I love Tulane, and I LOVE New Orleans. Although I’ve only been here for part of a semester due to Hurricane Ida (if you want to donate to hurricane relief you can do so here!), and now an unfortunate Omicron outbreak, but I can confidently say that I know I picked the perfect college. Besides loving my life at school and so many of the amazing experiences here on campus, I also love my life in New Orleans.
A lot of that love for the city has to do with food. If you’ve been following my blog for a while, you’re probably ALSO a foodie, and maybe also gluten free. New Orleans should be on your list of places to visit. I have had the most fun here this semester so far, and I can’t wait to see what the rest of my 4 years here brings. As I mentioned in my first post as of recently, I’ve been posting more frequently because this is my final project for my Tides class. Throughout the semester, my Tides class focuses on food and how it fits into New Orleanian culture, which has really helped me learn to understand the food history of the city, rather than just appreciating a delicious plate in front of me.
How my Tides class helped me appreciate what I eat in Nola:
I’ve always appreciated food, especially high quality gluten free food, and because of that, I’ve always enjoyed being in cities where I have ample opportunity to eat safely. I knew moving down here that I would appreciate that aspect of the city, but my Tides class has also helped me to appreciate how the food I’m eating fits into the background and culture of the city, even if it wasn’t originally what I imagined. Restaurants like The Gumbo Shop and Willa Jean are undeniably “New Orleans” but I know that often I will struggle to find safe GF options at classic southern restaurants like those. Because of this, learning about the different ways a restaurant can actually contribute to New Orleanian culture in my Tides class was so important for me.
Addis Nola
Addis Nola (first meal diary) taught me that an important part of eating in New Orleans is experiencing different cultures, not just what’s native to the area. It was also my first time ever trying Ethiopian food!
Rum House
This Caribbean restaurant (second meal diary) helped me experience something very important to the city as a whole: rest and relaxation, and just in general a really good time. The food isn’t classic southern food, but I learned about the culture of New Orleans in a new way.
Rimon
In our Tides class, we learned the importance of comfort food. Rimon at Tulane Hillel (third meal diary) is my ultimate comfort food while I’ve been living here. It isn’t southern food at all, but because it’s so comforting, it’s an important part of my life as a New Orleans citizen.
Sofia Nola
Sofia Nola (fourth meal diary and my new absolute favorite restaurant EVER) is important to New Orleans, because it applies the laid back mindset and casual vibe so important to the city as a whole to a restaurant that anywhere else, would be so fancy, stuck up, etc. It’s a family style restaurant, which is something so rare for a fancy Italian restaurant. My experience here helped me learn that the culture of the city can exist in any type of food.
Ba Chi
I learned about why Ba Chi (fifth meal diary) and other Vietnamese restaurants are so important to New Orleanian history in my Tides class. There’s a large Vietnamese population in the city, and without learning about specifically WHY in Tides (spoiler alert- it revolves around immigration post Vietnam War) I wouldn’t appreciate Ba Chi as much. It’s not just a Vietnamese restaurant that exists here for any random reason, it’s an important part of the city’s background and history. Without learning about why, I wouldn’t have appreciated it as much.
Overall, I loved my Tides class. I think it’s important, as a foodie, that I understand WHY what I’m eating is not only delicious, but important to me. And as a college student living in New Orleans, it’s important for me to know why what I’m eating is culturally impactful.