NOLA Surprises and General Posts

First, thanks to this board for some great recs. Here are some surprises from our trip: 1) Felix's still less crowded than Acme even though their char-grilled oysters are the BEST. The line moves more quickly too. 2) Stanley's gumbo was the best of the trip - everything else there was meh, but the gumbo was deep, dark, rich and not too much roux. 3) Biscuits/bread were mediocre except the biscuits at Brennans which were moist, rich and yet light; and the foccacio at Doris Metropolitan. 4) the best Pimms Cups were also the cheapest - at Napoleon House; 5) biscuits/gravy breakfasts are cheap in even fancy breakfast places, so go to Criollo and get a large plate of them for $6; 6) Surprisingly good Bloody Mary's at the racetrack. And Key Lime pie. (Everything else sucked, which was no surprise.)

Felix's remains great. Chargrilled oysters - perfectly cooked. Hot, juicy, just enough garlic and butter to make it addictive. The other stuffed oysters were good, but not as amazing, and more filling. The snapper had a lot of meat, but was a bit too tomato-y for my taste. The shrimp dishes are all good - never an overcooked piece. And if you are sick of fried foods - get the blackened grill shrimp or the shrimp and grits. The grilled shrimp came with surprisingly good grilled veggies. AVOID the pecan pie. I love the down home atmosphere of Felix's.

Conti cafe - if you get there early enough, there is no line. It is quiet, like an oasis, and the grits bowls are great. The prices are reasonable for the French Quarter.

Cafe Adelaide's - had some good dishes, we had a good Thanksgiving meal (leaving out some horrific service gaps) and the fixed price menu is reasonable. Turtle soup and roast duck were the highlights. Turkey with all the fixings was also great.

Brennan's: had to take my daughter there, who dutifully got eggs sardou with plain hollandaise. Best hollandasse I've had in a while. I had the rabbit and eggs dish which was quite good. The eggs were so fresh and perfectly cooked - an often overlooked detail at fancy brunch places. My husband liked the eggs cardinale - I thought the lobster rice cake was heavy on the rice. The biscuits were amazing, best of the trip. And of course, the bananas foster - a wonderful end to a gourmet breakfast. Service was excellent and the courtyard setting was relaxing and very authentic NOLA. After several years of tired food at Brennans, they are back, or at least our breakfast was.

Roosevelt Hotel Bars - I love the Sazerac bar - the bartenders are always knowledgeable and cute. And the ramos gin fizz is good - if split with someone else because it is very rich. The drinks are overpriced, but who cares, the decor is early 20th century NOLA. And on Tuesdays the Fountain Lounge has half price champagne cocktails with Veuve Cliquot at less than $10 a glass. The food is so-so - the fried goat cheese salad was fun to split.

Criollo: want a cheap great breakfast in a fancy restaurant? Order the plate of biscuits and gravy for $6 - terrific. Get two eggs on the side and split the whole thing with a friend.

Angeline - less touristy and the large back room is quiet - specify the back room when you reserve or you will get the hellhole that is the front room. The night we went, the menu was smaller than what was posted on Yelp and had a lot more pork. Everything looked pretty heavy - there were less fish entrees than I would have liked. The spoon bread is great-better than the just okay rabbit milanese it came with. The crispy cauliflower app was flavorful and shareable. My daughter has many allergies and the chef was really great about accommodating them.

Redfish - WTF? I liked that it had local fish with and without Cajun spices and that it was a relaxed, quiet place. But the prices were about 30% higher than they should be. The alligator boudin balls - just taste like the regular ones. My trout was a tiny portion and the redfish was overcooked. The blackened drum was ok - but, once again, too pricey for what you get.

Jimmy J's Cafe - why do people breakfast there? We had a very nice breakfast, with a side plate of fried tomatoes, and the cost before tip and tax was $46 for two people. For that price - go to Brennans! One of the best po-boys of the trip was the fried shrimp and fried green tomato they served as a special.

R'evolution - for a fancy restaurant, this was seriously uneven. The turtle soup was the best of the trip but the highly touted death by gumbo was so-so. Gluhwein duck was perfectly cooked high quality duck in a tasteless sauce (I've had gluhwein, this isn't it) accompanied by more duck (bacon). There were no vegetables or anything astringent to counter the duck richness, so it was almost inedible.I wanted to ask for chutney! The saffron seafood bouillebaisse had fantastic fish and meh seafood. Stingy on the broth! The sorbets - blood orange and roasted lemon - were both good, not great. The service and ambiance were on point.