• Subscribe
    • Franklin Living Magazine
    • Services
      • About Us
      • Subscribe
      • Policies
      • Terms of use
      • Submit a news tip
      • Submit a photo
      • Birth announcement
      • Birthday announcement
      • Engagement announcement
      • Wedding announcement
      • Submit a Classified Ad
      • Letter to the Editor
    • Classifieds
    • E-editions
    • Public Notices
      • Public Notices
      • Alabama Public Notices
    • Subscribe
    • Franklin Living Magazine
    • Services
      • About Us
      • Subscribe
      • Policies
      • Terms of use
      • Submit a news tip
      • Submit a photo
      • Birth announcement
      • Birthday announcement
      • Engagement announcement
      • Wedding announcement
      • Submit a Classified Ad
      • Letter to the Editor
    • Classifieds
    • E-editions
    • Public Notices
      • Public Notices
      • Alabama Public Notices

Franklin County Times
  • Home
  • News
  • Sports
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyles
  • Obituaries
  • Records
  • Subscribe
  • Services
  • About Us
  • Subscribe
  • Policies
  • Terms of use
  • Submit a news tip
  • Submit a photo
  • Birth Announcement
  • Birthday announcement
  • Engagement announcement
  • Wedding announcement
  • Submit a Classified Ad
  • Letters to the Editor
  • Classifieds
  • Public Notices
    Franklin County Times
      • Site logo
      • Home
      • News
        • Russellville
        • Red Bay
        • Phil Campbell
        • Franklin County
        • Photo Galleries
        • Sponsored Content
      • Sports
        • Belgreen Bulldogs
        • Phil Campbell Bobcats
        • Red Bay Tigers
        • Russellville Golden Tigers
        • Tharptown Wildcats
        • Vina Red Devils
        • College Sports
        • Sports Columnists
      • Opinion
        • Letters to the Editor
        • Columnists
        • Editorials
      • Lifestyles
        • Birthdays
        • Births
        • Couples
        • Food
        • Features
      • Obituaries
      • Records
        • Sheriff’s Report
        • Marriages
        • Land Transactions
        • Police Reports
      • Special Sections
      • Site logo
      • Home
      • News
        • Russellville
        • Red Bay
        • Phil Campbell
        • Franklin County
        • Photo Galleries
        • Sponsored Content
      • Sports
        • Belgreen Bulldogs
        • Phil Campbell Bobcats
        • Red Bay Tigers
        • Russellville Golden Tigers
        • Tharptown Wildcats
        • Vina Red Devils
        • College Sports
        • Sports Columnists
      • Opinion
        • Letters to the Editor
        • Columnists
        • Editorials
      • Lifestyles
        • Birthdays
        • Births
        • Couples
        • Food
        • Features
      • Obituaries
      • Records
        • Sheriff’s Report
        • Marriages
        • Land Transactions
        • Police Reports
      • Special Sections
    Archives
     By  Staff Reports Published 
    4:59 pm Saturday, August 10, 2002

    Galatoire's: Waiters make the restaurant

    By By Robert St. John / food columnist
    Aug. 7, 2002
    Robert St. John is the executive chef/owner of New South Restaurant Group. His weekly food column appears in various newspapers throughout Mississippi and Louisiana. If you have any questions or comments he can be reached at robert@nsrg.com or (601) 264-0672.
    Before I opened my first restaurant, I spent seven years as a waiter in other people's restaurants.
    I enjoyed waiting tables. The money was good, schedules were flexible and the hours were favorable. Many individuals make restaurant service a career. In this part of the country the ultimate status position for the table-waiting profession is Galatoire's in New Orleans.
    Galatoire's is the granddaddy of the old-line French Quarter restaurants. Walking through its doors is like traveling through a culinary time warp.
    The menu is circa 1930s and the regulars wouldn't have it any other way. The waiters are as established and ensconced as the grilled pompano and Crabmeat Maison. In the early 1980s, I heard stories of Galatoire's waiters who made $80,000 a year.
    But something is amiss in that Bourbon Street bastion of French-Creole cooking. (Cue the over-the-top orchestra music) Gilberto has been fired!
    There is a social pecking order among the Galatoire's regular customers, which classifies their status as a customer by which waiter serves their meals (an ingenious internal-marketing ploy, by the way).
    Regulars at Galatoire's demand their "usual waiter" to the point that most would rather not eat if they cannot be served by the man of their choice. The king of all Galatoire's waiters was a 23-year service veteran named Gilberto, who was recently accused of sexual harassment and shown the door. "Good heavens!" the regulars exclaimed. "Who will bring us our shrimp Remoulade?"
    Only in New Orleans would the story of a waiter being canned generate more letters to the editor in The Times Picayune than any one topic since Sept.11. Media giants such as The New York Times, CNN, National Public Radio and USA Today all have done stories on the sacking of Gilberto.
    A Web site, http://www.welovegilberto.com, has been created. Many prominent citizens have written letters. The letters are posted on the Web site. And the blue-hairs cried, "Mercy me, my turtle soup!"
    Some of the letters are a sad commentary by a group of supercilious and shallow New Orleanians who have their Fruit-of-the Loom's in a wad and way too much time on their hands (a dangerous combination).
    Some regulars complain that they "should have had a say" in Gilberto's firing. Just what every restaurateur needs, an antique dealer or gin-soaked socialite giving restaurant-operations advice.
    To most of the Galatoire's letter writers it didn't matter that Gilberto had been brought up on sexual harassment charges for the second time. "My stars, Henrietta, I must have the waiter that knows I like trout amandine!"
    A few changes have taken place at this gastronomic mainstay in the last 10 years. All have been controversial moves. All pitted new management against the regulars. The changes seem trivial to outsiders, but if you visit every Friday for lunch like the old-line New Orleanians, your world has been turned upside down.
    Management added another dining room on the second floor. "Oh, my!" they cried. Management offered patrons the opportunity to reserve tables "I'm feeling faint!" they sighed. Management began hiring female servers "Quick, the smelling salts!" Galatoire's started accepting credit cards. "Where's my gun?"
    At Galatoire's, the waiters used to hand-chop the ice (an OSHA/workers comp-liability nightmare). "Yes, that's our waiter Gilberto. He makes a great Bloody Mary. Don't mind that ice pick sticking out of his hand."
    I am a nostalgic person. I love memories of times past, especially food memories. But when it comes to this Galatoire's situation, I come down 100 percent on the side of management. Operating a business in these overly litigious times is a tremendous challenge. In addition to dealing with ever-intrusive governmental regulations, one has to try to squeeze out a profit in an expanding and highly competitive business.
    I have eaten in Galatoire's many times and the service was excellent every time. Trust me, if the average tenure of your wait staff rings in at the 20-year mark no matter who your waiter is you will receive excellent service.
    The last time there was this much controversy surrounding Galatoire's I was 6 years old. While on a solo visit to the restroom, I noticed that they kept ice in the bottom of the urinal (obviously hand-chopped by a waiter). Easily amazed in those days, I came running out of the bathroom, screaming loud enough to reverberate off of the ceramic floor and mirrored walls, "MOMMA, MOMMA, THERE'S ICE IN THE POTTY!"
    The Galatoire's regulars (and my mother) are still trying to recover from that one.
    My version of Galatoire's Crabmeat Maison
    1 cup Hellmann's Mayonnaise
    1 tablespoon creole mustard
    1 tablespoon capers, drained
    2 teaspoons Crescent City Grill Creole Seasoning
    2 teaspoons Crescent City Grill Cayenne &Garlic Sauce
    2 teaspoons parsley
    1 teaspoon Worcestershire
    1 teaspoon lemon juice, freshly squeezed
    2 pounds jumbo lump crabmeat
    Combine the first eight ingredients and mix thoroughly with a wire whisk. Gently fold crabmeat into dressing making sure not to break up the crabmeat lumps. Serve on a bed of romaine lettuce. Yield: 5

    Also on Franklin County Times
    PHOTO GALLERY: Jam at Sloss Lake
    Franklin County, Galleries, Lifestyles
    PHOTO GALLERY: Jam at Sloss Lake
    Griffin Traylor 
    July 9, 2025
    Auditor says city’s financial health is very good
    Main, News, Russellville, ...
    Auditor says city’s financial health is very good
    María Camp maria.camp@franklincountytimes.com 
    July 9, 2025
    RUSSELLVILLE -- The city has received what its auditor called a “clean opinion” on its fiscal year 2024 audit, meaning no significant deficiencies or ...
    {"epopulate_editorials_prism":"epopulate_editorials_prism"}
    Place of Grace opens recovery home in Franklin County
    Franklin County, Main, News, ...
    Place of Grace opens recovery home in Franklin County
    María Camp maria.camp@franklincountytimes.com 
    July 9, 2025
    The Place of Grace has opened a new recovery home in Franklin County, offering women a structured, faith-based environment to continue their journey a...
    {"epopulate_editorials_prism":"epopulate_editorials_prism"}
    Hamilton: Title II funding freeze is a concern
    Main, News, Russellville, ...
    Hamilton: Title II funding freeze is a concern
    Alyssa Sutherland For the FCT 
    July 9, 2025
    R U S S E L L V I L L E – Franklin County Superintendent Greg Hamilton is concerned about the status of more than $6 billion in federal education gran...
    {"epopulate_editorials_prism":"epopulate_editorials_prism"}
    Fire Department receives new $2.2M platform truck
    Main, News, Russellville, ...
    Fire Department receives new $2.2M platform truck
    María Camp maria.camp@franklincountytimes.com 
    July 9, 2025
    RUSSELLVILLE Firefighters and city officials showed off the Fire Department’s new $2.2 million 100-foot platform fire truck in a safety demonstration ...
    {"epopulate_editorials_prism":"epopulate_editorials_prism"}
    Palmer certified for fourth term on Russellville Council
    News, Russellville, Z - News Main
    Palmer certified for fourth term on Russellville Council
    María Camp maria.camp@franklincountytimes.com 
    July 9, 2025
    RUSSELLVILLE – The city council approved a certificate of election stating Councilman David Palmer was the only candidate to qualify for Council Distr...
    {"epopulate_editorials_prism":"epopulate_editorials_prism"}
    Summer camps nurture faith, friendship and growth
    Columnists, Opinion
    HERE AND NOW
    Summer camps nurture faith, friendship and growth
    July 9, 2025
    Susie Hovater Malone Columnist During the summer many Franklin County youths enjoy attending summer camps, where they engage in hiking, swimming, spor...
    {"epopulate_editorials_prism":"epopulate_editorials_prism"}
    The prosperity we enjoy depends on Sea Lanes of Communication
    Columnists, Opinion
    The prosperity we enjoy depends on Sea Lanes of Communication
    July 9, 2025
    The Pax Americana, the period since World War II when there have been no major world wars, has led to the greatest period of freedom the world has eve...
    {"epopulate_editorials_prism":"epopulate_editorials_prism"}

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    ❮ ❯
    Latest Local News
    PHOTO GALLERY: Jam at Sloss Lake
    PHOTO GALLERY: Jam at Sloss Lake
    July 9, 2025
    Auditor says city’s financial health is very good
    Auditor says city’s financial health is very good
    RUSSELLVILLE -- The city has received what its auditor called a “clean opinion” on its fiscal year 2024 audit, meaning no significant deficiencies or ...
    July 9, 2025
    Place of Grace opens recovery home in Franklin County
    Place of Grace opens recovery home in Franklin County
    The Place of Grace has opened a new recovery home in Franklin County, offering women a structured, faith-based environment to continue their journey a...
    July 9, 2025
    Hamilton: Title II funding freeze is a concern
    Hamilton: Title II funding freeze is a concern
    R U S S E L L V I L L E – Franklin County Superintendent Greg Hamilton is concerned about the status of more than $6 billion in federal education gran...
    July 9, 2025
    Fire Department receives new $2.2M platform truck
    Fire Department receives new $2.2M platform truck
    RUSSELLVILLE Firefighters and city officials showed off the Fire Department’s new $2.2 million 100-foot platform fire truck in a safety demonstration ...
    July 9, 2025

    More Local News

    Latest Stories
    Municipal elections: Let your voice be heard on Aug. 26
    Qualifying for municipal races across the state, including Franklin County, closed on June 24 leaving several contested races leading up to the Aug. 2...
    July 9, 2025
    TVA surcharge to raise August bills for customers
    RUSSELLVILLE Electricity customers should expect higher bills in August as TVA passes along a surcharge driven by high summer demand and a recent outa...
    July 9, 2025
    Hutcheson participates in CCHS program
    Hutcheson participates in CCHS program
    PHIL CAMPBELL — Rising Phil Campbell High School senior Hudson Hutcheson spent most of his summer at the University of Alabama. An aspiring dentist, h...
    July 9, 2025
    Being struck by lightning was ‘shocking experience’
    Being struck by lightning was ‘shocking experience’
    RUSSELLVILLE — Lisa Henderson was lying on her bed, scrolling through social media sites on her phone and enjoying a cozy, rainy Sunday afternoon with...
    July 9, 2025
    Jeffreys named new head football coach at Red Bay
    Jeffreys named new head football coach at Red Bay
    RED BAY -- Tyler Jeffreys has been named the new head coach at Red Bay High School. Jeffreys is stepping in to replace Heath Childers, who recently re...
    July 9, 2025
    Latest Sports
    Jeffreys named new head football coach at Red Bay
    Jeffreys named new head football coach at Red Bay
    RED BAY -- Tyler Jeffreys has been named the new head coach at Red Bay High School. Jeffreys is stepping in to replace Heath Childers, who recently re...
    July 9, 2025
    Hamilton to play baseball at Blue Mountain College
    Hamilton to play baseball at Blue Mountain College
    RED BAY -- Red Bay High School’s Reed Hamilton has officially signed a scholarship to continue his education and baseball career at Blue Mountain Coll...
    July 9, 2025
    Allison tapped to lead Lady Bobcats softball
    Allison tapped to lead Lady Bobcats softball
    PHIL CAMPBELL -- A familiar face will be leading the Phil Campbell High School Lady Bobcats softball program next season. Darby Allison, a 2007 gradua...
    July 2, 2025
    6 local students accepted into FAME program
    6 local students accepted into FAME program
    Northwest Shoals Community College (NWSCC) has signed 6 Franklin County students to its 2025–26 Federation for Advanced Manufacturing Education (FAME)...
    July 2, 2025
    Junior golfers hone skills through summer program
    Junior golfers hone skills through summer program
    RUSSELLVILLE -- A young generation of golfers teed off this summer at Twin Pines Country Club, thanks to a local effort to create opportunities for ch...
    July 2, 2025

    More Sports Stories

    x

    Sections

    • Home
    • News
    • Sports
    • Opinion
    • Lifestyles
    • Obits
    • Special Sections
    • Sponsored Content
      • Home
      • News
      • Sports
      • Opinion
      • Lifestyles
      • Obits
      • Special Sections
      • Sponsored Content

    Services

    • About Us
    • Subscribe
    • Advertise With Us
    • Policies
    • Terms of use
    • Submit a news tip
    • Submit a photo
    • Birth announcement
    • Birthday announcement
    • Engagement announcement
    • Wedding announcement
    • Submit a Classified Ad
    • Letter to the Editor
    • Sign Up For Our Free Newsletter
      • About Us
      • Subscribe
      • Advertise With Us
      • Policies
      • Terms of use
      • Submit a news tip
      • Submit a photo
      • Birth announcement
      • Birthday announcement
      • Engagement announcement
      • Wedding announcement
      • Submit a Classified Ad
      • Letter to the Editor
      • Sign Up For Our Free Newsletter

    Follow Us

    Copyright

    © , Franklin County Times