Cafe Atchafalaya

[Gourmondo]

Lest you think I am just negative today, the following is a positive: I had an early dinner at Cafe Atchafalaya this evening. I had forgotten they were BYO now and asked what wines they had by the glass. They said they couldn't sell me anything, but they would give me the house red gratis, which they did. Nice! I'll be back! The prime fillet was very good, too.

[bam bam]

Lest you think I am just negative today, the following is a positive: I had an early dinner at Cafe Atchafalaya this evening. I had forgotten they were BYO now and asked what wines they had by the glass. They said they couldn't sell me anything, but they would give me the house red gratis, which they did. Nice! I'll be back! The prime fillet was very good, too.

I have eaten there twice. Not 100% sure whether to recommend it. Would you elaborate more on your meal?

[Gourmondo]

The soup du jour was an Italian wedding soup, which is not one of my favorite soups, but I was in a soup mood, so got it. I thought the salt level was too high and otherwise it was pretty unremarkable. They served a 10 oz. prime fillet in a red wine mushroom demi-glace with mashed potatoes and asparagus as sides. The meat was done exactly as ordered and of very good quality. Service was excellent. I was the sole diner initially, but it filled up fairly quickly as the evening wore on. There was blessedly no annoyingly intrusive live music this time. The entree special was soft-shelled crab. I'm not big on those myself, so I passed. I have had fish specials there earlier this year that I was pleased with. The rest of the menu seems to stay fairly static and could do with a few more options. In short, I think it's a decent place for its niche. It is not on the level with the best Uptown places in terms of creativity, sourcing raw materials, etc., but is quite worthy as a nearby neighborhood option for me. To use Michelin lingo, you might say it's worth a detour if you're in the area but not worth a journey.

[bam bam]

I had a tremendous affinity for the Iler Pope version of this restaurant. As to the current version, I agree with your assesment, it is just if you are in that hood, there are much better options.