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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.

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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

Mano's Po-Boys

Sandwiches. Platters.
Metairie: 6943 Saints Dr. 504-734-0922. Map.
Breakfast and lunch Monday-Saturday.
Very Casual.
AE MC V

WHY IT'S NOTEWORTHY
Mano's is a neighborhood cafe and poor boy shop you won't know about unless you know about it. It's adjacent to Mike Miley Field and the busy nexus that is the intersection of Airline and David Drive, all of which brings in people looking for a fast, inexpensive lunch with more character than fast food. They do a heavy blue-collar business, so it's impossible to leave here hungry. Mano's opens for breakfast daily with a very basic menu.

WHY IT'S GOOD
The menu follows a familiar formula. You find a long list of poor boy sandwiches, including one outstanding specialty: veal parmesan, crusty and moistened with red sauce and melted cheese. And every day brings a half-dozen or so daily specials. As in red beans on Monday. . . and you know the rest. The food here is, near as I can tell, cooked in house and reasonably good. Best in Metairie for this menu? No. Best in this part of Metairie? Probably.

BACKSTORY
Mano's opened in 1992, right around the time when the New Orleans Saints moved their training facility nearby. Reports of Saints players eating here are too numerous to ignore.

DINING ROOM
The restaurant is located on Saints Drive at David Drive. The menu sports not one but three fleurs-de-lis. Can you guess the dominant decor theme?

ESSENTIAL DISHES
Poor boy sandwiches:
Veal parmesan
Roast beef
Turkey breast
Veal cutlet
Smoked sausage
Hot sausage
Bacon, lettuce, and tomato
Hot dog with chili
Meatball
Club
Chicken salad
Tuna salad
Chicken tender
Ham and cheese
Country fried steak
BBQ beef
Hamburger
Cheeseburger
Grilled cheese
French fry
Shrimp
Oyster
Fish

Daily plate specials
Monday:
Red beans and rice with pork chops, hot or smoked sausage
meatballs, veal parmesan, or chicken parmesan with spaghetti
Tuesday:
Fried chicken
Hamburger steak
Liver and onions

Wednesday:
Stuffed bell pepper with lima beans
Veal cutlet
Country fried steak

Thursday:
Grilled chicken breast with dressing
Meatloaf with baked macaroni
Red beans and rice with hot or smoked sausage
Friday:
Fried fish, shrimp, oyster, or combo platter
Veal cutlet

FOR BEST RESULTS
Unless you're doing heavy work, you will be able to make two meals out of any of the poor boys here, despite prices that might suggest small portions. Dishes like liver and onions and country-fried steak should be considered as elements of atmosphere rather than serious menu staples.

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 8/23/2010.

A list of over 350 full, current reviews is here.