When Kate Gaar started the Frenchmen Art Market in April last year, she envisioned it as “the night shift of Jazz Fest,” luring festival goers into the lot next to the Spotted Cat on Frenchmen Street after they’d had time to shower off the dust and grab some dinner. Since then, the Market has expanded [...]
Karen Ocker, who painted Monk Boudreaux and Walter “Wolfman” Washington for the two covers we’re doing for our Jazz Fest Bible this year, is a veteran Jazz Fest artist. This will be her fourth year selling her work at the Fest. “Jazz Fest was the first arts market I ever did. I bring 40-50 pieces [...]
“When I was working at Loyola University I used to bake pies and cakes and all that, and then I worked at Tulane and Dominican all-girl college, Dillard. I worked at all these universities, Xavier, I worked at all of them. When I went to Loyola University, I went there as a dish washer, and [...]
“I learned to cook from my dad, I had three dads. I learned to cook also from my aunt and my grandmothers, but mainly my dad. I grew up learning how to cook different dishes, like the red beans and rice, the turkey necks, and my dad did more of the spicy stuff, like crawfish [...]
B.B. King at Tipitina’s — most expensive Tip’s show ever? At $100 per ticket, King’s show at Tipitina’s last night (January 20) was surprisingly well-attended. The Preservation Hall Jazz Band paved the way for the legendary bluesman, opening the show with one of its best sets ever as Clint Maedgen shared breath with Tao Rodriguez-Seeger [...]
I like to cook. If I choose to cook, I try to make it very big. Today, I’m cooking cream of poblano pepper soup that I learned how to make in Mexico when I was on tour there. It’s become one of my signature dishes because it’s just delicious. I go to Mexico once or [...]
Why do you come here? This is the only 24-hour soul club in the city. All these people are from the ‘60s, and all the people in the city know them. They’re older people, business people, cab drivers, service industry people—people who remember the past. Also, it’s on one of the world’s most famous streets [...]
“We have a lot of people [in New Orleans] who, on a regular basis, cook very good food — wonderful food — within the Creole cooking tradition, and that’s the tradition I know. This port, New Orleans, which so much came from — you had the West Indian and Caribbean influences, the African influences, the [...]
“I guess it’s a good sign that I don’t know how to use my defroster [standing at the microwave]. Hm, this doesn’t smell good. Oh! There’s metal in here! That was stupid. I’m going to burn down my house — now that will really make for a good interview [laughs]. Yesterday, I happened to be [...]
I was born in Trinidad and Tobago. I moved here with my parents, right into the Seventh Ward. My father worked on a cruise liner as a chef; they docked here and some of his friends encouraged him to see what was possible. He started working at the Marriott as a sous chef. I grew [...]
