Imagine That a Menu…

posted on a restaurant’s window is a magnet. Then imagine that I am wearing a full metal jacket. Immediate attraction. I can’t resist. So on our way to the truck after our visit to Moldaner’s Camera Shop, I was drawn to the menu posted on the window of the Babylon Café. I only had a few minutes but saw enough to know that the café offered a long and interesting list of appetizers many of which were new to me.

So later that afternoon I studied Babylon’s menu on line and immediately announced to Chuck: “We will eat here.” And so a few days later we found ourselves back on Maple Street in the Uptown section of New Orleans for an early lunch.

“Babylon Cafe's menu is as well turned out as anybody's, at as attractive a price. But what makes it stand out is its house-baked bread. It's like a fat pita, or a pizza without toppings. The round loaves come out hot, adding extra excitement to everything from a shawarma sandwich to a salad…

“The platters here are oversize portions of well-made kebabs, grilled lamb, chicken or beef shawarma, and all the rest of what you go to a Middle Eastern restaurant to enjoy. The better part of a page of the menu is filled with appetizers, enough of them to make a complete meal, particularly with a table of four or more…

“Babylon Café began in the most spartan of locations on Canal Street in the 1990s. When owner Najah Alsherees moved it in 2001 to the much larger, nicer Maple Street restaurant row, it extended its offerings and offered more creature comforts…. Most of the tables are in a large, attractive dining room with one curiosity: if you pull back the curtains from the windows on the left-hand wall, you'll gaze into a busy, unassociated laundromat. So don't do that” (Tom Fitzmorris at nomenu.com).

The café is just a large almost square room decorated with a couple of murals. The curtains have been replaced and the windows are now painted with Medi-terranean scenes. We were seated next to one whose color was predominately red which has cast a pinkish tone to most of the food photos.

As I said, it was the appetizers that caught my attention. Among the choices not selected were: a sampler plate with hummus, baba ganuj, labneh, tabouleh, two falafel, and two vegetarian grape leaves; Baba Ganuj—roasted eggplant blended with tahini, lemon juice and garlic; Labneh—thick Lebanese yogurt topped with olive oil and dried mint; Stuffed Grape Leaves—made in-house and stuffed with rice, ground meat, and vegetables; Vegetarian Grape Leaves stuffed with rice, cracked wheat, and vegetables; Spinach Artichoke Dip served with homemade bread; Spinach Philo (spanakopita)—Greek philo dough stuffed with spinach, feta, and ricotta cheese; Kibbeh—cracked wheat stuffed with seasoned ground beef, onions and pine nuts and served with a side of labneh.

There was also an item called Ful Madammus, which is “a kind of dried fava bean stew…considered by many to be Egypt’s national dish. There is an Arabic saying about this dish: ‘The rich man's breakfast, the shopkeeper's lunch, the poor man's supper’ which illustrates just how popular a dish this is. Once cooked it can be eaten plain, but is also eaten accompanied by all sorts of things such as vegetable oil, butter, buffalo milk, fried eggs, tahini or lime juice amongst other ingredients” (recipes4us. co.uk). Babylon’s version consisted of mashed fava beans with tomato, red onion, garlic, lemon juice, and olive oil.

Chuck’s order started with a cup of lentil soup which was made with red lentils, parsley, and
“spices” which was a tasty not-quite smooth puree. I appreciated that some texture remained.

Then we moved to a shared order of hummus that was described on the menu as a “Family recipe of blended chick peas, tahini, lemon juice, and roasted garlic all made from scratch.” With the hummus came a basket of pitas and some of the café’s magnificent homemade bread. The pitas which are also made in-house were fluffier than grocery store pitas and were nice and chewy. Dare I describe them as “puffy pillows of pita perfection?” And the bread is a favorite of on-line reviewers many of whom eschew the pita in favor of the bread.

The hummus—attractively presented—was an immense portion and was ultra smooth. But it seemed to be lacking something. We tried salt and that didn’t do much. We thought it needed more lemon. (Imagine me saying something needed more acidity.) Later, I read a review by Frankie W. on yelp.com stating “it reminds me of the Middle Eastern hummus I had while in that part of the world... and, just the same, it only really tastes right after you mix a bunch of olive oil (a bottle is always on your table) in with it.” Maybe that was lacking.

Chuck decided to order the Gyro Plate which came with a choice of two sides—salad, hummus, or basmati rice—and either pita or bread. The gyro meat came in semi-thick slices—not the more standard shaved slices—that had been quickly heated on a flattop with onions and tomatoes which intensified the flavors of the spices and garlic. I asked our server if the meat was prepared in-house and she told me no. This is one of the few items that they don’t prepare themselves but they ordered it from a halal processor in, she believed, Georgia. (“In Arabic, the word halal means permitted or lawful. Halal foods are foods that are allowed under Islamic dietary guidelines” [mideastfood.about.com]).

I embarked on an appetizer frenzy starting with an order of chickpea falafel. For some reason, I prefer my falafel to be served as little balls instead of patties (Don’t ask me why. I really don’t have an answer. It is just one of my many eccentricities.) and was pleased to learn that Babylon’s were the former. The chickpeas aren’t cooked. Just soaked in baking soda before being ground with other ingredients. Here the other predominant ingredient seemed to be parsley. The balls are fried and become ultra crunchy. The falafel came with a small cup of sesame tahini for dipping.

Then came my order of Zaater Bread. Zaater “is a generic name for a family of related Middle Eastern herbs…It is also the name for a condiment made from the dried herb(s), mixed with sesame seeds, dried sumac, and often salt, as well as other spices. Used in Arab cuisine, both the herb and spice mixture are popular throughout the Middle East” (wikipedia. com).
“(S)umac…is extracted from the berries of a flowering bush that grows wild in the Mediterranean region…and is commonly added to many Medi-terranean dishes for its lemony flavor” (suzyeats.com). Babylon’s version was a pita spread with a mix of oregano, sesame seeds, and sumac combined with olive oil. While the taste of the sumac was described at suzyeats.com as lemony, I thought it tasted more like rosemary infused with pine needles. I gave Chuck one of my wedges and sensed that he was far less enthusiastic than I was. I loved it.

My last choice was the Safeiheh or mini-pizza which was a pita spread with ground lamb and beef with tomatoes and spices. This didn’t really work for me and was my least favorite of all our choices. I thought it was quite dry (thank heaven for the accompanying sour cream) and had a “gamey” taste of overcooked lamb.

So did we manage to eat all of this food? Yes, eventually. Three small to-go containers accompanied us home and were eaten for dinner that night.

While there was one miss (the Safeiheh) and one near miss (the hummus) that seems easily correctable, but we enjoyed our lunch enough (especially the gyro meat) to give Babylon Café 4.0 Addies.

A Gem in the Clearing

"Is this Moldaner's Camera Shop?" I asked. "I'm on Burdette Street, and my GPS indicates that I'm about two blocks from your shop. However, I'm in a residential area and don't see any businesses. And the one-way street is so narrow, I can't go any further."

An understanding response from Robert assured me that I was, in fact, just around the corner from his shop (left) and that the narrow streets in the area have stymied many others from finding a direct route to his business.

Fortunately, backing up for half a block was possible and a simple alternative route brought us to a hobbit-like setting of activity along a three-block section of Maple Street in the Uptown section (on South Carrollton Avenue near the Riverbend section of the St. Charles Streetcar route) in New Orleans.

It was as though we had emerged from the forest and found this clearing in which the residents could gather at Starbucks or PJs (left) and talk about "The Land Beyond" as they enjoy exotic coffees and teas--and foods.

Many of those who venture beyond the limits of this clearing are headed to the Lands of Tulane and Loyola*.

Others seem content to remain in the clearing and provide a welcoming setting for Outsiders who find their (our) way into this haven of good will. These hosts can be found at Jamila's, Singha Song Thai, the Chill Out Cafe (with American breakfasts and Thai cuisine) (left),

the Fresco Cafe, Ciro's Cafe, Bruno's Pub, or the Doors Pub (left) among others.


Before deciding upon a lunch site, we met with Robert (right), who talked about a number of good restaurants in the area in between questions and answers about my problems with the camera.

Without the camera problems, we would not have found this interesting neighborhood.

And one visit is not enough.

*nearby universities.

A Closer Look

It was another slow walk around the French Quarter. Another opportunity to study the Quarter's colors and architecture. Another challenge to find details that are missed on a quick rush through the area.

Shifting our eyes from the ironwork on balconies, we turned to a close study of the doors of the homes and businesses of the Quarter.

But after a general survey of a few doors, we decided to concentrate of some interesting details on the doors. Whether it was the contrast of a polished door knob against the steel gray door or

a half-painted mailbox positioned between the door frame and a portion of the wall, these details were likely to be missed even on a slow walk. (The mail box's yellow sticker reading "Puckett Power Systems" would no doubt be missed entirely.)

Here the colors of the door and the neighboring building caught our eye. The candy cane and the cleverly printed "sign" reading "Private Residence, Thanks" served as a novel bonus to our search.

A card reading "Family and Friends Gather Here," a bell, and a bow provide a curious, but welcoming, invitation posted on this door (left).

But it was this severely weathered door that drew us closer for a longer look. It was difficult to believe that the large red area on the equally-weathered wall was not a planned addition at that particular spot.

Even the two shades of gray on this weathered door and frame were attractive enough to warrant a closer look.

In all examples shown here, the chipped paint only added more character to the doors and the buildings themselves.

And speaking of character, this building had signs of a proud history covering every square inch. Being positioned between two refurbished buildings only served to highlight the majesty of this historical structure.

The Christmas wreaths invited a closer look and seemed to encourage passersby to slow down and get acquainted.

And that closer look through windows with dust collected over the years provided a peek at the activity of this building.

A walk past this building later that evening revealed this line of people that began arriving 45 minutes early for the chance to sit on a few wooden benches or stand in the small room to hear that evening's performers at Preservation Hall.

Built as a private residence in 1750, Preservation Hall opened its doors in 1961 as a sanctuary, to protect and honor New Orleans Jazz.

That's character and history.

It Was a Beautiful Day…

for lunch by Lake Pontchartrain. There was just one problem. You couldn’t see the lake except from this person’s vantage point.

We are in East New Orleans (“…the portion of the city to the east of the Industrial Canal and north of the Intracoastal Waterway. It is often called ‘New Orleans East’ as well, or simply
‘The East’. New Orleans East is a portion of the Ninth Ward of New Orleans.” [Wikipedia.com]) to visit Castnet Seafood, a combination fresh fish market and seafood restaurant visited by Ben Sargent on the Cooking Channel’s Hook, Line & Dinner. (Sargeant was also a contestant on the Food Networks program Chopped and, if my memory serves, was eliminated from the competition in the first round.) Castnet is where famed New Orleans restaurateur John Besh got his first restaurant job in 1962 as a busser, prep cook, and night cleaner.

In 2010, Brett Anderson of The Times Picayune wrote: “Kent Bondi was 19 years old when he purchased Joyce's Seafood in eastern New Orleans from a woman who lived in the apartment above it. In the early days, he stayed afloat selling 99-cent fried shrimp buns to the workers building the levee out front. Twenty years later, the same sandwich will set you back $3.50, and Bondi's corner of Hayne Boulevard, where you'll also find a snowball stand and Walker's Southern Style Bar-B-Que, seems to be where half the reduced population of the community goes to eat.”

As described by Ray Cannata at urbanspoon.com: “…you never know what mysteries and wonders can be found in the humblest of places. And this place is very humble. It is in the least funky and creative neighbor-hood in all NOLA…An area working hard to come back from 15 feet of water in Katrina, with very few restaurants and not more than two or three good ones. The place is a shack, looking at the levee. You are greeted with a six-and-a-half-foot high ceiling (in a city where the average ceiling height is twice that). It shares the building with a very good BBQ place…”

If you enter through the left door, you are in the fresh seafood market (left) which was hopping with customers at noon on a weekday. The right door takes you into the order-at-the-counter restaurant (right and below) which was equally busy with most of the customers being local workers ordering lunch for take out.

As you might guess, the menu is primarily seafood (almost all of the fried variety), but they do offer hamburgers and smoked sausage, meatball, roast beef, chicken, ham, and turkey sandwiches. And as an added bonus, you can get a whole turkey neck for just $1.99.

As we were ordering, I looked around for seating. All I saw was one stool along a counter and an unoccupied picnic table in front. So while Chuck was waiting for our food, I ran outside to capture the picnic table. Then dumb luck struck. I had picked up a take out menu and read a notation for “’The Other Side’ Sitdown/Dine-In Area.”

So a search party of one (that would be me) set forth to discover this new land. My explorations led me to a door that took me into both the BBQ stand and the utilitarian (see the cement floor from which a significant portion of the paint has been worn away) dining area it shares with Castnet. Interior decoration? Not unless you consider a few posters bearing the Saints schedule and a deer’s head inexplicably wearing a life preserver to be decorations. But who cares about décor (cleanliness yes—décor no) if the food is good and the price is right.

Chuck soon found me on “The Other Side” with our lunch. For him it was the (What else?) catfish poor boy which may have been the best version of this sandwich we have encountered on this trip. The difference was the catfish being served was larger—almost filet–sized portions, rather than smaller strips—so that the possibility of its being overcooked was minimized. The bread (bakery unknown) was appropriately crusty with the requisite—here in New Orleans at least—soft interior. With the sandwich, he ordered a side of seasoned fries that, while probably coming frozen from a bag, were nice and crisp.

I had a mighty hankerin’ for oysters, so I selected the oyster plate which came with a side of potato salad and what was described on the menu as “salad.” That is, if you call a few pieces of iceberg with a tomato slice and a small packet of dressing salad. The potato salad was of the mostly mashed potato variety and tasted slightly of mustard, onion, and some form of herb. It was pretty standard for Louisiana potato salad. Not bad. Not great.

The oysters were another story. Depending on their size, the platter contains eighteen to twenty-four oysters that were lightly coated. Under the thin crackling crust lies plump, juicy, and slightly briny—although not as salty as those that come for more northern, colder waters—oysters. The best time to harvest Gulf oysters is from October to May but I recently read somewhere that Gulf oysters are at their best now, and I can’t imagine them being any better. Even Chuck—no oyster lover—sampled one and admitted that it was pretty good.

The fish and seafood parts of both of our lunches were very good while the sides were average. Since the main component rules the ratings, Castnet earns 4.0 Addies.

Nearly Back to Normal

As we walked along Decatur Street in the Quarter on a recent evening, we thought about our walk through these same streets a little less than five years ago.

Even though the French Quarter had suffered relatively little structural and water damage from Katrina, the hurricane, nevertheless, had a profound effect on this popular area of New Orleans.

Katrina had forced a significant portion of the city’s population to leave the city. (The population plummeted almost 54 percent, from 455,188 in July 2005 to 208,548 a year later, according to the Greater New Orleans Community Data Center.)

It was clear that this population loss had a great impact on one of the city’s main industry—the tourism industry, and especially the restaurant business. With the labor force reduced and the tourist traffic adversely affected, signs on restaurants reading “Open for lunch only” or “Serving dinner on Friday and Saturday only” or, simply, “Closed” were all too common.

With the restaurants and bars open for fewer hours, the other businesses in the Quarter suffered because of the reduced foot traffic. The result was the posting of similar signs in the antique shops, boutiques, and souvenir shops in the Quarter. Sadly, they read: “Moved” or “Call for an Appointment” or “Closed.”

Walking the virtually deserted streets of the Quarter early on a weekday evening during that time was an eerie experience.

With that image in mind, it was especially satisfying to be in the Quarter with the lights of open businesses filling the streets.

The display windows of one particular silversmith shop caught our eye. From the shop’s web page: “New Orleans Silversmiths was established in 1938 in the French Quarter. It specializes in modern and antique gold jewelry, and antique holloware.

(“Their) miniature animal collection is hand crafted in Italy. They are made of sterling silver with hand painted enamel.” Pictured here are just a few of the sterling silver animals in their collection.

The giraffes are in 3 sizes (2-3/4ʺ – 4ʺ tall) and are made of sterling silver and amber colored enamel with rich copper highlights.

The cats (1-1/8" tall to 1-3/8" tall) are made of sterling with hand-painted enamels in oranges and greys.

The hand painted enamel over sterling silver turtle (1-1/4" nose to tail) has a range of deep wheat to rich golden browns.

It is sure wonderful to see the life of the Quarter returning.

It Was a Good Sign

As we were approaching Franky & Johnny’s, we saw the Leidenheimer Baking Co. delivery truck pulling away. We knew that, should we order a poor boy, it would be served on great bread.

Franky & Johnny’s is located in a residential neighbor-hood in the Uptown area of New Orleans and its building looks as though it was once a private residence. (“Historical-ly, ‘Uptown’ was a direction, meaning movement in the direction against the flow of the Mississippi” [wikipedia.com]). It is another of those New Orleans businesses with a loyal following of neighborhood residents who return time and time again for the comfort that can come from a familiar menu, staff who greet you by name,and the chance to come across friends.

“This is a favorite local hole-in-the-wall neighborhood joint with either zero atmosphere or enough for three restaurants, depending on how you view these things. And by ‘things’ we mean plastic checked tablecloths (above), a ratty but friendly bar (below), and locals eating enormous soft-shell-crab poor boys with the crab legs hanging out of the bread and their mouths.... Try that poor boy or the excellent red beans and rice with smoky sausage and other down-home dishes and know you are somewhere that isn't for tourists—and enjoy it all the more” (frommers.com).

“Franky & Johnny’s has been a quintessential neighborhood seafood restaurant in New Orleans since 1942. It is the sort of place that has seen good times and rough periods, like Hurricane Katrina, when the Cajun restaurant became a local gathering place for people to check in on each other’s safety.

“Today, the challenge continues to be economic fallout from last year’s massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

“Tony Cortello’s family has owned Franky & Johnny’s for the last 24 years, serving only seafood caught in the Gulf. The menu is known as ‘Uptown Cajun,’ and it’s got a reputation for always serving the best. ‘Our serving Gulf seafood is something our customers appreciate because it helps the local economy,’ says Cortello” (louisianaseafoodnews.com).

In addition to the poor boys and red beans and rice, Franky & Johnny’s is also known for their coated and fried green pepper rings and spicy crawfish. I saw a couple of diners feasting on the crawfish boil, but since this is very early in the season (March through June is the best time to harvest crawfish), they seemed to be very small. I’ll wait a couple of months.

We finally settled on sharing an order of onion rings, a catfish poor boy, and an order of red beans and rice with spicy sausage. Since they were listed on the appetizer menu, the onion rings came first. We frequently forget to specify that we want them when the rest of the meal is served. The rings were larger than we liked, were rather greasy, and had a coating that was prone to separating from the ring. Not the best onion rings that Louisiana has to offer—and I consider Louisiana to the epicenter of onion rings.

The catfish poor boy came on a buttered roll and contained smaller pieces of fish than usual. But the fish appeared to be mealy. There were no large flakes and the texture reminded me of one of those fish sticks I ate as a child. And this is the first restaurant I have encountered that charges extra if you want the poor boy dressed. Still, it did come on a Leidenheimer roll and that counts for something.

On the other hand, the red beans and rice were exemplary. The beans contained disks of smoky sausage and small bits of ham which may have given the dish a slightly sweet flavor. You could taste hints of thyme and bay, but neither was too pronounced. And the accompany-ing link of sausage was fine textured and hot as advertised on the menu. Since our priority was to finish those elements of the meal that would not reheat well, we concentrated on the onion rings and poor boy. That left a good portion of red beans and rice to take home for my breakfast the following morning.

Yes. You read that right. I did eat red beans and rice for breakfast.

Thus far, this is my least favorite of the neighborhood restaurants we have visited and can only award it 2.5 Addies.

To review the role of Adler, Kitty Humbug, and the Addie rating system, read the November 14, 2011 blog.