Author Archives: Robert

I have often written that if I ever visited Scotland, I would eat haggis. I have never been to Scotland, but I can now say that I have eaten haggis. Yesterday, my family and I attended the 23rd Scottish Highland Games and Celtic Music Festival on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. A friend was competing inContinue reading “Haggis”

Hibachi My family eats at the neighborhood hibachi restaurant, often. Actually, what we Americans have come to know as “hibachi” is actually teppanyaki-style cooking. A hibachi is a small, portable grill like the ones I used on my apartment balcony during a very lengthy and tenuous college career.Teppanyaki-style cooking is done on a flattop griddleContinue reading “Hibachi”

LAS VEGAS— What is a family man who doesn’t drink, doesn’t gamble, and has trouble staying up to watch David Letterman doing in Las Vegas with his wife and kids? Two words: The Beatles. I have pulled my second grader and sixth grader out of school to travel to Las Vegas to see Cirque duContinue reading “The Beatles, Food, and French Fries in Vegas”

Working for the Mouse ORLANDO— I am in Walt Disney World as a visiting chef of the EPCOT International Food and Wine Festival. Through the years I have been a frequent guest of The Mouse. I have enjoyed the parks with-and-without kids and had a great time doing the stuff one does down here sinceContinue reading “Working for the Mouse”

Catfish In Sunday’s New York Times Magazine there was an extensive article on catfish. In the article I learned that the Catfish Institute, located in Jackson, Miss., has chosen a new name for the catfish— Delecata. As new made-up names for fish go, I guess “Delacata” is as good as any, though I would likeContinue reading “Catfish”

Doggie Bags After 28 years in the restaurant business, one of the most consistent customer behaviors I have observed is with doggie bags. A majority of restaurant patrons are embarrassed to ask their server for a doggie bag. I have never been able to figure out the tentativeness on the customer’s part, but it’s real.Continue reading “Doggie Bags”

The Mac Attack The holy grail of kid cuisine is macaroni and cheese. When I wrote my second cookbook, Deep South Staples or How to Survive In A Southern Kitchen Without A Can of Cream of Mushroom Soup, I needed to include a macaroni and cheese recipe to complete the theme for updated home cooking.Continue reading “The Mac Attack”

Stable Staples Every home has a stable staple. A stable staple is an item that is almost, if not always, in an individual’s home kitchen. It varies from home to home and is usually located in an heirloom cookie jar, or a favored Pyrex dish, tucked away on a special shelf in the pantry, orContinue reading “Stable Staples”

Tailgating During Fall in Mississippi It’s mid September in Mississippi. Is it fall yet? Yesterday I was watching the Weather Channel and the announcer talked about “fall” weather in the Northeast. Fall in September? You’ve got to be kidding. Not down here. We know the word “fall,” but we never experience the actual season untilContinue reading “Tailgating During Fall in Mississippi”