Meltdown (New Orleans)

Meltdown
4011 St Claude Ave.
New Orleans, LA 70117
(504) 301-0905

Meltdown has moved out of the Quarter and closer to the Bywater, but it is still a crowd pleaser! We stopped by after tourning the Ninth Ward during our Spring Break trip with friends. If you buy ten, you get one free!



Below is my original review. The pops are still the same, just gotta drive to get them!

Meltdown
508 Dumaine Street
New Orleans, LA
(504) 301-0905

OK listen up. While we're getting all excited about frozen yogurt, most cities are moving on to gourmet ice cream, gelato, and popsicles. My friend who lives in New Orleans told me about a popsicle shop in the Quarter called The Meltdown (great name, right?), and I HAD to check it out.

We stopped by on a Sunday before heading out of town and the Quarter was bustling. There was no parking in sight, so I was deployed to get a Muffaletta at Central Grocery and popsicles (just around the corner) at the Meltdown while Warren and the monkeys (Satchel, 8, and Jiro 6) circled the block. Unfortunately, Central Grocery isn't open on Sundays.

Thankfully, the Meltdown is.

It's a teeny tiny little shop and if you just drive past you might miss it. There are no tables or anything. Just a counter, a small cooler, and a register. I stopped outside to peruse the flavors.



I called Warren and read him the list. When I asked what he wanted, he said, "I don't know, whatever."

"What about the kids?" I asked.

"I DON'T KNOW. WHATEVER." he said.

Clearly, he was enjoying circling the block. I decided to make an executive decision and get him a Vietnamese coffee one. I opted for the chocolate sea salt and pistachios. I was a little perplexed as to what to get the monkeys so I consulted the woman in the shop.

"What flavors do kids like?" I asked.

"Raspberry lime is good and salted caramel, believe it or not," she said.

"Sold!" I said. Then we had a fun conversation about how sweet and salty are the perfect mix.



Since the coffee and the caramel looked alike, she wrote the names on for me. Each one cost $3. I paid up and then set out to find the dudes.



When I got in the car and asked who wanted what, Warren grumpily said, "None of those sound good. Why didn't you get me pineapple cilantro like I asked?"

UM, WHAT?

I moved on to the monkeys. Satchel requested raspberry and Jiro wanted caramel. I opened up the two others and convinced Warren to take a bite. They were AWESOME. Way better than any popsicle I ever made.

Soon we were all enjoying a lovely sugar high, swapping tastes, and happily heading home. I will definitely make the Meltdown my first stop the next time I am in Nola. (They are open from 12-6 daily.)

Pinkberry (New Orleans)

Pinkberry
300 Canal St.
New Orleans, LA

Hi, my name is Stacey and I am a frozen yogurt addict. I have always been a big fan of TCBY, but YoLo has shown me the light. I just love the whole serve yourself and get your own (yummy, local) toppings concept. I realize this is a national trend--this yogurt craze--but I am discovering that not all of these new, fancy yogurt stores are created equal.

Right across the street from the Insectarium is Pinkberry, a national frozen yogurt chain. My coworker, who has been to one in California, told me how much she loved their tart flavor. I decided to take the monkeys (Satchel, 8, Jiro, 6), who are also yogurt connoisseurs, with me. (Warren came too, but he doesn't love yogurt like we do.)



There was quite a line when we got there, but it moved pretty quick. Turns out that at Pinkberry, they pile the toppings on for you. There's a flat rate for yogurt, and yogurt with toppings. Inexplicably different flavors have different prices.

The woman behind the counter asked if we'd ever been there before and when I said no, she started a memorized speech about their products. It soon became clear that it was going to be quite a speech, and as nicely as I could, I said, "That's okay, we don't need the speech."

Sorry, woman behind the counter if that made you hate me immediately but the frozen yogurt + toppings concept is just not worthy of a speech. I do not like it when restaurants assume that their customers are stupid. (Genghis Grill and P.F. Chang's come to mind.)



Anyways, I ordered a small tart and was asked if I wanted toppings. Now as you can see from the picture, they fill the cup with yogurt first, then ask. Then you get to watch as they try and cram as much topping as they can between the yogurt and the edge of the cup. It's really kind of amusing. As you can see, you don't get all that much.

But really, it's fine. It was plenty. (I have the opposite problem at YoLo--we all tend to get waaaay too much.)



I ordered the monkeys "minis" and it was just enough for them. Weirdo Satchel couldn't even finish his.



Warren opted for a green tea smoothie. I didn't particularly care for the taste, but he liked it. I liked that they had other options besides just yogurt.

We all finished up and headed out feeling good. I asked Warren what the bill was and he said $15. I have to say that was a little shocking. Maybe I should have listened to the speech after all. At least then I might know how they justify charging so much, or exactly what makes their yogurt so fancy.

The Gumbo Shop (New Orleans)

The Gumbo Shop
630 Saint Peter
New Orleans, Louisiana
504-525-1486

We were in New Orleans over the weekend for a friend's wedding. On Saturday, we rode bikes through the French Quarter and stopped for lunch at the Gumbo Shop. I'd flipped through the (local alternative newspaper) Gambit's "Best of" issue and the Gumbo Shop was listed #1 for gumbo. (Go figure!) Satchel (8) LOVES gumbo, as do I, so it was an easy call.

It's just a half a block from Jackson Square and around the corner from St. Louis Cathedral. It's in a very old building--we're talking 1795--and couldn't be cuter.


When we walked in there were several people in the dining room, so we opted to sit out in the courtyard. It was a lovely courtyard and the weather was nice, so it seemed like the perfect place to be. (The bathrooms were right there too. Clean, but way too small to change a diaper in.)

Our waitress was super nice, and obviously used to seeing kids. She brought each of the monkeys a Disney coloring page and crayons and said, "I know you are probably too old for these, but..." Satchel and Jiro (6) happily accepted the sheets and set about coloring. The waitress also brought them waters in paper cups with lids.


Warren, Satchel, and I all wanted gumbo so we didn't have to examine the menu too long, but I wasn't really sure what to get Jiro. There was no kids' menu and the po-boys were of the roast beef, sauteed shrimp and blackened catfish variety rather than the monkey preferred fried shrimp variety. They did offer a grilled cheese, but that just seemed silly. In the end he decided on a (blackened) chicken po-boy. It came with chips and a pickle. I pulled out some chicken and put it on a plate with some chips and he was happy.


I got the seafood okra gumbo which was delish. However, it was very clear that the secret ingredient was butter. I rationalized eating it all since I was going to exercise it right off with our afternoon bike ride.


I ordered Satchel a cup of chicken and alligator sausage gumbo, but he convinced Warren to trade his bowl for the cup. The waitress brought us a fresh loaf of French bread and Satchel happily dipped his in the gumbo until he was absolutely stuffed.


We all cleaned our plates, hydrated with some water, and were ready to get back on the bikes and check out the Insectarium.


Our total bill was $34 before tip and worth every penny. The service was fast and friendly. Satchel wanted to eat there for dinner and lunch the next day and has been asking me when we will go back to New Orleans so he can eat there again!

Bluefin

Bluefin
135 S. Main
528-1010

It's been four years since we took the monkeys (Satchel, 8, and Jiro, 6) to Bluefin. I still frequent it for lunch, but we decided it wasn't the best spot for monkeys downtown. However, last Friday, they had the Fushu Daiko Taiko drummers in town from Florida, so we couldn't resist making a special trip. Plus, the menu has changed quite a bit since my last review.

Since they we slated to play at 7pm on the Main Street Mall, we took a seat on the patio. The monkeys were very disappointed that we weren't going to eat on the "bed" in the lounge. They were both still very attracted to the waterfall wall near the sushi bar, despite being four years older and wiser. Sitting outside is definitely the way to go whether there are Taiko drummers or not!

We started off with some miso soup, which is fancier than you will find at regular old Sekisui. I requested it without green onion, per usual, but both monkeys would have preferred that I also get it without mushrooms. No worries though, Warren happily ate them.


For their dinner, I went pretty simple. They had both snacked extensively prior to dinner, so I ordered Jiro his favorite crunchy shrimp roll and Satchel wanted the beef Teriyaki from the appetizer menu. On our last visit, I got them a pepperoni pizza. Bluefin still serves pizza and would probably still make a simple pizza for kids, but mine prefer Japanese food these days. (They've taken my all time favorite tuna pizza off of the menu, but the beef tenderloin pizza is a good second.)

We also had a crab ball appetizer that I thought the kids would eat, but they didn't. They were tasty, but a little on the creamy side. Oh well, definitely more exciting than edamame. Warren let me order the sushi. I went with the House Cucumber roll, our favorite, the Kracken (which is octopus, spicy lime, and sriracha heaven), and the Japanista (spicy crab and avocado topped with seared tuna and sweet chili sauce). It was our first time with the Japanista and it was good, but had a little too much sweet chili sauce. Regardless, we ate everything up. Yum! (If we had leftovers, they would have been put in an eco-friendly to go box since Bluefin is Project Green Fork certified.


Throughout dinner there was a constant stream of, "When are they going to drum?" Just as we finished our meal, they started. I thought it was pretty good timing! By then the patio was full and there was another table of kids next to us, which was great.

The drummers were excellent and played about 15 minutes. Oh how I wish they'd have them every week. It was just fantastic.


Once the drumming was done, the monkeys were ready to bolt, of course. It took me awhile to track down our waitress (another table inside was bombarding her with questions), which gave the monkeys a final opportunity to stick their fingers in the waterfall inside.

Our total bill was $57, which was a little pricey for a night out with the monkeys, but well worth it. I usually have a Restaurant.com certificate, but not this time. (I suggest you get one to help offset your costs!) I even forgot to use my Bluefin Bonus card which gives me a small percentage back in cash with each meal. (You save it up on the card and then cash it in. I also suggest you get one of these!)

Plan ahead, and treat your monkeys the next time you go to a show at the Orpheum or the FedEx Forum. Follow Bluefin on Facebook and find out about their upcoming special events.

Genghis Grill

Genghis Grill
2362 North Germantown Parkway
584-0412

Last Friday, Satchel (8) and I had to go to Collierville to get his cast off. (He broke his arm jumping out of a tree two weeks earlier.) Since I let him choose a restaurant after getting it put on (Huey's), he wanted to choose a restaurant after getting it off. He naturally wanted to go back to Huey's, but I encouraged him to pick someplace different. His second choice was the Grand Buffet. Since what he likes most about the Grand Buffet is the Mongolian Grill, I told him about Genghis Grill.

From their website:

Genghis Grill-The Mongolian Stir Fry, is a build your own bowl, fast casual, Asian stir-fry concept. The atmosphere is colorful, lively, and a lot of fun! It's actually not a cuisine, but an INTERACTIVE style of exhibition cooking modeled after a centuries-old legend. According to this legend, 12th century Mongol warriors, led by the mighty warrior GENGHIS KHAN, heated their shields over open fires to grill food in the fields of battle!!

How could we resist that?

Jiro (6) had a sleepover, but Warren was able to meet us when he got off of work. Seven o'clock on a Friday probably wasn't the best time to go. We arrived to find a line out the door and were told it would be a 30 minute wait. (The picture above was taken after dinner.) Since Jiro, who is the antsier of my two monkeys, wasn't with us and Satchel & I had fortified ourselves with gas station sushi on the way out East, and Warren can go days without eating, we agreed to wait. We took a seat inside and perused the menu. I also took the opportunity to check out the restrooms, which were very nice and contained a changing table.

We ended up only waiting about ten minutes before being seated. Then our waiter, Ken, came over to literally walk us through the Genghis Grill process. (I really freaked him out when I took his picture.)

Ken had a whole speech prepared which really wasn't necessary since we are intelligent people and had spent ten minutes with the menu, but we let him break it down for us. Basically you are given a bowl and let loose on a massive buffet of meats, veggies, seasonings, sauces, and starches. You can cram as much into your bowl as you want for $9.99 if you are an adult, and for $4.99 if you are a "future warrior" like Satchel. (You can fill up your bowl repeatedly for $12.99.)

If you don't feel confident in your ability to create a decent tasting bowlful, there are different recipes you can try.

We opted for the free for all. I was sad that Jiro wasn't with us because I would have enjoyed seeing what he decided to put in his bowl. However, I feel certain he would have gotten sticky in the selection process and forced me to take him to the bathroom to wash his hands multiple times. I didn't miss that.

I should also point out that if you have allergies, this is not the place for you. There was quite a bit of "cross pollination" happening on the buffet.

Satchel chose an assortment of nectarines, pineapples, tofu, baby corn, potatoes, and green beans.

At the end of the line, you tell the chef what starch you want: rice, fried rice, noodles, or tortillas. Then you have the choice of sitting down and having it delivered, or you can watch and pick it up yourself.

We opted to watch. It's definitely quite a show. The only bad thing about this, is that the floor near the cooking area is crazy sticky. Like stickier than a movie theater floor.

Warren noted that everyone who worked in the restaurant. He wasn't sure if it was a purposeful or unconscious attempt to make it appear as though there were actual Mongolians employed there.

I'd say it took about five minutes for them to cook everything, and we were all very happy with the end result. You could do a final dusting of sesame seeds and other crunchies at the bar.

Satchel was thrilled by the giant bowl he created. He couldn't actually finish, but he ate most of it.

I was happy with my bowl, but I think that following a recipe, at least mostly, might be the way to go. I don't know that the average person can really concoct something awesome. Warren came close, but he went a little overboard with the spices.

Ken, the coolest waiter ever (according to Satchel), was somehow able to convince us to order dessert. Satchel chose the Oreo pie, despite claiming to be freezing.

The side facing him was much more spectacular looking. Warren and I insisted on helping him eat this, and I have to say, it was YUM.

At the end of the meal, I had a chopstick cramp but was full and happy. Warren, despite eating his bowl and the rest of Satchel's, claimed to still be hungry still. Next time we'll let him get the bottomless bowl.

A final note--Genghis Grill is very busy, at least on weekends, and has a full bar. Several people were partaking of blue drinks and other fancy cocktails, but there were also plenty of families there. Still, this may be more of a weeknight kind of place for those dining with monkeys.

Oh, and they have a pretty nice patio.

Nam King

Nam King
6494 Winchester Road
366-6422

A couple of weeks ago, we made plans to go eat dim sum with the Smiths at Golden Coast in Cordova. Coincidentally, the Commercial Appeal reviewed it the Friday before. Knowing this already crowded restaurant would be even more crowded due to the review, we decided to go to Nam King, the Smiths' standby.

I grew up near Nam King and we went there all of the time, but never for dim sum. I was so excited, I read this book to the monkeys (Satchel, 8, and Jiro, 6) before we left:


They were really excited after reading it too. I knew that Nam King didn't actually do the dim sum carts, but I hoped the book would make them feel a little adventurous and try the things we ordered off the menu. As you can see, there are a lot of choices:


We basically put the ordering in Colleen's hands. We're smart like that.


Now, as you can see here, the monkeys took one look at the buffet and lost all interest in eating dim sum.


Had I known about the buffet, I might have prepared better, but oh well. It was fine. The kids love a buffet and the many choices kept them busy while we waited for the dim sum.


One after another, we were presented with little plates of delicious treats. Colleen totally rocked the ordering. Pictured left to right: pork spare ribs in black bean sauce, shrimp dumplings, fried taro root puff, baked char sui buns, turnip pudding, deep fried sesame balls, 5 spice beef stomach, beef meatballs, and steamed tofu with shrimp paste.


Sorry--the restaurant was dark and I hate using a flash. The food was much prettier than I make it look!

Other than the beef stomach, which I politely declined to taste, I have to say that everything was really, really good. We barely finished everything and were all totally stuffed.

The next time we go, I'll have to bribe the kids to skip the buffet and try the dim sum. The bribery may involve the line of crap machines in the foyer. I've never seen kids get so excited about strings with mini plastic nun chuks on them!