Synopses & Reviews
Celebrating New Orleans' food culture, one specialty at a time.
A cocktail is more than a segue to dinner when it's a Sazerac, an anise-laced drink of rye whiskey and bitters indigenous to New Orleans. For Wisconsin native Sara Roahen, a Sazerac is also a fine accompaniment to raw oysters, a looking glass into the cocktail culture of her own family and one more way to gain a foothold in her beloved adopted city.
Roahen's stories of personal discovery introduce readers to New Orleans' well-known signatures gumbo, po-boys, red beans and rice and its lesser-known gems: the pho of its Vietnamese immigrants, the braciolone of its Sicilians, and the ya-ka-mein of its street culture. By eating and cooking her way through a place as unique and unexpected as its infamous turducken, Roahen finds a home. And then Katrina. With humor, poignancy, and hope, she conjures up a city that reveled in its food traditions before the storm and in many ways has been saved by them since.
Review
"With humor and clarity, [Roahen] uses food as a vehicle through history, providing fascinating chapters on the contributions of Italian and Vietnamese populations to the cosmopolitan menu." Booklist
Review
"[Roahen's] adventures in gastronomy are entertaining, instructive, often hilarious, and absolutely hunger-inducing but also (this being New Orleans) heartbreaking." Very Short List
Synopsis
Celebrating New Orleans' food culture, one specialty at a time.
Synopsis
A cocktail is more than a segue to dinner when it's a Sazerac, an anise-laced drink of rye whiskey and bitters indigenous to New Orleans. For Wisconsin native Sara Roahen, a Sazerac is also a fine accompaniment to raw oysters, a looking glass into the cocktail culture of her own family--and one more way to gain a foothold in her beloved adopted city. Roahen's stories of personal discovery introduce readers to New Orleans' well-known signatures--gumbo, po-boys, red beans and rice--and its lesser-known gems: the pho of its Vietnamese immigrants, the braciolone of its Sicilians, and the ya-ka-mein of its street culture. By eating and cooking her way through a place as unique and unexpected as its infamous turducken, Roahen finds a home. And then Katrina. With humor, poignancy, and hope, she conjures up a city that reveled in its food traditions before the storm--and in many ways has been saved by them since.
About the Author
Sara Roahen's work has appeared in Tin House, Oxford American, and FoodandWine magazines. She and her husband own a home in New Orleans. They pay rent in Philadelphia.