American Sector (Chef John Besh) New Orleans

The American Sector
Chef John Besh
945 Magazine Street
New Orleans, LA 70130
504-528-1940
Sun-Thursday: 11 a.m.- 9 p.m.
Friday-Saturday: 11 a.m. – 11 p.m.
www.nationalww2museum.org/american-sector

By Jane Feehan

Chef John Besh scores again with his American Sector restaurant at the National WWII Museum. It’s fun, the food is great and it adds a perfect ending to a day at the museum. If you’re not into WWII but would like to sample American food a la 1940s with a dash of Louisiana thrown in – go.

Soups, salads, sandwiches, milk shakes, sweets, and main courses make this establishment worthy of a visit for anyone, any time of the day. Sloppy Joes, slow cooked beef tongue, and house-made bologna sandwiches are just a smattering of lunch offerings. Delivered on wooden blocks and more than six inches high, sandwiches are big enough to share.

Those hankering for a hot meal can choose from a menu of chicken and dumplings, meatloaf, spaghetti and meat balls, pork cheeks, blue crab and sausage stew, shrimp creole and more. I ordered the Crispy Buster Crabs with baked jalepeño cheese grits –soft shelled crabs tempura fried - and it was scrumptious. I brought more than half of it home for dinner. Dessert for me was Sector Jacks: house-made cracker jacks in an American Sector box replete with a toy soldier, and served with house-made ice cream.

For children under 12, lunch ($7) is served with fries, a cookie, soft drink and a surprise. To the delight of some little ones I watched, their meals were delivered in large lunch boxes.

Lunch boxes and Sector Jacks are just part of the fun eating here. American Sector is as much about the experience as the food. Servers and hostesses dress in 1940s garb, music from the war decade plays continuously and men dressed in vintage military uniforms drop in and walk through the dining room.

The adjacent Stage Door Canteen presents a jazz and swing music performance on Friday and Saturday evenings and Sunday matinee for $30. American Sector is a great place for a pre-show meal or Sunday brunch. The full bar – a large square affair in the main dining area – offers a complete list of New Orleans favs: Sazerac cocktail, Ramos’ Gin Fizz, Salty Dog, Mint Julep and plenty more. Reservations suggested. Restaurant will deduct price of parking at museum-designated parking lots. Bring receipt and show before bill arrives. ©2010 Jane Feehan All rights reserved. See my post about another Besh establishment, Domenica. (Search box). Other Besh Restaurants: August; Besh Steaks, Lüke, La Provence.

Tags: New Orleans restaurants, New Orleans restaurant reviews, New Orleans dining

National WWII Museum, New Orleans

National WWII Museum
945 Magazine Street
New Orleans, Louisiana 70130
Near Warehouse District - not far from CBD and French Quarter
504-528-1944
www.nationalww2museum.org
Admission: $8-$16 with children under five free

By Jane Feehan

If you’re interested in World War II, this museum is worth a trip to New Orleans. It’s designated by Congress as the country’s official WWII museum.

Leading off with a prelude to war in the main gallery entrance, it’s organized by the American campaigns in Asia and Europe. With lots of photos, artifacts, military equipment and uniforms, and recorded personal accounts of survivors soldiers, both military and civilian, the museum will take about three hours to walk through. I was impressed with animated and voice over diagrams of D-Day invasions in the Pacific and at Normandy. There are plenty of narrated short films (six to 30 minutes) that run throughout the day.

An hourly 4-D film, Beyond All Boundaries, is shown in the Solomon Victory Theater across the street from the museum. It’s narrated by Tom Hanks and comes with special effects snow, sound and seats with full range oscillation.

Check their website for times and reservations. Parking is available in several pre-pay lots for $5 and $6 dollars. Save the receipt from museum-designated parking lots if you decide to eat at John Besh’s American Sector restaurant in the Solomon Theater building. That amount will be deducted from the bill. Present BEFORE the bill comes to the table.

Weekends tend to be busy with lines for Beyond All Boundaries. Reservations suggested for special exhibits and the film. Be sure to stop at the American Sector Restaurant. See post.©2010 Jane Feehan All rights reserved.

Mary Mahoney's Old French House - Biloxi, Mississippi

Mary Mahoney’s
Old French House
116 Rue Magnolia
Biloxi, MS 39530
228-374-0163
Monday-Saturday: 11 a.m. – 10 p.m.
Closed Sunday
www.marymahoneys.com


By Jane Feehan

A stay in Biloxi requires a visit to Mary Mahoney’s for lunch or dinner. A meal here is always a special occasion because of the ambiance of the historic 18th-century building, not because of the food.

It’s a hit and miss menu. I’ve been here several times and have yet to think or say “wow” but it’s not bad. On occasion, fish I’ve ordered was not fresh but frozen and the salad was just OK. On a recent visit I ordered a cup of seafood gumbo ($8) and, nicely seasoned, it was quite good. I chose a seafood salad plate ($12.95) for the main luncheon course. With a scoop of shrimp and a scoop of crab salad the dish was low on the flavor meter and high in mayonnaise content. Ordinary but ample. It came with hardboiled egg and tomato wedges and a couple of large stuffed olives. An excellent Bloody Mary with pickled green beans and olives made up for a lot. Also, the bread brought before the meal was piping hot.

Lunch specials for $13.95 include salad, entrée and a vegetable and feature items such as grilled salmon or crab cakes and items of the day. Entrées off the specials list average about $18. They serve steaks, chicken, and a variety of seafood, including fried platters. Dinner entrées average $30.

Mary Mahoney’s, close to the beach and the Beau Rivage Hotel and Casino, boasts two well-preserved waterlines for customer viewing - one of when Hurricane Camille inundated the restaurant, another, much higher one, marking Hurricane Katrina’s visit. Unbelievable. Also of interest is a live oak tree estimated to be about 2,000 years old named “The Patriarch” in their courtyard.

The restored plantation house provides a number of dining rooms perfect for intimate dining or large parties. Service: Excellent. ©2010 Jane Feehan All rights reserved.

New Orleans Style Seafood Po-Boys - D'Iberville, Mississippi (near Biloxi)

Nha Hang Pho ...      (Where's the best po-boy in New Orleans? Mahony's)
New Orleans Style Seafood Po-Boys
Pho Nam Huu
10271 D’Iberville Blvd.
D’Iberville, Mississippi (near Biloxi)
228-392-8683

Monday-Saturday: 8 a.m.-8 p.m.
Sunday: 8 a.m. - 4 p.m.

I had heard that New Orleans Style Seafood Po-Boys is a great spot for a po-boy – and it is. The food is good and the price is better than right.

A regular-sized shrimp po-boy was not only fresh and delicious it was much more than I could eat – and only $5.70. Its equivalent in the French Quarter is about 10 bucks. An extra large shrimp 32-inch sandwich is $13.95; a small, eight-inch version is $4.30. Po-boys here - shrimp, crab or meat varieties - are a yummy bargain. They also serve spaghetti and meatballs (!) and seafood platters.

A Vietnamese-owned establishment, New Orleans Po-Boy also serves a wide variety of Vietnamese dishes from egg rolls to noodle or rice dishes with beef, pork or chicken. I’ll try some of these on my next visit. This is a very casual eatery with counter service and plenty of take out business, though the dining room is spacious. Vietnamese tea service sets are placed at many of the tables for tea drinkers and they sell other traditional drinks such as pickled lemon or preserved plum soda. No alcohol but ask if one can bring a bottle for dinner. ©2010 Jane Feehan, All rights reserved.

Check out Desportes - another Biloxi place for an excellent po-boy

Be Sweet Cupcake! New Orleans (Uptown)

Be Sweet Cupcake!
5706 Magazine Street
New Orleans, LA 70115
504-891-8333
Monday-Saturday: 11 a.m.- 6 p.m.
Closed Sunday


By Jane Feehan

Treats from Be Sweet Cupcake! taste as if they just came out of a home kitchen oven, worthy of a blue  ribbon at a country fair.

I was recently looking for a small king cake – just enough for one – and couldn’t find any, not even at the nearby Whole Foods Market. But I did find a king cake cupcake at Be Sweet Cupcake! Mighty fine it was and, so too, the Crazy Coconut one I bought.

This place uses real butter. I could taste it in the vanilla cake and in the butter cream icing covered in coconut.

Innovation is another hallmark of this uptown New Orleans jewel.

There’s an interesting variety – some featured on different days of the week: Kickin’ it Old School – vanilla cake with chocolate butter cream frosting and candy sprinkles – or Pralines and Cream made with Aunt Sally’s praline crumbles. After the Super Bowl, they concocted a colorful salute to the Saints. A guy driving past us with our sweet treasures recognized one of our picks from Be Sweet and yelled out "Hey - you got one of those Drew Brees!" Yup.

Quality and creativity will keep the customers returning for more. Count me in. It also earned Be Sweet Cupcake! a place on Food Network's Cupcake Wars. ©2010 Jane Feehan. All rights reserved. Check archives for cupcakes in Ocean Springs, Mississippi.

Nathan's Restaurant - Slidell (New Orleans suburb)

Nathan’s
36440 Old Bayou Liberty Rd.
Slidell, LA (New Orleans suburb)
985-643-0443
Tuesday – Thursday: 11 a.m. – 9 p.m.
Friday – Saturday: 11 a.m. – 10 p.m.
(Open all day but lunch served 11 a.m.-3 p.m.)
www.nathansrestaurant.net

By Jane Feehan

Wanting to avoid the Saintomania and Mardi Gras fracas but seeking some good New Orleans food, I stopped in at Nathan’s in Slidell recently. It’s easy to get to, no parking hassles and the setting – on the water – is a welcome respite from city noise.

The biggest plus is the food. Executive Chef and Owner Ross Eirich, chef for 11 years at Galatoire’s in the French Quarter, continues his award-winning culinary tradition at the restaurant named after his son.

Opened in 2008, Nathan’s serves Creole dishes and seafood. I ordered a salad topped heavy with blue cheese and, for the main course, Roasted Seafood Eggplant; both were delicious. The entrée came piping hot with a parmesan cheese crust and loaded with shrimp and crabmeat; it was more than I could eat.

The menu is large, for dinner or lunch, and the average entrée is about $18-19, though there’s a variety of lunch items for much less. A customer favorite is the Fried Oyster Spinach Salad for $17 or a seafood platter for $23 – a bargain.

It won’t be long for my return visit.

Full bar, take out and catering. Service: Excellent. © 2010 Jane Feehan All rights reserved.
Tags: Slidell restaurants, best restaurants in Slidell

Blow Fly Inn - Gulfport, Mississippi

Blow Fly Inn
1201 Washington Ave.
Gulfport, Mississippi 39507
228-896-9812
Sunday-Thursday: 11 a.m. – 9 p.m.
Friday-Saturday: 11 a.m. – 10 p.m.

www.blowflyinn.com

By Jane Feehan

On the back bay side of Gulfport, Blow Fly Inn is a great place to enjoy a view of the water and a good meal. The original location was brought down by a 28-foot tide during Hurricane Katrina. They built back and up, about 25 feet, which enhances the view – and the atmosphere.

The server recommended stuffed flounder because the dish was featured on the Food Network’s Diners, Drive-in’s and Dives (www.foodnetwork.com/diners-drive-ins-and-dives)last year when the show visited Blow Fly but I chose crab cakes.

There was plenty of crab meat in the cakes (about ($19), which were good. I munched on fried pickles beforehand – excellent. A companion diner enjoyed a bowl of crawfish etouffee. Portions are large; I brought half my dinner home.

Blow Fly Inn has a large menu that also features steaks, including Marinated Greek Salad with prime rib strips, BBQ ribs, pork chops, chicken, and pasta dishes. There’s a good choice of inexpensive appetizers – enough for a meal – including fried pickles (try them if you’re not from the south - you’ll like them) and crawfish tails, chicken tenders and loaded potato skins.

A kid-friendly place, Blow Fly Inn is casual. I look forward to visiting again when the weather warms up enough to sit on their deck. Full bar, take out and catering available. Service: good. © 2010 Jane Feehan All rights reserved.

Lizzy's Cafe - Pass Christian, Mississippi - CLOSED

Lizzy's is closed, sorry to say. Open about a year, they worked hard to draw customers. Their other eatery, the Mockingbird Cafe in Bay St. Louis, is still open and thriving.

Photo and review in November archive - lower right column on this page - or do a search through box on right.