Carmine's Italian and Seafood Grille, Metairie, LA - New Favorite?

Carmine's Italian Seafood Grille

Metairie, LA

Dinner

March 28, 2010

The Set-Up - My family picked me up at the New Orleans Airport in suburban Kenner after I returned from a trip to Florida. Too hungry and tired to make it back to Baton Rouge without dinner, I suggested we eat sooner rather than later. We ventured up Veterans Boulevard without a target in mind. To our good fortune, after just a couple of miles we found Carmine's Italian Seafood Grille in Metairie, LA.

The Meal - Kallie was undecided between angel hair pasta with meat sauce or meatballs. I told her to get the former with a side of meatballs. We ended up with four delicious meals - one for Kallie in the restaurant and three helpings of leftovers at home of the best restaurant spaghetti I've ever eaten. I also enjoyed my order - grilled tilapia with a crawfish cream sauce. Kay had lasagna with hamburger, sausage and spinach. The salads were fresh with a very nice Italian dressing. No one left either hungry or disappointed. My only complaint was that the bread came out late and in small crispy pieces. I would have preferred it earlier and softer.

Drinks - The standard assortment of iced tea, Coke and red wine. I may have had to dilute the tea, or that might have been at a different restaurant. Memory fails me now.


Ambience - The decorations at the entrance are a bit off-putting - almost bizarre, but the dining area is more traditional, except perhaps for the paintings of various European scenes on the tabletops. Our table featured the Arc D'Triomph, or an unknown Italian monument that greatly resembles it.

Service - As I remember, the service was quite good, once we understood the menu. Our waitress made the excellent suggestion of getting the fish broiled or grilled rather than pan sauteed. I was just trying to avoid deep fried.

The Check - I'm working from memory again. About $65 with tax and tip for three, including two glasses of wine at $7.50 each. Not bad, especially given the high quality of the food and the excellent leftovers.

The Scoreboard (one-to-five scale)

Food - 4.5 - marked down just slightly for the bread

Drinks - 3.5 - the wine seemed a little pricey

Ambience - 3.5 - maybe a little too distracting

Service - 4 - competent but not memorable

Price/Value - 4.5 - worth an intentional trip someday


Overall Assessment

Special Occasion

Favorite

Very Good - with the possibility of becoming a favorite; at least when we're in the neighborhood.

Good Enough

If Hungry Enough

Keep Driving and Looking


Other Info

4101 Veterans Memorial Blvd, Metairie, LA 70002
(504) 455-7904

Hours:

Closed Monday
Tues - Thurs 11 to 9
Fri - Sat - 11 to 10
Sun 11 to 8

http://www.carminesonline.com/

Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen - Beaumont, TX - One (and perhaps the only) Good Reason to Stop in Beaumont

Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen

Beaumont, TX

Early Dinner

January 22, 2010

The Set-Up - We were on our way home from Houston and determined to correct our mistake of stopping to eat in Winnie, TX. We persevered the additional twenty miles to I-10 Exit 848 (Walden Road) for an early dinner (3 p.m.) at an old favorite, Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen on the west side of Beaumont, TX.

The Meal - Pappadeaux has an extensive menu of primarily seafood items, but our game plan was simple. Eat soft shell crabs and get back on the road. Kay likes hers broiled; I prefer fried. Either way, two large crabs go for $17.95. Just two more dollars gets the third crab, which I usually order, but on a medicine day I knew I couldn't finish three.

The broiled plate usually comes with dirty rice, but Kay substituted and enjoyed spaghetti squash, which is hard to describe. The stringy meat is carved out of the shell, al a acorn squash, rather than the squash being cut up or julienned and served whole, like yellow squash or zucchini. Kay said she liked it, but she concentrated on the crabs. As usual, the fried crabs came with a two-pound (estimated weight) mound of french fries. They're good, but I was concentrating on crabs and reducing sodium intake, so I only ate a few.

The crabs were so good that I forgot to mention one of the highlights of a meal at Pappadeaux. In New Orleans style, the meal starts with a loaf of warm, soft French bread wrapped in a towel. You have to limit yourself to one piece by reminding yourself that a large plate of delicious food is coming soon.

Pappadeaus fries their crabs in a spicy batter. I ate at a sister restaurant, Pappas Seafood House in on I-10 in Houston, where they didn't add any spice to the batter. The crabs weren't nearly as good. Pappas Seafood House (Lil Pap) in downtown Houston uses the same preparation as Pappadeaux.

I can't speak from experience about the broiled crabs, but Kay always raves about them and eats every bite. Over the years we've kept tabs on which Gulf Coast restaurant serves the best soft shell crabs. Pappadeaux is the new leader. Gaido's in Galveston, TX has comparable (albeit more expensive) food, but is 50 miles out of the way for the Houston-bound traveler.

Drinks - Since we were on the road, we stuck with iced tea, which was delicious.

Ambience - Pappas restaurants are always delightfully decorated without going overboard, ala the similarly-themed Joe's Crab Shack from the Darden chain. My photos should give you a good feel for the place. Pappadeaux is a big restaurant and can be noisy on weekends.

Service - Friendly and efficient, although our waiter was a little slow to bring both our bread and our check. Maybe we devoured our food faster than he expected.

The Check - Early dinner (without alcohol) for two with tax and tip came to $53.


The Scoreboard (one-to-five scale)

Food - five (albeit based on limited sampling of the menu)

Drinks - four (iced tea can't exceed four unless it's good and free)

Ambience - five (typical first-class Pappas establishment - surprisingly so for a chain)

Service - four (just a little out of synch)

Price/Value - five (for dinner - probably four for lunch, assuming you ate soft shell crabs. They have a lunch menu, but no lower-priced crab offering on it.)


Overall Assessment

Special Occasion

Favorite - I'm not sure that any restaurant in Beaumont can receive Special Occasion status. The similar Gaido's in Galveston would probably rate in that category.

Very Good

Good Enough

If Hungry Enough

Keep Driving and Looking


Other Info - If you're in the Houston area, there are two Pappadeaux restaurants - one at 13080 Highway 290 (northwest of Houston) and the other at 10499 Katy Freeway (westside). Also try Pappas Seafood House (Lil Pap) at 3001 S. Shepherd in downtown Houston for similar fare. Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen also has locations around the US - Arlington Heights, IL, Westminster, CO, Alpharetta and Marietta, GA and Phoenix, AZ.

Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen
4040 I-10 South
Beaumont, TX 77705
(409) 842-1339

Hours:

Monday thru Thursday - 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.

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

Sunday - 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.


Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen