Diary 2|26|2015: Andy's Bistro Revisited.

[title type="h5"]Thursday, February 26, 2015. Andy's Bistro Revisited.[/title] My impression that it has been a cold winter is confirmed when I take a look at the electricity bill. It's almost five hundred dollars. Next year, no matter how strident MA's objections are to the way it looks, I am going to hang skirts across the open crawl space at the rear of the house. It makes more of a difference than can be argued with. Long as I am punching around on the computer, I look at the weather records. The second half of February has had only four days with lows above 40 degrees, offset by three nights in the 20s. I should have been a weatherman, which would also have allowed me to be a restaurant critic, as well. The Marys visited Andy's Bistro a few times lately and told me that they like it. The management has made some changes in the menu and the kitchen. Chef Andrea Apuzzo, who consulted on the place at the beginning, now appears to be out of the picture at Andy's. I don't see anything on the menu reminiscent of his style. The bar is very busy when I arrive, and a private party is underway in the rear of the dining room. The open tables are about half full, almost entirely with women, for some coincidental reason. Maybe it's ladies' night. I recall how little effect ladies' night had on my efforts to couple during my long era as a single. [caption id="attachment_46803" align="alignleft" width="480"] Flatbread.[/caption] Andy's has an interesting new complimentary tidbit: a cheese-sprinkled, baked flatbread. That's the current chef word for something that you or I would call a pizza, but which they want to seem a bit classier. But it's pizza dough rolled thin, baked in a pizza oven, with no sauce or meat but a thin layer of white cheese. Not the best choice for the cheese, I'd say. It's one of those cheddar-like varieties that get greasy when they melt. On the other hand, I find it hard to stop eating it. Great with a glass of wine. [caption id="attachment_46802" align="alignnone" width="480"] Grilled oysters with a lot of cheese.[/caption] Next come five baked oysters on their shells, with what I think is the same cheese as on the pizza, with the same effects. It tastes of something smoky, too. It tests my control of the gobble reflex. Even though they are mouth-searingly hot, I eat 'em up with dispatch. Andy's Bistro has always been strong in its steak department--a major reason why I am there tonight. I was thinking about a sirloin strip, remembering one I enjoyed many months ago. But like in many other restaurants, the rise in steak prices forces strips--the most expensive standard steak cut--off the menu. I get the large filet mignon instead. Even inexpensive filets are usually tender, but this one wasn't. It is a battle slicing this thing up. Should have sent it back. Based on past experience, this one is an aberration. But I wasn't hungry enough. One thing Andy's Bistro has had right since the beginning is the cordiality of its staff. They were quick on the draw at every request. [title type="h5"]Andy's Bistro. Metairie: 3322 N. Turnbull Dr. 504-455-7363.[/title]