to shake up the way you think about spices. We begin with Linda Shiue, a doctor and chef who guides her patients to cook healthier meals by harnessing the power of spices. Linda was just starting to spread the word about spices when we first met her in 2016. Now she's back in our studio on the heels of publishing her new book, Sp...

There’s a lot more to a successful wine business than just growing grapes! Monica Bourgeois and Neal Gernon are experts on that topic. The two wine lovers met while working in the New Orleans hospitality industry. They gained retail experience managing bottle shops before transitioning to wholesale wine distribution, making great California vineyard friends along the way. Together, Monica and Neal...

New Orleans is well known for its legacy restaurant families. And now, just across the Mississippi River in Gretna, the Mandina clan is poised to claim its own place in our culinary pantheon. On this week's show, we meet three generations of family who have made Tony Mandina’s a Westbank culinary institution. We begin with the restaurant’s namesake founder and his wife Grace Blanchard Mandina. Hav...

You can’t always get what you want. That’s been especially true during these unpredictable times. Now more than ever, there’s something comforting about the familiar – like a restaurant where you can order exactly what you want off the menu and are greeted with a smile whenever you walk through the door. That’s the experience of anyone who walks into Liz’s Where Y’at Diner – one of the happiest pl...

The summer of 2022 is looking like a perfect time for a vacation. After enduring a lot of stay-at-home time over the last two years, there's plenty to explore in one of America's favorite playgrounds – New Orleans. On this week's show, we learn about Vue Orleans – the 20 million dollar multimedia experience that opened earlier this year at the foot of Canal Street. Then we travel to Egypt with the...

How does a recipe become a retail offering? On this week's show, we track the path of great dishes and drinks from restaurant to retail. We begin with the Bayou State's spiciest new business, Louisiana Pepper Exchange. Founder and CEO Chris White tells the story of how a particular engineering feat of his led him to launch the new company. Then, we visit with research and development chef Ross Rob...

It’s Week Two of the 2022 New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, and after a two-year hiatus, that’s something to celebrate! On this week's show, Louisiana Eats is back at the track with more stories of the food, fun, and feasting that's been going on there for half a century. We begin with Louis Broussard, master electrician at Jazz Fest, who has been hanging around the grounds since childhood w...