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.

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.