Galatoire’s No Longer Serves Tradition

Re “French Quarter Icon Loses Je Ne Sais Quoi,” Aug. 19: My family, from Baton Rouge, La., has eaten exclusively at Galatoire’s since World War II when we visit New Orleans. It is a tradition. My sister and I returned there July 5 this year for an early dinner. As we rounded the corner onto Bourbon Street, I felt as though we had entered another world with the noise, the filth and the smells. We were whisked off the street by doormen and escorted to our table next to tourists--dressed as such!

Our waitress (men were the only staff in the old days) took our trout almondine order, our favorite over the years. She informed us that they were unable to get trout anymore, but had substituted another white fish I’d never heard of. It was not the same. Surely trout must be available somewhere along the Gulf Coast. Our meal was not the dining experience we remembered. However, as a tribute to its famous bar drinks, my sister’s “old fashioned” provided us with the only link to the wonderful meals we have enjoyed there over the years.

Rebecca Baker Moran

San Pedro

*

I must share with you my magical experience of my one and only visit to Galatoire’s years ago. Being born and raised in Southern California, the whole New Orleans experience was new and exciting--especially during Mardi Gras. We had dinner reservations several days before Mardi Gras. Through a nondescript door (as I recall it) we entered into a different land. I have never experienced anything like it.

No pretty greeter was there to help us, and I stood there feeling a little lost while I marveled at the mood of the room. Barely half of the customers were in their seats. Everyone was laughing and talking and eating and drinking. The whole room was an explosion of festivity and gaiety. The feel of the room was so different and so joyful I felt like I had just stepped into the screen and become a character in a movie. I had traveled through the looking glass and discovered the opening in the back of the wardrobe. It was a feeling I will never forget.

Karen Newe

Huntington Beach