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Friday, November 30, 2012

Herbsaint, New Orleans

For our final dinner in New Orleans over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend we went to Donald Link's Herbsaint. Located on Saint Charles Street in the warehouse district this little bistro has both indoor seating and outdoor at little tables on the sidewalk in front of the restaurant. It was a beautiful evening out so we sat outside.

We started with a bottle of Delamotte blanc de blancs non-vintage. And I learned something I didn't know from my husband; Delmotte is the sister winery of Salon. In years when Salon doesn't produce their top line, vintage champagne, the grapes from there single vineyard will go to Delamotte. This particular bottle was truly lovely. Off to a good start!

Our main server was a jovial young woman who was happy to share her thoughts with us on some of the dishes as we navigated the menu. After making our selections they brought us out warm bread and an amuse bouche that was a little shrimp and mango tartlette. Very good.

Our first course was the gumbo of the day (chicken with andouille sausage) and the Louisiana jumbo lump crab meat with mustard frill and toasted brioche.
Nothing makes me happier than a simply done dish that can let the delicate flavor of crab meat shine through. Louisiana blue crab has a distinct flavor profile in line with the Maryland blue crab; this preparation was excellent. I loved every single bite. Alan's gumbo was hearty and very good though after having eaten gumbo a few times he did comment that he likes it a little better when it's more stew like and less soupy.
Next round we tried was the beef short rib with potato rosti and salsa verde along with a dish of burrata with city ham and herb pistou.
The short ribs were FANTASTIC. Super tender - slow cooked for what must have been a seriously long time to get that much infused flavor and that perfect consistency. So good!! The burrata was also very nice and I loved the city ham. The two aspects of the dish were quite good by themselves though I'm not sure they were better if you paired them together.

For our entrees Alan ordered the Kurobuta pork belly with cajun grain risotto, grilled pok choi and shrimp broth.
This is one of those dishes that just makes you happy that some people are gifted when it comes to cooking. Look at that beautiful pork with the distinguished fat layer and the dark crust. Excellent. The risotto was also out of this world. The entire dish was one of the best of the trip.

I hoped to go two for two on pasta dishes by choosing the house made spaghetti with Guanciale and fried, poached farm egg.
Oh Lord...this was an amazing dish. It might be the best pasta I've ever had in my entire life. Yes, I'm saying that this one might knock Marea's fusilli with crispy octopus and bone marrow off the pedestal. It is that good. Cheese, creole spices, creamy sauce, a runny and fabulous fried, poached egg... perfection. Pure and simple.

Herbsaint was the best of the restaurants we ate at start to finish. Every dish was on the mark and a few of them were blow-you-away fantastic. This should be on everyone's list of places to try. There's no way I'd go back to New Orleans and not eat here again.

Zagat's Rating: 27-23-25
Jenn's Rating: 92

Thursday, November 29, 2012

Cochon, New Orleans

Recommended to us by everyone, we went to Cochon for lunch during our New Orleans holiday. The menu is by far one of the most unusual I've encountered; fun things like fried livers, sauteed mullet, hog jowls and stuffed pig foot all making appearances.

To kick off the experience Alan ordered a drink called a Swinekiller consisting of Hendrick's Gin, rhubarb bitters and limeade that was really easy to drink.

To start we ordered the fried alligator with chili, garlic aioli and and plate of the smoked pork ribs with watermelon pickle plus I got a boring but much needed salad of mixed greens, pickled onions and peanut vinaigrette.
I can tell you that it's time I start using a Thesaurus. I have run out of words to describe such wonderful food. (pause - checking www.thesaurus.com). It was downright ambrosial! The alligator was tender with a little kick and had not even a hint of the chewiness that is often the downfall of this meat. I loved the preparation and the garlicky sauce. The ribs were delectable - fall off the bone tender with great flavor. Just wish they were either bigger or there were twice as many. For $12.00 a plate, I should have just gotten two orders.

The salad was also very good - hearts of palm, great blend of bitterness from the greens and sweetness from the onions...really nice, refreshing plate.

For our main course we both ordered sandwiches. I went with the special sandwich of the day (don't laugh); fried bologna with lettuce, tomato, a blend of cheeses and a garlic mayonnaise. Alan got the oyster & bacon sandwich.
Both of these were really good. I don't think I've had bologna once in the past twenty years...perhaps closer to thirty. And this was definitely a step up from Oscar Meyer. The tomato was super ripe and the whole thing gave me the impression of eating a Bayou BLT. Seriously good. Alan's oyster sandwich was a surprise - - not only because he doesn't love oysters so it seemed like an odd order for him, but because this one melded together into a concoction that really worked. Having the oysters be fried so they had a crunch to them and none of the brine associated with raw was nice. The bacon wasn't overpowering but lent the needed salt component.

And I guess I should mention that this restaurant is located on Tchoupitoulus Street in the warehouse district right next door to another highly acclaimed Donald Link establishment, Cochon Butcher. The inside felt like a converted warehouse with low key wooden tables and chairs. There's a no nonsense feeling when you get inside - this is a place to have great food, not hem and haw over service (which was fine for what you'd expect in a high volume lunch place) or the decor. There's a huge wood-fired oven in the open kitchen lending to the ambiance and puffing out all kinds of great smells.

This is one you have to put on your list if you're in the area and looking for authentic Southern Cajun cooking. If I find myself back in New Orleans I will make the time to go back!

Zagat's Rating: 27-23-24
Jenn's Rating: 86

Best Burgers in the US (Food & Wine)

In an article appearing today (11/27/2012) on www.foodandwine.com, they listed what they consider the best burgers in the United States. You'll see their picks reprinted below.

I've only had five of the 23 burgers listed below - Ray's Hell Burger, BLT Burger, Shake Shack, Father's Office and In-N-Out - so it's hard to know if I align with the choices on the F&W list. I've been to two other establishments; Minetta Tavern in NYC but didn't try the burger  & Gott's in Napa when it was still called Taylor's Refresher and did love the traditional cheeseburger, not the Ahi burger they listed in this article.

Of the five, I think all of those deserve a spot on this list. I would have also included Five Guys (yes, it's that good), the burger from Wolfgang Puck's Postrio in Las Vegas and most recently the burger from Phil's Grill at Gray Wolf Golf Course in Scottsdale, AZ.

What do you think - did they get it right? Are they missing an excellent burger? How many of these have you tried?


Arlington, VA: Ray's Hell Burger
Signature Burger: Basic Beef Burger (served in a brioche bun). Dedicated fans—a certain president included—come here for the freshly ground burgers with and complimentary toppings like grilled onions and mushrooms sautéed in sherry and Cognac.
Arlington, VA: Ray's Hell Burger

Ohio: B-Spot Burgers
Signature Burger: Lola Burger. Michael Symon, F&W Best New Chef 1998, specializes in "meat on meat" burgers at his Ohio-based chain B-Spot. Named after his Cleveland flagship, the Lola Burger could almost double as a breakfast sandwich since it's piled high with bacon and a fried egg (in addition to pickled red onions, cheddar cheese and mayo).
Ohio: B-Spot Burgers

Las Vegas, NV: BLT Burger
Signature Burger: BLT Burger with BLT Burger Sauce (bacon-and-red-onion-topped chuck and sirloin burger on a bed of lettuce, tomato and tarragon Russian dressing) At BLT Burger in Las Vegas, chef Laurent Tourondel brushes burgers with butter while they're on the grill. The natural sugars caramelize, making the meat extra-delicious.
Las Vegas, NV: BLT Burger

New York City: Peter Luger
Signature Burger: Luger Burger (served with raw onions and house-made steak sauce, served in a sesame bun). The broiled "Luger Burger"—prepared with a porterhouse and prime chuck blend—at this legendary steakhouse is served only during lunch until 3:45 p.m. peterluger.com
New York City: Peter Luger 

Hackensack, NJ: White Manna
Signature Burger: Cheeseburger (topped with onions, served in a soft bun).
This old-school diner has built its reputation on heavenly sliders piled high with thin-cut onions. It's been using the same butcher for the past 50 years.
Hackensack, New Jersey: White Manna

New York City: Shake Shack
Signature Burger: ShackBurger (Black Angus beef patty topped with American cheese, tomato, lettuce, and "Shack Sauce," served in a grilled potato bun).
Uber restaurateur Danny Meyer's beloved mini empire has a cult following among Gotham burger geeks. Must-order items include the ShackBurger (served with American cheese, tomato, lettuce, and "Shack Sauce" in an old-fashioned wax paper wrapper) and a "hand-spun" chocolate-and-peanut-butter custard shake. shakeshacknyc.com
New York City: Shake Shack

Healdsburg, CA: Healdsburg Bar & Grill
Signature Burger: HBG Burger (fresh-ground Meyer Natural Angus beef patty topped with Alexander Valley Gourmet pickles, served in a toasted Costeaux Bakery sourdough bun; roasted garlic mayonnaise on the side). For his terrific burger, star chef Douglas Keane uses a 70-30 lean-to-fat ground beef ratio. healdsburgbarandgrill.com

Boston, MA: Craigie on Main
Signature Burger: Beefburger. Star chef Tony Maws adds bone marrow and dehydrated miso to his Bar Burger, and cooks it in a low heat CVap oven, followed by a quick char on the plancha. craigieonmain.com
Boston, MA: Craigie on Main

Dearborn, MI: Miller's Bar
Signature Burger: World Famous Ground Round Burger (ground round beef topped with Velveeta, mustard, ketchup, dill pickle chips and onions). The popular no-frills burgers here have been served since the late 1940s. millersbar.com
Dearborn, MI: Miller's Bar

Meriden, CT: Ted's
Signature Burger: Steamed Cheeseburger (prepared with Vermont cheddar).
Ted's has been serving its steamed burgers—a regional specialty—since 1959. tedsrestaurant.com
Meriden, CT: Ted's

Washington D.C: Palena Café
Signature Burger: Palena Cheeseburger (Kobe-style beef patty topped with Sottocenere al Tartufo truffled cheese and garlic mayonnaise, served in a house-baked roll with housemade pickles). Former White House chef Frank Ruta's much-lauded burgers can be had in the boisterous front room. palenarestaurant.com
Washington D.C: Palena Café

New York City: Little Owl
Signature Burger: Bacon Cheeseburger. Chef Joey Campanaro gets his beef from famed Manhattan purveyor Pat LaFrieda and serves each burger on a house-baked bun, with just a hint of molasses. Pickles from legendary purveyor Guss' Pickles are served on the side. thelittleowlnyc.com
New York City: Little Owl 

Los Angeles: Father's Office
Signature Burger: The Office Burger (dry-aged beef patty topped with Gruyère cheese, Maytag blue cheese, arugula and applewood-bacon compote). Sang Yoon's noodle bar Lukshon might be getting a ton of buzz, but the provocative chef first made his name with his dry-aged beef burgers. Among the finest in the country, they justify the strict no-ketchup policy. The 36 craft beers on tap change seasonally. fathersoffice.com
Los Angeles: Father's Office

New York City: The Spotted Pig
Signature Burger: Spotted Pig Burger. When the Pig opened in 2004, it was known mostly for its celebrity owners—Jay-Z and Mario Batali, to name two. Now April Bloomfield is famous in her own right for her excellent gastropub menu, which includes an excellent burger made with brisket, rump and chuck, topped with Roquefort cheese. thespottedpig.com
New York City: The Spotted Pig 

New Haven, CT: Louis' Lunch
Signature Burger: The Original Burger (prepared with a combination of chuck and sirloin beef). Many restaurants claim to be the birthplace of the hamburger. Louis' Lunch, in New Haven, Connecticut, since 1900, is a leading contender. The meaty hand-shaped patties are grilled on antique cast-iron broilers over an open flame. louislunch.com
 New Haven, CT: Louis' Lunch

Napa: Gott's Roadside
Signature Burger: Ahi Burger (seared Ahi tuna burger topped with ginger-wasabi mayonnaise and Asian slaw, served in a toasted egg bun). Brothers Joel and Duncan Gott's witty, reimagined '50s diner used to be named Taylor's Refresher, but it's still a Napa-area favorite for comfort cravings—especially burgers. gottsroadside.com
Napa: Gott's Roadside

Chicago: David Burke Primehouse
40 Day Dry Aged Prime Steak Burger. In its simplest incarnation, this juicy burger is topped with sautéed garlic spinach, crispy fried shallots and bacon mayonnaise. Additional toppings include fried pickles, a fried egg, superspicy “angry” shrimp and crab-and-asparagus hollandaise sauce. davidburkesprimehouse.com


Buffalo Gap, TX: Perini Ranch Steakhouse
Signature Burger: Ranch Burger (topped with mushrooms, onions, green chiles and choice of cheddar or provolone cheese). Self-taught cowboy cook Tom Perini masters the art of open-flame cooking using mesquite coals at his hay barn turned steakhouse, smack in the middle of the state. periniranch.com
Buffalo Gap, Texas: Perini Ranch Steakhouse

San Francisco: Zuni Café
Signature Burger: House-ground hamburger (served in a grilled rosemary focaccia). Instead of traditional cucumber pickles, legendary chef-owner Judy Rodgers accents her burgers with thin-cut zucchini strips pickled in apple cider vinegar, mustard seeds and turmeric. zunicafe.com
San Francisco: Zuni Café

California: In-N-Out Burger
Signature Burger: Cheeseburger. Even superstar chef Thomas Keller is a fan of the West Coast chain—and with good reason. The cooked-to-order burgers are made with beef from Southwest ranches and served with hand-cut fries. For a messier, more indulgent experience, order your burger "Animal Style" for extra sauce and chopped grilled onions. in-n-out.com
California: In-N-Out Burger

Chicago, IL: Custom House Tavern
Signature Burger: Custom House Burger (short rib and sirloin patty topped with aged cheddar cheese and shaved onion, served in a sourdough brioche bun). The "Custom House Burger" comes with house-made steak sauce and hand-cut fries. customhouse.cc
Chicago: Custom House Tavern

Atlanta, GA: Holeman & Finch
Signature Burger: Burger (two cheeseburgers on a house-made bun). Star chef Linton Hopkins announces "burger time"—10 p.m.—with the ringing of two bull horns; that's when two dozen grass-fed beef burgers are up for grabs and consistently sold out within minutes. The burgers are also available on the Sunday brunch menu. holeman-finch.com
Atlanta: Holeman & Finch

New York City: Minetta Tavern
Signature Burger: Black Label Burger (topped with caramelized onions). Minetta Tavern's excellent burgers use a beef blend—dry-aged rib eye, skirt steak, brisket and short rib—from famed purveyor Pat LaFrieda, and buns from Balthazar Bakery. minettatavernny.com
New York City: Minetta Tavern

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Restaurant August, New Orleans

For our Thanksgiving dinner I picked one of the most highly reviewed restaurants in New Orleans that was open that evening. Restaurant August is a John Besh establishment located on Tchoupitoulas Street in the warehouse district.

The building is a historic, 19th century French-Creole landmark. The inside is laid out at three distinct rooms. The main dining room shown below, an upstairs wine room for private parties and an intimate little room off the kitchen called the Gravier room. This is where we sat with only five tables, exposed brick walls and darker decor, it was romantic and cozy. All of the tables in our room were booked this evening with folks celebrating the holiday.
In addition to their seasonal menu, August was also offering a price fixed Thanksgiving tasting menu. We opted to order ala carte off the regular menu. Having had a pretty good amount of food at Manning's during the afternoon we decided to go toned down this time and just order a single appetizer and our entrees.
 
Our dinner started off with an amuse bouche of egg custard with creme freche, truffle, caviar and brioche. We've had similar looking eggs at places like Jean-Georges that made me think I'd gone to heaven. This one was unique in that it was chilled. The flavor profile was nice - you just can't go wrong with truffle and caviar and the custard proved a nice, smooth balance.
The bread they served us was wonderful - really. I don't usually take pictures of bread because, let's face it, it's bread. But these warm little baquettes with whipped cream butter were so, so good.
Our appetizers were the trio of foie gras and the handmade potato gnocchi with blue crab and black truffle.
The foie gras was disappointing. We both expected that "three ways" would be a torchon, a pate and most likely a pan seared or other hot preparation. That wasn't the case. The first one on the left was a classic torchon and very tasty with it's apple marmalade and toasted hazelnuts. The middle was a pate wrapped in an odd choice of layer cake with gelee. It didn't work for me. And the final preparation was a mousse of sorts layered with a custard and crunchy, toasted hazelnuts. This was was an out and out miss. The nuts were way to hard and the custard didn't add anything. The foie gras itself was so far on the bottom that it was difficult to manage to get any bite that incorporated all the flavors.
In contrast, the gnocchi was heavenly. Plenty of crab and lots of cheese and truffle over perfectly made gnocchi and a wonderful cream. Alan didn't love it - he's not a fan of gnocchi usually and calls out obvious flaw - - it's super rich. It's hard to eat a plate even of this modest size. I didn't see that as a problem and powered through. Yummy!!

I should note that with dinner Alan ordered us a bottle of J. Dumangin non-vintage Brut champagne that I really, really liked. It's not one we have often but it's really nice with a classic acid profile that goes nicely with things like bread, truffles, caviar and foie gras.

For our entrees we had the grilled Chappapeela Farms duck breast with gratin of covey rice yams and mustard greens along with a Two Run Farms bone in rib-eye with progress whipped mozzarella potatoes, gremolatta and marrow crust. The potatoes were really interesting if a little hard to deal with since they had that stringy quality of melted mozzarella. My rib-eye was grilled to a nice medium-rare with good flavor. Not exceptional, but what restaurant steak ever is? Alan's duck was just okay though he did like the accompanying side dishes.

Upon reflection, we both thought this was going to be The meal for us on this trip and it didn't turn out that way. Service was okay, not great. We waited far too long with empty champagne glasses - something that doesn't often occur. The food was good (gnocchi, outstanding) but not great across the board. I'm wondering if it had anything to do with being a major holiday? Anyway, we wouldn't put this one high on the list of places to go back to.

Jenn's Rating: 85
Zagat's Rating: 28-28-27

Manning's New Orleans

When you are traveling over a major holiday there won't always be a lot of open restaurants or bars. This was the case for us on Thanksgiving Day. After waiting a stupidly long time at one of the only open places serving breakfast (Camillia's in the French Quarter) for simple eggs & hash browns (never got our order of toast), we scoped out a place to have drinks and watch the afternoon football games.

Lucky for us our first choice, Manning's on Fulton Street was open. If you haven't been and love sports, this is a pretty awesome bar. A big place with tables along one side, more tables in the center of the restaurant up half a level, a few dozen recliner seats down in front of a massive, full wall TV screen (13 feet by 7.5 feet), huge bar and an impressive outdoor patio with another incredibly large TV screen. Besides the two big ones, there are another 30 or so flat screen TVs along every available inch of wall space showing all broadcast games.

The menu is a mix of southern comfort and Creole dishes in the spirit of bar food. We settled into a table with great views of the big screen to catch the second half of the first game -Houston vs. Detroit. We ordered fried, hot chicken wings and the blue crab and spinach dip served with baked focaccia chips. The wings were really good served with a traditional crumble of blue cheese and blue cheese dressing for dipping. Alan's only comment regarding the half a dozen wings on the plate is that he wished there were twice as many. I liked the crab and spinach dip but we were mixed on the focaccia chips...they were in between soft and crunchy which made for an odd texture.

We kept the drinks coming through the first game and by the start of the Dallas vs. Washington match we ordered round two of appetizers. This time I went with a classic Caesar salad of romaine, organic chicken, romano cheese, house-made croutons, olives and a creamy, thick Parmesan Caesar dressing. Excellent salad - great flavor on the dressing! Alan picked the corn-fried Des Allemands catfish chips served with a ravigote dipping sauce. These were fantastic! Perfect little fried bites and a sauce that was thick and flavorful. The catfish was moist and flaky and really good.

We killed about three hours at Manning's that afternoon and the crowd swelled, calmed and swelled again with lots of groups coming in wearing their team jerseys and ordering beer by the bucket. The only downside was that the restaurant seemed understaffed and the service was sketchy. Our empty glasses were not cleared away even as new drinks were being brought out and a general sense that you needed to actively seek out your server if you wanted something. We chalked this up to it being Thanksgiving Day and wouldn't hold it against the restaurant. Definitely a fun place to hang out if you're down there looking for a place to watch sports.

Monday, November 26, 2012

GW Fins, New Orleans

Our first dinner in New Orleans was at a little place on Beinville Street right in the middle of the French Quarter called GW Fins. With a new menu every night to take advantage of the freshest available catch, this is a fish lovers dream come true.

We started off there early to have a drink at the bar. Alan had a Tanqueray martini and I a glass of Belle Glos pinot. My wine as a little too warm but nice flavor. The bartender was a fun, upbeat lady with enthusiastic recommendations about the menu. I knew it was going to be a special evening when she said that whatever I ordered I could ask them to put a sauteed soft shell crab on top!

As you can see from this picture, not a large place. There are less than twenty tables in the dining room (you can also eat at the bar which has about eight seats) in a semi-circular layout. Calm colors, upbeat staff and a comfortable feel, this seems to be both a tourist and a locals hangout.
To start off, I ordered the soft shelled crab done with a simple butter and lemon. The batter was light but with distinctive tastes. The crab was phenomenal - tender and perfect...not too crunchy. I loved, loved, LOVED this dish.
Alan ordered the blue crab pot stickers with country ham and creamy pea shoot butter. YUMMY!! Nicely prepared, lots of crab...awesome sauce of butter and pea. Really, really good!!
Next round, I went with the house specialty, the smoked sizzling oysters served simply with butter and lemon. These enormous shells are heated up to over 500 degrees and the raw oyster put back on the shell right as they are served. This means there is an interesting conflict of raw and partially cooked. Super fresh, excellent texture and clean. Other than leaning too far over the plate and getting a nose full of sizzling smoke (oops) this was a great course.
Alan tried the Louisiana yellow fin tuna tartare appetizer with watermelon relish, avocado, mango, pine nuts and Wasabi cream. Very fresh with a nice combination of melon to offset the fish but also not a knockout dish. A little expected; bland.
For our entrees we both ordered fish. I went with one I'd never heard of before - Drum fish. It was lightly battered and served over creamy, whipped potatoes in a simple butter, lemon style sauce. Drum is a delicate, white fish much like flounder and local to the shallow Gulf waters. It was a nice dish - not earth shattering but good.

Alan tried the sauteed red snapper with shrimp etouffee, Louisiana jasmine rice, lobster butter. This was superb. Great flavor and the combination of etouffee gave it that Creole spin that is different from anything we get at home. I really like his dish a lot.

This was a wonderful dinner - great dishes, fun bar and the service was great (something we'd remember not to take for granted over the next few days). Alan had a cocktail with dinner called a Cancun cooler that he enjoyed quite a bit while I paired up with a Plowbuster Pinot. If we were going back this one would be on my must list. Truly enjoyable evening all the way around and not to be missed.

Zagat rating: 28-26-27
Jenn's rating: 90

Emeril's Restaurant, New Orleans

Alan and I just got back from a four day, Thanksgiving holiday trip to New Orleans. The focus was food & exploration of a new city. The weather was gorgeous and we were able to fit in a lot of dining experiences all around The Big Easy.

The first one, lunch at Emeril's original namesake on Tchoupitoulas Street, was right in the middle of the Warehouse district; just a few blocks up from our hotel. The space used to be a pharmacy and has an odd, interesting decor of exposed metal beams, brick walls, bowed wood ceiling and lots of glass & mosaic work around the open air kitchen.

This was the meal I was the most wary of. We've only eaten at one other Emeril restaurant (Emeril's Fish Restaurant in the MGM Grand in Las Vegas) and it was SO bad that we'd almost written off his places all together. But a strong recommendation by Paul and a desire to see how different (and hopefully better) the original might be, we took a chance.
Main Dining Room

The menu is a nice size - not so small you feel cornered and not so large that it's like being in a Cheesecake Factory. We were mostly interested in appetizers and small plates and wanted to try a few different things. Along with my sangria and Alan's Creole Collins, we ordered the crawfish pasta and gumbo of the day. The fresh angel hair pasta with Louisana crawfish tails in a Creole cream sauce was fantastic! Rich, full of flavor, unique with the distinctive taste of crawfish generously strewn about - this turned out to be one of the best dishes we'd have on this trip.
Alan's gumbo of the day was chicken and andouille sausage; thick with plenty of rice and smokey flavors. Alan thought this one was the best of the gumbos he tried while we were in New Orleans.
The next course was a salad for each of us. I tried the truffled Gulf shrimp "Louis" with  iceberg lettuce, asparagus, smoked bacon, chopped egg and Louisiana citrus. This was a pretty nice dish...I really liked the creamy, citrus dressing and the mixture of the bacon for salt and vegetables. Where I did myself an injustice was thinking I was going to magically start loving shrimp just because it was in lovely salad. I had a few bites of the shrimp and it was fine, but I'm the first to admit that it's my least favorite food that comes out of the ocean. If you are a shrimp lover, you'd probably really dig this dish.
On the other hand, score a big win for Alan's yellow fin tuna and bacon in butter lettuce wraps with plenty of jalapenos, grapefruit, citrus hoisin and crunchy Asian noodles. This dish offered a fresh bite with a clean flavor and lots of kick thanks to the peppers.
To end the meal we split a sandwich...the BLFGT. Benton's bacon, butter lettuce, fried green tomatoes on brioche with boiled shrimp and a mustard aioli served with sweet potato chips.
This dish didn't do it for me. There was an interesting blend of flavors and textures - the fried green tomatoes are a little crunchy with a significant bitterness; the mustard aioli was up in your face; the bacon was barely there and the lettuce was (not being iceburg) on the wilted/soft side. I'm not saying it was bad...it was just a combination of flavors and textures that I didn't appreciate. It didn't fit my palate well. I'm also not a fan of sweet potato anything and there was a awful lot of the boiled shrimp which as we've already covered, not my favorite thing. So this was just ok.

Our conclusion - Emeril's New Orleans, pretty good! Loved the pasta and the yellow fin tuna wraps and the gumbo was good. The other dishes we'd pass on next time in favor of trying something else.

Zagat's Rating: 26-25-25
Jenn's Rating: 84