Blake Pontchartrain
Baton Rouge Advocate
New Orleans, LA, United States
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Past articles by Blake:
Blake Pontchartrain: Jim LaRocca's Jim's Place restaurants specialized in fried chicken
“Our only secret was Vera the cook, and if she had a secret, we didn’t know it," Vic LaRocca on what made Jim's fried chicken so good. → Read More
Blakeview: Remembering Mel Leavitt, longtime New Orleans broadcaster
Mel Leavett signs on air at WDSU-TV in New Orleans 70 years ago. → Read More
Blake Pontchartrain: Where is the mahogany bar that once was at Bruning's Restaurant?
Hey Blake, Whatever happened to the old mahogany bar from Bruning’s Restaurant? I heard it was stored away after the restaurant was destroyed. Cathy Dear Cathy, Bruning’s was a landmark restaurant on Lake Pontchartrain at West End Park for nearly 150 years. Founded by Theodore Bruning in 1859, it was among the first of many seafood restaurants to open in West End Park during that area’s heyday… → Read More
Blakeview: Harrah's New Orleans Casino opened 20 years ago on Canal Street
Twenty years ago this month, Harrah’s New Orleans Casino opened its doors, capping off a nearly decade-long effort to bring a land-based casino to the city. The casino opened to → Read More
Blakeview: This month is the 30th anniversary of the opening of Woldenberg Park
"It's a front porch for the French Quarter, a place for all of us to sit and watch the river and the world go by. It gives us breathing room." → Read More
Blake Pontchartrain: Before it was the New Orleans Athletic Club, it was ...
Hey Blake, There is a marker on the side of a building on Bienville Street in the French Quarter that says “Young Men’s Gymnastic Club Administration 1903-1904.” What can you tell me about it? Dear reader, You may not know the Young Men’s Gymnastic Club, but you’ve probably heard of the name it has gone by since 1929: the New Orleans Athletic Club (NOAC). The NOAC’s facility is just around the… → Read More
Blakeview: Before there were Zapp's, New Orleans had Dickey's Potato Chips
For nearly 50 years, Dickey’s Chips were sold across Louisiana and in parts of Mississippi. → Read More
Blakeview: The origin of the Vieux Carre and Ramos gin fizz cocktails in New Orleans
The Hotel Monteleone can claim creation of a classic New Orleans cocktail, the Vieux Carre. It was first introduced at the hotel’s famous Carousel Bar by head bartender Walter Bergeron → Read More
Blake Pontchartrain: How a sandwich shop called 'Pig Stand' became Louisiana's A&G Cafeteria chain
The last A&G closed around 1998. → Read More
Blake Pontchartrain: Where was the first K&B drugstore? How the purple logo spread across New Orleans
Hey Blake, Growing up, there seemed to be a K&B drug store in every neighborhood. Where was the first one? Dear reader, Pharmacists Gustave Katz and Sydney Besthoff Sr. opened the first Katz & Besthoff pharmacy at 732 Canal St. in 1905. According to John S. Epstein’s 2011 history of K&B Drug Stores, Katz was a New Orleans pharmacist who owned a drug store at St. Charles and Jackson… → Read More
Blake Pontchartrain: Oretha Castle Haley on what would have been her 80th birthday
Born Oretha Castle in Oakland, Tennessee on July 22, 1939, she moved to New Orleans in 1947. → Read More
Blake Pontchartrain: Where was the French Hospital in New Orleans, and what's its story?
Hey Blake, During Chef Leah Chase’s memorial service, I heard Norman Francis mention a place I hadn’t heard of before: the French Hospital. Where was it and what years was it in operation? Dear reader, The French Hospital, which was located at 1821 Orleans Ave., was established by a local benevolent organization known as La Societe Francaise de Bienfaisance et d’Assistance Mutuelle. The group… → Read More
Blakeview: The long life of Louisiana music legend Al 'Carnival Time' Johnson, who turns 80 this week
He was inducted into the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame in 2007 and is a mainstay on the local music scene, especially around Carnival time. → Read More
Blakeview: After 50 years of Commander's Palace, a look at how Brennan family landed crowned jewel
In May 1969, the family which had made a name for itself at Brennan’s on Royal Street announced its purchase of Commander’s Palace. Emile Commander founded the Garden District restaurant → Read More
Blake Pontchartrain: What's Maison Maurice? In-depth on Canal Street's high-fashion millinery shop
Maison Maurice was located at 811 Canal St. next to the former D.H. Holmes department store. → Read More
Blake Pontchartrain: The monument in City Hall's Duncan Plaza — what's its story?
Sculptor Lin Emery created a statue of deLesseps Story "Chep" Morrison, which was dedicated in 1971 to honor the former mayor and statesman who died in a plane crash in → Read More
Blakeview: The Zephyr roller coaster turns 80 this week, here's its history at Pontchartrain Beach
Do you remember riding the Zephyr at Pontchartrain Beach? The wooden roller coaster opened for the first time 80 years ago this week. It was designed in Dayton, Ohio by → Read More
Blake Pontchartrain: What is the Brennan family tree of New Orleans restaurateurs?
Hey Blake, I enjoyed your column (Jan. 21) on the Randazzo family of king cake bakers. Along those lines, can you give us a Brennan family tree? Dear reader, The story of the first family of New Orleans cuisine begins with Owen Edward Brennan, born in 1910, the eldest of Owen Patrick and Ella Mary “Nellie” Brennan’s six children. His five siblings were: Adelaide, John, Ella, Richard (known as… → Read More
Blake Pontchartrain: Did New Orleans have any sit-ins during the civil rights era?
New Orleans activists staged sit-ins in New Orleans in the 1960s to protest segregation at lunch counters. → Read More
Blake Pontchartrain: The Carrollton Avenue dairy that became a U.S. Post Office
The Carrollton Avenue building was designed by the local architectural firm Favrot and Livaudais Ltd. The facade features references to its use as a dairy, including a frieze featuring a → Read More