Southern Breeze 2007 Fall Issue

Corrie and Virginia Eleuterius (above) treat visitors to a genuine shrimping experience aboard the Sailfish (right). Mary Mahoney’s Old French House Restaurant (far right) is another must-visit destination. Patriarch Oak in the courtyard is estimated to be more than 2,000 years old. If you’re looking for a Biloxi tradition, this is it. In the sunlit dining room, our waiter, Boston—decked out in Mary Mahoney’s signature green jacket—serves up the restaurant’s famous shrimp and crabmeat au gratin in conquille, a sinfully rich delicacy that leaves us stuffed. We decline dessert, but Boston brings us the restaurant’s celebrated bread pudding anyway. (We tip him extra for his refusal to take “no” for an answer.) When we commend owner Bobby Mahoney, Mary’s son, on the excellent service, he says, “Yeah, Boston ain’t been here but for about 40 years.” In the Old Slave Quarters Lounge, Mahoney points to a sign posted over an eight-foot doorway that reads, “Water reached this level during Hurricane Katrina on August 29, 2005.” A second sign 18 inches above the floor marks the water level during Camille in 1969—by comparison, a mere puddle. “I thought Camille was the mother of all storms,” Bobby says in a thick coastal accent. "Then I found out storms don’t have mothers." Katrina’s storm surge reached the second-floor balcony in the Mary Mahoney courtyard. There was eight feet of water in the bar and five feet in the dining room. Despite the damage, Bobby never considered closing the restaurant. In fact, Mary Mahoney’s was serving up gumbo and crab claws just nine weeks later. “For a while, we were a tourist town without tourists,” Bobby recalls. “Then the casinos started opening, and the fishing boats started going out again, and the golf courses reopened, and the tourists started coming back.” “The casinos and the people they bring here are Biloxi’s future,” he says. “Biloxi’s been dealing with tourists since the 1930s and 40s—welcoming visitors and making them feel at home here, that’s our niche.” That niche is fueled by Biloxi’s spectacular casino resorts. Faced with repairing the massive damage from the storm and now allowed to move their gaming operations from floating barges to the mainland, Biloxi’s casinos have been renovated from top to bottom, and offer even more than in their pre-Katrina days. FOOD IMAGE BY CHARLES PUNZO For a uniquely Biloxi adventure, visit the places and enjoy the experiences below. Biloxi Shrimping Trip 228-385-1182 Mary Mahoney's Old French House Restaurant and Old Slave Quarters Lounge Magnolia and Water Street | 228-374-0163 Fallen Oak Golf Course 228-386-7111 | 877-805-4657 Ohr-O'Keefe Museum of Art 1596 Glenn L. Swetman Drive | 228-374-5547 Biloxi Schooners Charters and walk-on sails | 228-435-6320 Ship Island Excursions 228-864-1014 | 866-466-7346 For more information, go to www.gulfcoast.org. Fall 2007 41 http://www.gulfcoast.org

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Southern Breeze 2007 Fall Issue

Editor's Letter Contributor Gumbo Words & Notes Accessories Coastal Calendar Storefronts: French Flair in Fairhope Sweet Dreams: Smooth Sailing Art of Living: The Colors of Hope Fixtures: Shake It Up! Live Here: Filled to the Brim Our Backyard: Just Add Water Make Yourself at Home: Open Invitation Pierless Pleasures Always Biloxi Spirited Away Reef Madness Louisiana Love Cheers: Fall Freeze Dish: Java Servers Reader Services Chef's Table: The Kid Inside Let's Eat: Cornbread, Catheads, and Calas Last Bite

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.