re: Chef John Folse: Why is he such a hated figure in Southeast Louisiana?

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I called up and it was booked. I called back, declared I was Doctor BrotherEsau and told them I was passing by and would be there at 8pm. Amazing the difference it made. Hostess said she'd seat me at the chef's table.

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I had booked a special weekend stay.. to celebrate our anniversary. We were poor graduate students..
I called ahead and made reservations several days in advance - 7 pm sharp.

We arrived famished at 6:45 pm - and they found our reservation and said it would only be "a few minutes"...Chef John Folse... our reservation time of 7 pm came and went, and then 7:15, and then 7:30, and then 7:45 - and upon inquiring a few times we were told over and over..."sorry, but the kitchen is really backed up...but there was a different reason we could see...there were numerous customers who arrived after us and were told there was no open tables without a reservation. But many of them were negotiating with the Maitre D - "Go tell John it's us, he knows us"

These folks were not just requesting, but insisting that they be seated without reservations - And apparently several of these people did know Chef Folse - who on that entire night (with the Kitchen backed up) sat in that bar, holding court and waving on a procession of locales and dignitaries into the few seats available as soon as customers finished up their meals.

This constant bumping of our reservations continued as one-by-one an old friend or a dignitary would arrive and with a wink and a nod they would get seated - always in view of me, my wife, and a few other unlucky couples who, like us, had nothing more than a "reservation".

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