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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.

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.

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Vega Tapas Cafe

Mediterranean.
Old Metairie: 2051 Metairie Rd.. 504-836-2007. Map.
Lunch Monday-Friday. Dinner seven nights.
Nice Casual
AE DC DS MC V
Website

WHY IT'S NOTEWORTHY
Vega has the only menu in town composed almost entirely of appetizers, from all the cuisines bordering the Mediterranean Sea. Imaginative ethnic theme dinners keep the place interesting.

WHY IT'S GOOD
You compose your own tasting menu when you dine here. The only large plate on the menu is paella, which can easily be split at the table. The rest of the food emerges on small plates (although some of them are nearly entree size). Indulging in a dinner of four courses is easy to take both in terms of size and price. The menu changes regularly, and the variety of ingredients, seasonings, and cooking techniques is very broad.

BACKSTORY
The place was opened by Chef Allison Vega, who sold it a few years ago and moved to the Caribbean. It's now operated by Glenn Hogh, who worked there before he bought the place.

DINING ROOM
A long, spacious room with big windows in front. The building is rather old and shows comfortable wear. You pass a small dining room and bar on the way in.

ESSENTIAL DISHES
Apple, Brie and baby greens salad.
Smoked salmon and avocado salad.
Roasted beet and goat cheese salad.
Grilled artichokes with feta relish.
Carp roe dip.
Seared tuna with coriander.
Seared scallops with butternut squash puree.
Grilled fish with artichoke risotto.
Grilled shrimp with pil-pil spicy sauce.
Steamed mussels.
Zarzuela (the Spanish bouillabaisse).
Foie gras terrine.
Moorish pork.
Smoked braised pork with cabbage in pastry.
Marinated shrimp, calamari, and baby octopus.
Herb-cured beef tenderloin with Valdeon cream.
Paella.

FOR BEST RESULTS
Go in party of four to six, and order for the table. Most dishes are big enough to share, and the range of the menu is so wide that this becomes much fun.

OPPORTUNITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT
Some of the experiments on the menu are unsuccessful. When busy, the service slows down noticeably.

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 12/23/2009.

A list of all 300 full, current reviews is here.