Red Gravy

I still have yet to decide whether or not I liked Gumbo Tales. I would never say I didn't like it, but it questionable whether I like it or whether I am just apathetic to it and don't really have an option one way or another. Many of the foods in there I was not familiar with or would never have associated with New Orleans. I obviously expected for gumbo, coffee (particularly Cafe Du Monde), oysters, crawfish, king cake, and sno balls to be in there. However, I do know that I was surprised by some of the foods that were put in there. The one that caught me off guard the most was "Red Gravy." Most of all I was surprised at how influential Italian heritage is to New Orleans. Coming from St. Louis where there is an entire Italian neighborhood and at least one Italian restaurant in every other neighborhood, the Italian influence was always obvious. But here, it doesn't seem so "in your face." I would never describe St. Louis as an Italian neighborhood, but it certainly seems for prevalent there than it does in New Orleans.

The chapter discussed Italian food and traditions prevalent in New Orleans Italian communities.There are so many Italian traditions that were brought with the immigrants to New Orleans. One of the traditions that was talked about in the book was St. Joseph's Day. This day is celebrated every March 19 in celebration of St. Joseph, who saved the Sicilians from a drought. They promised St. Joseph that if he stopped the drought, they had to have a big feast and celebration in honor of him. An important part of the feast is the altar. In the book we read about the wonderful and elaborate altar Marie Fagot and her family hosted for many years. I really enjoyed reading this part of the book. Although I somewhat enjoyed reading about the food traditions, I really liked reading about how food and traditions bring families and even communities together.

After reading the book, I now know just how important the Italian influence is in New Orleans. I think it is just wonderful because not only do they bring great cuisine to the city, but they also keep New Orleans rich in tradition and community togetherness.