Friday at Galatoire’s & Café Brûlot

Where: Galatoire’s Restaurant (est. 1905). Bourbon Street. New Orleans.

When: Friday December 3, 2010. Approxiamtely 4 PM. Or was it 5? Or 2:30? Time seems not to matter once inside the Galatoire doors.

What: Friday Lunch. It’s a thing. It’s a tradition. People come for lunch and stay for dinner. It’s impossible to get a table. But, my stepfather has a fishing buddy by the name of Duke and he is a regular at Galatoire’s with a house account. Score.

Welcome to what is now my new Favorite Dining Room in America…

The room decorated with red bows and garlands. The waiters all in white jackets and black bowties. Boisterous and lively groups drunk on celebration and champagne, old friends milling about visiting other tables and new friends being made. Confetti! This is what dining is all about.

From what I could ascertain there were about 5 different birthdays being celebrated. And there was a song sung and candles lit for every. single. one. And it never got old. Except for the lady on her cell- she was over it.

On to our table. We didn’t have any birthdays to celebrate, but we had appetites. And needed booze. Stat.

My stepsister Katherine with Duke deciding on eats. In the forefront, the most delicious garlic bread ever.

There were cocktails, wine and quite a few whiskey and waters consumed as plate after plate of small dishes kept arriving: crabmeat maison, oysters rockefeller, shrimp remoulade and fried eggplant (with a side of powdered sugar). It seemed never ending. And end it did not- entrees were next: lamb chops with mint jelly, filet mignon and lemon fish. As we chowed, my mother and I couldn’t help but eye other tables with these large silver bowls and coffee cups. What in the world could that be? Punch? We actually didn’t even really care what it is. We just knew we wanted it.

Duke informed us it was something called café brûlot.  Booze and coffee LIT ON FIRE.  This was a must try situation.  I mean, hell, when was there ever a better time to explore such a thing than on a Friday at Galatoire’s? “The cafe brulot, please!”

A silver pitcher of chicory coffee and some coffee cups were brought to the table. Followed by this bowl and brave man with some matches. What happens to be in this bowl? Orange segments, lemon peel, clove, cinnamon, grand marnier and brandy. The breakfast of champions.

And start your engines…

Then, the café.

Add a generous splash of cream and you’ve got yourself one hell of an after dinner coffee!

This stuff is potent, but dang good. I even went back for seconds. And I wasn’t the only one.

I’ll leave you with a few words from others that have experienced the epic-ness of that which is the café brûlot. While visiting the Southern Food & Beverage Museum a couple of days after Galatoire’s, I found these two quotes…

Usually you have café brûlot after a big meal where you’ve already had drinks, several bottles of wine and possibly even Champagne. By the time you’ve drunk the brûlot, you’re wide awake and dead drunk at the same time. – Jon Newlin

What could be more sublime than to taste the delights of Heaven while beholding the terrors of Hell? – John Ringling, on tasting café brûlot

Mr. Ringling-  But, have you tried a Four Loko?

3 Comments
  • Katherine M. Paisley
    December 10, 2010

    Privileged to be a part of it. Next time, i’m bringing my own confetti.

  • Lewis Paisley
    December 10, 2010

    My first mistake was to show up sober.

  • logan tracey
    December 10, 2010

    hahahaaa! four loco! i don’t even think you can get in here in NYC. hell in a can? i’ll say. so jealous of your adventures! we must plan a trip, cause this is making me crazy. crazy jealous of what winds up in your belly. xo.