The New Orleanian Abroad: Blog of New Orleans, Gambit

New Orleans Bingo! Show profiled in The Washington Post

Kevin Allman — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 13:07:53 -0500

The New Orleans Bingo! Show will be performing at the Kennedy Center Saturday night, and today's Washington Post has a nice preview of the event, which includes the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, GIVERS and Big Freedia:

Preservation Hall Jazz Band has a long history performing at the Kennedy Center, so in some ways it makes sense that “Bingo!…
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Science says: Yakamein really does cure hangovers

Kevin Allman — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 11:15:00 -0500

Science, the drunkard's friend:

Researchers presenting at the 245th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society in New Orleans said foods like Yak-a-mein, which contain salts, protein and other ingredients, really can help drinkers recover from the effects of alcohol consumption.

"Folklore has it that American soldiers from New Orleans stationed in Korea in the 1950s learned to appreciate Yak-a-mein on the morning after, and brought a taste for it back home," Alyson E. Mitchell, Ph.D., of the University of California at Davis said in a statement.

The Atlantic Cities has more, and points us to this blog, which introduces us to the Baltimore specialty "Yat Gaw Mein":

A Baltimore Fav pronounced Yak Gow Mane.…
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VIDEO: Bustout Burlesque goes to Las Vegas

Kevin Allman — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 17:34:00 -0500

For this week's cover story, I accompanied New Orleans' Bustout Burlesque to Las Vegas, where the troupe had three performances at the 16th annual Viva Las Vegas Rockabilly Weekender. The article (with photos by Andreas Koch) only tells part of the story, though — the videos have to be seen in order to appreciate the talent and the artistry involved.…

New Orleans Bingo! Show, Pres Hall, Big Freedia and others to headline Kennedy Center

Alex Woodward — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 17:30:00 -0500

Next month, Washington, D.C.'s The Kennedy Center will host cabaret sideshow performers The New Orleans Bingo! Show, with the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Lafayette's GIVERS, bounce queen Big Freedia, Quintron and Miss Pussycat, among others, for "an aesthetic tour through the city of New Orleans."

Other performers include burlesque act Fleur De Tease, cellist Helen Gillet, the Mystic Ponies Aerial Troupe, anarchic noisemakers the Noisician Coalition, and Young Fellaz Brass Band.…

Austin Chronicle on Booty's Street Food

Kevin Allman — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 18:26:23 -0600

Judging from the #robust comment thread on Ian McNulty's review of Booty's Street Food this week, Gambit readers just can't get enough Booty's. So we'll send you to this Austin Chronicle Q&A with the restaurant's owners, Nick Vivion and Kevin Farrell (the two are in Austin for South by Southwest), where the creators of the Unicorn Booty blog discuss the "blog-to-brick" aspect of Booty's Street Food.…

Morrissey calls Duck Dynasty stars "animal serial killers," pulls out of Jimmy Kimmel appearance tonight

Kevin Allman — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 10:44:00 -0600

Morrissey is serious when he sings "Meat is Murder." Earlier this week, the former lead singer of the Smiths made headlines when he demanded that Los Angeles' Staples Center go all-vegetarian for the occasion of his March 1 appearance (Staples says there will be meat options; Morrissey says there will not: "Reports that the Staples Center will not be 100% vegetarian on March 1st are playfully untrue.…

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WWNO-FM names new news director

Kevin Allman — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 10:21:23 -0600

WWNO-FM, the NPR affiliate at the University of New Orleans, has hired Eve Troeh as its first-ever news director as the station continues to rebrand and expand its news coverage of south Louisiana. Troeh will begin April 1.…
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The five reasons Big Freedia won't be moving to Portland any time soon

Kevin Allman — Thu, 07 Feb 2013 17:00:00 -0600

Bounce queen Big Freedia, the Queen Diva, is no stranger to taking her AZZ EVERYWHERE philosophy to the emerald hills of the recycle-conscious Northwest (check out her 2010 appearance at MusicFest NW), and she appeared there last night at the Wonder Ballroom — which inspired Willamette Week to include her in a feature called "Top Five Things That Would Get Me To Move To Portland":

Po’boys on every corner
I grew up on these. Can’t live without my hometown cuisine.…
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Atlanta TV station report on the Saints egged bus incident

Kevin Allman — Thu, 29 Nov 2012 17:58:45 -0600

Fox 5 Atlanta has a story about last night's egging of a New Orleans Saints charter bus as it pulled out of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. (We'd provide a link to the story, but is there anyone in New Orleans who doesn't know it by now?)

Atlanta News, Weather, Traffic, and Sports | FOX 5

FOX 5's Aungelique Proctor spoke with veteran bus driver Clarence Lester, who was behind the wheel of the bus when it was hit.…
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Gambit TV: Clancy's Commentary

Gambit TV — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 10:34:00 -0600

In his commentary this week for WWL-TV, Gambit political editor Clancy DuBos had a message for N.Y. Gov. Andrew Cuomo — and it had to do with former New Orleans "recovery czar" Ed Blakely:

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Ed Blakely to the rescue! NY Gov Cuomo appoints "recovery czar" to Hurricane Sandy commission

Kevin Allman — Fri, 23 Nov 2012 15:44:34 -0600

Hurricane Katrina "recovery czar" Ed Blakely has been appointed by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo to a commission to "examine the state's emergency response capabilities" in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, according to an interview Blakely has done with an Australian radio station.

In recent years, Blakely has been living in Australia, where he is Honorary Professor of Urban Policy at the US Studies Centre of the University of Sydney.…
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Louisiana supplies arrive in Hurricane Sandy area

Kevin Allman — Wed, 21 Nov 2012 13:43:19 -0600

Here's a nice story for Thanksgiving, courtesy of New York's WCBS-TV:

AMITYVILLE, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) — Hurricane survivors from hundreds of miles away have arrived on Long Island with a massive care package to help the Sandy relief effort.

Two truckloads of supplies and food arrived at Amityville High School from New Orleans, thanks to a couple of Katrina survivors who wanted to help out.…
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Public Transit Tuesdays: Atlanta via Megabus

Megan Braden-Perry — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 10:04:00 -0500

Last Monday night, I was finishing an education story, making a Spotify playlist and finalizing a list of places to visit during my Atlanta day trip. I knew that I could have done and wanted to do more to prepare, but I was too busy tracking down sources for the education story and dealing with laptop issues (I accidentally broke the screen on my laptop when I tossed my lap desk onto the bed, on the eve of two major CUE deadlines).…
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Politifact runs Louisiana drive-thru daiquiri shops through its "Truth-O-Meter"

Kevin Allman — Fri, 14 Sep 2012 15:28:00 -0500

In Oregon, you can’t just walk into any supermarket for a bottle of Grey Goose or Pimm’s. Booze is overseen by the Oregon Liquor Control Board and sold only from state-run shops. Most of the stores close early — good luck picking up hooch after 8 p.m. — and many don’t even open on Sundays.…
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Snowing balls in NYC, second summer in a row

Megan Braden-Perry — Sat, 18 Aug 2012 02:01:00 -0500

Neesa Peterson grew up in New Orleans and graduated from Ole Miss before moving to New York to pursue a career in fashion. Things were going great, but she soon felt a void.…
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Bobby and the Big Apple

Kevin Allman — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 16:10:00 -0500

Gov. Bobby Jindal was the featured guest at last night's New York Republican State Committee dinner at the Sheraton New York in midtown Manhattan. (Dinner: $1,000; photo op with the gov, $5,000.…
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Art in Biloxi

Wendy Rodrigue — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 19:48:38 -0500

Here in culturally rich New Orleans we easily forget about our artsy neighbors to the east. However, the short drive to Biloxi is a safe bet, whether one gambles or not, for an enlightening getaway celebrating the South and its creative heritage.…
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Move over, king cake vodka: Here comes KING REX

Kevin Allman — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 13:42:00 -0500

KING REX! Are there two more regally redundant words in the English and Latin languages? Of course not — and all we can say is: Move over, king cake vodka, because Carnival-themed cocktail luxurie is in da house.…
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Spring in Wyoming

Wendy Rodrigue — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 23:10:52 -0500

“Ya’ll’s have fun!” called the hotel desk manager as my sister and I moseyed through the lobby of the Rusty Parrot Lodge.

“Did he just say ‘ya’ll’s’?” asked Heather (and did I appropriately use apostrophes?).…
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Broadway's new Streetcar will be Kowalski-free

Kevin Allman — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 11:38:00 -0500

While Southern Rep's production of A Streetcar Named Desire has added a performance due to crowds and great reviews (read Will Coviello's take here), a reimagined staging begins previews tomorrow night at the Broadhurst Theater on Broadway. This version features a black cast led by Blair Underwood as Stanley ...…
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Green light

Wendy Rodrigue — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 15:20:28 -0500

“He must be Irish,” noted Emer Ferguson about New Yorker Dan Flavin, “because it says here he spent three hours drawing in the rain.”

My friend Emer and I, on the other hand, spent three hours last week in a New York museum, studying the drawings, notes, and ideas of the “Minimalist monk”* during our biannual visit to the Morgan Library, Pierpont Morgan’s monument to books, papers and great works of art.

Familiar with his fluorescent light bulb installations, I approached the exhibition, “Dan Flavin: Drawing,” the first of its kind, with a sense of curiosity.…
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Farewell, Matt Davis

Kevin Allman — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 17:00:00 -0600

Matt Davis, the reporter who came to New Orleans in 2010 and freelanced for Gambit before taking a permanent position with The Lens, is moving back to England to be closer to family after spending six years as a reporter in the States, first in Portland, Ore. and then in New Orleans.

His memorable pieces for Gambit included chronicling the state of New Orleans Recreation Department facilities, interviewing Spike Lee and profiling the proprietors of a Gulf Coast tattoo shop affected by the BP oil disaster.…
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Mardi Gras weekend hotel occupancy numbers

Kevin Allman — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 10:25:09 -0600

According to a representative of the New Orleans Convention & Visitor's Bureau, New Orleans is packed this weekend (and we're not even counting the people sleeping outside on the Endymion route). Here are the hotel occupancy numbers as of this morning:

Fri.: 95%
Sat.: 98%
Sun.: 93%
Mon.: 86%
Tue.: 78%

On a somewhat related note, I got a Mardi Gras-themed promotional email from Hotels.com this morning.…
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Were 49ers fans out of hand at Saturday's Saints game?

Kevin Allman — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 22:05:21 -0600

While it seems most people have put last Saturday's Saints loss to the San Francisco 49ers behind them and are looking forward to the 2012 season, one aspect of the game hasn't gone away. Some who went to the game at Candlestick Park said the behavior of some 49ers fans went far beyond good-natured rivalry. (Exhibit A: Renee Peck's essay for NolaVie.)

This surprised me, because I've visited the Bay Area many times and always found it a friendly city.…
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Highlights of a blogging year

Wendy Rodrigue — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 09:42:00 -0600

One year ago I began blogging for Gambit as ‘Dolores Pepper,’ a pseudonym detailed here. Like many things in life, however, the blog took a different turn, occasionally written from Dolores’s perspective, but more often from mine, as I experience not only the city of New Orleans, but also the world outside.…
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