Eat at Calas. Calas, rice cakes made with eggs, rice and flour, are powdered with sugar. They were sold on the street of the Quarter in the 19th century and were made to be eaten with a cup of cafe' au lait. Black cooks wearing bandannas carried bowls of calas on their heads and you could hear their cries,"Belles calas tout chauds!" penetrate the mornings. The traditional dish was almost lost until Calas restaurant opened in Kenner, La, a suburb of New Orleans. You can eat Calas for breakfast once again.
Eating egg dishes was popular in the 19th century when the petit dejeuner, or breakfast, drew customers after the theaters closed. Lost bread or pain perdu has meant breakfast in South Louisiana for generations. It is basically bread soaked in an egg-milk mixture and browned in butter. Powdered sugar or cane syrup topped it off for a glorious way to start the day. You can find these dishes at Brennans or Antoines, both famous restaurants in New Orleans.
Find fancy crepes filled with ham and tomatoes. Some are filled with shellfish from local waters. Crabmeat, shrimp make succulent stuffings for the delicate pancakes.
These breakfasts are standard fare at New Orleans restaurants. If you wish to linger over a gourmet breakfast with wine, New Orleans, the Crescent City on the Mississippi is the place to do it.
