cookies and code

Before we caught a flight home, we had a few hours to spend in New Orleans to see the usual sites. We took our daughter to the Audubon Aquarium of the Americas, which was a lot of fun, and then headed down Decatur Street to find some lunch. My cousin works in the area at a local university and suggested we give Cafe Maspero a try. He said it was basically a simple sandwich and seafood joint that was a solid staple of eating in the French Quarter.

Cafe Mesparo is on the corner of Decatur Street and Toulouse Street with a small double door facing Decatur used to enter. Once you go inside the restaurant, there is a large space filled with tables and a bar running along the wall into the kitchen with a order-up counter in the back. They have a few domestic beers on tap including the local favorite blends of Abita. The menu is relatively straight forward with lots of sandwich choices as well as seafood plates and a couple salads (I believe). We ordered the catfish sandwich (~$9), the shrimp sandwich (~$9), and the roast beef and swiss sandwich (~$8). All of the sandwiches came with fries, but note that the restaurant does not allow substitutions for sides which seems to be a common practice for an establishment in a tourist district unfortunately. I also ordered an Abita Amber on draft (~$3) which was very thirst quenching and finally redeemed Abita a bit in my mind from all of the fruity concoctions they produce. When the sandwiches came out, they were much bigger than I expected. Each was served an a large French bread bun with cabbage and pickles on the side; keep in mind, these are really po-boys, but they are still delicious none the less. The catfish was lightly breaded and prepared in a such a way that it simply fell apart as I bit into it. The shrimp was fried to just the right temperature and not chewy at all. The most pleasant surprise was the the roast beef which was fresh sliced and served with the swiss cheese melted over it. The fries were common steak fries with nothing outstanding about them.

Be aware that Cafe Mesparo only takes cash and traveler’s checks, so make sure if you visit you come prepared. They’re good food, reasonable pricing, and generous portions are enough to warrant a trip to the ATM. Overall though, we left Cafe Maspero energized, ready to dive into the dessert portion of our day with beneigh’s at Cafe Dumonde and pralines at the Southern Candymakers. If you’re looking for an easy decision for lunch in the French Quarter, make Cafe Mesparo your pick for fresh, simple, and great tasting food.

Cafe Maspero is located at 601 Decatur Street, New Orleans, Louisiana.

While visiting family in Louisiana this past week, we happened to be in town for my aunt and uncle’s wedding anniversary. To celebrate, we decided to grab lunch at Nash’s Restaurant in Broussard. Nash’s follows in the well established practice of converting an old home to a restaurant. For some reason, this seems to always give me the comfortable feeling of being in someone’s home rather than lost in a busy or non-descript building. Nash’s decor reminds me of restaurants such as the Veranda in Fort Myers and, the now closed, Strawberry Mansion in Melbourne. Nash’s is an Italian and Cajun restaurant with an Acadian influence who’s head chef is very well known. My cousins couldn’t recommend this restaurant enough to us, so I was stoked to try out the menu.

Even though we had been on a non-stop seafood eating marathon for the entire trip, you just cannot travel to Louisiana and eat anything but seafood; at least a true Cajun should not. I started with a cup of the Seafood Gumbo (~$6) and, trying to stay in the theme of the cuisine, ordered the Shrimp Creole (~$13) with the Italian Olive Mix (+~$2) salad. Others at the table ordered cups of the Shrimp, Crab, and Corn Bisque (~$6) and Chicken and Sausage Gumbo (~$6) along with the Crab Cakes (~$13), Mini Seafood Platter (~$13), the Open-face Roast Beef Sandwich (~$10), and the Seafood Salad (~$13). The seafood gumbo didn’t miss a beat although I did have to season it a bit more than expected. It was a combination of lump crab meat, shrimp, and crawfish made with a traditional roux. It was also served with a large de-shelled crawfish claw which was the perfect garnish for the dish. I heard similar comments about the other soups at the table. The salad was made from a bed of Italian greens with tomatoes, many different type of pitted olives, a quarter of a boiled egg, and dressed with a muffaletta olive mixture that brought every bite together. I will say that for the entree I was a bit disappointed. When I typically think of Shrimp Creole, I picture a sort of rustic dish made with large Gulf shrimp and generously cut portions of pepper and onion in a tomato-based sauce that has a bit of a kick to it. This dish had relatively small pieces of pepper and onion, the shrimp were much smaller than I expected, and without a spicy kick in the sauce, the tomato flavor was a bit more than I expected. That being said, the overall flavor of the dish was still good. The other meals at the table were extremely delicious. The crab cakes were served on a fried eggplant and I believe were made with blue crab meat, so they were had that savory and sweet combination going for them. The “mini” seafood platter was much larger than we expected having fried oysters, shrimp, and catfish. The seafood salad was also a good portion coming with grilled shrimp, salmon, and another seafood item over a bed of what looked like romaine and other veggies. At the end of the meal, our waitress brought out fresh-baked French bread rolls which she had forgotten to bring earlier. We were all full, but the bread was so fresh and hot, we each had to sample a bit of it, just so it didn’t go to waste.

We skipped out on dessert, but I have to say although the lunch entree wasn’t everything I expected, the meal as a whole did not disappoint. If you like spicy food, make sure you request it when you order, but don’t let that discourage you from the great flavors on the menu. The Amberjack with Seafood Au Gratin sauce looked amazing, so I’ll have to make my way back one day. I’ve been told that every occupant of this building has done an amazing job with their food, and Nash’s Restaurant is no exception. Although, it’s a bit of a hike for those Lafayette folks, it’s definitely worth the visit. Don’t be coo-yôn; give Nash’s a try.

Nash’s Restaurant is located at 101 East 2nd Street Broussard, Louisiana.

Having just returned from Louisiana I can definitely say I ate well and often. Since we spent most of our time at our relatives’ homes enjoying crawfish boils, étouffée, rice dressing, po-boys, BBQ, and other favorites there was little reason to go out, but we did get a chance to try a few good places. Early in the trip we found ourselves at Frey’s Crawfish House in Jennings for a family reunion.

Frey’s occupies a large space in the new “Grand Marais Courtyard” building right off of Lake Arthur Avenue, the main strip in Jennings. As with most restaurants in Louisiana, they specialize in Cajun food (if you couldn’t tell from the name). They’ve kept the decor light and easy-going with various juju’s, photos, and murals of Cajun mascots and culture. The restaurant has a full bar in the back with a large set of tables in the main area, booths lining the side wall, and a register up-front.

When we settled in to order, I was pleasantly surprised to see all of my favorites on the menu. Being that I can never seem to get good Catfish in Florida, I decided to give the small catfish platter a try (~$10), ordering it with a side of steamed vegetables. The meal was preceded by an iceberg lettuce salad and when the entree arrived it was accompanied by a small cup of jambalaya. The jambalaya was a mixed combination of white rice, lump crab meat, shrimp, and crawfish in a tomato-based sauce which was, on a whole, nice and spicy. The catfish was breaded in a seasoned cornmeal mixture and fried being served in a 3 half-fillet portion. The steamed veggies were a combination of yellow carrots, red peppers, green beans, and squash (I believe). Overall a comforting meal, with perfectly sized and tasty portions. There were about 14 dining in total, so luckily, we got a chance to try out a good portion of the menu. The Shrimp Po-boy and Oyster Po-boy (~$9 each) were served with a really generous amount of fried seafood, lettuce, and tatar sauce. I saw a gentleman across the restaurant who had a huge order of rice and gravy that looked delicious, but by that point any more food would have done me in; I definitely had to pace myself for the eating marathon that is vacationing in Louisiana.

Overall, Frey’s Crawfish House is a great local restaurant that is doing Jennings proud. I love the fact that they have a website with a menu with prices on it; most big city restaurants can’t even seem to get that right. I can’t imagine that there are many local dining choices like Frey’s in Jennings, so if you find yourself traveling, out by exit 64 on I-10, take the time to stop by and enjoy a great Cajun meal.

Frey’s Crawfish House is located at 919-A-North Lake Arthur Avenue, Jennings, Louisiana.

So today included even more traveling and visiting and, on our way back from Baton Rouge, we found ourselves taking the scenic route back to Lafayette on Highway 190. We were hunger (as I always am) so we stopped by Not Your Mama’s Cafe and Tavern at the advise of my aunt. This was an awesome suggestion; I am so glad we stopped here to dine. The restaurant itself is in the middle of no where, but is in an awesome building. The interior is lined with hilarious signs in typical Cajun humor. The bathrooms are even cool, with old style hand water pump-like facets. The building itself is large and from what I was told is always packed for dinner.

We did a lupper (lunch + supper) and kept our order somewhat light this time. We ordered a half and half po-boy (~$12) with fried shrimp and crawfish, a few cups of seafood gumbo (~$5), a cup of the shrimp and corn soup (~$5), and an order of bread pudding (~$7). The meal came with a heavy, but fresh baked bread that tasted great. The seafood gumbo was made with a really dark roux, but had some nice chunks of shrimp and crab in it. The corn soup was creamy and mild and had a great flavor. The po-boy was amazing, filled with lightly battered and tender crawfish and shrimp and topped with lettuce, tomato, and tartar sauce. It also came with fries which were nothing special. The bread pudding for dessert replaced the bread pudding from Frezzo’s as the best I’ve ever had. It had a few cherries baked into a very sweet white bread covered with a praline and rum sauce, served hot. Holy crap … the bread pudding was so soft and sweet it was sinful. I would drive out to the country anytime to eat it, it was amazing!

Overall, Not Your Mama’s is a great restaurant off the beaten path if you live in the Acadiana area. Dining here made a stupendous end of my trip to Louisiana. If you’ve driven by this establishment on Highway 190 and wondered if you should go in, smack yourself for not doing so.

Not Your Mama’s Cafe and Tavern is located at 9025 Highway 190, Livonia, LA 70755.

So it’s been a busy few days. Visiting family always works up quite an appetite. We went out to Zea’s last night in Lafayette and I had a great trout dish (but they are a chain, so they can find their own press). Tonight after visiting the farm and more family, we made our way out to Fezzo’s in Scott for some great Cajun food. My cousin used to waitress at the restaurant and she said that even after doing so, she’d still eat there. That said a lot to me, so I was excited to go.

Again we had a big party at the restaurant and I didn’t see too much of what everyone ordered, but as always I’ll do my best to remember. Now, you have to keep in mind that I haven’t sat down to peel a big bucket of crawfish as of yet, so there was only one thing on my mind. As luck would have it, the special, with the start of season, was boiled crawfish. Fezzo’s had a 3 lb (~$15) and a 5 lb (~$20) portion, each of which came with corn and red potatoes (please keep in mind these were the market prices when we dined, they may change). I ordered the 3 lb portion, at the risk of my cholesterol causing a stroke, spicy along with an Abita Purple Haze. The beer was as sweet as juice, but it didn’t matter, it was time to eat. We also ordered the Fried Boudin Balls (~$7) to start and they were delicious. I still would like to get some boudin from the meat market next to Fezzo’s tomorrow, but man these were good. By the time we were done eating those, my crawfish was ready. My cousin ordered the same and we both dove in. She, and her super metabolism, finished well before me, but it was only because I was savoring what I hadn’t had in so long … authentic Louisiana crawfish. By the time I was done, I had a few stains on my shirt and my hands stunk, but boy was I satisfied. After washing my hands with a salt, lemon juice, and soap concoction that my cousin threw together, I was stink free. Someone at the table got Fezzo’s Cajun Trio (~$14) which gave you the choice of 3 things (gumbo, etouffee, or bisque); they said the crab and corn bisque was excellent.

Now I have tried to restrain myself from indulging in dessert (mainly due to my promise for Lent), but the bread pudding (~$7) was too much to resist. The pudding came soaked in a type of sweet cream, cinnamon, and sugar and topped with a sweet vanilla icing. It was served hot and the portion was huge (enough to split). This was by far the best bread pudding I have ever eaten. After eating everything I realized I was completely stuffed.

Fezzo’s is a great Cajun restaurant and I’m really glad that I was able to make a stop there before I leave Louisiana and head back to Florida. I’d definitely recommend it to anyone traveling in the area; the locals definitely seem to like it.

Fezzo’s, that I dined at, is located at 109 Benoit Patin Rd, Scott, LA.

NOTE: My cousin’s boyfriend was able to get a hold of a six pack of a seasonal Abita beer for me which was made using strawberries. From what he and my other cousin’s husband said, it’s always under demand, so I’m extremely grateful for the gift. I wanted to try one tonight, but I’m going to let them chill overnight so I can enjoy them even more.

Tonight I finally got into Lafayette and boy did I eat well; for dinner, the whole family went out to Don’s Seafood Hut. I have great memories from childhood and years past of going to Don’s. In fact, in our family, Don’s is somewhat of a tradition; everyone from my grandmother to my cousins children are long time patrons. Don’s has been around for long time and has always served some great food.

This evening a large party of us dined together, so I’ve dropped the ball on the pricing info I usually provide, but I do have a run down of the orders. I ordered a cup of the shrimp and okra gumbo (~$4) and the small crawfish etouffee (~$12) which both came with white rice as well as a sweet tea (~$2). Some of the others at the table ordered the spicy catfish (~$15) which was served over rice with shrimp and crab etouffee, crab au gratin (~$12), crawfish au gratin (~$12), and the shrimp dinner which came with a great selection of tasty shrimp dishes (~$21). Dinner was served with garlic french bread and we also ordered an appetizer of the fried mushrooms to start. All of the food was hot and fresh and best of all, tasted great. I’ve been away so long, I’d forgotten what real Lousiana crawfish and etouffee taste like; I’m now convinced that most Cajun places I go to serve Chinese crawfish which are definitely of a lesser caliber. Funny enough, my relatives told me that the premium for Louisiana crawfish is pretty high right now because they can’t find enough people to peel the tail meat due to the legal reform occurring with respect to illegal workers. For now it looks like live and boiled is the way to go for the cost conscience diner.

Don’s Seafood Hut hasn’t changed much from what I remember growing up. That being said, I’m pretty absent minded, so it’s possible it has changed and I just don’t remember things well. Regardless of the situation, the food served at this establishment is delicious. Our server was attentive and considering it was a seafood restaurant, pricing was within reason for most dishes. This was a definite treat for a nostalgic trip home. If you find yourself in the area, you owe it to yourself to stop by; there is a reason they’ve been in business for 20+ years.

Don’s Seafood Hut is located at 4309 Johnston Street, Lafayette, LA 70503.

I’m always looking for Cajun places that serve dishes that remind me of home. I was ecstatic when I found Jackamo’s New Orleans Kitchen near my office but I always hoped there was something a little closer to home for when the cravings hit. Recently, my wife found Lafitte’s, a restaurant located in the Hilton Rialto near the Melbourne Airport. Usually I abstain from reviewing restaurants that are part of a franchise, but from looking at the website, there are only 8 locations nationwide, so that’s few enough for me to consider this place somewhat local. Ok, problem rationalized.

Lafitte’s labels itself as a New Orleans style restaurant serving the stereotypical Cajun and Creole dishes including poy boys, gumbo, and etouffee. My father-in-law and I decided to give it a shot since our wives aren’t too much on this particular type of cuisine. We ordered a bowl of the chicken and sausage gumbo (~$6), a cup of the seafood gumbo (~$3), the shrimp creole (~$10), crawfish etouffee (~$8), and an order of bread pudding (~$5). They use the hotel bar for drinks which doesn’t have any draft beer, just your usual bottles, so we skipped the beer. Since we went on the weekend before Madi Gras, each entree we ordered came with a free dessert which unfortunately did not include bread pudding, so we decided to put in a separate order for one. We got the gumbo first. The bowl was meal sized and the cup was what I expect for a cup of soup. Next we got a couple of baby green salads topped with tomato, cucumber, and red onion. Our meals came soon after and the first thing I noticed was that they weren’t very hot. The etouffee was topped with a boiled crawfish that was cold in fact. The shrimp creole came with what looked like a couple of grilled shrimp laid on a bed of sauce along with some steamed veggies (broccoli, carrots, etc) and both meals also came with white rice. The entrees were again average, the roux was a little dark, and nothing compared to the homemade dishes of my youth. It may seem like I’m being a little hard on the restaurant at this point, but I forgot to note … WE WERE THE ONLY PEOPLE IN THE 30+ TABLE RESTAURANT. Where everyone was, I have no idea, but the absence of warm bodies was very discouraging (it was a Saturday night). After the meal, we got the bread pudding. I would categorize the serving size as “sliver”. The dessert was good being baked with apples and raisins topped with a sweet icing and chocolate syrup, but come on, $5 for a portion that small? In the end, it took forever to get the check handled, but the waitress was young and seemed to be new so we gave her a break.

I had higher expectations for Lafitte’s. I was thinking it’d be a Jackamo’s like restaurant in a formal dining setting, and I think that caused me to be disappointed. I would equate Lafitte’s to restaurants like Landry’s which have tried to popularize Cajun cuisine but are pretty average in terms of food quality and menu selection. I think they stay in business because of the surrounding office building and hotel conference center. If you live in the Melbourne area and want to give it a try, go for it, but don’t have high expectations. It’s definitely representative of what people have come to expect Cajun cooking to be (which is unfortunate), but it doesn’t remind me of Mom’s great homemade dishes.

Lafitte’s is located in the Hilton Rialto near the Melbourne Airport at 200 Rialto Place, Melbourne, FL.

NOTE: Jackamo’s has shut it doors and stopped the flow of bread pudding to the Orlando area. It is a sad day.

When I went off to college, I had a lot of hard realizations to deal with. My laundry needed to be done more than once a month, class was intended to be attended at every session, and the homemade Cajun dishes my Mom made didn’t make themselves. After 6 years and way too many attempts to find a reasonably priced, tasty Cajun restaurant, I returned to the Central Florida area to find Jockamo’s New Orleans Kitchen. After one visit, all of the greatness of my Mom’s cooking was relived. Even better, a rotating menu every day of the week has guaranteed my return for as long as I live in Central Florida.

Jockamo’s has a small spot in a strip mall next to a Dunkin Donuts and Five Guys and is always packed for lunch. Their menu has a great selection of po’boys including crawfish, oyster, catfish, and grouper. Jambalya and red beans and rice, with or without sausage, are also available daily. Now don’t get me wrong, their regular menu is great, but it’s the daily specials that’ll make you go back. Different types of etouffee, gumbo, fish, and bread pudding are available. For lunch, I ordered a large crawfish and shrimp etoufee (~$6) and the banana foster’s bread pudding (~$5) with a regular drink ($1.50). The roux they use for their all of their dishes reminds me of Mom’s home cooking and that’s pretty hard to do. I’ve also tried the cherries jubilee and peach bread pudding and they don’t disappoint either. Additionally, they have a homemade strudel, but I haven’t seen it on the menu in a while.

With the start of crawfish season, Jockamo’s doesn’t miss a beat. They’ve started their seasonal boil every other Saturday from 11:00 AM until the supply runs out. Each order comes with bucket of boiled crawfish and some traditional sides (potato, corn, etc). The first boil starts on January 12th and then January 19th, after that they resume their bi-weekly schedule. I haven’t had a chance to make it out to one of these yet, but I will this year. It’s been too long since my last one.

The way that Jockamo’s runs their restaurant makes me proud to be a Cajun in Central Florida. Jockamo’s does a great job at exposing the rustic nature of Cajun cuisine to the masses at truly reasonable price. For anyone who hasn’t visited Jockamo’s New Orleans Kitchen, you are missing out. Patronizing them will be one of the best decisions you’ll ever make about dining … “I GARONTEE!” (the late, great Justin Wilson).

Jackamo’s New Orleans Kitchen is located at 3042 W Sand Lake Rd, Orlando, FL.