Travel | fabliss

Commander’s Palace | New Orleans, LA

commander’s palace was one place that we needed to make a reservation a week before our arrival. it’s a pretty popular tourist destination winning the masses over with its southern charm.

their menu has a lot going on. there is an a la carte lunch menu, a 3-course lunch menu, and a 2-course lunch menu.

we went with:

a 3-course lunch menu ($34) that comes with creole gumbo, chicory coffee lacquered quail, and the bread pudding souffle
a 2-course lunch menu ($22) that comes with the cochon de lait cassoulet and a soup or salad. darci went with a soup – the gumbo. the cochon cassoulet is a bourbon glazed pork shoulder with boudin, white bean purée and crispy onion rings over a grilled ciabatta.
turtle soup ($8.50) – this is their famous soup that takes 3 days to make.
croque madame ($19)
pork prime rib ($25) – slow roasted rack of pork, crispy root chips, braised red cabbage and granny smith apples with buffalo honey green peppercorn jus
cheesecake ($3) – on the denser side.
apple crisp ($9.50) – my favorite of the desserts.
sazerac ($12.25)

this was kyle’s favorite sazerac out of the gazillion he tried over the course of our trip. very well made.

the pork prime rib was massive and actually pretty moist despite how dry it looks. the cabbage with the peppercorn jus was tasty. good flavor.

andrew ordered the croque madame. he thought it was good.

the quail was excellent! uh-mazing flavor. the quail was perfectly cooked. this dish killed it.

the cochon de lait cassoulet looks like a pork hash. this was actually my favorite. bold. great texture. i was a fan.

onto the dessert: the apple crisp was my favorite dessert. the souffle was on the eggy side. it just didn’t hit the spot for us. the cheesecake was pretty dense and didn’t blow our minds.

food: overall, food was good. the turtle soup and gumbo were okay. the quail and pork hash were our favorite main dishes. these were the ones that came with the pre-set menu. so my advice is to go with the 3-course or the 2-course lunch menus fo sho. oh, and don’t forget to order a 25 cent martini! we aren’t normally fans of martinis but for 25 cents, we would be fans of anything. if you are into sazeracs, order one here.
ambience: this place has been around since 1880. despite being pretty old, the building is extremely charming. there is a strict dress code. no jeans, no sandals. they explain this when you call to make a reservation. this is a really nice place for special occasions!
service: excellent service. excellent.
location: this was a little trek from the french quarter. it was a $20 cab ride. not bad. the good thing is that it is located across the street from the lafayette cemetery, which was a landmark we wanted to visit.
overall: this place stands out for it’s service, which is what most people say about this place. the food was good with decently sized portions. yes, it is on the pricier side but an experience i would say is worth it.

Commander’s Palace
1403 Washington Ave
New Orleans, LA 70130

By fabliss | December 24th, 2014 | Food, New Orleans, Restaurants, Travel | 0 Comments

Acme Oyster House | New Orleans, LA

oh, acme. we were going to pass you up since you seemed like such a tourist trap. a) you are right off of bourbon street in the french quarter. b) there is always a line outside your establishment. c) you have thousands and thousands of fans.

we strategically planned our eating adventure to hit this place when it first opened its doors (the websites say it opens at 11am but we strolled in well before that… 10am maybe?) yep. oysters for breakfast… we’ve done worse.

we decided to order:

chargrilled oysters (full dozen) $19.99. this comes with a side. we chose gumbo.
side of jambalaya $3.99

the oysters. no, we didn’t do the raw ones. just because we felt like we could get raw oysters anywhere. (you probably disagree) what we did want to try were the chargrilled oysters. we wanted to know what the hype was all about!

they come out hot. as in you should wait a sec before diving in. they are pretty special. i have no idea what makes them so delicious… there is no description on their menu! the only thing i can offer is that there is lots of butter, white wine and cheese.

since this kyle’s favorite meal in nola, we came back here a second time (i know! unheard of when one is traveling) to eat it again!

great, great jambalaya. bold flavor and not soggy. we were fans.

the gumbo was good but we liked the jambalaya more.

food: delicious! there is a reason why this place has been around for 100 years… their gem–chargrilled oysters.
service: quick. wouldn’t say we received the best service but they are trying to churn people outta here so it is understandable.
ambience: this place is a lot bigger than i anticipated. picnic-like looking tables. casual setting with an oyster bar. we would have loved to be seated at the oyster bar but were unable to secure seats during either visit.
overall: we loved our meal here. i would recommend coming early in the morning to try this place. otherwise, you will be dealing with long lines that never seem to die down… even at 2 in the morning.

Acme Oyster House
724 Iberville St
New Orleans, LA 70130

By fabliss | December 18th, 2014 | Food, New Orleans, Restaurants, Travel | 0 Comments

Killer Poboys | New Orleans, LA

we heard that the shrimp poboy here was out of this world. we made sure we tried this bad boy during our trip.

verdict: we thought it was just ok. since everyone was saying that this sandwich was freaking amazing, we were expecting some sort of flavor explosion (nope) and amazing bread (not really). the sandwich came with 3 jumbo shrimp, which we thought were rather bland. the bread was meh. not soft (like fresh bread) but not crunchy either (like a toasted baguette). if anything, it was kind of reminded me of stale baguette? ouch. for $15 a sandwich (shrimp poboy based on market price), we find this pretty expensive. call us crazy but we have had better. way better.
ambience: killer poboys is tucked in the back of the erin rose bar (yep, where you get the frozen irish coffee). super dark. grungy looking. two high tables (we took our sandwiches to go).
service: just ok. don’t expect a happy, friendly conversation. they are busy making your sandwich (which takes them awhile).
overall: we really wanted to love this place but thought the sandwiches were just okay. nothing mindblowing. with that said, we understand why many people do (our friend mark is a huge fan). this place could’ve been such a gem. i) location behind a bar…hole in the wall (literally). ii) small, focused menu. iii) twist on a classic (banh mi) too bad we didn’t fall in love.

tip: bring yo cash. this place will not accept cards.

Killer Poboys
811 Conti St
New Orleans, LA 70112

By fabliss | December 15th, 2014 | Food, New Orleans, Restaurants, Travel | 0 Comments

Domenica | New Orleans, LA

we had domenica on our radar but were on the fence about coming here because we had so many other places to try. our friend recommended only coming here for happy hour (2pm-5pm) since all their pizzas are 50% off! we’re in!

we ordered:

margherita pizza – tomato, basil, fresh mozzarella
tutto carne pizza – bacon, fennel sausage, salumi, prosciutto cutto

all wines by the glass, beers and certain cocktails are also half-priced.

pizzas are pretty big and with 50% off, they run about $6-8! we ordered two for the four of us and it was plenty! awesome deal, right?

the pizzas are tasty! the crust could be a little crispier but still good. we liked the marg but liked the fennel sausage even more!

atmosphere: beautiful, modern space. high ceilings, dark accents with great light fixtures.
service: our waitress was great! extremely friendly and helpful!
overall: come here for happy hour and eat a ton of pizza and drink a lot of bellinis!

Domenica
123 Baronne Street
New Orleans, LA 70112

By fabliss | December 9th, 2014 | Food, New Orleans, Restaurants, Travel | 1 Comment

Erin Rose | New Orleans, LA

one of my favorite things during our new orleans trip was this little frozen irish coffee from erin rose (pretty much a dive bar)! yep. favorite.

it is pretty magical.

frozen irish coffee: it’s perfect. unsuspecting. cheap. delicious. refreshing. (should i continue?) i can drink a toooooooon of these. think milkshake meets booze.
ambience: small bar. oh! this is the bar where you will find killer poboys in the back room (review to come). pretty good combo if you ask me.
tip: they don’t advertise this gem. we only knew about it because our friend lives in nola and is a bartender. good thing, you have such a good friend like me to keep you informed.

Erin Rose
811 Conti St
New Orleans, LA 70112

By fabliss | December 8th, 2014 | Food, New Orleans, Travel | 0 Comments

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