French.
Warehouse District: 700 Tchoupitoulas. 504-613-2350. Map.
Breakfast, lunch and dinner seven days. Sunday brunch.
Nice Casual.
AE DC DS MC V
Website
WHY IT'S NOTEWORTHY
In one of the strongest restaurant neighborhoods in the city (Tommy's, RioMar, Emeril's, Cafe Adelaide, and A Mano are near neighbors), La Cote Brasserie battles is by quite a bit the least appreciated. Chef Chuck Subra's menu takes a fresh, light approach to French bistro cooking, with a scattering of Creole flavors, too. And they have an oyster bar. But because it's in a hotel, it's rarely busy. It's a good place to remember when every other restaurant is packed, and on holidays. They're open for all of them
WHY IT'S GOOD
The quality of the raw materials is beyond reproach, reflected especially in the nightly offerings of whole fish and an unusually large variety of fresh oysters. The chef has a strong creative bent, and among classics like bouillabaisse and steamed mussels (two major specialties, as good as you'll find them anywhere else) are unique items like the cured pork chop and smoked barbecue shrimp.
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BACKSTORY
It's the all-day restaurant of the Renaissance Arts Hotel, a superb adaptive renovation of a historic (1910) industrial building in the Warehouse District. In the beginning, La Cote Brasserie's food was managed by Chef Rene Bajeux, who left after the hurricane. But not before installing Chuck Subra--a protege Rene worked with at the Windsor Court--in his place. Prices have drifted downward since its early, flashier days, while the food has remained solid.
DINING ROOM
An exceedingly comfortable, quiet dining room gains extra dimension from the fully-windowed walls on two sides and an open kitchen in the rear. And it's pretty big to begin with. The space is studded by enormous brick columns that break up the vastness into smaller, more comfortable zones. Although the restaurant is rarely busy enough to need them, a trio of bar-style place settings runs in front of the kitchen. If the gang that spills onto the sidewalk every evening in front of Lucy's across the street took those over, this would be the hottest hangout in town.
ESSENTIAL DISHES
Oysters on the half shell.
Chilled seafood platter.
Ceviche of the day.
French onion soup.
Duck and andouille gumbo.
Char-broiled and Bienville oyster combo.
Escargots poached in garlic butter and Pernod.
Homemade pate and grilled andouille.
Smoked barbecue shrimp and grits.
Cobb salad.
Mussels mariniere.
Cane syrup-glazed salmon.
Char-grilled lobster on the half-shell.
Redfish under a brick with crawfish boudin.
Whole fish of the day.
Bouillabaisse.
Chicken and rabbit dumplings.
Double-cut "ham" chop (really, a cured pork chop).
Chocolate brignets.
Crepes brulee.
FOR BEST RESULTS
Go with a half-dozen people and start with the big iced platters of oysters, shrimp, mussels, crab, and ceviche. At lunch, the $17 three-course table d'hote specials are an outstanding bargain. The Sunday brunch is an under-utilized resource, especially if you go to the Latin Mass at St. Patrick's, two block away.
OPPORTUNITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT
Breakfast here is utterly ordinary. Dinner would be more satisfying with more people in the dining room. The broth in which the mussels are served could use a little more oomph.
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 +2
- Consistency +1
- Service
- Value
- Attitude +1
- Wine and Bar +1
- Hipness +1
- Local Color +2
SPECIAL ATTRIBUTES
- Sidewalk tables
- Romantic
- Good view
- Good for business meetings
- Many private rooms
- Early-evening specials
- Open Sunday lunch and dinner
- Open Monday lunch and dinner
- Open all holidays
- Historic
- Oyster bar
- Good for children
- Free valet parking
- Reservations honored promptly
ANECDOTES AND ANALYSIS
Except for the month or two right after it opened in 2004, La Cote Brasserie has been flying under the radar. My own office is two blocks away from it, yet I never seem to remember to go there. But every time I do (with the exception of breakfast, which is there strictly for the convenience of hotel guests), I'm happy I did. The hotel is big enough and close enough to the Convention Center to fill with out-of-towners, with which the place does a good business when they're here. But they always have an eye cocked for locals. Be sure to alert the waiter that you're a permanent presence. This is a good place to remember when reservations are tough to get. As on holidays: they're open for all of them.
This review was updated with new information on 2/4/2010.
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