Yeah, I think A Confederacy of Dunces is probably the perfect New Orleans book.

If you want something, you don't wait for the world to deal it out for you. You take it.

Some of the food in Liquor is food I've really eaten filtered through a veil of fiction.

I like visiting peoples homes on Saint Josephs Day, when people set up altars, serve food as a tribute to the saint, and invite the public - I enjoy that much more than Mardi Gras.

If you find yourself imitating another writer, that doesn't have to be a bad thing, especially if you are a young or a new writer. However, you should be conscious of exactly how you are imitating him - word choice, sentence structure, motifs? - and think about why you're doing it.

New Orleans cuisine is Creole rather than Cajun.

Young writers shouldn't be afraid of striving to emulate their favorites. It's a good way to learn, as long as you move on from it and don't publish too many of the results.