re: A Chef's Perspective

Hea Otis,

We all know I am as dumb as they come. For a long time, I have willingly accepted you as a Carthage, MS guy, who hit the big time and moved close to Balls. My gullibility flows into believing you come back occasionally to play soccer in Indianola, Midnight, Pantherburn or Yazoo City.

Come to think of it - Do you have a scanned copy of your birth certificate that mentions Carthage? Posting that would give you increased credibility with those inhabiting the landmass.

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Today's impulse based system of criticism is flawed. Used to be you had to invest some time & effort into waging your opinion, and then it was a private conversation between you and the proprietor. Now it's as if people tend to think their opinion has some sort of value because it can be published. Your opinion should matter; to your circle of friends & acquaintances & to whom it's directed at, not the world.

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I completely disagree with this. People's opinions do have value. Maybe not to the restaurant, but to other diners. More information is always better. I can look at reviews and judge the value of the review myself. As a diner it is easy for me to determine which reviews are bullshite and which are pertinent to my dining choices.

I also do not think it is happenstance that the restaurant industry has boomed to new heights with the birth of the "foodie" combined with social media and review sites. Restaurants have benefited greatly from people sharing meals on social media and using food to show off, as well as people being able to share their experiences with strangers in discussion about their interest in food.

Diners are more engaged in the restaurant experience. You say 10 years ago you would get an email every other week, but you also had less restaurants, less interest, and less diners spending money.

Food boards, review sites, and the like have provided so much more information for diners. It used to be you had to look at some shitty Zagat guide to try and get recommendations for different cities or find friends with the same tastes as yourself. People did not know chefs names outside of a handful. Diners are more interested and you get more business. You cannot now divorce the internet and exchange of information from the dining scene. With the good (increased exposure and interest), you have to deal with the bad (shitty reviewers).

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Are you from Argentina or how did you come up with Argentine menu?

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One of my biz partners' families is from ARG, so 9/10 years ago we said why not open an ARG steakhouse here as there are none.

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Do you make in house chorizo and if so tell me how.

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house made - ground pork 75/25 meat fat ratio, salt, pepper, garlic, green onion, and a tiny amount of pink curing salt

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My Argentine friends bring me and have taught me chimichurri. It only has oregano and parsley and according to them using mint or cilantro is not authentic. True or False

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Chimmichurri is like gumbo in ARG, everyone has their own recipe none are wrong.
we dont use mint or cilantro.
--parsley(stems & tops), garlic, lemon zest & juice, red wine vinegar, salt pepper water

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How do you make a chicken stock?

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brown or white? this can get lengthy. ask again & i'll post separate.

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How often do you change the toilet seats?

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you'd be surprised how often you have to change a toilet seat in a restaurant. i actually had to reattach the one in the ladies room yesterday(yes i do that too)

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o restaurants in New Orleans have night porters to clean the restaurant or do you stay late yourself?

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some of the larger places & hotels will contract this work out. i cant think of a mom-n-pop place that does this, we clean ourselves.

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How much and what do you local source?

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this is tricky for a steakhouse. beef(steakhouse quality) is not typically raised below the 34th parallel as its too warm/humid much of the year for the animals to effectively put on weight/fat. We do buy from Two Run Farms from outside Jackson,MS. they supply grass fed(therefore lean) beef to many restaurants in New Orleans.
for produce - our top two uses are asparagus & potatoes - none of which grow anywhere near here.
we'll use seasonal local stuff as it fits our business model
great questions
thanks

(1) Why dont you put the grilled avacado on your menu as a side? It's awesome.

(2) Why do so few restaurants use table side card readers? Is it a cost thing? Seems like it would be quicker and shitty tippers may be less inclined to stiff your waitstaff if they had to do it to their face.

(3) What type of sweetbreads do you use? Thymus or pancreas? Lamb, veal, beef, pork? I only ask because they seem to differ from most other places in size and texture, but not sure if that is just because of different trimming/cooking method.

Any plans to open a restaurant in BR/Denham springs? TIA

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tone is not well understood through a computer screen.

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correct

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trying something different.

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exactly

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there are plenty of trolls and posters wanting free shite

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i never give out free stuff unless i know & like you.

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Got any personal photos (family viewing suitable) you'd care to share? - something with today's date along side you would be nice.

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to the best of my knowledge i can only post pics that are already hosted on another website, so literally anyone already has access to those photos.
if there were another way, i'd gladly oblige.

What are your Top 3 nola restaurants you aren't affiliated with?