And boy, do they get it wrong.
Here are my top choices for Cajun/Creole food clichés so abused by clueless chefs that New Orleanians traveling outside our city should view them as red flags to be avoided, rather than promises of home.
Starting With the Most Obvious: Cajun, Creole, French Quarter, Vieux Carre, New Orleans-Style Anything
The #1 sign that your meal will be horribly wrong is the use of an entire cuisine or region as an adjective. What, exactly, will you get if you order "Cajun Rib-Eye"? Was the cow itself Cajun? Did it start off in life as Black Angus and convert?
Basically, these terms are used in restaurants outside New Orleans as code words for "spicy." "Cajun Rib-Eye" will most likely be your basic steak rubbed with some blend of paprika and hot pepper product to make the meat look red and burn your tongue.
Along the Same Line: Cajun Spices
Travel to India, and you may be surprised not to find "curry" on any menu a block away from your western hotel. To Indians, the word -- a western variation of the Tamil "kari" -- means "sauce" or "side-dish." Only westerners use the term for a dish made with some distinctive blend of turmeric, coriander, and cumin.
By the same token, "Cajun spices" is a poorly coined generic term for some blend of spices associated (vaguely) with Cajun cuisine, primarily Cayenne pepper and paprika.
In truth, the tradition of "Cajun spices" relies on super-fresh ingredients blended by a skilled hand -- not on dousing things with Tabasco or shrimp boil mix.
Blackened
There really are great dishes called "Blackened Red Fish" and "Blackened Tuna." Chef Paul Prudhomme created them with a wonderful blend of seasonings, butter, and a super-hot cooking process. The result is a fish dish that looks almost like a steak.
If Chef Paul isn't making it, however, "blackened" almost always means the food is overspiced and overcooked. I've actually seen menus with things like "Blackened Prime Rib" and "Blackened Corn-on-the-Cob."
Bananas Foster (As a Flavor)
Chef Paul Blange created this fabulous dessert to encourage higher demand for bananas. (The Brennans were close to the family that owned United Fruit Company, the world's #1 banana importer.)
The recipe has worked like gangbusters, because Bananas Foster isn't just a food, it's an event. The rum flames fly up, half-melting the ice-cream and crisping the brown sugar on the banana in a sort of culinary song and dance.
Once the dessert is on your plate, you must eat it quickly to enjoy the different temperatures and textures, though it is customary first to applaud the waiter who has served it at your table.
In other words, Bananas Foster is not a flavoring, like vanilla or cinnamon. There is no such thing as "Bananas Foster Cheesecake" or "Bananas Foster Bread Pudding." Any restaurant offering them reveals a complete lack of knowledge about the dish.
(Sadly, I've even seen some menus here in New Orleans trying to sell such things. This must stop!)
Boudin, Creole Tomatoes, and Andouille Sausage
Such ingredients on a menu should be a welcome sight, except that such "authentic" New Orleans foods tend to get their flavor from freshness -- meaning they don't travel well.
There are lots of jokers out there willing to take great food, freeze and/or can it, and ship it to kitchens looking to put these buzzwords on their bills of fare.
When I'm traveling and see these on a menu, I ask the simple question: "How many hours in the truck is this place from home?
And Finally, Dishes as Dish Components
As a last word on the subject, I warn traveling New Orleanians to beware all menus that treat a type of dish as an ingredient.
Just two examples:
- Jambalaya-Style
A good jambalaya is a thing of beauty, often the result of generations of finely combining seasonings, a hearty roux, and fresh seafood. Outside Louisiana, it seems to mean "with rice in it." - Muffuletta
Invented in 1906 by Chef Salvatore Lupo at Central Grocery, this incredible sandwich features a round, spongy loaf split horizontally and stuffed with cold and hot blends of marinated olives, onions, and pickles, capicola, salami, mortadella, emmentaler, and provolone. Outside Louisiana, "muffuletta" seems to mean "olive salad."
Well, in short, if you want to eat real New Orleans food while outside the city, you might just want to pack a lunch -- or at least avoid any place serving "New Orleans-Style Blackened Muffuletta Steak with Cajun Spices."