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When Walter and I travel, we love to dine well. Especially for Walter, he likes to try restaurants that serve excellent food with a delightful atmosphere. Now that we are in New Orleans, there's no exception to this rule. When we travel, Walter usually will do some preliminary reseach - either checking into recommandations in Travel magazines such as Departures or Travel & Leisure (which we subscribe monthly). Or word of mouth suggestions from friends, acquaintances or real estate clients/brokers who have eaten or been recommended these eateries. If we are staying at 5-star accommodations or boutique hotels, the hotel's concierges will often direct us to charming restaurants for a Fine Dining experience in the city we happen to find ourselves in.
After checking into the Sonata Hotel - New Orleans we headed dowmstairs to consult the hotel concierge for recommandations on Fine Dining restaurants. A charming young concierge was sitting behind his teakwood desk when we approached. Most charming, amicable with an easy going personality, Walter & Iimmediately liked this gentleman's sense of humor and style. He provided us a few local restaurant suggestions and recommend we try Muriel's - Jackson Square - which was approximately 4 to 5 blocks south of the Sonata Hotel. We took his advise and made a 7pm dinner reservation that evening.
Located at 801 Chartres Street @ St. Ann, New Orleans, Louisiana 70116, looked charming from the exterior. Muriel's Bistro serves classic French Quarter style, mixed with contemporary creole cuisine. It has an inviting ambiance on the first floor and offers New Orleans classics like Gumbo, BBQ shrimp, Turtle soup, fried Gulf shrimp, Po-Boy and shrimp remoulade. They also have dishes such as Pecan crusted Drum, Blacken Redfish, and shrimp & goat cheese crepes.
The Courtyard Bar & Balcony
The interior of The Courtyard Bar & Balcony is inspired by century old French Quarter style design. The bar serves drinks, appetizers and all the fixings to pass an afternoon in New Orleans festive style. While on the balcony, one can enjoy cool cocktails looking out onto historical Jackson Square.
The Second Floor
is solely reserved for private events, such as Wedding receptions, Birthday parties or Special Occasion soirees. This floor supposely offers a provocative sensory experience that exceeds the thrill of traditional dining. Guest will be immersed in a world of refinement and revelry that reflects the rich historical, cultural, and culinary character of the crescent city. So it says in their brochure/pamphlet which was handed me by the maitre' d hotel when we arrived for dinner. I didn't get a chance to view the space as there was a wedding reception happening at the time we were having our dinner downstairs.
Although Muriel's is charming in its own unique way, the food was less desirable. I tried the Double Cut Pork Chop - wood grilled and topped with Louisiana sugar cane apple glaze, with pecan sweet potatoes and southern greens. My comments: The chops were tough and over-cooked, making the meat difficult to chew. The pecan sweet potatoes were over baked and a little titsy- bitsy dry for my palette. Walter ordered an appetizer - the Fontana's West End Turtle Soup which turns out a touch too salty. The entree he had Fillet Mignon - an 8oz center cut fillet of beef, wood grilled and served on apple smoked bacon mashed potatoes, caramelized onion and a house-made worcester-butter sauce. Although the appetizer tasted passable, he did not finish his main course due to fact that the fillet mignon was too tough to chew and he did not care, the way it was prepared.
We left without finishing our dinner. Deciding to walk a little to do some window shopping, Walter complained of a stomach-ache and needed to return to the hotel. We didn't leave our room till next morning. Walter suffered a touch of diarrhea from the dinner we had @ Muriel's.
We'll not be back to this dining establishment that's for sure. Not terribly overjoyed with our meals to say the least. Another attention to detail - never ever have an over abundance of waiters, trying hard to be attentive when attention isn't required. We wanted some quite moments to reflect on our day's activities but were interrupted often by waiters, checking to see if everything was alright. At the end of our dinner, we did not get to discuss our day's activities at all. Well folks, this is not a restaurant we'll be recommending when visiting New Orleans.
A nice try Muriel's!
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Posted by: moncler netherlands | 12/09/2011 at 01:35 PM
Thank You! What do like about it?
Posted by: Bernard Goong | 12/10/2011 at 04:34 AM