You thought we disappeared again, didn't you?

Wrong.

KM moved last week and there just wasn't enough time to cook. There. Is. Never. Enough. Time. (Is that joke old yet? I hope so.)

Mid-city? MID CITY?

Is there really anything to do if you live in Mid-City other than tell people how cool you are for living in the American Can Apartments?

My Mid-City experiences are really limited to grocery shopping at Rouses, walking at City Park, and a few treks to Mid-City Bulldog. Oh and going to Clever. Oh... and Pandora. Crap.

Either way, you know know what else Mid-City has going for it? Huevos. Now other New Orleans Food blogs with "larger readerships" and "a consistent posting schedule" have had the best things to say about Huevos. Oh and I just realized they posted a few days ago about Huevos... sorry fellas.

We have nice things to say too. We went the day after the water outage and had a pretty good breakfast with some bottled water on the side.


Kerry had the Huevos Rancheros. Its the charred tomato salsa that really makes it. She had her eggs over medium and I'm not sure what that means but they looked pretty gooey! Anything that comes with tortillas to wrap it in is normally pretty good.

I don't even like to do the work for wrapping things in tortillas myself so I have my meals pre-wrapped. I went with the blue jay special. Egg, cheese, chorizo, I think probably some salsa too - I don't remember. It was great. Filling but not too filling. And it came with a cup of coffe and it was all only $1.82. Or maybe it was $6. I don't really remember, but it was cheap, and good, and they gave me a card, and when I eat 10 of them I get the 11th free!
When I told Kerry that she said, "Who would ever order 10 specials, that's a ton of food."

That made me laugh!

Alright so frozen pizza wasn't enough for you? You think you deserve more? You're looking for classic New Orleans restaurants? Fine.

How about Pascal's Manale?

I managed two and a half years in New Orleans without sitting down to dine at the Napoleon institution. It's even more impressive when you take into account that Kerry reviewed the restaurant during her undergrad days, and said review is up on the wall. Or so she says.

Well, we went to Pascal's a few weeks back because KM had a craving for red sauce and I had a craving for dinner. It was a Friday so we had a little bit of a wait but nothing that a Heineken and a Dixie couldn't solve.



Kerry got me super hyped for an eggplant medallion appetizer special - the Eggplant Dryades - that they normally have. When they didn't have it, we went with the Combination Pan Roast. Chopped oysters and crabmeat baked in a dish with shallots and parsley. Pretty darn good.



We kept it pretty simple when it came to the entrees. Like I said, Kerry was fiending for some red sauce so she went with the famous spaghetti and meatballs. Look how much she liked them!



I went with the shrimp plate. Whatever, I know its broring. It was good though. Not really much else to say about it I guess.



Oh and we had bottle of wine. Looks like it was red! We had to finish it at the bar cause they kinda rushed us out of the dining room come 11pm...

So there you go. The first restaurant review in months. Was it everything you hoped for? Stay tuned for a post about Luke soon and a Thanksgiving potluck post.

Another post from GoNOLA.

With so many great Creole and Cajun restaurants in New Orleans it can be easy to forget that some of the best restaurants in New Orleans don’t have gumbo on the menu.

There are a number of great chefs in the Crescent City whipping up delicious dishes that are not of the New Orleans variety. One of these chefs is Adolfo Garcia. Garcia, a New Orleans native with Panamanian roots, has ties to three New Orleans restaurants that offer something a little different. Rio Mar, Garcia’s seafood restaurant which opened in 2000 is a favorite of both locals and critics and a Mano which opened at the end of last year has quickly become staple in the Warehouse District.

But it is La Boca that really steals the show. La Boca, Garcia’s Fulton Street Steakhouse, is a true Argentine Steakhouse. They serve traditional Argentine cuts of USDA Prime Beef, Organic Beef and American Kobe. Oh, and it is the top Zagat Steakhouse in New Orleans.

I was lucky enough to try it out with a few friends on Monday and La Boca did not disappoint.

If you are the appetizer ordering type, you have to experience the Provoleta. It tastes as good as it looks. Delicious Argentine cheese melted with olive oil and oregano.

I had the Centro de Entrana – An organic hanger steak from Oregon. Do yourself a favor and order it medium-rare. It comes with a good char and seems to get more tender with every bite.

This was the daily special. Flap steak marinated in lime and garlic. It has a great acidity that the avocado mellows out well.

And here are the famed “French Fries La Boca.” Apparently they they take three days to make… they take about three minutes to eat.
So if you’ve worked up a hunger from a day of exploring the myriad art galleries and fantastic museums that make up New Orleans Arts District, be sure to duck into to La Boca for a fresh, new take on the old classic steakhouse.

So it's been a while.  Sorry about that.  I was in China for a while which could turn anyone off to food for awhile.

But here is something I have been doing... writing for the new New Orleans Tourism Blog  GoNOLA.com.

Here is a post about $0.25 Martinis at Cafe Adelaide I wrote for GoNOLA:

http://www.gonola.com/2010/04/great-food-greater-tradition-25-cent-martinis-at-cafe-adelaide/

Great Food, Greater Tradition : 25 Cent Martinis at Cafe Adelaide

One of these places is Cafe Adelaide in the Lowes Hotel on Poydras Street in the Central Business District.  Cafe Adelaide is the younger (and slightly less stuffy) sibling of the famed Commander’s Palace, and just like her older brother, Cafe Adelaide serves up twenty-five cent martinis to lunch hour diners.
The cheap lunch-time martini is a Brennan family tradition that is most widely taken advantage of at Commander’s and Bacco, with Cafe Adelaide being too often overlooked.

So, I know what your thinking, “Twenty five cent martinis?  What’s the catch?”  The only catch is you’ll need to order an entree. But since Adelaide’s lunch menu boasts dishes like Flat Iron Steak-Frites, Quinoa Crusted Scottish Salmon, and a seasonal lunch special (currently Sugar Cured Roast Beef “Smashed” Po-Boy), it’s the most delicious catch in New Orleans.

So do yourself a favor and stop by Cafe Adelaide for lunch sometime soon.  Chef Chris Lusk is turning out delicious, seasonal food daily, and everything that he cooks goes great with a twenty-five cent martini.  And if it’s just the drinking you are interested in, Cafe Adelaide’s Swizzle Stick Bar mixes one of New Orleans’ most famous signature drinks: The Adelaide Swizzle .

So Cafe Degas is pretty chill.  Not cold chill but chill in the way super laid back people say chill.  It was my first trip to Cafe Degas for food.  It helped that we scored a sweet $25 gift certificate for $3.

Over all is was a great experience.  Pretty good food, nice atmosphere, plus I always like eating in Mid-City and pretending that I belong in that oh so trendy Mid-City crowd.

Now even with the gift certificate we tried to do the meal on the cheap.  We shared a cheese plate and didn't spring for dessert but I'm okay with that.  The cheese plate was pretty good.


It came with one hard and one soft cheese.  I'm not sure what the cheeses were because the waiter didn't tell us.  I'm pretty sure you are looking at a brie and a cheddar though.


Kerry had the steak.  It was pretty good.  Surprisingly the best thing on both of our plates was the broccoli.  I cant really explain why.  It was cooked in something delicious though.  Thats not to say the steak wasn;t good as well.  It was.  and pommes frites are awesome anywhere.


So here is the problem with low lighting restaurants.  This is a pretty miserable looking plate but it looked fine when it came.  I had the veal.  It had a Parmesan crust and was pan fried and a fantastic sauce.  I was happy with my selection but Kerry's steak looked great as well.

So it was a great meal but two small complaints.  The service was worse than lack luster.  Besides not explaining the cheese, it was slow and the wait staff was rude.  And this was a Wednesday night.  There wasn't a crowd, it's not like people were just rushing.

And like I said we didn't order dessert but looking at the list and seeing a few that came out, I was unimpressed.  I feel like for a french restaurant dessert can be done very very well.  It can be what makes the place stick out from the crowd.  The desserts at Cafe Degas didn't really do it.

Again though.  It was a good meal.  It won't be the last time we go by any means.

So Frankie and Johnny's is a classic New Orleans spot.

In all honesty- and  it might make me a bad New Orleans food blogger to say it but- there are plenty of classic New Orleans spots that I don't get all that fired up over.  I think maybe its because I'm not huge on fried seafood.  I'm not sure what it is but its just not my thing.

I think that is probably what led to me getting the meatball poboy at Frankie and Johnny's.  Huge mistake.  Why I assumed it would be a decent choice is beyond me.  I think maybe I figured that if Subway could turn out an edible meatball sandwich this place should be able top as well.  Not the case.  I feel silly even complaining about it since its just not what they do there but it was particularly bad.


Kerry fared better with her fried shrimp platter.  She particularly enjoyed the breading on the shrimp.  I enjoyed stealing her french fries.


There isn't anything wrong with Fankie and Johnny's.  They serve fried seafood.  Just make sure that's what you order.  And they have crawfish.  Who doesn't like that?

Frankie and Johnny's

Have you been to this place?  No.  I'm serious?  Have you.  Then you're missing out.


Il Posto is fantastic.  I wish I lived closer but to be honest, if I lived next door to this Italian cafe it woudn't be close though.

This is a cool place down on Dryades Street.  They serve salads and pininis but these are not your run of the mill pressed sandwiches.  The ingredients are fresh and and of an extremely high quality.  And more reasonably priced than many places serving similar fare.



We both had the Classic Proscuitto.  Thin procuitto, thick, salty mozzarella, and pesto on warm crispy ciabatta.  This is my new favorite spot to get a sandwich.  Great food and a comfortable place to spend a little time.

Plus they gave us a few hints on the ganache that went on our bacon creme cupcakes we served at Hogs for the Cause.

I will be back soon.  Very soon- and it won't be soon enough.

Il Posto
4607 Dryades Street
New Orleans, LA

Commander's Palace had the best lunch special in New Orleans.  Oh you thought I meant food special?  Oh no.  Oh God no.

$0.25 Martini's.  That's right.  Two.  Five. Cents. Dig it.  Now I'm not really a martini guy but if you are willing to sell me anything for twenty five cents I'll buy it.  You can quote me on that.

I get the green ones because I'm pretty manly.

Okay okay they have pretty good food specials too.  Like an appetizer and entree for $16.  And this is Commander's we are talking about not Chili's.  You're thinking about how good Chili's is right now aren't you?  Me too.

So Kerry and I actually got the $20 option because it sounded better.  Kerry started with the turtle soup.  Now I don't know anything about turtle soup but I assume this is some of the best there is.  What I do know is there was no turtle shell in it which I expect would be the most common turtle soup problem.


And I started with the Artichoke Salad.  I just thought it was just okay but in all fairness I get pretty upset if there isn't either cheese or some sort of candied nut in a salad.  Preferably both.


And we both had the Shrimp with the Spoon Bread.  Look at all that shrimp.  It was a great deal.  The $16 option was Citrus Glazed Drum which also looked good.


So at some point this showed up.  According to our waiter it is the best drink they serve.  I think it was Holly Berry Martini.  It was delicious... Seriously I don't normally drink these types of drinks but I'm not ashamed.


And last but not least we had dessert.  It was my first experience with pecan pie.  It was awesome.  The only problem is I'm sure I won't be able to get pie of this quality just anywhere.


So there you go all this and you're out the door for $30 a person after tax and tip and enough martinis to get you through a Wednesday.  Not too shabby.

Let me know when you're going.  You can buy me a few drinks.

So Lakeview Harbor is up by City Park and (kinda) near the lake. They serve burgers. Specifically they serve Port-of-Call style burgers.

Their burgers are average... I'll be honest, I can think of at least 3 places off the top of my head (Port-of-Call, Yo Mama's, Bulldog...) whose burgers I enjoy more than Lakeview Harbor's... but my favorite part about Lakeview Harbor is their appreciation of the ironic.

I'll be honest, when I heard "Lakeview Harbor" there were two things I was expecting about the location. I think you can probably figure out what those assumptions were. But Lakeview Harbor is located in a strip mall off of Harrison Ave., with no lakes or harbors in sight. Here is what it looks like.


They do have an old school claw game there, though, so they are okay in my book. Oh and the staff was super friendly too which is always a plus.

I guess we better comment more on the the food. I had a cheeseburger. Like at Port-of-Call, the burger comes with shredded cheese and a baked potato. I couldn't see any reason not to add the bacon, chives and sour cream to the potato, so I did. So did Kerry, except she got a turkey burger on a wheat bun which is something I don't really support.


So was it the best burger in town? No, probably not, but it for sure wasn't the worst and if I lived in Lakeview I could see myself being someone that went there every once in a while. It's worth a try even if you don't live there.

Oh and here is the address of the place. Someone requested we start doing that.

Lakeview Harbor
911 Harrison Avenue
New Orleans, LA‎ 70124
(504) 486-4887

After a few months of teasing, Panchita's on Carrollton has finally opened up. I'm always all about new Mexican places so we went for lunch a few days ago.

It was an okay Mexican lunch. Kerry went for the Tamal de Barbacoa, which was definitely the highlight of the meal.


The meat was fall-apart good and was served with tortillas, rice and beans. We were a little surprised when it wasn't a traditional tamale in a corn husk, but I think something got lost in translation. It was good either way. It looks like Kerry had a Corona Light with it, because we live the type of lives where a beer at lunch is appropriate.

I had the chilaquiles. I was less impressed, though in all fairness there is a chance that the chilaquiles I am used to are completely unauthentic and Americanized since they came from a place in the suburbs of Atlanta. For all I know these were completely authentic chilaquiles... they were just a little too red sauce and not quite enough cheese and sour cream for me. But if you have a more sophisticated Mexican food palate than me I bet you would enjoy them.


So I would try it again for sure, maybe take a stab at one of the burritos or some tacos. You should give it a try too.

So Pepperoni's isn't great.  Sometimes I feel bad saying things like that.  I worry that the owners will find this post and it will ruin their day.  I especially feel bad about it when I have no problem with the people there.  Sometimes people do something that make me have no problem if they know if I didn't enjoy my meal.  For example, St. James Cheese Company stole $15 from me.  But Pepperoni's has nice people just not great food.

We started with the garlic cheese bread.

So we watched the big game at Bourbon House. Somehow we managed to snag two seats at the bar (for free, although one woman did try to sell us her seat). I'm not really sure how that happened but it worked out well.

What's nice about watching the game at a place like Bourbon House is great bar food. Well, that and Andygator on tap. Oh and the free pour of bourbon since I am a NOBS member. But back to the food.

We just got three appetizers to hold us over until after game time:

The Red Bean Hummus


It was interesting and not quite what I expected but definitely tasty. Plus it came with some tomato and cucumber so it was fresh and light which isn't normally the case I find with hummus.

We also had the Corn and Crab soup and the Caesar Salad.

Have you been to Taqueria Corona? If you are anything like me, you have tried to go a bunch of times and they are always closed. During the regular season this year, they once posted a sign in the window that said "Closed for Saints game." At least their heart's in the right place. But after a year of trying to eat there once every 3 months, I finally sneaked in with Kerry. They had a pretty extensive menu of tacos, combination plates, flautas, enchiladas, and so on. Though everything seems well-priced individually, our bill did end up being a little pricier than expected. I think it might have had something to do with the two margaritas.


So Kerry had three tacos. I'm pretty sure they were (in order) rib eye, fish, and shrimp. The best thing about the tacos are the tortillas they come in. I'm one of those people that orders corn tortillas at places even though I like flour better. I like people to think I'm authentic. Well, Taqueria Corona doesn't give you the option. They hit you with some flour tortillas that are pillowy and delicious so I don't even feel guilty about them.


I had one of the combination plates. It had a name but I forget what it was because this was literally weeks ago. Let's see though. Looks like I had a flauta, a burrito and a fish taco. It was all pretty good. I do remember that the fish taco was especially good, I think because i substituted the tartar sauce out for some pico de gallo. Kerry had her fish taco with the tartar sauce, and didn't love it. But the fish was lightly battered and crisp and fresh.

Alright, I think that's it. Have a good Super Bowl weekend. Let's be honest, everyone: Super Bowl weekend probably started on Tuesday. Go Saints.

Hey so this blog is over a year old now.  A year and four days to be exact.  That's kinda a long time in foodblog years I think.  Though I don't really know.  Maybe there will be a Eating In NOLA year in retrospect post on Monday.

Today though you get a iPhone picture of food from Squeal.


We went the other night after a 504ward event.  It's in Kerry's 'hood so we had been wanting to try it out for a while.

Prognosis?  Eh.  It was okay.  But I have a feeling we ordered poorly.  There were lots of things on the menu that looked promising including an array of salads but I feel like if I'm going to a BBQ place for the first time I have to get the pork sandwich.

Now I immediately take issue with places that don't at least offer coleslaw on the sandwich.  I had to forgo the fries to get coleslaw to put on myself.  Also its on a roll rather than a bun.  I don't know, that's okay I guess, but for some reason it seems like a messier way to eat it.

That all being said they had a real good looking late night weekend menu.  Better than just good- like gourmet.  So it would be a perfect post Maple Leaf spot on the weekend.  So I wasn't terribly impressed but I think I could have been had I ordered something else.  For example Kerry got some cheese grits that I thought were delicious.

I'll be going back though and when I do I'll let you know how much better it was.

Kerry and I were lucky enough to be invited partake in this delicious secret last Thursday. 

So whats the big deal about this beef?  Well to start it has a $12 an ounce price tag with a 3 ounce minimum.  So that's pretty pricey but you really do get what you pay for.  What you are paying for is beef from a cow who spent its 2 year life drinking beer and getting body massages.  And you know you aren't getting ripped off because if you ask, Chef Chip will probably let you see the certificate that comes with each nine pound rib-eye that comes into his kitchen.



So by my calculations what you see below is a $1,700 hunk of culinary heaven.  What is important to realize is this isn't the "Kobe" beef you had on that one trip you took to Vegas.  You probably got a steak from a Wagyu/Angus hybrid.  This stuff us the real, straight off the plane from Japan, deal.  According to the chefs, there are only two suppliers of this stuff in the country and their supplier only is supplying 15 other restaurants.  None of them being in Louisiana.  Look at that marbling.  The stuff just melts in your mouth.


So what does it taste like?  Kinda like a rib-eye on crack.  It is served with a little bit of cauliflower puree and a dash of salt and pepper and that's it.  And that's all you want because you really want to taste this stuff.



Above is about two ounces of the Wagyu.  I would suggest sharing a 4 or 5 ounce portion before your meal.  It's always exciting when local restaurants are doing something a little different.  So go give it a try... you know or don't, but either way lets all appreciate that Ralph's on the Park is willing to offer us something that isn't available to the masses.