High value informal Portland suggestions

Hey guys. First, I have to thank you in advance for what I'm sure will be some great suggestions. I've had really good luck with Chowhound recommendations in many different cities, and I'm sure this will be no exception.

Eight or ten of us are heading down from Seattle tonight on the train to celebrate a friend's 40th birthday.

We'll be staying at Park Lane Suites 809 SW King Ave.

We're a fairly informal bunch, on the whole, and obviously a decent sized group.

I would love one or two walkable "high value" recommendations for

* late night big snack (9 PMish)

* breakfast

* lunch

* bar / drinking establishment

* nightclub / live music / dancing

By "high value" I mean places that feature really good value for the money... both in terms of quality and quantity of the food. i.e. my favorite places are honest straightforward food, prepared well, served hot, at fair prices. I'd rather eat at an 8 if the prices are a 4 than eat at a 10/10.

Bonus points for places that are somewhat unique.

Thanks again for your help!

-- Bob

rramstad in Metro Portland

How is Verti Marte now?

Embarassed to admit it, but I have never tried a Hubig's pie. I'll have to fix that. Thank you for the pointer!

rramstad in New Orleans

Jacque-Imo's or Stella! after Dante's Kitchen

Very interesting. Thanks for the pointer. We did end up grabbing reservations for Stella and are looking forward to it, but I'll keep Coquette in mind for future and/or if we need something nice for later in the week.

Do you have any opinion on some of the "value" lunches? I've been considering Luke ($15), August ($20), MiLa ($20) for Thursday lunch... it's gotta be good as we'll be doing Stella! Wednesday night, and Dante's Thursday night...

rramstad in New Orleans

How is Verti Marte now?

I travel to New Orleans once a year, this will be my sixth or seventh trip, lost track.

I was very disappointed last year that Verti Marte was closed due to fire.

I'm excited, but slightly concerned, to see that Verti Marte is apparently back up and running.

Is it still the same? Same food, same location, same phone number, same menu?

I sure hope so! I need a Royal Feast!

Thanks for any information!

-- Bob

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Verti Marte
1201 Royal St, New Orleans, LA

rramstad in New Orleans

Jacque-Imo's or Stella! after Dante's Kitchen

Thanks for the replies, I really appreciate it.

I kind of figured they were apples and oranges.

I am also definitely interested in value, so my ears really pricked up at the concept that Jacques is "about on par" with Coop's given that Jacques is quite a bit more spendy, and more hassle, given where we're staying.

rramstad in New Orleans

Jacque-Imo's or Stella! after Dante's Kitchen

Hi there. I travel to NOLA once a year and this will be my sixth or seventh visit, I think.

Each year I try to hit a few new places, while mixing in my favorites.

I am planning on hitting Dante's Kitchen with a large group of friends on an upcoming Thursday night.

Wednesday I will be out with a smaller group of friends for dinner. Usually we go for something a bit more "special" -- we ate at Restaurant August last year.

The two restaurants we're considering for Wednesday right now are Jacque-Imo's and Stella!

I'm curious as to which you'd pick, and why.

I guess if all things are equal (and they never are) that I'd probably prefer the one that would have the most contrast to Dante's.

I haven't been to any of these, but note that they all get some positive press here on Chowhound. Thanks to everyone for all your posts, I discovered Coop's Place through this board, as well as Cochon...

-- Bob

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Restaurant August
301 Tchoupitoulas Street, New Orleans, LA 70130

Cochon
930 Tchoupitoulas St., New Orleans, LA 70130

Stella Restaurant
1032 Chartres Street, New Orleans, LA 70116

Coop's Place
1109 Decatur St, New Orleans, LA 70116

Jacques-Imo's Cafe
8324 Oak St, New Orleans, LA 70118

Dante's Kitchen
736 Dante Street, New Orleans, LA 70118

rramstad in New Orleans

August Lunch Specials

Wow. I'd really love confirmation of this. I'm flying to New Orleans in a couple of hours from Seattle and wanted to have lunch at August but Friday is a bit messed up schedulewise. If they will be open for lunch Thursday, or even better Sunday, I can definitely make it.

If anyone on the ground can answer the OP, I'll definitely check this thread again... if there isn't an answer here by Thursday AM sometime, I'll take a walk by August and see what's up.

rramstad in New Orleans

Reservation at Cochon?

Quick comment on OpenTable, it can be a bit rough on the restaurant. Apparently (at least here in Seattle) the restaurant allocates tables to them, you aren't pulling from the pool of all tables. Yes, this means that OT might show no reservations available, but if you call the restaurant they have tables open... It also goes the other way, you might show up to eat, see tables empty, and be asked to wait because those tables are being held for potential Open Table reservations.

Long story short, if you want a specific time, it's smart to check both with the restaurant and with OpenTable.

(Just some advice that was given to me by a Seattle restaurant owner who uses OpenTable... he asked that I call the restaurant first, as every reservation that goes through OpenTable results in a payment to OT)

rramstad in New Orleans

Best Fried Chicken in New Orleans?

Celeste, I'm staying at the Hotel St. Marie at 827 Tolouse in the Quarter.

I've been told by locals that under no circumstances should I walk from my hotel to Willie Mae's. Are they just being alarmist, or is the area around Louis Armstrong Park still dangerous?

I am talking about full daylight, probably Friday lunchtime.

rramstad in New Orleans

Best Fried Chicken in New Orleans?

It's been a long time, but in 2006, Fiorella's Cafe (near Coop's Place) had outstanding fried chicken. I was told last year that there were new owners, but they were still making fried chicken with the same recipe... but I haven't eaten there in two years.

Willie Mae's Scotch House is on my short list of places to try, haven't made it there, but between the bad neighborhood, the somewhat weird hours, and the wildly inconsistent reviews, it's hard to get excited.

I love Coop's Place, but have never had the fried chicken... too many good things on the menu!

rramstad in New Orleans

Thoughts On Pelican Club?

Hi again. A group of friends and I travel to New Orleans pretty much every year, and a highlight last year was a Thursday dinner at Cochon. This was a Chowhound recommendation, and the restaurant hit the ball out of the park. We're a rather boisterous group of 40-50 year old men, and it's never clear exactly how many people will go to the dinner until the afternoon of. Typically we're talking 12 to 15 people, and relatively early, 6 PM or so.

One of the organizers this year proposed The Pelican Club, and I've never been. From the rough reading of what I can find online, it seems that this should be a reasonable choice, but I'm nervous about taking a bunch of people to a place when I haven't even walked by it and looked at the room and the menu.

Should I be nervous, or is this a good choice?

Again, to put things in perspective, Cochon was a big hit with our group, and earlier in the day I had walked by Herbsaint (too upscale and room too small, we'd annoy other diners), Restaurant August (way too upscale, same issue with our loud party), Bayona (actually, looked pretty reasonable, but I can get great fusion food here in Seattle) and Stella (they were closed, but it looked interesting.)

We had a nice meal at NOLA in 2006 or 2005.

Thanks in advance for your thoughts!

-- Bob

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Restaurant August
301 Tchoupitoulas Street, New Orleans, LA 70130

Cochon
930 Tchoupitoulas St., New Orleans, LA 70130

Stella Restaurant
1032 Chartres Street, New Orleans, LA 70116

Bayona
430 Dauphine St, New Orleans, LA 70112

Herbsaint
701 Saint Charles Avenue, New Orleans, LA 70130

Nola Restaurant
534 Rue St. Louis, New Orleans, LA 70130

Pelican Club Restaurant & Bar
312 Exchange Alley, New Orleans, LA 70130

rramstad in New Orleans

Status Check on French Quarter Favorites

Hi, all. I'm making my fifth or sixth trip to New Orleans, it's become a more or less annual thing, and wanted to check up on the status of some of my favorite French Quarter and nearby restaurants.

If you know a place has gotten significantly worse in the last year, or has closed, or significantly more expensive, please post your thoughts!

If you know a place has gotten better, is less expensive, or has better ambiance than before, I'd love to hear that too... also VERY welcome for any suggestions of other similar places that you personally think are not to be missed OR are better quality OR better value...

Without further ado, the list:

Coop's Place ("real" NOLA food)
Johnny's Po-boys (especially shrimp and catfish)
Verti Marte (mostly for po-boys, try the Royal Feast)
Mother's (Debris or Ferdi)
Mona Lisa (pizza)
Fiorella's Cafe (fried chicken, but haven't been there since 2006)
Leah's Pralines (pralines, duh)
Country Flame (mexican, steak good too)
Deja Vu (greasy American breakfast)
Clover Grill (greasy Southern breakfast)

I didn't find Fiorella's in the database, it's at 45 French Market Pl, near Coop's Place.

Chowhound has been very helpful in the past, and I appreciate your thoughts this time around!

-- Bob

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Mother's Restaurant
401 Poydras St, New Orleans, LA 70130

Coop's Place
1109 Decatur St, New Orleans, LA 70116

Clover Grill
900 Bourbon St, New Orleans, LA 70116

Cafe Reconcile
New Orleans, LA, New Orleans, LA

Johnny's Po-Boys
511 Saint Louis St, New Orleans, LA 70130

Verti Marte
1201 Royal St, New Orleans, LA

Mona Lisa Restaurant
1212 Royal St, New Orleans, LA 70116

Leah's Pralines
714 Saint Louis St, New Orleans, LA

Country Flame
620 Iberville St, New Orleans, LA 70130

Deja Vu Restaurant & Bar
400 Dauphine St, New Orleans, LA 70112

rramstad in New Orleans

Suggestions for dinner 12-15 men near Quarter

I decided to check out Coop's Place last night by myself to see what I thought. I was super impressed! Great food, not fussy, and the kicker of an excellent short scotch list was a welcome surprise. I'm going to have to haul all the guys out there Saturday night.

Random aside, I walked by Deanie's and it looked OK but I was slightly turned off by the lack of a menu in the window. (I know, I can see it online, but still, posting one outside is a nice gesture.) I ended up talking with a couple of folks who were outside for a smoke and they indicated they weren't all that impressed with the food. Then again, who knows what they have for expectations, or what they ordered? That said, the combination of the feedback on the ground from those folks and the overall "too clean, too glossy" kind of ambiance plus the lack of an up to date menu made me plan to miss it...

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Coop's Place
1109 Decatur St, New Orleans, LA 70116

rramstad in New Orleans

Suggestions for dinner 12-15 men near Quarter

Looks like Stella is closed anyway...

http://www.restaurantstella.com/news.htm

Seems like August has a full bar, and Bayona does not, from what I can glean online... That may be the kicker!

rramstad in New Orleans

Suggestions for dinner 12-15 men near Quarter

My short list (in no particular order) for the relatively large informal group Saturday night is Cochon, Coop's Place, Deanie's Seafood, Mr. B's Bistro, and Herbsaint.

Also thinking of taking a smaller group of four or so on Thursday to Stella, August or perhaps Bayona.

I'm having trouble cutting down either list... Any safety issues walking from Toulouse & Dauphine to any of these locations in evening hours? (Dark, but not late night.)

Anyone care to wade in with an opinion?

rramstad in New Orleans

Status & Feedback on old Quarter favorites

Hi all... flying out tomorrow for what is probably my sixth or seventh more or less annual trip to New Orleans... my schedule is always tight, with events in our hotel in the Quarter, so I can't stray too far... but I've built up a few favorites, thanks to this board and others.

I wanted to fire off my short list, and see if anyone cares to share a recent opinion, update, feedback or alternative. Obviously things are changing quite a bit from month to month, and if one of my old standbys is slipping, I'd love to know beforehand, as my time is limited!

Verti Marte -- mmm Royal Feast mmm
Fiorella's -- is the fried chicken still as good after the ownership change?
Mona Lisa -- I remember being impressed with both the pizza and pasta
Mother's -- sure, there are better places, but the whole package is pretty compelling
Country Flame -- alarmingly high value i.e. cheap but quite good
Central Grocery -- no trip complete without bringing a couple muffulettas home
Johnny's Po-boys -- fried catfish and shrimp both excellent

As I look over this list, it's heavy on super casual dining and lunch places, but a bit spare as far as hearty Cajun or Creole dinner spots, missing a good inexpensive seafood dinner spot, and could probably stand to have a breakfast place or two added.

I've had Coop's Place, Deanie's Seafood, and Ernst Cafe recommended to me in the past as good dinner places, and I've had fairly decent breakfasts at Fiorella's, Clover Grill and a small place near Fiorella's up a side street away from the river with a "sunshine" type motif.

So, sound off! Which of these places are slipping? Which of them are still must visit? What oldtimers have I missed? What newcomers need to be added?

My stomach thanks you in advance!

rramstad in New Orleans