Month: January 2017

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The LBJ Library, Austin

We made a visit to the LBJ Presidential Library in Austin, designed by Gordon Bunshaft
Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum, University of Texas at Austin//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

Here, a display of pens (fountain and otherwise) he used to sign various bills
Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum, University of Texas at Austin//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum, University of Texas at Austin//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum, University of Texas at Austin//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

…there’s even an animatronic LBJ

Besides the imposing architecture, the interior is stunning — a 4-story view of the glassed-in archives

Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum, University of Texas at Austin//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

The common area can feel quite vast, but there are more intimate spaces for evaluating other exhibits

Here, the missal he used to take the Oath of Office in 1963 — it was a gift to President Kennedy
Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum, University of Texas at Austin//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum, University of Texas at Austin//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

Oval Office replica, to 7/8 scale
Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum, University of Texas at Austin//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum, University of Texas at Austin//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum, University of Texas at Austin//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum, University of Texas at Austin//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

But the best, Lady Bird’s cha-cha mod office, with a tiny sign that says ‘Can Do’.

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HBO’s 2016 film ‘All the Way’ on LBJ

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Joseph Jojo Jilbert’s Metalwork Sculpture

Metalwork Art by Joseph Jilbert, Baton Rouge LA//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

Joseph Jilbert’s sculpture on display in Baton Rouge (4808 Government Street area)

The 58-year-old polymath pushes a pair of angular welding goggles upward on his forehead to perch on top of a tight black cap and reveals a set of adventurous eyes. He walks past an old dented pickup—his only vehicle, even though his work can sell in the hundreds of thousands—and he starts to look a lot like Charles Lindbergh or some other explorer soul as the leather of his gloved hand wipes a swathe of sweat from his brow.
…Controlling roughly 60,000 square feet of space—with more adjacent properties coming online early next year, he says—Jilbert is opening an artist colony with an event venue, studio spaces, gallery spaces and an “artist think tank” where Baton Rouge’s creatives can hang out, network and talk shop.

Metalwork Art by Joseph Jilbert, Baton Rouge LA//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

Metalwork Art by Joseph Jilbert, Baton Rouge LA//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

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Galatoire’s

Lunch at Galatoire’s — this wasn’t a Friday lunch like Av and us like to do, but a less-busy but still cheerful and fun afternoon

Three martini lunch?

Crab and okra gumbo
Crab and Okra Gumbo, Galatoire's, New Orleans LA//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

broiled drum Rockefeller
Broiled Drum Rockefeller, Galatoire's, New Orleans LA//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

lemon tart
Lemon Tart, Galatoire's, New Orleans LA//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

It’s always delicious, but I think what ‘makes’ Galatoire’s is not so much the food (there are better places to get a piece of fish) but the atmosphere. That, and that it’s the kind of place at which they will just take care of you. Want something different? There’s off-the-menu fried chicken if you ask.

all those coat hooks

They’re slow to change, which is another thing to love about it. It wasn’t until the mid-90s that they bought an ice machine so they could stop bringing in blocks of ice to hand-chip. And we’re still waiting in line (famously, Huey P. Long was even made to stand in line), though last time I just used Open Table. Also, it’s still the kind of place at which you may just want to leave everything to the waiter (especially if it’s John) and take their lead on what’s best. Forget that menu business. Or just remember the fried chicken…

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From ‘Streetcar Named Desire’ (Tennessee Williams was a Galatoire’s regular and had his own table):
(Stella:) I’m taking Blanche to Galatoire’s for supper and then to a show, because it’s your poker night.
(Stanley:) How about my supper, huh? I ain’t going to no Galatoire’s for supper.
(Stella:) I put you a cold plate on ice.
(Stanley:) Well, isn’t that just dandy!

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Everyone Loves Allan Benton, Including The Tennessee Governor’s Art Awards

Very happy to see that the State of Tennessee has bestowed its 2017 Governor’s Art Award, Folklife Heritage Award to Allan Benton.

About him, they note:
Benton has been curing over 12,000 hams a year for over 40 years. He uses traditional techniques passed down to him by his parents and grandparents. The hams are slowly cured through several stages and temperatures for at least nine months before they are sold. He uses the same cure his father did in the smokehouse behind his childhood home—a family recipe consisting of salt, brown sugar and pepper. Benton hangs pigs’ legs from wooden racks until the time is right, anywhere from 14 to 24 months for the aged hams. Country ham is a simpler recipe and a shorter cure. Bacon bellies are smoked for three to four days.

…He has been described by Saveur as “one of the most respected producers in the United States.” Benton’s hams and bacon have become the standard against which all others are measured and are sought after by top chefs like Sean Brock, David Chang, and Hugh Acheson. In 2015 Benton was awarded the James Beard Foundation’s “Who’s Who of Food and Beverage in America” Award, given to those in the food industry who have contributed to America’s culinary scene.

Using his artistry, expertise and devoted adherence to old traditional methods in one of Tennessee’s renowned foodways traditions, Benton’s Country Hams truly reflect the diversity and depth of Tennessee heritage. Those who would like to incorporate a few pounds of bacon into their pantry or want a whole country ham of their own would be wise to plan on ordering in advance. Benton owns the distinction for being the first foodways awardee in the history of the Tennessee Governor’s Arts Awards.

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We’ve been huge fans of Allan Benton for years now, and have enjoyed every side-trip to Benton’s in Madisonville, Tennessee with the chance to get to visit with him.

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His is a simple block building with metal roof and paneling on the walls, but it is a mecca when it comes to smoked meat.

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These pics come from different visits, but any time you come, Allan seems to always be happy to take anyone in the back to see where the magic happens.

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Love, love. Good job, Allan. Well deserved.

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Benton's Country Hams, Madisonville TN//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

Benton's Country Hams, Madisonville TN//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

Benton's Country Hams, Madisonville TN//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

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Lunches at Commander’s

I was just thinking of Richard Saja’s embroidered toile, and he has some new work from this summer up on his site. I never mind waiting in the foyer at Commander’s Palace as we check in for our reservation because it gives me a great chance to see things in his work there that I haven’t noticed before.

(this pic from an earlier visit:)
Commander's Palace, New Orleans//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

These little bites of bread are so good — butter/garlic/dill spread upon french (I imagine this is just poboy) bread they just shatter when they’re bitten into. There’s something about it that seems a little silly, but it’s fun. And yummy.

And then there’s the *real* bread, served perfectly warm
Commander's Palace, New Orleans LA//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

In this post, I’m consolidating the dishes from a couple of different lunches we enjoyd, but one of us always gets the turtle soup that they note on the menu takes three days to make. It’s finished table-side with sherry
Commander's Palace, New Orleans LA//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

Louisiana seafood boil tamale: spicy poached redfish, shrimp and oysters, grilled corn tamale, crab boiled vegetables, tomato chili coulis and roasted poblano-cilantro cream
Louisiana Seafood Boil Tamale, Commander's Palace, New Orleans LA//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

Crispy Des Allemands Catfish: wild catfish filets with warm crab boil potato salad, Creole mustard-dressed cabbage and mirlitons with pickled okra aioli and NOLA BBQ vinaigrette
Commander's Palace, New Orleans LA//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

Barbecued Gulf shrimp and grits
New Orleans Barbecued Gulf Shrimp and Grits, Commander's Place, New Orleans LA//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

Creole Bread Pudding Souffle, created by Paul Prudhomme when he was chef here in 1980, looking for a special dessert to celebrate Commander’s 100th birthday
Creole Bread Pudding Souffle, Commander's Palace, New Orleans LA//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

pecan pie a la mode
Commander's Palace, New Orleans LA//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

Ha! They surprised us with a couple of things, and one was this sundae!

On one visit, they made Shug a foil snail — how great is this!?!

Foil Art: Leftovers Snail at Commander's Place, New Orleans LA//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js

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The documentary about Ella Brennan, Ella Brennan: Commanding the Table, was released in October. About her, the doc’s site reads:
Ella Brennan is a household name in the restaurant industry. Known today as the inspirational matriarch of the rambling Brennan family of New Orleans and the force of nature behind first Brennan’s and then Commander’s Palace. Fired by her family at one point, she shouldered on. She was the creator of elaborate New Orleans breakfasts and jazz brunches and revolutionized creole cuisine. A pioneer of the modern American food movement, she pushed her chefs to the forefront helping to launch the celebrity chef phenomenon.

https://player.vimeo.com/video/175593627?title=0&byline=0&portrait=0
Ella Brennan: Commanding the Table Trailer

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Just because: foil squirrel takeout at a restaurant in Portland

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