Month: October 2019

Normally I just run by here for boiled crabs or crawfish or beer if I’m headed to a get together with friends in that area. The people are super nice and I’ve always been treated right there, which is not a guarantee at corner markets, but I heard good things about their fried chicken from some co-workers so I went to check it out and thought What the heck? and just got one of everything in the hot box display. The chicken was very good, and the meat pie had a nice spicy kick to it. The egg roll and the corn dog were both good, but not really any better than anyplace else. It was just good to be able to get them both in the same place. I also got a sausage and cheese biscuit that was left over from breakfast, and I want to go back and get one a little earlier in the day, but they have a great half-life, so I wasn’t disappointed with it at all. The star of the show though was the fried fish filets. Pretty sure it was that Mekong Delta catfish called basa, but it was perfectly cooked, flaky, tasty, really hit the spot. No need to order everything like that, but it is good to know what’s there and available if you just want a quick hit to take on the road when you’re running late. Good stuff, all of it.

So I headed over to Zeeland Street to get their four sides plate, but as soon as I saw the two lunch specials, chicken and sausage jambalaya with corn and peas and a corn muffin on the side alongside the meatloaf with mashed potatoes and gravy, I was immediately torn, and uncharacteristically indecisive. I really wanted both specials, and it took me a long minute to shake that impossible thought. I guess I really could have ordered both, but even I thought that was just too much. Ended up going with the jambalaya. It was a lot like flipping a win-win coin. And I did win. The Zeeland crew does homestyle as good as anyone in BR, and that’s saying something.

They also have a lot of interesting wall decor which fits their sometime role as the host of Dyson House Listening Room. Haven’t been there for a show yet, but I know I will at some point. Here’s a little gallery I shot on this last visit.

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I’d heard nothing at all about this place since they took over the old Galatoire’s space, good or bad. Finally got around to checking it out and discovered an intriguing menu and a good physical transition from the old store. They took in the patio and did a nice job of it. Lots of fans, a couple of tv’s and good tunes. Solid, low key tables and chairs, french striped linen. A lot to like about the feel of the place.

The menu is a little hard to place, maybe intentionally so. The website claims a whole new sort of approach, but after a bit of consideration, it sort of strikes me as a high end hunting camp. A menu constructed of favorite recipes rather than a theme. Even the salads are kind of heavy, nothing really light on the board at all. I took advantage of the wide range to try the pecan smoked chicken and andouille gumbo side by side with a wild mushroom ravioli drenched in pork bolognese sauce. Both were very good and very hearty. Definitely raised my confidence in trying some of the other plates like the short ribs with goat cheese and thyme grits, the frog legs and beignets, and the duck breast with tasso fried rice (which I definitely would have gone for if I didn’t have a whole duck thawing in the fridge to roast on Sunday). Definitely that hunting camp vibe you get at places like Doe’s. Here’s what we do, we do it well, we aren’t worried about rounding out the menu with anything we don’t want to do.

Most of the best plant based food I’ve had doesn’t attempt to mimic meat at all. This falafel wrap and red curry soup from Dish definitely fits that bill. Neither item was ever about meat, and the chef at Dish just executed. Trying to come up with meat substitutes has contributed to the overall wariness about meatless alternatives. Try to say tempeh with a smile on your face. Yeah, not going to happen. But when you aren’t trying to pass something off as just as good as meat, you allow your production to shine on it’s own. I’m not saying there aren’t any good plant-based meat replacements, but they do tend to be highly processed like Beyond Burger and Gimme Lean and Smart Dogs. If you need to go meatless for whatever reason, there’s plenty of options that never had meat in them to begin with. I like Dish a lot because they seem to recognize that they aren’t really in a competition with Burger King or McDonald’s. They just do what they do, and they do a fine job of it..

Chicken fried chicken with mashed potatoes and gravy and a rotating veggie is the Tuesday lunch special at Merchant. Excellent flavor, well executed presentation, and I really like to get there early in the lunch shift to talk with the bar staff about what BR restaurants they’ve visited and what they think. They are all very knowledgeable and totally into the industry. Makes for a nice lunch, eating well and talking shop.

I’ve been wanting to make the drive to Prairieville to hit Nooley’s for a while now, and finally caught a free Saturday with beautiful weather to make the trip. The Nooley’s Special was just as good as I remembered from way back when we had a Nooley’s in BR on Florida near Sharp. Ham, turkey, roast beef perfectly dressed on a soft muffalleto bun with home cut curly fries and a bottle of Barq’s. Really wish we still had one here in town so I could visit every week, but alas, those days, like so many others, are long gone. Adios, Nooley’s, I will try my best to make it back sooner next time.

I was really curious about how these guys would do with the transition from their White Star incubator kiosk to a real brick and mortar store. They were able to take a nice space, and, with some nice, low key touches, make it even nicer. I’m not sure people consciously pay much attention to choices in tableware and flatware, but if the layout is consistent, it can very much help shape the overall atmosphere, or, in this case, fen shui .

I’ve enjoyed several of their ramens already at White Star, so when I went for lunch I was focused on apps and “sharables” those slightly larger apps that can be a lunch for one or shared appetizers for two or more. I also had an eye out for meatless dishes. I tried a couple of baos and the steamed pork dumplings. The baos took a while for some reason, long enough for the manager to not charge me, and I’m not sure what I got was what I originally ordered, but they were both very tasty, and worth the wait. The dumplings were pretty spicy, something CYP isn’t afraid of. Just about everything comes with that special pop, and I had to be careful to push aside a lot of jalapenos since they don’t particularly agree with me anymore.

I was very pleased that they had a variety of loose leaf teas to choose from, served in a small sachet with a pot of steaming water so you could steep several cups separately without letting the whole pot grow bitter. Nice technique, takes a little more prep time, but definitely sets them apart from the places that only have machine generated green tea or commercial tea packets or no hot tea at all. I enjoyed lunch so much and was curious enough about the rest of the menu that I returned for dinner and had the smoked enoki mushrooms with ponzu and the incredible salt and pepper cauliflower. “Salt and pepper” is Asian menu shorthand for “battered and fried”. I’m thinking they steamed the cauliflower just a little before they fried it because I can’t see how they could have produced such a perfectly tender inside and light and crispy outside without some kind of advanced prep on such a dense vegetable. The sauce that came with was an excellent compliment and a complete mystery to me. Luckily I know a couple of folks that work there, so maybe I can get an inside scoop on how to make it at my house. I’ll definitely be returning often to this spot for both lunch and dinner.

Another great night at Solera (not pictured, red wine sangria) including a free sample of the house paella. It was much earthier than I anticipated, the chicken and chorizo and even the mussels contributing to a deep, deep umami. Much more jambalaya-like than the one I had at Rouj Creole, but of course that one was mostly seafood based. The peas and asparagus and piquillos were nice touches as well. The Russian potato salad with peas and carrots and trout roe (who knew?) was excellent and very filling. When I go to Solera, I order my sangria, then one dish at a time. Waiting for the first one to get there before I order the second. That’s why I went with the cucumber salad next, the potato salad with the crispy toast was quite filling, so I wanted to stay light. The cucumber salad was almost pickled, a bit much for me, but I would definitely recommend sharing the dish with others. Then the bartender offered me a sample of the house paella, and I couldn’t refuse, even though it was too late in the evening for me to eat any meat so I worked around the chicken and chorizo and enjoyed it thoroughly. It was too much food, and I would have boxed it, but I was on my way to another event so I had to sadly watch as the bartender took it away while I finished my wine. Had a bit of time to kill so I walked over to see some old coworkers of mine slaving away behind the bar at the Bulldog. Great time catching up, and I also enjoyed the Bell’s Best Brown Ale. Nice to see a little brown ale in the season of Oktoberfests and pumpkin spiced brews. Give Solera a try. I’m sure they would love to see you in your Halloween gear

Church’s isn’t the best fried chicken in town, but they are open at 10am and they have fried gizzards. I know everyone’s not a fan of giblets, but I am. Their chicken is also nice sized. This Sunday special of an eight piece dark and one large side goes for 7.99 which is not bad these days. A lot of times I’ll stop at Popeye’s when I’m done running errands on Sunday before heading back to the TV and football. This time I was thinking gizzards.

I’m not sure why anyone would visit this place a second time. It has all the millennial tickles–shipping container chic, an Astro-turf patio area and upscale faux wood and resin picnic tables, recycled paper products–but the sliders don’t even rise to the level of a regular cheeseburger at McDonald’s or Burger King. And the millennial minimalism lacks character and any semblance of elegance. When did hip become so nondescript? There are so many excellent burger joints in BR now that I don’t give this one much chance of surviving. If Bud’s Broiler couldn’t make it in this spot, I just don’t see what Smalls has to offer that would give it a better shot at success.