Rocky & Carlo's
St. Bernard Parish: 613 W St Bernard Hwy. 504-279-8323. Map.
Very Casual
Cash only.
Website
WHY IT'S NOTEWORTHY Rocky's is as intense and unreconstructed a piece of whereyaat culture as exists. It's an old bar and cafeteria-style restaurant serving poor boys (both familiar and unspeakable varieties) and ridiculously overloaded homestyle platters, without a hint of delicacy. Watch other diners carefully, and see some offbeat but quintessentially local tastes express themselves. (Example: baked macaroni and cheese drenched with brown gravy.) This is not brilliant food. But it's hard to imagine New Orleans without Rocky & Carlo's.
WHAT'S GOOD Operating like a cafeteria, Rocky & Carlo's does most if its business in the platters of the day, poor boy sandwiches, and latter-day New Orleans-Sicilian pasta dishes. The most outstanding quality of the place is the massive size of the portions. Few people can eat a whole entree, although many try.
BACKSTORY Restaurants very much like this existed in St. Bernard Parish long before Rocky Tommaseo and Carlo Gioe opened their restaurant in 1965. It has not changed much over the years, and most of those changes were results of disasters (fires, hurricanes, etc.). Nothing has ever knocked the place out permanently--a condition that is unimaginable to most St. Bernard people.
DINING ROOM
It looks a lot nicer since the most recent renovation (about seven years ago). But it's the most casual of the casual places. Noisy and unintentionally entertaining.
BEST DISHES OPPORTUNITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT FACTORS OTHER THAN FOOD
Up to three points, positive or negative, for these characteristics. Absence of points denotes average performance in the matter.
Starters
Onion rings
Stuffed or fried artichokes
Garlic bread (fresh garlic & parsley)
Eggplant sticks
Wop salad
Entrees
Baked ham
Baked, broiled or barbecue chicken
Barbecue ribs
Fried fish
Fried chicken
"Bruciloni" (braciolone)
Meatballs & spaghetti
Veal parmesan
Red beans & rice
Fried oysters, shrimp, crab cakes, or combo
Ribeye or T-bone steak
Sandwiches
Hamburgers
Ham
Meatball
Salami
Veal cutlet
Fried seafood
Muffuletta
Sides
Green beans, tomato sauce, smoked sausage
Jambalaya
Lasagna
Macaroni & cheese
Onion rings
Desserts
Lemon berry mascarpone cake
Chocolate mousse cake
Spumone cheese cake
FOR BEST RESULTS
You only need half an order of anything here.
It always seems to me that the food isn't quite hot enough.