Taking a table inside the tiny French Po-Boys One reminded my lunch pal and me why regional dishes are regional in the first place. In this column's experience, you can't duplicate a chicken-fried steak outside of Texas, or a Cuban sandwich outside of Florida. You can come close, but no bull's eye.

Nor can the classic po-boy sandwich hold its heritage high outside of Louisiana, where it was created in the 1920s at the Martin Brothers Coffee Stand and Restaurant in New Orleans.

To this day, the po-boy helps define the Mardi Gras city as a gustatory mecca – along with the muffaletta sandwich, concocted in 1906 at the Central Market.

Just as genuine sourdough bread is unique to San Francisco, so it is with the 2-foot-long "sticks" of crusty French bread baked in New Orleans and used for po-boys. That bread is the secret to the authentic po-boy, which, after the dust settles, is simply a version of the ubiquitous submarine sandwich. The difference: The po-boy is most often loaded with fresh Gulf of Mexico seafood rather than lunchmeats and cheeses. You know – fried shrimp and oysters, catfish, soft-shell crab and crawfish, though Andouille sausage is another favorite.

But we're not in New Orleans, so let's be grateful for the various-sized po-boys at the clean and well-organized French Po-Boys One. The reasonably priced sandwiches contain various fried seafoods, along with roast beef, cold and grilled ham, turkey and sausage (a patty, not a link; $2.69 to $19.99).

Along with three 8-inch po-boys, we ordered a "dinner plate" of two oysters, five shrimp and catfish fillets. The cornmeal-based coating was crisp and thin, nicely seasoned and not oily.

As for the seafood itself, the meaty Pacific oysters were a bit on the tough and fishy-tasting side, and the catfish was too soft. The crunchy shrimp, though, were just right. The skinny fries were tasty, but next time we'll option fried rice as a side. The sparky dipping sauce is a hot-sweet blend of Sriracha chile sauce, mayo, mustard and seasonings, and added interest to lunch.

We hope the Food Network covers the New Orleans Po-Boy Preservation Festival on Nov. 20. It would be great to be there in spirit.

French Po-Boys One, 6498 Broadway, Sacramento; (916) 739-1671.

TomatoFest preview

We dropped by Capital Confections for preview tastes of two unusual items that owner Teresa Higgins has concocted for the second annual TomatoFest. Her store is at Town & Country village, site of Saturday's all-things-tomato event (9 a.m. to 4 p.m.).

For a special TomatoFest novelty item, Higgins added sun-dried tomato to her Red Hot Chili Truffle to produce the Lil Hot Tomata Truffle. It packs fire, plus bits of subtly flavored sun-dried tomato ($2.50 per 1.5-ounce piece; try the tomato-less Double Hot, too).

Higgins didn't stop there. She conferred with Rick Blakeney, president of the Latest Scoop ice cream company in Berkeley, to develop a creamy tomato gelato. It gets its texture and flavor from tomato purée and diced sun-dried tomato. Think "tomato bisque meets gelato" (servings are $3.50 to $8.25). Capital Confections: (916) 973-0249, www.sacchocolate.com.

The second annual TomatoFest will feature a cooking competition and demonstrations, food- and winetasting, art displays, gardening demonstrations, live music and performances by the Sacramento Theatre Company.

Also, you could win $500 by entering your largest, smallest or ugliest ripe tomato in the tomato contest. Download entry forms at www.theterracecuisine.com., or register in person by 9:30 a.m. Saturday.

Town & Country Village is at Marconi and Fulton avenues, Sacramento; (916) 933-4056, www.shoptownandcountry.com.

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