This was our families' third time collectively at this restaurant, a party of 5, and we were celebrating two birthdays.
For our appetizers, we ordered a corn crab dip with pita chips and oysters Bienville. The pita chips were crunchy, and the crab dip was creamy, although the dip was mostly corn, not crab.
My stepfather ordered he and my mother the Oysters Bienville. My mom loves this dish, and her + her husband have had this dish locally and all over the world. My mother could not chew her oyster and had to take it out of her mouth and put it on her plate-something my mother does not do in public. My stepfather plodded on and got through his portion. My mother told the waitress that they were rubbery and showed her that she could not even swallow it, but that was where it ended, and it was on the bill.
My brother ordered a California roll and the "Ocean's basket." The roll was unremarkable, but beautifully presented and not displeasing. The "catfish filet" in his entree basket was embarrassing. He would hold a piece of fish up, and it would just fall over in his hand and bounce up slightly, like it was a deflated rubber toy, and there was no crunch. The shrimp was delicious-butterflied, lightly battered, and fried expertly. My brother's fries arrived at the table completely soggy. I try everyone's food, and they were grease-logged and not fresh and crispy.
My mother ordered the shrimp and grits, which is one of her favorites. Her shrimp were not cooked all of the way, and she kept whispering to me that she didn't want to eat it (but didn't want to hurt her husband's feelings). Her grits were full of a watery sauce on inner rim of her bowl that almost looked like a butter or cheese sauce-we couldn't tell. Either way, the sauce wasn't reduced or properly thickened - it tasted like water and butter mixed together encircling her grits. She told me later that none of it had enough seasoning, very bland.
I ordered a roast chicken with mushroom/truffle sauce from the steakhouse menu-with 2sides, the broccoli and cheese casserole and green beans with pancetta. Regrettably, my chicken was almost impossible to cut. I wish I had taken a photo, because it was the smallest piece of chicken, almost comical, this chicken was $26. I cut enough to get two small bites, so my family would see that I was eating. I order the roast chicken at Yaya's all the time, and it is lovely and filling - this was not that roast chicken. The sauce was stingy and just a few mushrooms cut up very small in a seized drizzle over my chicken-I could not taste the truffle. I had that same watery cheese or butter sauce that was in my mom's grits - if my bowl was tilted, it would've poured out like raw milk. The green beans were the saving grace-cooked properly with crunchy pancetta on top. That is where I focused most of my bites.
My stepfather and sister-in-law both got fish fillets that were sautéed, and they had no complaints that were voiced.
We also ordered 2 entrees to go of the Fried Catfish-just as the catfish was in my brother's basket, the catfish was flacid, not crispy, and accompanied by the same greasy fries that were not fried properly or timely.
The atmosphere in this restaurant is much better than my mother's prior visit. It is a gorgeous restaurant, but some areas feel more romantic while some areas feel like you're eating at a strip mall restaurant. We were in the area with little table lamps, and some ambience. My mother said when they came before it felt like it was just all white and very cramped, and they have added some lights and space out the tables more generously.
My mother stated that she is never coming back to this establishment, still talking today about how frustrated she is with taking two of our family members to this restaurant for a birthday dinner and having such a disappointing meal -it cast a shadow over the entire celebration.
Our waitress was lovely and mostly attentive and orchestrated two customized birthday desserts for the Birthday "boys." The crème brûlée was cut in square slices - a bit denser than I've tasted or made crème brûlées; however, the torched or broiled sugar tops were done exactly as they should be - you could crack the tops with your fork and then take a bite of the creamy custard with the crunchy sugar. It was the best food that I tasted at this restaurant the entire night. They have a lot of desserts, so maybe try this restaurant as a place to get coffee and dessert first or try the sushi bar.
My mother stated that she wishes we had gone to Boudreaux's, more economical for better New Orleans food, or Red Moon for properly cooked seafood + amazing shrimp and grits. My mom and I have had the $10 family-style meal at lunch, which is a bargain, and if one of the items is not cooked 100%, no one is going to get upset based on expectations. This is a very clever concept to have three restaurants in one; however my family can't recommend the seafood "heart" of this restaurant. read more