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Meet & Eat: Lou

Posted by The Serious Eats Team, June 22, 2007 at 9:00 AM

The recipe for the Meet & Eat feature on Serious Eats has always called for a varied mixture of food lovers—from chefs to critics to bloggers to food-loving tech nerds. One of the most important ingredients in that mix, though, is the Serious Eats community—the folks who are on the site sharing their thoughts and insights. This week's subject, Lou, is one such member. If you haven't met Lou in Talk or in various comments, come on in and get to know him.

Name: Lou (aka Don Luis)
Location: Aguas Buenas, Puerto Rico
Occupation: Curmudgeon
URL: cocinaluis.blogspot.com

Favorite comfort food?
Spaghetti and meatballs. I grew up eating this every Sunday, and I still make it every couple of weeks.

Guilty pleasures?
Chicharrones: chee-cha-ron-es (fried pork skin with the underlying meat and fat). I know this must be bad for me because it tastes so good.

Describe your perfect meal.
Eating with my family. When both sides of the family get together, there are dozens of us. Getting that many Italians and Puerto Ricans together can be quite a challenge, but once the rum and wine start flowing, it's all good. We once roasted a whole pig in the backyard, and the whole neighborhood showed up.

What food won't you eat?
Morcillas: more-see-ahs (pork blood sausage, made with rice). The thought of it doesn't bother me, but I hate the taste.

What's an unexplored food you'd like to try?
Foie gras: I'd like to taste what all the fuss is about.

Favorite food person?
Mom. She taught me how to cook, and we still talk about food all the time. I can't make zeppoli (the savory kind, with anchovies) like she does, and she can't make manicotti like I do. I finally convinced her that cheese in a green can was not a good idea.

My mother-in-law. She's the best Puerto Rican cook I know, and she lives downstairs.

Mario Batali is a close third. He had my favorite (Multo Mario) and least favorite (Mario Eats Italy, with that Food Network stooge) food shows.

When did you first realize you were a serious eater?
I think all Italian-Americans are serious eaters from birth. I know I'm a serious eater now because of how much I pay to have salumi and Italian cheese shipped here. I lived near Boston before I moved here a few years ago, and I didn't know how good I had it.

What do your family and friends think of your food obsessions?
They're thrilled. For many of my family and friends, Italian food is a rare treat. Just yesterday, I gave the kitchen cabinet guy some pizza, and he swore it was the best he'd ever had. (At least I think that's what he said; I don't speak Spanish.)

Favorite food sites or blogs?
I read many blogs, but my favorites are:

• A Hunger Artist: Chef Bob del Grosso rants about all things food
• Michael Ruhlman: I've read his chef series books twice now. Anthony Bourdain often guest blogs here
• Farmgirl Fare: A California girl moves to farm country
• Megnut: You know, about food
• Curious Cook: "I write about the science of food and cooking: where our foods come from, what they are and what they're made of, and how cooking transforms them"

I also subscribe to Google news feeds on organic, local, and sustainable food, not because I'm obsessed with these issues, but because I'm interested in food as culture.

Least favorite food sites or blogs? [I don't remember asking you this one, Lou!—Ed.]
Anything to do with New York restaurants. I haven't been to New York in 20 years. I don't care where the good hot dogs are. Well, there was this Italian place in Brooklyn (I think the name was Polio's), but I doubt that it's still there.

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Tags: Lou, Meet and Eat, Q and A