Gumbo Hunting in the Treme...

     One of my favorite stops (and meals) in the Gumbo Belt was at Li'l Dizzy's Cafe in New Orleans' Treme District. The casual Creole restaurant embodies the inventive cooking that the city's Creoles and specifically the Baquet family bring  to the Gumbo Belt's culinary history.  Below is Wayne Baquet Sr., Li'l Dizzy's owner and spiritual chef, whose everything-but-the-kitchen-sink Creole gumbo was one of the tastiest I ate during my two-and-half-years of gumbo sampling. The unpretentious restaurant draws a demographically diverse crowd who come not just for the gumbo but other specialties like Trout Baquet. Wayne Baquet's gumbo isn't just tasty--it's also beautiful.