From a Hungry Tiger:

Hole in the wall style places win my heart. In this case, it was with a half of a chicken, 4 slices of white bread, and a lot of sweet, sticky BBQ sauce. Taking a bite of this seasoned and smoky chicken was a bit underwhelming at first, but the more I ate the more I enjoyed it. Moist white meat, smoky leg, great sauce, great portions! I think the part I enjoyed most was using the bread to sop up the sauce. Next time, I’ll definitely be trying the pulled pork sandwich. They don’t sell it by meat only. The only thing I wish they had was beef brisket. I’m sure they would do it seriously right.

When you walk in, it feels like a New Orleans house. And even though they don’t seem to have a liquor license, the bar takes up most of the front. But if you walk in the back, there are a few large tables set up. We chose to sit at the tables in the back, where we enjoyed a bit more privacy since we were the only ones there. Because this place closes at 7, it feels more like a lunch sort of place. And you can put in your order if you want. I hope to be returning to this restaurant to try their other food! 

Firecracker quesadillas from Casa Mañana. It is a chicken, cheese, and special spicy stuffing. Sorta too salty. has a kick but not blisteringly so. Strong cumin flavor. Good to try, but we will get the regular chicken quesadillas next time.

Cantina Bowl. Taco Bell. You’re guaranteed to like it or they’ll replace it with something you will like. At ~5 bucks I’d say that this is one of those premium items on a Taco Bell menu that you might not always order. I dunno about you, but I usually get the things that cost around a dollar, and I order a ton of those things. 

As advertised, it’s got meat, pico, black beans, guac, corn and pepper salsa, romaine,  creamy cilantro dressing, and it’s all sitting on a bed of fluffy rice. Underneath all of those veggies, there’s some steak product in there. 

As a rule, I usually don’t get salads are restaurants. But the commercials got to me and I felt like the next time I went to TB I had to get it. I don’t regret it, but I think I’ll get my usual burrito and 2 tacos instead of this. 

I have to say the best part of this was that green dressing and that rice. Which i believe are both infused with cilantro. And I also think that the veggies are on top to cover up how much meat is in the Bowl. The guac was better than I expected, but also disappointingly too creamy. Does that make sense? I usually cut an avocado in half, minimally mash it with a fork, and consume. Fast food guac is so dissatisfying. Why do people eat it?

A geometric meal.

At the intersection S. Claiborne and Louisiana Ave sits Little Korea, a Korean restaurant built into the skeleton of a former Taco Bell. It opened up pretty recently, and it’s one of the few places in Louisiana that serves Korean cuisine. The interior is nicely decorated. Wood tables, booths, a nice painting of a tree on the wall. It looks nice inside. 

I got the Bibimbap ($10.99) that came with ‘banchan’ or sides that consisted of miso soup, japchae, kimchi, and this marinated/braised potato thing. I liked the kimchi because it tasted fresh and spicy. This is in contrast with the more sour stuff that I’m used to, which I also really enjoy. The soup and the potato were normal tasting. The japchae however was kinda bland. It had a hint of sesame oil in it. And the texture was great. I hope that if you order japchae as an entree that it has more taste.

I was pretty satisfied with the beef Bibimbap. I added all of that spicy, fermented soybean paste stuff that they gave me and then asked for some more. I wish it had a bit of a stronger flavor. The beef was well marinated but the portion was small. The veggies were great, but it was kinda hard to break up with shredded carrots.. I wound up eating it in one or two large chunks. The biggest disappointment was that the egg wasn’t raw. It was sunny side up..! It was served in a hot stone bowl too! Oh well. 

I’d like to go back and try the other stuff, like the table grill/Korean bbq! 

My first time experiencing Krystal Burger! We went there on a whim after our Immunohematology (Blood Bank) final. A great idea on Vi’s part, a great decision for everyone. From what I recall about hamburger culture, sliders are steamed rather than cooked by traditional methods. And it shows! The meat juice soaking through the white bread reminded me of Steamed Pork Buns (baozi). See that delicious looking juice in that bread? That’s what this burger had. 

The toppings on a regular slider were rehydrated onions (like those 99c McD burgers from my childhood) and a single pickle. 

These guys were small but tasty. I can definitely see why these addicting (I had 4 but probably could have eaten a lot more if desired) guys are on Bourbon St. 

Sometimes I enjoy eating like I’m in poverty. On a side note, this flavor is amazing. A college kid’s instant lunch. Yum.

Mother’s on Poydras..

Something missing from Adam Richman’s plate is the sloppy watery gravy sitting at the bottom of it. While the show says, “Shove me down your gullet cause I’m so good!” My “Ferdi Special” was falling apart and somewhat.. tasteless. The “debris” was mushy. The gravy was watery. The roast beef and ham? Pretty average. The bread was listless and without personality. I remember other po boys bread.. but not this one. The bottom bun was soaked through, providing no support for the sandwich. And that’s all you need to ruin a sandwich eating experience. Half of my sandwich fell out on the plate. So I smothered it with a great house hot sauce they had on the table and finished it off that way. 

A disappointment because Adam seems to like it so much.

I sampled their etoufee though. And that was delicious! Avoid the debris. Get something else. 

I’ve got a back log of pictures to upload. I’ll start with this.

Chocolate chip cricket cookies. With the crickets on top. Tasted like chips ahoy with the knowledge that you’re eating a critter with it. I could taste exoskeleton a few hours after eating this too.. Even though it tasted fine, knowing that you’re eating a bug definitely brought up the gag reflex.

I also tried a chocolate covered waxworm. It exploded in my mouth with this.. dusty sunflower taste. Turns out they are deep fried in oil. I now have this weird association of certain granola and sunflower seeds with the taste of waxworm.

Taste your own bugs at the Audubon Insectarium on Canal.

Grilled eggplant, mini muffulettas, a killer bruschetta, and chicken salad on a croissant. I didn’t know how to smell any of those foods. I had to Google them all. I think it reflects how fancy LSUHSC School of Allied Health’s Family Day reception was. Oh, and some great chocolate covered strawberries are hiding behind the mountain of sandwiches I got. Yum.

Whole Foods on Magazine, the surprising place to get good BBQ. I got the brisket, which I still think is great without bbq sauce. Full smoky flavor, and unlike the fatty brisket I got in BR, this was a lot leaner. It was still good though!