Friday, July 29, 2011

The Ambrosia Bakery (Baton Rouge, LA.)

The Ambrosia Bakery (Baton Rouge, LA.)

On my first free day in Baton Rouge I decided to take a drive around town. I happened to drive past Ambrosia Bakery-pure happenstance-and nostalgia grabbed my wheel and turned my car around. It led to the best culinary experience of my trip.
A little background, when I was pregnant, nearly a decade ago I had two cravings—bacon (which was weird for a vegetarian, as I was at the time), and Ambrosia bakery cake squares. If I were ever profiled on Food Networks “Best thing I’ve ever tasted” these cake squares would BE my list. I only got three because I didn't trust myself to share them. They are magnificent. I originally wrote three lines descibing the taste but erased them—becasue they teetered on being explicit.  The sheer beauty of making something, seemingly so mundane—exquisite and extraordinary is the true mark of greatness….maybe even genius.













Ambrosia is a phenomenal bakery, here in Katy we have a good bakery—“Ooh La La” which doesn’t even deserve to be mentioned in the same sentence. Frankly, I am ashamed of myself for even doing so—but I will—to provide a frame of reference to my fellow katy-ians (not to be confused with Acadians). Where “Ooh La La” is textbook and a little pointed in approach and substance; Ambrosia is all heart, skill and history. They don’t need a book—and trust me when I say you can taste the difference! This is not intended to be a knock on “Ooh La La”, rather just an explanation on how above the fray Ambrosia remains. If you are ever in Baton Rouge, flag Ambrosia as a waypoint on your GPS.  You will thank me.
-Astrya

Thursday, July 21, 2011

Restaurant: Fish City Grill (La Centerra)

Fish City Grill (La Centerra)
This is one of my hang outs. On any given weekday during the school year you can find me and my girls recapping the day’s events at Fish City Grill over a plate of oyster nachos, the restaurant’s signature dish. A tip for my geographically challenged friends, the restaurant is located in the back of La Centerra across from the parking garage.  
As is becoming my review style, Rhys and I arrived in the 2 o’clock hour and within a few minutes found ourselves the only customers in the restaurant.  This is how I like it. That way no one gives us crazy looks because we’re photographing the food.  And it gives me the opportunity to ask questions of the staff and management (about the menu).  

Food:
Fish City Grill has daily blackboard specials. I’ve tried a number of them over the years and I’ve never been disappointed. In fact, I have never had a bad plate at this restaurant and for a person who jumps around the menu as much as I’m known to—that is quite a compliment. The seafood is fresh and cooked to perfection. I cannot think of anything to critique about this place, but I admit I am not trying very hard.  
The food here is so good I’ll just let the pictures do the talking for a while. Below are pictures of the Oyster Nachos, Fish Tacos (that the manager sent over to us—to support this little blog), My son’s bacon cheeseburger, and a Caesar salad.


This fresh take on the nacho "concept" is such a crowd pleaser that they'll just let you try one-- because they know you'll buy an order after one bite.


This is the obligatory cheesburger shot.  Rhys has asked if he can start a food blog of his own, just about his LOVE for burgers (stay tuned).

Fish Tacos. When I bit into this I was taken aback by the burst of flavor. I've had them before but being a bit of a seafood purist, I usually like to see the seafood full on and therefore avoid wraps of any kind.  Having said that, these are the best fish tacos I've eaten. It is something to be said about super-fresh ingredients. The flavors dance on your tongue. 




My lonely ceasar salad--it was left to it's own devices when the fish tacos arrived--but it found its way into my to-go bag and shall rise again for dinner.

Atmosphere/Hospitality:
For a restaurant that shares a parking lot with pretentious incarnate, Perry’s, Fish City Grill laughs in the face of excess for the fun of it. The atmosphere is laid back with a very slight New Orleans flair, but the food will sit you straight up in your seat. Another advantage this restaurant has over anything else in La Centerra is superior customer service.  The wait staff and management actually care if you are enjoying yourself and satisfied with whatever you have selected.  Some people may not put much stock in that, but I have eaten at greatly chef’d (when this appears in the dictionary I better be credited with its creation) restaurants with ridiculously awful customer service--and I appreciate good customer service when I find it.  I should also mention that this restaurant is as known for its community involvement as it is for the wonderful food they serve up daily. While we were there the manager, Corey Linebery, was being honored with a plaque by an area children’s charity. He was nice enough to pose for another picture for me.  I hope you will all support the Fish City Grill—there’s really good food in it for you.    


Thursday, July 14, 2011

Restaurant: Ragin' Cajun

Restaurant: Ragin’ Cajun 

Yesterday I did something I try not to do—I went into the city. Buffalo speedway in lunchtime traffic is my idea of hell. As I plotted the course back to Katy-as quickly as I could- I let my GPS pick a lunch spot and for once it did something right.

Let’s get the bias question out of the way—I’m from Louisiana and this is Cajun food so it seems like an automatic slam dunk, right? No. My people are Creole and this is Cajun cuisine, so no bias here. But respect is due because our country cousins can serve it up—they just lack our flair! At some point I will break down the differences between Cajuns and Creoles (probably ad nauseam) but for today let’s talk about how the Cajuns get it done.

We settled in for a late lunch at about 2 o’clock and ordered a couple of staples; a po’boy for me and my son’s standard cheeseburger and fries. My son is a Texan—and by no means an epicurean, but he is coming around...slowly.

Food
I’m a purest when it comes to joints like Ragin’ Cajun --"just the facts please".
My Cajun interpretation of that is the po’boy. I ordered a half crawfish/half oyster po’boy and I was not disappointed. The seafood was expertly fried; it had just the right crust (Louisianans know what I mean). Biting into it made me homesick, instantly. Here’s the beauty of this place. It would seem that expertise was not needed to put together simple things like bread, lettuce, tomato (which I hate), mayonnaise and fried seafood—the expertise of Ragin’ Cajun is in the superior quality of their ingredients. Namely the bread, and the seafood. I’m a hard sell on anything shouting that it is Louisiana food—if I see another crawfish with seasoning sprinkled on top of it in this city I will scream! But with Ragin’ Cajun the roots are deep and the food it right. Period.

                                                                                    
Atmosphere
Memorabilia on the walls (LSU above all), and that deliberate ragtag décor too often co-opted by of other, less talented, restaurants. The atmosphere is what the Cajuns are—loud and fun! Being in this restaurant is like taking a seat in an air conditioned festival. This place is kid friendly, but if you are with kids I would sit far away from the oyster bar. When we were there a very loud, shall we say grammatically free, couple were downing oysters and spewing profanities. We moved.


-Astrya

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Restaurant: Babaloo International Café & Bar

Restaurant: Babaloo International Café & Bar
http://www.babaloocafe.net/

My son and I stumbled upon the Babaloo restaurant this afternoon while about the neighborhood. It was the perfect scenario. We arrived, decidedly before the dinner crowd and were the only customers in the restaurant and thus had the full run of the place—which Rhys enjoyed. The wait staff was friendly and attentive. We shared a wonderful array of tapas. My son had the gourmet sliders with mixed fries (potato and sweet potato), with southwest eggrolls and I had the sautéed calamari and a salad. If I’d known, at the time of ordering, that I was going to start a foodie blog tonight I would have chosen something more elaborate.

Food
The calamari was good, a little bland but since I cannot think of anything I would have done –short of frying it– to change that I can’t really make it a downside. The rings were fresh and served in a red sauce with a lemon wedge. The simple dish was both delicate and gratifying without being too much of either. Balance. From the first bite, it was obvious that a very skilled person was at the helm of their kitchen. I cannot wait to try a more challenging dish.

Rhys (9) enjoyed his meal tremendously –so much so that he sang a little song after biting into his first slider. Although, at first glance, I wouldn’t frame Babaloo as a place for young kids I was pleasantly surprised by the kid-friendly staff.

Creativity
The menu stayed true to its international themed roots with stables that unapologetically crossed borders and fused tastes. It is a shame that my first review is so filled with regret but I look forward to digging deeper into Babaloo's offerings and finding an unsuspecting gem on the menu. I will revisit the restaurant and follow-up with a more in-depth review in a few weeks.

-Astrya

Katy Critic

Hello and welcome to the Katy Critic Blog!
I am a native Louisianan (and Katy, TX. resident) with a sophisticated and eclectic culinary palate. I am a natural born foodie, that ate my first raw oyster while still on my father’s knee, at Drusilla restaurant in Baton Rouge, La. My father likes to tell the story of me shucking them myself at the age of 6. In the coming posts I will visit and critique the restaurants of Katy, Texas and beyond.

I have three loves: Politics, writing, and the culinary arts and I now I have a blog for each. I will try to be a faithful culinar-ian (yes, I just coined that word), please come along for the ride.

-Astrya