Food!

Outer Blog: Oh how my love for food is ever lasting, with no ends to the things that I will try. With trying different foods the "no harm no foul" rule comes into play; if you do not like it then you have learned something knew about your taste pallet, and if you do like it then you order it again. The highlight of this taste cuisine was entering Antoine's, the oldest restaurant in New Orleans. Walking through the beautiful wooden doors with clear glass windows gave the feeling of walking back into the nineteen twenties. The dinning room was as beautiful as I have ever seen, the white walls extended high above our heads, only to be met with a beautiful crown molding, chandeliers hanging over head eliminating the dinning area, with a large mirror across the side wall to even further exaggerate the luxury of the space. As we proceeded through what I had imagined to be the best dinning room of all thirteen, we entered the "mystery room" which ultimately became my favorite. The "mystery room" was painted red, a very harsh red to be exact. But the harsh color was beautifully contrasted by the twenty or so black and white photos covering most of the wall, a place I was happy to dine. And wow how I was not disappointed. The dish on the menu was creole seafood gumbo. The moment the tray was brought in my mouth started watering! The hope was that the flavor was just as amazing as the scent, and it did not disappoint. Admiring the dish put in front of me, I immediately noted the brownish/red color of the sauce and the white rice delicately laying on top.

Mixing the rice in and watching the steam roll off the warm dish increased the anticipation of the bites about to be taken. As I scooped up a spoon full ready to shove it into my mouth I stopped with great hesitation about what I was seeing....apparently that big thing that resembled a  peal onion sitting on my spoon, was an oyster. This was something new I had never tried before and was not sure I really wanted to every try. The "no harm, no foul" rule kept  from not turning down the most delicious and tender seafood I have ever tasted! The combination of flavors in the broth paired so well with the tender oysters and shrimp, there is no description I can think of that adequately represents how amazing this dish tasted. Getting to experience a dish that amazing, in a building so fascinating was my favorite part of this day.

P.S. The mystery room became my favorite because it was a place people "mysteriously" found liquor during prohibition.

Inner Blog: Through the food tasting today I learned so much about the culture. One typical saying in the world is that food is a universal language. It is a way we communicate and connect to one another even if we don't share a common verbal or written communication. That really rang true today when learning about how the Native Americans introduced different food and styles of hunting to both Creole and Cajun cultures. Because of the different terrains they lived the Creoles and Cajun had access to different resources. For example Cajun food tends to have more game like meat than that of Creoles who had more land to raise animals and not rely on hunting the swamp animals. It also tends to contain more spices because their dishes need to hind the gamy flavor of the meat in their dishes. Creoles food has more vegetables such as tomatoes because they had the land to grow them on. I found it truly fascinating that these two groups of people live in the same region and cook the same dishes, prepared very similarly but you can tell the difference in the cooking through spices and meats used. Even the way the prepare their roux is different, because the way their sauce should taste with the different types of meats they use in their dishes. I have had gumbo before now, but I had never really known the significant difference between Creole gumbo and Cajun. I also did not realize that either were organized by a pretty specific way of preparing their dishes. It was very fascinating information to learn and to taste today, which I will use in the future when trying to prepare dishes of either culture.