After landing a bit behind schedule at Louis Armstrong International Airport in New Orleans, Elisa and I got a quick pint-and-slice at New York Pizza. With an Abita Amber and Lazy Magnolia Jefferson Stout, we headed downtown to the New Orleans On Tap beer festival.

The most interesting taste: Bayou Teche Biere LA 31 Boucanee. This cherry-wood smoked wheat beer tasted like smoked gouda, and is certainly not a session beer. In fact, I would probably only drink this with food. Salty, smokey, cheesy, delicious food.

That’s it for this mini-post, folks. I’ll be in town all week writing and shooting.

Skip produces The Gourmetro. Check out his published works on Aisle 9, and talk with him on Twitter.

Leaving Long Island for a bit was entirely necessary and, as per usual, Southwest Airlines gave me a quick, on-time, and uneventful flight. After the disaster I’d suffered through with U.S. Airways the week before, it was refreshing to have such a spot-on aero experience (for those who missed it, my flight left two hours late from Williamsburg, so I missed my on-time connection in Philadelphia only to discover that my options were waiting two days in the airport–at my own expense–or driving the four hours back to Long Island–at my own expense. When I retrieved my bag, which was inexorably loaded on the next flight to Islip, it had been rifled through and picked over. Awesome. Thanks a lot.). Anyway, it was great to return south, however briefly. Similarly to when I left New York City, I find myself missing people–my southern family–much more than the place.

After the particularly anticlimactic Mobile Moon Pie Drop (“OK, it’s coming down but there’s no count down. Is it time yet? They’re just chattering. Oh wait. It stopped. Um … Happy New Year!) a few of us started the first morning of 2011 with an odd, hopefully non-portentous, brunch: leftovers from 2010. Medium-rare hanger steak, fried local eggs and some crunchy toast seemed as good a meal as any to start the year. We added some orange juice for health, prosecco for happiness and strong coffee for determination.

Eating (and writing) at Trattoria Centrale is one of the things I miss most about The Magic City. Geoff and Brian do such a consistently wonderful job of serving simply delicious food in a comfortable environment. Over my four days, I ate breakfasted in Trattoria Centrale twice. Sunday, I revisited my favorite brunch item–the breakfast za, with its sausage, potatoes, and perfectly poached egg–and was lucky enough to try Emily’s dish of eggs, sausage and pesto on a bed of creamy polenta. I was skeptical at first, but once all the elements come together, it was sublime. When Kim and I were there working, Geoff would steam up what he called The Kim Special. It is essentially a really wet, sweet cappuccino.

Urban Standard was my home away from home, and I missed the hell out of their red velvet cupcakes and Brandon’s expertly pulled espresso macchiatos. It was (and as it turns out, is) one of those places where practically everyone knows my name (and are usually glad I came). The fish sandwich with pickled onions is usually a safe bet, too. This cupcake help revive my spirits after a positively disgusting bowl of Yeti Chocolate Pudding at The J. Clyde the night before (it was nothing but a big ol’ vat of sickly sweet mess. No delicious Yeti Stout flavor.)

This post has just a few of the things I miss about living in Birmingham. I was lucky enough to spend time (never enough) with people I miss. Upon returning to Long Island, I remembered that I hadn’t been to the beach since September. I bundled up and headed to Dune Road. The sand crunched with a bit of lingering snow and the roiling surf was rougher than expected. It would have been a perfect walk if not for the blistering wind. After a few minutes with it to my back, I realized what an awful return trip I’d have so I turned back toward my waiting car.

How did you spend New Year’s Eve? Was it delicious?

Skip produces The Gourmetro. He was ready for a cold walk on the beach, but the wind was intense. Intense! Important Disclosure: Trattoria Centrale paid once paid him a one-time sum to reword their website. That was a while ago now and has nothing to do with how much he loves their food. Check out his published works on Aisle 9, and talk with him on Twitter.

Last month, Birmingham Magazine sent me out to St. Clair County. The beautiful, rolling hillsides of St. Clair County–about 30 minutes East of Birmingham–is chock full of great local eateries. Pell City had a bunch of barbecue haunts, and I found one of the best catfish fillets I have ever eaten.

Meanwhile, Brannon’s Public House has come into its own in downtown Birmingham. I stopped by a few times for sandwiches, burgers, and beers and left impressed.

See additional photography I shot for Birmingham Magazine’s March issue, and click for more about Brannon’s, and the St. Clair Barbecue and Catfish story.

Dan is the producer of ‘Ham Sandwich. Read about his cooking adventures as Skip on The Gourmetro and learn about him on aisle-9.net.

Last week Charlie took us to the 119th Washington County Fair, one of an ever-shrinking number agricultural expositions around the country. Growing up I’d been to the Harford Fair but never actually witnessed livestock judging, or a tractor pull, for that matter and tried my best to make up for that. Watching kids pull (and get pulled) animals easily five times their weight was quite a sight.

Most of my morning was spent casually observing the King Arthur Flour Cake contest where four judges had to taste 25 or so chocolate cakes from 8 to 11 a.m. Not a bad job, since I always like to start the day with a bit of chocolate cake myself. The contest’s overwhelming popularity, was, however, one minor detail made the judges’ jobs quite a bit more difficult. Last year there were five entries, this year, as I mentioned, there were about five times that many. Cakes were judged on flavor and their inside/outside textures. A particularly delicate cake with appealing, uniformly applied icing, and a tender crumb, could hope to receive as many as 90 points off the bat.

After the cake contest I was lucky enough to run into Kate Monroe, the 2009 Washington County Dairy Princess (pictured far top-left, with tiara). Elected by a team of dairy ambassadors, Kate’s mission is to educate consumers about Wash. Co. dairy by speaking with the media and educating families about health benefits. At home, Kate has about 30 cows, including 10 Ayrshires for the milking. Above, she was pictured with Lilly Snyder and her holstein Poppyseed. While I’d never heard of a Dairy Princess program before, I had me the Chilton County Peach Queens earlier this summer.

As a light rain was starting, I headed over to the tractor pull arena to eat some fried pickles with ranch dressing and watch giant machines pull 1000-pound weights.

Skip is the producer of The Gourmetro. He liked watching the cow judging more than the tractor pull. Read about his culinary travels through the South as Dan over at ‘Ham Sandwich.

]]> http://www.thegourmetro.net/2009/09/farm-dispatch-the-washington-county-fair/feed/ 3 http://www.thegourmetro.net/2009/09/farm-dispatch-bobs-lunch/ http://www.thegourmetro.net/2009/09/farm-dispatch-bobs-lunch/#comments Tue, 01 Sep 2009 15:11:26 +0000 Skip http://www.thegourmetro.net/?p=241

Typically, when given a choice I’ll pick quality over quantity. Luckily enough for me, one does not have to make that decision at Bob’s Lunch. A hungry diner can go in, sit down, have a chat with co-owner Rodney Moore, and within a few minutes begin eating a freshly cooked local Vermont hamburger. We knew we were in for a busy afternoon so we all opted for the Belly Buster, a hulking 1 pound burger with cheese and bacon. Intrepid diners who finish the burger, pickle, and fries are subsequently memorialized for their fortitude (foolhardiness) on a handwritten list. We three completed the burgers within a reasonable period and joined the somewhat immortal ranks. We were not, however, better for it, since we came back to American Masala Farm to muck the barn.

Anyway. If you’re up near Salem, New York around lunchtime, go to Bob’s and have a normal-sized burger. They are delicious and voluntarily on their way to becoming transfat free. Good job!

Skip is the producer of The Gourmetro. Mucking a barn isn’t so bad, just don’t eat a 1-pound hamburger first. Read about his culinary travels through the South as Dan over at ‘Ham Sandwich.