Charleston Eats! McCrady's

After drinks & appetizers at Peninsula Grill, we took a stroll down Market Street to East Bay for our dinner reservations at McCrady's Restaurant. We'd heard from Jeff & Dana that this was a tasting only menu with limited choices but weren't deterred!

The entrance & address are are Unity Alley, a narrow little side street off East Bay. Inside it's fairly cavernous with lots of exposed brick, wood and fireplaces. We were taken to a little table for two on the wall that was lovely and comfortable. On the way in we got a glimpse of the long bar - now on my list of places to have a drink!

The menu is four course, price fixed. Limited choices but everything sounded really good. We stuck with our style of divide and conquer to cover as much of the menu as possible. Starting off we ordered the 5 Snacks. These are single bite creations. This was mostly interesting with a few that didn't quite hit the mark. The piece of cured meat was very good - but odd to have a single little piece of cured meat on a plate by itself. The buckwheat Oreo cookie did not resonate with either of us - too dry and really, does any one actually like buckwheat? The other three though were seriously good. A cold, frothy soup concoction that had caviar and maybe cucumber in it was outstanding. The roasted tomato hot bite was also good and I loved the crispy sweetbreads with foam.

For our first course we had summer melon with Edisto cucumber and roof top flowers; Cox Farms beef tartare with Goat Lady gouda and beef tendon. 

I loved both of these dishes but I think Alan felt the smothered cheese on top of the tartare might have been a bit distracting. The summer melon was a perfect hot weather dish.

Next course were the fishes: snapper with summer squash, baby leek, Kafir lime and tarragon; grouper with red cabbage, purslane & black truffle.

The snapper was outstanding; the grouper was overwhelmed by the cabbage & cabbage broth. Both fishes were cooked perfectly and so nicely presented.

Our main dish were meats - Alan having the Duo of Berkshire Pork with corn, cherry, chanterelle and peanut. I had the Cox Farms rib eye with beet, blueberry and Shiso.

The pork was both a loin and belly. The dish was a touch too deconstructed though individual components had great flavor. It didn't all come together as well as hoped. The steak was perfect - fantastic flavor, cooked to that optimal medium rare and served alongside the best blueberries I've ever tasted. Very nice!

To finish up we did desserts: chocolate, raspberry & chamomile and the server's recommendation of the panna cotta with blackberry and marigold.

Both of these were very good - so good we ate all of both which is unusual for us with desserts.

Overall - great experience, great ambiance and service was excellent! Really enjoyed the meal and would go back when the seasonal menu changes. If you're okay with tasting menus, put this one on your list.

Herbsaint, New Orleans

For our final dinner in New Orleans over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend we went to Donald Link's Herbsaint. Located on Saint Charles Street in the warehouse district this little bistro has both indoor seating and outdoor at little tables on the sidewalk in front of the restaurant. It was a beautiful evening out so we sat outside.

We started with a bottle of Delamotte blanc de blancs non-vintage. And I learned something I didn't know from my husband; Delmotte is the sister winery of Salon. In years when Salon doesn't produce their top line, vintage champagne, the grapes from there single vineyard will go to Delamotte. This particular bottle was truly lovely. Off to a good start!

Our main server was a jovial young woman who was happy to share her thoughts with us on some of the dishes as we navigated the menu. After making our selections they brought us out warm bread and an amuse bouche that was a little shrimp and mango tartlette. Very good.

Our first course was the gumbo of the day (chicken with andouille sausage) and the Louisiana jumbo lump crab meat with mustard frill and toasted brioche.

Nothing makes me happier than a simply done dish that can let the delicate flavor of crab meat shine through. Louisiana blue crab has a distinct flavor profile in line with the Maryland blue crab; this preparation was excellent. I loved every single bite. Alan's gumbo was hearty and very good though after having eaten gumbo a few times he did comment that he likes it a little better when it's more stew like and less soupy.

Next round we tried was the beef short rib with potato rosti and salsa verde along with a dish of burrata with city ham and herb pistou.

The short ribs were FANTASTIC. Super tender - slow cooked for what must have been a seriously long time to get that much infused flavor and that perfect consistency. So good!! The burrata was also very nice and I loved the city ham. The two aspects of the dish were quite good by themselves though I'm not sure they were better if you paired them together.

For our entrees Alan ordered the Kurobuta pork belly with cajun grain risotto, grilled pok choi and shrimp broth.

This is one of those dishes that just makes you happy that some people are gifted when it comes to cooking. Look at that beautiful pork with the distinguished fat layer and the dark crust. Excellent. The risotto was also out of this world. The entire dish was one of the best of the trip.

I hoped to go two for two on pasta dishes by choosing the house made spaghetti with Guanciale and fried, poached farm egg.

Oh Lord...this was an amazing dish. It might be the best pasta I've ever had in my entire life. Yes, I'm saying that this one might knock Marea's fusilli with crispy octopus and bone marrow off the pedestal. It is that good. Cheese, creole spices, creamy sauce, a runny and fabulous fried, poached egg... perfection. Pure and simple.

Herbsaint was the best of the restaurants we ate at start to finish. Every dish was on the mark and a few of them were blow-you-away fantastic. This should be on everyone's list of places to try. There's no way I'd go back to New Orleans and not eat here again.

Zagat's Rating: 27-23-25
Jenn's Rating: 92

Cochon, New Orleans

Recommended to us by everyone, we went to Cochon for lunch during our New Orleans holiday. The menu is by far one of the most unusual I've encountered; fun things like fried livers, sauteed mullet, hog jowls and stuffed pig foot all making appearances.

To kick off the experience Alan ordered a drink called a Swinekiller consisting of Hendrick's Gin, rhubarb bitters and limeade that was really easy to drink.

To start we ordered the fried alligator with chili, garlic aioli and and plate of the smoked pork ribs with watermelon pickle plus I got a boring but much needed salad of mixed greens, pickled onions and peanut vinaigrette.

I can tell you that it's time I start using a Thesaurus. I have run out of words to describe such wonderful food. (pause - checking www.thesaurus.com). It was downright ambrosial! The alligator was tender with a little kick and had not even a hint of the chewiness that is often the downfall of this meat. I loved the preparation and the garlicky sauce. The ribs were delectable - fall off the bone tender with great flavor. Just wish they were either bigger or there were twice as many. For $12.00 a plate, I should have just gotten two orders.

The salad was also very good - hearts of palm, great blend of bitterness from the greens and sweetness from the onions...really nice, refreshing plate.

For our main course we both ordered sandwiches. I went with the special sandwich of the day (don't laugh); fried bologna with lettuce, tomato, a blend of cheeses and a garlic mayonnaise. Alan got the oyster & bacon sandwich.

Both of these were really good. I don't think I've had bologna once in the past twenty years...perhaps closer to thirty. And this was definitely a step up from Oscar Meyer. The tomato was super ripe and the whole thing gave me the impression of eating a Bayou BLT. Seriously good. Alan's oyster sandwich was a surprise - - not only because he doesn't love oysters so it seemed like an odd order for him, but because this one melded together into a concoction that really worked. Having the oysters be fried so they had a crunch to them and none of the brine associated with raw was nice. The bacon wasn't overpowering but lent the needed salt component.

And I guess I should mention that this restaurant is located on Tchoupitoulus Street in the warehouse district right next door to another highly acclaimed Donald Link establishment, Cochon Butcher. The inside felt like a converted warehouse with low key wooden tables and chairs. There's a no nonsense feeling when you get inside - this is a place to have great food, not hem and haw over service (which was fine for what you'd expect in a high volume lunch place) or the decor. There's a huge wood-fired oven in the open kitchen lending to the ambiance and puffing out all kinds of great smells.

This is one you have to put on your list if you're in the area and looking for authentic Southern Cajun cooking. If I find myself back in New Orleans I will make the time to go back!

Zagat's Rating: 27-23-24
Jenn's Rating: 86

Restaurant August, New Orleans

For our Thanksgiving dinner I picked one of the most highly reviewed restaurants in New Orleans that was open that evening. Restaurant August is a John Besh establishment located on Tchoupitoulas Street in the warehouse district.

The building is a historic, 19th century French-Creole landmark. The inside is laid out at three distinct rooms. The main dining room shown below, an upstairs wine room for private parties and an intimate little room off the kitchen called the Gravier room. This is where we sat with only five tables, exposed brick walls and darker decor, it was romantic and cozy. All of the tables in our room were booked this evening with folks celebrating the holiday.

In addition to their seasonal menu, August was also offering a price fixed Thanksgiving tasting menu. We opted to order ala carte off the regular menu. Having had a pretty good amount of food at Manning's during the afternoon we decided to go toned down this time and just order a single appetizer and our entrees.

 

Our dinner started off with an amuse bouche of egg custard with creme freche, truffle, caviar and brioche. We've had similar looking eggs at places like Jean-Georges that made me think I'd gone to heaven. This one was unique in that it was chilled. The flavor profile was nice - you just can't go wrong with truffle and caviar and the custard proved a nice, smooth balance.

The bread they served us was wonderful - really. I don't usually take pictures of bread because, let's face it, it's bread. But these warm little baquettes with whipped cream butter were so, so good.

Our appetizers were the trio of foie gras and the handmade potato gnocchi with blue crab and black truffle.

The foie gras was disappointing. We both expected that "three ways" would be a torchon, a pate and most likely a pan seared or other hot preparation. That wasn't the case. The first one on the left was a classic torchon and very tasty with it's apple marmalade and toasted hazelnuts. The middle was a pate wrapped in an odd choice of layer cake with gelee. It didn't work for me. And the final preparation was a mousse of sorts layered with a custard and crunchy, toasted hazelnuts. This was was an out and out miss. The nuts were way to hard and the custard didn't add anything. The foie gras itself was so far on the bottom that it was difficult to manage to get any bite that incorporated all the flavors.

In contrast, the gnocchi was heavenly. Plenty of crab and lots of cheese and truffle over perfectly made gnocchi and a wonderful cream. Alan didn't love it - he's not a fan of gnocchi usually and calls out obvious flaw - - it's super rich. It's hard to eat a plate even of this modest size. I didn't see that as a problem and powered through. Yummy!!

I should note that with dinner Alan ordered us a bottle of J. Dumangin non-vintage Brut champagne that I really, really liked. It's not one we have often but it's really nice with a classic acid profile that goes nicely with things like bread, truffles, caviar and foie gras.

For our entrees we had the grilled Chappapeela Farms duck breast with gratin of covey rice yams and mustard greens along with a Two Run Farms bone in rib-eye with progress whipped mozzarella potatoes, gremolatta and marrow crust. The potatoes were really interesting if a little hard to deal with since they had that stringy quality of melted mozzarella. My rib-eye was grilled to a nice medium-rare with good flavor. Not exceptional, but what restaurant steak ever is? Alan's duck was just okay though he did like the accompanying side dishes.

Upon reflection, we both thought this was going to be The meal for us on this trip and it didn't turn out that way. Service was okay, not great. We waited far too long with empty champagne glasses - something that doesn't often occur. The food was good (gnocchi, outstanding) but not great across the board. I'm wondering if it had anything to do with being a major holiday? Anyway, we wouldn't put this one high on the list of places to go back to.

Jenn's Rating: 85
Zagat's Rating: 28-28-27