Unfortunately, I didn't have the best experience at this restaurant. I always try to give restaurants some grace, especially when they're new, but unfortunately, there were several things about this experience that left me disappointed.
When we first arrived, everything seemed great. The hostess greeted us warmly, the ambiance was nice, and our waitress was pleasant. We started with the peach drinks, which had good flavor, but they were predominantly ice. At $14, it felt like we were paying for a glass of flavored ice rather than a well-made cocktail.
For appetizers, we ordered the crab beignets and the fried oysters in bao buns. My crab beignets initially came out cold, but they were taken back and replaced, so I appreciated that they addressed the issue. Unfortunately, even after that, I wasn't impressed with them. There was very little crab, and they seemed to be mostly filling and a mayo-based sauce. For something called a crab beignet, I expected the crab to be the star of the dish. The fried oysters were okay, but I felt the bao bun was unnecessary and didn't really add anything to the dish.
For our entrées, we ordered the steak frites and the red snapper. The steak frites was actually good, and the steak was cooked perfectly. However, another server brought my food out and proceeded to pour the sauce over both my steak and fries without asking. I would have preferred to pour the sauce myself, and I definitely didn't want it on my fries because it immediately made them soggy. The manager came over and offered to bring me more fries, which I appreciated, but at that point I was honestly just over the situation and declined.
My aunt had the red snapper, and unfortunately, she wasn't impressed with that dish either. Snapper is a fairly meaty fish, but hers had significantly more bones than meat. She said the sauce underneath wasn't bad, but there simply wasn't enough of it.
I also felt like the staff was clearing things from the table a little too quickly toward the end of the meal. It created a somewhat rushed feeling, rather than allowing us to relax and enjoy the experience.
Overall, I really wanted to love this restaurant, especially because I understand that new restaurants need time to find their footing. Unfortunately, I left feeling like there's still quite a bit to work on--from the flavors and execution of the dishes to some of the service details. And if you're going to call it Nola Social, I think the food should deliver stronger, more memorable New Orleans-inspired flavors.
I was hoping for a much better experience, but unfortunately, I don't think I'll be back. read more