Hail King Shatner

It’s Mardi Gras season in my hometown of New Orleans.Mardi Gras is not one single day, rather an entire season beginning on Twelfth Night, the 12th day after Christmas and continuing up until Fat Tuesday, the day before Ash Wednesday. As the town draws closer to that Tuesday, the celebrations, parties, balls, and parades get […]

Merci Beaucoup, Chef

“One day, you’re going to be a great attorney.” “Yeah, uh, thanks, Dad.” How could I tell my attorney father that a morbidly obese cook from Opelousas, Louisiana, a man that favored sweet potatoes and pork belly over Filet Mignon, had already set me on my career path to become a professional chef, and not […]

The Bacon Cake

As a young apprentice at the Culinary Arts program in New Orleans, I was fortunate enough to be hired by Chef Daniel (pronounced Dan Yell) Bonnot at the Restaurant de la Tour Eiffel.  This was the original restaurant from the Eiffel Tower, the one in Paris, the restaurant was removed by French engineers because it […]