Chad's Bistro. Metairie: 3216 W. Esplanade Ave. 504-838-9935.

Last Updated on Thursday, 20 December 2012 09:48

Restaurants - Neighborhood Cafe

Chad's Bistro

Metairie: 3216 W Esplanade Ave. 504-838-9935. Map.
Casual.
AE DC MC V
Website

WHY IT'S NOTEWORTHY
Chad's is a neighborhood restaurant with an enormous menu that takes in everything from sandwiches to seafood to pizzas to Italian. The seafood is the best part menu, from the simple standards to the more complex daily specials. The best reason to come here is that Chad's is almost alone in serving the old-style "seafood boat"--a loaf of toasted, buttered bread filled with fried shrimp and oysters.

WHAT'S GOOD
The menu is reminiscent of the those in big mid-range restaurant of thirty years ago. Unlike those, however, the kitchen tends to do a better job with the more complicated fare than with the basics. (It's usually the other way around in places like this.) Everything is prepared to order, if not always delivered as rapidly as you might like.

BACKSTORY
Chad's opened in 2005, before the hurricane. It honors the memory of Chad Barcia, a high school football star who died tragically on the rugby field. The rather nice dining rooms were inherited from the brilliant French bistro Crozier's, which operated here for about fifteen years before morphing into The French Table and then Mirabelle.

DINING ROOM
The restaurant is in a nondescript strip mall, but previous restaurants here left behind a pair of presentable, airy dining rooms and an ample bar. The larger front dining room is the more atmospheric. The waiters are not the kids you find in most moderate restaurants, but more experienced people who seem to have done this for awhile. They give better advice about the food than most servers can. The bar attracts a youngish crowd in the late evenings.

ESSENTIAL DISHES
starters
Spinach artichoke dip
»Stuffed artichoke
Lump crab cakes, remoulade sauce
Tuna stuffed tomato
Fried chicken tenders
»Fried calamari, marinara sauce
»Fried artichoke hearts, spicy ranch sauce
Fried eggplant, marinara sauce
»Crabmeat au gratin
Fried house-made mozzarella, marinara sauce
Eggplant napoleon (crispy eggplant slices, charred tomatoes, fried shrimp, pecans, green onion vinaigrette)
House salad
Wedge salad
»Caesar salad
Shrimp & spinach salad, red onions, feta, pepper vinaigrette
»Lump crabmeat salad, smoked gouda, citrus vinaigrette, dried cranberries, pecans
Italian salad
Mixed green salad

Soups
Cream of broccoli (MO)
Creole onion (TU)
»Artichoke parmesan (WE)
Creamy potato (TH)
»Shrimp and corn bisque (FR)
»Seafood gumbo

Sandwiches
»Fried shrimp, oyster, catfish, stuffed crab or soft shell crab poor boy
Hamburger,
Fried or grilled chicken
Tuna croissant
»Chicken or veal parmesan, focaccia bread
Ham, turkey, bacon, cheese, lettuce, tomato, Texas toast
Filet steak sandwich, mozzarella, horseradish cream sauce, focaccia bread
Turkey croissant melt

Entrees
Pizzas to order
»Ribeye steak or filet mignon, with sautéed mushrooms, shrimp, crabmeat bordelaise, or crawfish-mushroom sauce
Fried shrimp, oyster, catfish, soft-shell crab or combination platter
Stuffed crab or shrimp platter
»»Seafood boat (fried shrimp, oysters and catfish, a toasted, buttered bread boat
Herb-crusted tilapia
Pan-seared ahi tuna, spinach, roasted potatoes, gorgonzola cream sauce
»Crabmeat ravioli, Parmesan cream sauce
Fried soft shell crab, sauteed shrimp, pasta, lemon butter sauce
Italian sausage, bell peppers, onions, marinara sauce, pasta
Pasta primavera (sauteed vegetables, marinara, mozzarella)
Veal or chicken parmesan
»Veal or chicken piccata (lemon butter, capers, pasta)
»Veal or chicken Alfredo (panneed, pasta, parmesan-mushroom cream sauce)
Sauteed crawfish, roasted garlic, mushrooms, green onions, white wine cream sauce
»Shrimp, crabmeat and/or oysters on pasta, lemon butter cream sauce
Desserts
»Strawberry beignets for two
»Creme brulee

FOR BEST RESULTS
The Italian food here is just passable. With several excellent Italian restaurants nearby, it's not a good choice. Avoid the tilapia in favor of local fish.

OPPORTUNITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT
The menu is unmanageably large. The specials they make with seafood--particularly on the grill--make me think that part of the menu could be enhanced. When you arrive, there's often nobody at the door to greet you.

FACTORS OTHER THAN FOOD
Up to three points, positive or negative, for these characteristics. Absence of points denotes average performance in the matter.

• Dining Environment +1
• Consistency
• Service
• Value +1
• Attitude +1
• Wine and Bar
• Hipness
• Local Color

SPECIAL ATTRIBUTES

• Good for business meetings
• Medium private room
• Open Sunday lunch and dinner
• Open Monday lunch and dinner
• Open all afternoon
• Unusually large servings
• Quick, good meal
• Good for children
• Easy, nearby parking
• Reservations honored promptly

CE NE