Shaggy's - Rough around the edges at Pass Christian Harbor (Mississippi)

Shaggy’s

Harbor Bar and Grill

Pass Christian Harbor (Off Highway 90)

Pass Christian, Mississippi

228-452-9939

Open seven days

Sunday-Thursday  11 a.m.-9 p.m.

Friday-Saturday 11 a.m.- 11 p.m.

http://www.shaggys.biz/

By Jane Feehan

The opening of restaurants along the Mississippi Coast is one of those markers that heralds the region’s recovery from Hurricane Katrina. Shaggy’s at the Pass Christian Harbor provides a great view of that progress – boats back in their slips, repaired stately homes on Scenic Drive and a new city hall and government complex going up along Highway 90. That said, the view and atmosphere rank far higher than the food.

We ordered a fish sandwich and a shrimp po-boy. At $12 the po-boy  was the most expensive I’ve eaten of its type from New Orleans across the Mississippi Coast. I don’t mind paying for good food, but the bread was stale – hard enough to use as a weapon. The grilled fish sandwich – greasy.  One turnoff right from the start was seating us at a dirty table with dirty, torn menus. Other diners were also ushered to  un-wiped tables.  And the wind. I don’t know if it’s the placement of the building but there is no escaping it even if there's barely a breeze.

Shaggy’s offers a full bar. Drinking there may be more satisfying than eating a meal. Service: fair.©2010 Jane Feehan. All rights reserved. (About 65 miles from New Orleans)

For information about Pass Christian, visit: www.ci.pass-christian.ms.us

Deanie's - Good and Plenty in New Orleans French Quarter

  

www.deanies.com

Deanie’s Seafood

841 Iberville Street

New Orleans, LA 70112

504-581-1316

Sunday-Thursday: 11 a.m.-10 p.m.

Friday-Saturday: 11 a.m. – 11 p.m.

By Jane Feehan

Come with a big appetite to Deanie’s. The portions are huge. This busy restaurant serves up New Orleans favorites, including a great seafood gumbo, soft shell crabs, oysters and crawfish etoufee.

Just a block away from Bourbon Street, Deanie’s also does a great job with barbequed shrimp. If you’re not from the area, New Orleans barbequed shrimp are made with butter, lemon, paprika and black pepper. I ordered seafood gumbo and barbequed shrimp and wasn’t disappointed.

The waiter suggested ordering a cup rather than a bowl of the gumbo and an appetizer size of the shrimp. The advice was well taken. The “small” order of shrimp, replete with shell and head, were enormous; I couldn’t finish the dish, which was only $10.95. They also serve a terrific Bloody Mary.

Chicken and hamburgers are also on the menu. Garage parking available within two blocks. Also located in Metairie. Service: good. © 2010 Jane Feehan All rights reserved.

Newk's: Busy not always a good thing

Newk’s Express Cafe

3883 Promenade Parkway (north of Biloxi)

D’Iberville, Mississippi

228-392-3131

www.newks.com

By Jane Feehan

Sometimes being busy is not a good thing.  Newk’s, with order-at-the-counter-and-deliver-to-table service, offers an interesting menu of toasted sandwiches, pizza and salads but at times there’s a problem finding a table after ordering.

On a recent Saturday visit (I’ve been there a few times) at 2 p.m. or so, I couldn’t find a seat and had to eat in my car. Annoying.  I don’t mind with a $5 meal from a fast food joint, but not with a $10 order. Chicken salad with grapes and pecans (forget the provolone) on toasted bread proved to be a good choice – better than the rather bland vegetarian sandwich of the week before.

Newk’s, at the Promenade Shopping Center near Biloxi, offers a few novel touches such as a condiment table with a variety of hot peppers, grated cheese, crackers and bread sticks to dress up a meal.  Items range from $7-$10 and they sell wine and beer. Diner beware, this is a noisy place with lots of kids. Speaking of kids, a Little Newk’s Favorites menu with items from $3.25-3.75 seems to be what draws them.  It's a new restaurant and staff should be well-informed about other Newk’s stores in and out of state; they didn't know the facts here when I asked. Employees can be a company’s best marketers. Take out available. ©2010 Jane Feehan All rights reserved.

Biloxi and Gulfport: Mississippi beaches are clean and white - for now.

Clean, white beaches fringe Biloxi and Gulfport – for now. Things should be fine for Memorial Day weekend.  I live on the beach and detect NO crude oil odor. Looking at the maps of the oil spill, there is no reason to expect any oil stench soon.  The hotels, restaurants and charter fisherman need tourist dollars. Come on down to the Coast, enjoy the seafood, sand, water, and casinos.  New Orleans is only an hour and 20 minutes away. Who knows how things will be by the Fourth of July holiday.

Demand action to stop the BP oil leak.  It appears the company doesn’t have the resources to quickly stop the gusher. It also appears that the federal government has dropped the ball on this and if nothing else, is too big to get the job done.  If investigative committees are the best thing the feds can come up with in dealing with this crisis, we’re all in big trouble.©2010 Jane Feehan All rights reserved

New Orleans Happy Hours at Besh’s American Sector, Domenica and Lüke

American Sector

National World War II Museum

945 Magazine Street (Museum District)

New Orleans, Louisiana  70130

504-528-1940

www.nationalww2museum.org/american-sector/

Domenica

At The Roosevelt Hotel

123 Baronne Street
New Orleans, LA 70112-2303
(504) 648-6020

www.domenicarestaurant.com

Lüke

333 St. Charles Avenue

New Orleans (CBD), Louisiana 70130

504-378-2840

www.lukeneworleans.com

By Jane Feehan

A good way to end an afternoon or to begin an evening in the Crescent City is at a John Besh establishment. Whet your whistle and tease your palate at American Sector, Domenica or Lüke with a visit during happy hours.

As of now, happy hours at these three restaurants run 3-6 p.m. with the following variations:

   

·         American Sector: Half priced-well drinks and 75-cent sliders (mini-burgers)

·         Domenica: Half-priced liquor, wine, some specialty drinks and half-priced pizza

·         Lüke: Half-priced well drinks and 25-cent oysters

Search blog for reviews of each restaurant. © 2010 Jane Feehan All rights reserved.

Lüke - A salute to Old World New Orleans dining

Lüke

(a John Besh restaurant at the Hilton St Charles in the CBD)

333 St. Charles Avenue

New Orleans (CBD), Louisiana 70130

504-378-2840

www.lukeneworleans.com

Breakfast 7am – 11am M-F  

Breakfast buffet 7am – 10am M-F, 7am-11am Sat – Sun

Brunch 7am – 4pm Sat-Sun

Lunch 11am – 4pm

Dinner 4pm – 11pm • Take Out 7am – 11pm

By Jane Feehan

With Old World ambiance – high ceilings, white tiled floors, dark wood – and a menu inspired by the Franco-German brasseries of 19^th- and early 20th-century New Orleans, Lüke departs from the predominant Creole theme of Crescent City eateries.

Lüke is not for the faint of appetite. They serve lots of sophisticated, heavy comfort foods: house made bratwurst, slow cooked Berkshire pork skin with creamer potatoes, spätzle and choucroute. Other courses feature German-style recipes of veal, beef, tripe, chicken or pork.

Creole is on the menu with redfish “court-bouillon,” a dish of crab, shrimp and oysters with rice, in addition to gumbo, corn and crab bisque or Louisiana shrimp and grits. For die hard shellfish lovers the raw bar is excellent. I sampled some exceptionally tasty oysters while watching beautiful shellfish platters be readied for table diners.

Brunch was a toss up between buttermilk fried chicken and waffles ($20) or stuffed blue crab cakes with country hash browns, poached eggs and hollandaise ($22). Blue crab cakes won. The cakes (lots of crabmeat) and eggs sat atop potatoes and caramelized onions and proved to be a delicious, savory combination which I couldn’t finish; it was rich.

The full bar offers a variety of domestic and European beers. Reservations advised; Lüke is not a large establishment and gets busy (and a bit noisy) by 1 p.m. Service: good. Short walk from Canal Street and the French Quarter. © 2010 Jane Feehan All rights reserved. 


Tags: John Besh, French Quarter, New Orleans restaurants in CBD, 

Roosevelt Hotel: a mix of New Orleans history and luxury

The Roosevelt Hotel

123 Baronne Street (drive-up entrance on the other side, at University Place, it changes from O’Keefe at Canal)

New Orleans, Louisiana 70112

504-648-1200

http://www.therooseveltneworleans.com/

By Jane Feehan

Walk into the newly renovated Roosevelt Hotel in New Orleans and you’ll think you’ve entered the Gilded Age of late 19th-century America. Shimmering chandeliers, golden columns and dramatically tiled floors frame this entrance into its opulent past.

Opened in the 1890s as the Grunewald Hotel, the name was changed to the Roosevelt thirty years later in honor of President Theodore Roosevelt who stayed there an evening or two. The hotel’s storied past comes to us primarily in the context of Louisiana Governor Huey P. Long’s escapades. The Roosevelt served as his home away from home and unofficial headquarters while he visited New Orleans in the 1930s. This is, as history has it, where Long reigned over his court, doling out and receiving political favors.

The hotel operated as the Fairmont when Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005. Hilton Corporation bought the property a few years after the storm; it is now part of the Waldorf Astoria Collection.

The rooms, beautifully appointed in furnishings with colors that may remind one of its past, are comfortable and quiet. The bathrooms are not large but completely updated and modernized. Roosevelt's décor does not stray far from its history –a welcome ambience in this world of stainless steel and glass.

Filled with visitors and local business types at cocktail hour, the Sazerac Bar is a warm, lively place to visit before dining at any number of places within walking distance. John Besh's Domenica, inside the Roosevelt, offers a terrific lunch or dinner experience.

Excellent service is provided by an efficient, accessible staff. A billing issue was settled within an hour of my query by an employee who gave me her email address to resolve it – something rarely seen at other hotels. The French Quarter is a walk away. Visit the Roosevelt Hotel and experience New Orleans history. Hilton Rewards Points. Parking - $38 per day. © 2010 All rights reserved. New Orleans, Louisiana.

Tags: New Orleans restaurants, dining reviews New Orleans

Palmettos Bayou Bar & Grill - Rustic elegance in Slidell

Palmettos Bayou Bar & Grill

1901 Bayou Lane

Slidell, LA 70458

985-643-0050

Open – Wednesday-Sunday

Lunch 11:30-2:30

Bar: 4 p.m.

Dinner – 5 p.m.

Sunday Brunch: 11 a.m. – 3 p.m.

Deck Party 3-6 p.m.

www.palmettosonthebayou.com

By Jane Feehan

When you walk into Palmettos in this New Orleans suburb you may have a difficult time deciding where to sit; the outside deck, visible from the interior entrance, is as inviting as the main dining room.  In any case, stroll onto the deck, over to the dock on the bayou and throughout this eatery to soak in the ambiance. Rustic elegance comes to mind in describing this tree-enshrined jewel on the water.

On the deck under the tent one Saturday afternoon, I dined on seafood gumbo ($5), Seared Duck Breast with a wild berry reduction ($17) and the requisite Louisiana dessert, bread pudding. I brought crab cakes ($9)with a salsa of horseradish cream home for dinner.

The cup of gumbo, generously loaded with oysters, shrimp and crawfish, was enough for an entire meal. But I plowed on through with the duck, which, though on the tough side, came with a wonderful berry sauce, perfectly cooked asparagus and a tasty scoop of rice. I could barely look at the bread pudding, but a few forkfuls proved delicious. Oh yes – about those crab cakes  - excellent.

There is plenty to choose from - salads, sandwiches and other fare - at different price points.

Palmettos provides jazz on Friday nights inside and music outdoors on Sunday. With two decks and a party room, it’s a great venue for special occasions such as weddings and anniversaries. Service: excellent. © Jane Feehan All rights reserved. Slidell, Louisiana

Tags: restaurants in Slidell, Slidell dining

Five Things Clueless Restaurants and Servers Do

Another segment in the Clueless series ...

Witnessed on the dining circuit (in New Orleans or along the Mississippi Gulf Coast): proprietors, servers or bartenders who:

• Sit at the table with customers. Need a friend?
• Lower the lights to the point the menu and partner across the table are not visible. Hiding something?
• Leave unanswered requests for reservations on answering machines or voice mail. Why say your call will be returned when you have no intention of doing so?
• Talk on a cell phone with one’s back to a bar patron nearly the entire time a patron is there – except to bring a drink or the bill. Some sit at the bar rather than a table to have conversation with the bartender. Interested in tips-big ones?
• Speak - chirp - to an adult as if he or she were a child in daycare.  Don't do it - no matter how old the customer.                                                                      © 2010 Jane Feehan All rights reserved. (New Orleans and along the Mississippi Gulf Coast)

Chef Scott's Restaurant and Sushi Bar - Ocean Springs, MS

Chef Scott’s Restaurant and Sushi Bar

1314 Government St.

Ocean Springs, MS

228-872-3544

It’s not fancy, there’s no Web site, nor Facebook page, it’s not easily visible along the main drive through Ocean Springs but Chef Scott’s serves fabulous food. If you don’t like sushi, you will after a meal here.

I dined on #2 Relationship roll (about $13) – a crawfish tempura roll with cream cheese and asparagus. Instead of seaweed paper, a yellow soy paper was used to roll the ingredients – excellent flavor, super fresh and perhaps the best sushi I’ve ever eaten. They were out of crab and asparagus soup, a popular starter. Next time …

Specialties include rolls with salmon, cream cheese, scallions and avocado, or shrimp tempura and cucumber with siracha spicy sauce. The list goes on and on but the choices are definitely creative and appetizing.

Lunch bento boxes ($11 average) come in a selection of sushi, shrimp or crawfish tempura, chicken, steak, scallops and wok vegetables. Dinners ($16-25) are served with miso soup or salad and eight to 24 pieces of sushi.

Two diners there told me they didn’t like sushi until they ate at Chef Scott’s ... I found out why. Service: Good. No alcohol but Chef Scott’s welcomes yours. Take out available. Casual - and busy.   © Jane Feehan. All rights reserved 2010.