Dining Report, Part II: Herbsaint and Commander's Palace

[wish I never left]

Saturday Dinner: Herbsaint

This was the first visit to Herbsaint for my wife and me although, we’ve eaten at Cochon more than a few times. Our friend had been numerous times, and more importantly, he came packing a bottle of a spectacular Champagne and an incredible Burgundy (domain de L’arlot ’05?) to drink.

While we awaited his arrival, I had a so-called Cadillac Sazerac. Upon my asking what differentiated this from the standard Sazerac on the menu, the waiter told me that this was made with cognac and absinthe. As it turned out, I very much liked the drink even though I usually don’t favor the standard model Sazerac.

The champagne was opened and we awaited our first courses: These were the frog legs and rabbit croquette salad off of the special menu and the housemade spaghetti served with gunciale and a fried egg. Again, do I sound too repetitious when I say that everything was wonderful, excellent, etc? It just comes with the territory when you’re eating in this town.

Our second courses were a Hallibut special that was easily the most impressive and delicious dish we were served that night, a duck confit that looked good and must have tasted even better because my wife finished it w/o sharing, and a nicely presented section of pork belly. This last was served over a delicious creamed corn. To the side, we ordered some dirty rice and the French fries with pimento aioli – who can resist the simple allure of perfect fries?

For dessert, we tried a warm chocolate cake, a peach fried pie, and a brown butter tart. The chocolate cake was fine, but nothing special. The peach fried pie sounded like a better idea than it was. The accompanying black pepper ice cream was incredible however so the overall dish was much enjoyed. Finally, the brown butter tart stole the show. I would highly recommend that dessert over the other two we had it was just that good.

A final note, we were not charged a corkage fee for the wine we brought in. I don’t know what the policy at Herbsaint officially is, but that was a nice touch and makes me even more enthusiastic to come back here soon.

Sunday Brunch: Commander’s Palace

Have we fallen into a rut? Three straight trips to New Orleans, three straight Sunday brunches at Commander’s? Hardly. I don’t have to list all of the wonderful places to have brunch in New Orleans. I fondly recall an immaculate brunch we had several trips ago at Dante’s. The folks at Arnaud’s know what they’re doing too. However, much like the best choice for dessert at Commander’s is the bread pudding soufflé, the best choice for brunch in New Orleans is Commander’s.

That being said, the last few times we’ve been there, there have been one or two bobbles. It’s ironic that at a restaurant that can come so close to perfection in every aspect of its service, every minor miscue is magnified. Perfection is a stringent standard by which to measure. So, I must mention that there were a few missteps in the service. They wouldn’t be worth mentioning when discussing other restaurants, but as I said, Commander’s is different. But no more of that, allow the valet to welcome you, open the door and…

I was delighted to hear these magic words when the host announced: ‘Your table in the Garden Room is ready.’ After the courtyard, this is my favorite place to be, as the attendant brunch festivity is amplified by the bright green vista framed by the floor to ceiling windows. We were seated and I ordered a Ramos Gin Fizz. Unfortunately, in this particular gin fizz, the fizz was overwhelmed by the gin. Later, I switched to brandy milk punches and had no complaints.

For our starters, my wife and our friend had the turtle soup and it was exactly as it should be. I had a dish of scrambled eggs and crabmeat that was new to me and that I would recommend to anyone reading should they see it on the menu again. The eggs were cooked perfectly and the crabmeat was very, very good. Our friend had the inspiration to order the shrimp and Tasso Henican a la carte. This is probably, after the bread pudding soufflé, the best thing available on the brunch menu. We resolved that on all future visits we’re just going to place two orders of it for the table. If you haven’t yet had it, you must: My words can’t do it justice.

For our main courses, our friend had the pork tenderloin and it looked perfect. The accompanying hash of sweet potatoes and andouille sausage was delicious. My wife had the veal and eggs, which came with a huge hunk of boudin and generous section of that same andouille. The egg came out perfectly - the proper cooking of the eggs having been a source of some disappointment on previous visits - and veal was divine. For myself, I had the shrimp dish and couldn’t have been happier.

Over an espresso (for me), and some coffee for our friend, we enjoyed our soufflés and the conclusion of another wonderful sojourn through our favorite city.

[dcata25]

I had brunch at Commander's this past Sunday, the 25th, and also had those scrambled eggs, crabmeat, aparagus and red peppers - very good! I hope they keep that on the menu for awhile. Yummy!