From The New Orleans Menu Daily By Tom Fitzmorris Originally published April 12, 2006 Bear's Post-Storm Ratings: B, 1$ Mandeville: 1809 N Causeway Blvd. 985-674-9090 Lunch and dinner Mon.-Sat. AE, DC, DS, MC, V. Bear's began in Mandeville, but moved to Covington a long time ago, selling terrific, oversize, overloaded poor boys in a rough-and-ready former convenience store that was just a little over the threshold of shabbiness for me. (I ate there anyway.) Now they've opened a second location, in a strip mall on Causeway Boulevard at the busy intersection with LA 22. (It's behind the much more obvious Fazzio's.) The new Bear's is still not what you could call fancy, but it's much more presentable than the old place. And somehow the food is actually better. The roast beef poor boy they cook and assemble here comes very close to getting a perfect rating; the only thing lacking is toasted French bread. However, the hot, thinly-sliced beef itself is laid on in such quantity--apparently straight out of the gravy--that it warms the sandwich up on its own. They serve a small one for seven bucks and a large one for nine. I have no idea who can possibly finish a big one, because trying to stuff down the small tests my capacity severely. Indeed, I would give up three-fourths of the way through were the thing not as good as it is. Bear's menu is abbreviated, but also includes a fine broiled ham poor boy and hamburgers. And fried seafood. The place is packed from 11:30 a.m. till about 2:30, so be forewarned. This is one of the two or three best poor boy joints in the entire metro area. Click here to return to today's edition. Click here for an index of all restaurant reviews. © 2006 Tom Fitzmorris. All rights reserved. news@nomenu.com.