Author and culinary historian Poppy Tooker combines family photographs, stories, and recipes from Pascal’s Manale into a collection that is much more than a cookbook.
Tooker’s exploration into the storied Uptown restaurant, one of the “jewels in New Orleans’ culinary crown,” reveals the history of the family behind it and their influence on the city’s culinary culture. In contrast to the chef driven French dishes of the Creoles, Sicilian cuisine came straight from mama’s kitchen just as the signature dishes on the tables of this beloved eatery. A bastion of Italian cuisine in New Orleans, recipes for Pascal’s Manale’s best-known dishes, including their famous barbequed shrimp, stuffed artichokes, and meatballs have fed their fans for over a century!
Poppy Tooker is passionate about food and the people who make it. She hosts the popular weekly radio show Louisiana Eats! Her classical training and love of New Orleans cuisine has been recognized globally through her participation in various documentary projects, and she competed on Throwdown with Bobby Flay, where her seafood gumbo was deemed better than his. The International Association of Cooking Professionals recognized Tooker with their first Community Service Award, and Southern Living magazine named her a Hero of the New South. A writer for many publications, Tooker informs readers on the importance of reviving foods that are pivotal to the Louisiana and New Orleans culture. Her previous book Louisiana Eats!: The People, the Food, and Their Stories, a companion to her radio show, received the Literary Award of the Year in 2014 from the Louisiana Library Association. Tooker lives and cooks in New Orleans.