Creepy Food Ads Aimed At Women: The Skinny Cow and Lays
Advertisers think women are fat and stupid. This is a well documented fact: consider the boatloads of advertising campaigns designed to alleviate these twin and depressingly universal fears of woman-kind, the millions of dollars spent on convincing we ladies that we are woefully inadequate in every way, that our inadequacies can be alleviated and soothed if we just buy this particular, delightful product. The food industry is no exception.Indeed, the food industry sees fit to create some of advertising's weirdest campaigns in an attempt to appeal to women. The reasons are easy to see: many women possess a bizarre, masochistic re

The Zuni Cafe's Chicken Braised With Figs and Honey
God, I love fresh figs. There's few things nicer then a fresh fig, combined with pretty much anything. Eat them in the summertime with thick Greek yogurt and honey. Roast them in the oven with a little bit of stinky cheese , some honey, and bacon. Toss em' in your cereal and eat them fresh off the tree. The Greek gods ate boatloads of them, and so, I imagine, did Alexander the Great and all those other Mediterranean luminaries: they knew what the score was. I'll take figs any way they're being offered up. Even fig leaves are beautifully shaped - and highly useful for covering up naked people in Renaissance paintings.

Napoleon House New Orleans: Good Food, No Napoleon
Napoleon House500 Chartres StNew Orleans, LA 70130-2110(504) 524-9752The Napoleon House in the 1930's. The Napoleon House is old. As the legend goes, the 200 year old building was first occupied by one Nicholas Girod, the mayor of New Orleans from 1812 to 1815. Ever the altruist, the ardently French Girod offered up his humble Louisiana dwelling to the exiled French conqueror. The potential adultation and publicity that Napoleon's entry into the Crescent City

Basil Leaf: Jesus Christ It's a Whole Coconut
Basil Leaf1438 S Carrollton AveNew Orleans, LA 70118-2810(504) 862-9001Thai food is pretty much ubiquitous in the USA, New Orleans no-exception whatsoever. (Ask for a Korean restaurant, however..) Basil Leaf is one of a warren of "ethnic" restaurants on this particular bit of South Carrollton, with a Spanish, Lebanese, and Japanese place all within easy walkin' distance. As Boucherie, our original intent, was completely booked up by yuppies in fetching vintage clothing, we punted to the Basil Leaf. It's really nice inside, with an upscale ambience, snappily dressed servers, and a not-too rowdy clientele. The menu is a rundown of you

Fiorellas in the French Quarter
My gumbo journey through the French Quarter continues. It's been an interesting wander through the FQ's eateries, all in search of the perfect gumbo, the gumbo of my dreams, an Fiorella's was my latest mark. How does the place stack up?Fiorella's is known mostly for fried chicken and a general assortment of Louisiana food. It's a small, funky place inside, and the outside usually hosts a healthy number of folks engaging in New Orlean's favorite sport: chain-smoking, drinking, and eating fried food. They're known for fried dill pickles. Haven't tried em'. (What do they say about this place? "After a New Orleans meal, you're always sure of your gallbladder?" Think I lifted that fr