Food in New Orleans: Identity and Myth

The city of New Orleans has been described as having a unique cuisine.  Even before culinary tourism became its own reason for travel, travelers were being encouraged to sample the cuisine of New Orleans as a part of the experience of visiting.  By the 19^th century the unique cuisine of the city was recognized by New Orleanians as a part of their individual identities as New Orleanians and as a part of the collective identity of the city.  That sense of identity, associated with local cuisine, continues in full force today and serves as a unifying and shared experience of residents. 

The cuisine was and continues to be built through the contributions made by people of different ethnic groups who have lived in the city, making their mark on the food through social invention.  The food itself – both local and imported, the techniques, the cultural attitudes toward food, the presentation,  and the interpretation of the experience of the cuisine have all influenced the food.  And these very factors have contributed to a mythology about the food and its origins.  These myths have made for excellent stories for tourists, but the often repeated myths have made the actual historical development murky, at best. 

Trying to find accuracy and truth in the midst of the mythology can wreak havoc on identity –whether that identity is smug or tentative.   This presentation will explore the basis for identity and the mythology that has developed around the cuisine and attempt to unravel the conflicts that the mythology has created, the origins of the myths, and whether there is any historical accuracy to be found