A Day in the Quarter

So our friends were here today (from Germany) and before I had to go to work, we decided to walk around the French Quarter and then have lunch.  As I walked by Brennan's, I remembered what good eggs they made for brunch and thought it might be nice to take them there.  Then they can say, "We went to Brennan's", since it's pretty famous.  I thought we should fit one of those kinds of restaurants in while they were here.

Picture it: 11:05 am we put our names down.  The hostess said it would be a wait of between 45 minutes and an hour.  Well, that's ok....we weren't completely hungry yet and we decided to go for a walk in the meantime.  So we walked.  We got back around 11:35 (since usually restaurants overestimate their wait times).  We stood around for quite a while.  More and more people kept coming in, some with reservations (who also had wait) and some without.  Everyone was given the "45 minutes to an hour" wait time.

Noon: still waiting.

12:15: finally seated, just after my husband asked where we were in the line.  They took us upstairs to a small room with 6 tables in it.  The four of us sat down and felt like we were on top of the subway.  The floor shook like crazy.....was really weird.  Not sure why....didn't ask. Maybe we'd get a nice massage if we all got on the floor!

One of the waiters gave us menus.  I remembered having the Eggs Portuguese and really liking it. I watched as the waiter sat 2 more tables around us.  Then he proceeded to ask BOTH of them what they'd like to drink.  Meanwhile, we were still waiting to order drinks. (well ok, only my husband ordered some wine).  Probably 15 minutes later, he came by to ask what we wanted to drink. And then 5 minutes after that, we ordered.

Ordering: let me just say....they were not helpful at all.  I asked, can the "tomatoes sauteed in butter" not be sauteed in butter?  NO.  The waiter said they cook it all in large quantities....so much for these "fancy" restaurants preparing a dish just for you. Can I have the Hollandaise sauce on the side? YES.  Phew.  Are your potatoes cooked in a big amount too, or can I you leave out the oil?  YES cooked in big quantities.  NO we can't leave out the oil.  The second waiter (the one that took our orders) looked quite young, maybe in his 20's??  He wouldn't budge.  Nothing.  Didn't seem to care what kind of diet I was eating....just wanted to get the orders in.  You know, the only words I could think of was that he just didn't get it.  I was soooo tempted to just say, "I wouldn't like anything, thank you very much."

There was butter on the table....hmmm......we all wondered what that was for.  There was no bread....or crackers...or anything.  That's ok, I didn't need the bread.

1 pm: our food arrived!  AND....bread....aha! We found use for the butter.  (I guess I'm just used to them bringing bread before the meal, while you wait)  The eggs were very good.  And they DID bring the sauce on the side.  But this meal was quite calorie/cholesterol laden.  I ate, angrily.

This area was known for its service before the storm.  I'm starting to wonder if that's gone by the wayside these days?  Because my biggest complaint about this meal was definitely the service....all around.  I'm still quite upset.  I won't go back.  I don't care how famous it is.

And that's my rant for today.  Sorry you had to hear that.  I really wish restaurants (especially expensive, fancy ones) would help out their clients and offer healthy food.  I actually remember going to some places (fancy places) before the storm and asking the chef if he/she could make something vegetarian for me.  And they would!  And it would be very good!!  I think times have changed in this not-so-fair city.

Eat smart (not like I did today),
T.