Archive for the ‘in Louisiana’ Category
“be nice or leave!”
t says: While g and I were partying it up in Napa and SF, a and v went to NOLA. So let’s let the good times roll …
a & v say:
On Day 1, we went to Crabby Jack’s. This was the first stop after touchdown since this is on the way downtown from the airport. This is definitely a “local’s place” when it comes to shrimp po’ boys, but the duck is a speciality, too. Found in an industrial section about a mile from the water, the inside can be described as New Orleans chic. Service is no frills order ‘n’ sit but the staff is always helpful & polite.
We split a king (size) shrimp po’ boy & a side of jambalaya, and were stuffed. This is a standard po’ boy with tons of fried shrimp, just enough fixins, and crispy French bread – no distractions. The andouille/chicken jambalaya was flavorful and simple, I only wish the portion was bigger. All in all, a great place to start your NOLA holiday and get some authenticity.
We also made a quick stop at d’Juice on Oak Street to get our smoothy on. Highly recommended for those wanting their fruits/veggies in an easily digestible and mobile format.
We started Day 2 at O’Delice on Magazine Street, the quintessential French bakery, if quintessential means having an affable Vietnamese owner. Get the almond croissant, trust us.
Later, we went to Cochon Butcher. This place has ‘Philly sandwich joint’ written all over it (not to mention we have our own Cochon). The casual lunch option to the extremely successful restaurant, this place was packed. The line almost went out the door but we persevered due to the symphony of meats being slung before us. Another order ‘n’ sit spot, it took about 25 minutes for us to reach the register but a table opened-up right on cue. The wait for food was another 10 minutes but you don’t hear us complaining. Their solid drink menu (for a sandwich/meat shop) doesn’t hurt either.
We ordered the Muffaletta, Cubano, BLT, and Roast Beef sandwiches along with sides of cucumber salad and boudin. The BLT was the most simple but did not lack for flavor, mainly from the smoked bacon. Each sandwich was served on an appropriate and delicious bread/roll. The meat starred in every sandwich but the accoutrements made each lighter and brighter. Note to reader: Always order boudin in NOLA and don’t ask any questions. The cucumber salad, even though it was salad, also rocked and made us feel “healthy.”
My Pops couldn’t leave without buying the house made andouille (for his famous red beans ‘n’ rice). They have several other charcuterie options including lamb merguez along with cheeses and bar snacks. Who dat indeed.
some NOLA loose ends
t says: There were a few pictures that escaped our initial bloggings from our NOLA trip …
We went to the movies while there (it’s a good mid-day activity to avoid the heat) and we enjoyed some delightful gourmet foods from our seat – some parmagiana-black-pepper popcorn, Oregon pinot, and a “Blue Velvet” featuring sparkling rose, St. Germain, candied blueberries, and a twist of lemon (yes, g says it was delicious).
sometimes food is so good that v feels the urge to slap “yo grand-mama”. we have no idea if this fish fry is that good or not, but it reminded us of v …
and the award for creepiest thing we saw on our trip: tree limbs suspended upside down from the ceiling … the Ogden has some interesting stuff! …
and they also had someone peddling a “Southern Dish” that was a whole lot like a beef ramen …
a Patois finale!
t says: for our last hurrah, we went to cute little restaurant Patois. Well, actually we pregamed first at La Petit Grocery, now holder of “The Best Beignet in New Orleans” (and the best wine we had on the entire trip!). Patois was tasty. g did a nice refreshing market salad with pumpkin seeds, and followed with a shrimp over angel hair pasta and buts of love bacon. I went with sweetbread and rabbit-stuffed-with-boudin which were both solid performers. All-in-all another good meal (but not quite besting NOLA’s Cochon)
We ended the trip with a meal at Atlanta’s finest Chinese restaurant … (Kidding!)
Stanley! [again!]
t says: With how good it was the first time, we just had to go again. I went for pancakes loaded with blueberry, banana, and walnuts. g did the eggs Benedict po’ boy, which was wonderful – i was not anticipating such a perfectly poached egg! It was also our first boudin of the trip! For the money, Stanley is a great restaurant with good hours, too!
Kingfish for gastropub style
t says: For dinner, we went to Kingfish. When we first entered, it seemed like a bar-only. I thought to myself “oops! I thought there was a restaurant here!” Fortunately, there was a hidden dining room around the side of the bar – yay food!
Overall, we were impressed with the food – g liked it more than commander’s palace – both for drinks and for food. The soup was solid, and g’s scallops were spot on! I only wish that my duck-and-ramen had actual ramen noodles and not just angel hair pasta (I guess Louisianans don’t know the difference? Sadface!). But at least there was a ton of delicious duck!
NOLA’s hidden militia
t says: We did Commander’s Palace and boy are there some stories to tell! But alas, being on an iPhone prevents me from going into much detail. Let’s just leave ourselves some reminders just in case someone asks us later what happened …
1). There are a LOT of employees there – it’s like a frickin’ army! And we think the general is the one with the mustache …
2). Lunchtime must be the “B” squad.
3). Turtle soup and tomato salad delicious. Entrees were only “ok”.
4). The 25-cent martinis were a nice idea, but were ultimately either gross or bland. As you can see from the last picture, we probably drank a nickel’s worth. And yea: the blue one is really blue.
But, we assure you the background stories are pretty funny – just ask!
The “other” Cochon
t says: I have frequently googled “cochon” in the past, looking for the address of our philadelphia byob in Queen’s Village, but always getting fooled by this “other” restaurant in Louisiana. Well now we can finally say we’ve been to both! And the food was SUPERB!
g liked her cider, and the Japanese bourbon (Nikka Taketsuru 12-year) had such complexity that it has singlehandedly changed my mind about bourbon: hey a, I’m ready for the bourbon trail … in Japan …
The ribs were OUT of control – if I could buy that sauce by the bottle, I would. If they made shampoo that smelled (and/or tasted) like the sauce, I’d buy it. Seriously – best barbecue I’ve had in a long long time. The pork cheeks were also delicious – a far more subtle dish (and they could have been a smidge more tender), but good acidity in there. And the cucumber salad, of all things, was phenomenal, recharging our palates so we could eat more and more pig!
The pulled pork mass was delicious but could have used a bit more greens or beans or something else – the meat was delicious but needed something else to complement it. As for the stewed vegetables, they were also phenomenal – wish I had me some breakfast eggs to pour them over …
This was dessert – it was billed as a “banana cream pie with chocolate graham crust” … but it was SO much more that bruleed banana cream pie in chocolate crust, as homely as it looks in the photo, is probably the best dessert I’ve had all year!
And you know what, dinner for two, including drinks and a dessert for under $100 I think is quite a nice deal!
after dinner sneeze 