Subscribe To The
Five-Star Edition!

Shrimp remoulade.

This review originally appeared in the New Orleans Menu Daily, which brings out a full, up-to-date restaurant review every weekday. Along with local restaurant news, top-ten lists, recipes, and Tom Fitzmorris's Dining Diary. All of it is original and current, illustrated with lots of photos of New Orleans restaurants, chefs, and their food.

The price of a subscription is whatever number of dollars seems right to you. For that amount, you get full access to the daily newsletter online, an e-mail bulletin version every day, and archives of everything published since Hurricane Katrina.

If you're still not convinced, do two things: 1. Know that I'll refund all your money if you're not happy. 2. Take a look at this sample edition. Then. . .

Thank you!

Tastefully yours,
Tom Fitzmorris

Restaurant Ratings

The ratings are based mostly on the degree to which the food excites us, and a little on environment, service, and other considerations. I rate restaurants relative to all other restaurants in the New Orleans area. Here's what the stars mean to me:

starstarstarstarstar
Among the best locally.

starstarstarstar
Excellent and ambitious.

starstarstar
Worth crossing town for.

starstar
Recommended.

*
Acceptable.

No star
Unacceptable.

Cost Ratings
Each dollar sign indicates a ten-dollar range, including a normal meal for the restaurant (dinner, if they serve other meals), not including drinks, or tips. So, for example. . .

1$--$5-15
2$--$15-25
3$--$25-35

. . . and so on, with no upper limit. While this scheme may suggest mathematical precision, know that perception of price varies from diner to diner as much as the star ratings do. So consider this an estimate.

All reviews are based entirely on meals I have personally taken at the restaurant and paid for from my own pocket. I don't take free review meals, nor am I reimbursed by anybody for my restaurant expenditures.

starstar
pricebar

Brothers

Neighborhood Cafe. Sandwiches. Seafood.
Harvey: 1502 Lapalco Blvd. 504-366-1073. Map.
Lunch and dinner continuously Monday-Saturday.
Casual.
AE DS MC V

WHY IT'S NOTEWORTHY
The problem with the suburbs is that they don't have neighborhoods the way the city does. Nobody walks anywhere. So not many neighborhood restaurants get off the ground. This one did. It's been a popular eatery almost since the day Lapalco Boulevard was opened to traffic. It's been around long enough to have become legendary among West Bankers. The menu is pure New Orleans everyday eating: poor boy sandwiches, fried seafood platters, red beans on Monday, gumbo, bread pudding. And breakfast.

WHY IT'S GOOD
They've cooked everything the same way for so long here that there's no danger of creeping Syscoism. The roast beef for the poor boys, beans for the daily specials, olive salad for the muffulettas and everything else is made on site. The recipes work. The roast beef sandwich is exceptional. Tied for second place are the specials (great beans) and the soups. The seafood is a bit more variable, but still worth getting. The breakfast is reasonably decent, but not a major specialty.

BACKSTORY
The place opened in 1975, but the Abadie brothers made it what it is when they bought it in 1980. Their menu includes a litany of all the great New Orleans neighborhood restaurants whose example the Abadies try to follow.

DINING ROOM
The somewhat run-down strip-mall-style exterior might dissuade first-timers, but the dining room is actually more pleasant than most restaurants like this.

ESSENTIAL DISHES
Seafood okra gumbo.
Chicken-andouille gumbo.
Oyster-artichoke soup.

Poor boy sandwiches:
Roast beef.
Ham (especially grilled).
Hamburger.
Smoked or hot sausage.
Barbecue beef.
Fried oyster, shrimp, or catfish.
Grilled cheese sandwich.
Muffuletta.
Fried seafood platters.

Daily specials:
Red beans (Monday).
Hamburger steak (Wednesday).
White beans (Thursday).
Bread pudding.
Basic breakfasts.
Pancakes.
Omelettes.

FOR BEST RESULTS
For an additional three or four dollars, a poor boy comes with a small cup of gumbo and fries. The red or white beans can be had with fried catfish, a better combination than it sounds.

OPPORTUNITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT
If they would routinely heat the bread for the poor boys but not for the muffulettas, both would be even better.

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

SPECIAL ATTRIBUTES

This review was updated with new information on 3/29/2010.

A list of over 325 full, current reviews is here.