Last Updated on Thursday, 20 September 2012 12:00

Restaurants - Seafood Restaurants

Felix's

French Quarter: 739 Iberville. 504-522-4440. Map.
Casual.
AE MC V
Website

WHY IT'S NOTEWORTHY
Felix's is one of the two classic oyster bars in the French Quarter, and if you're over forty chances are you had your first raw oyster either here or across the street at the Acme. In recent years Felix's has become a much more touristy place than it once was--but that's true of most of the Quarter. Two things remain consistent during the forty years I've dined there: the oysters are always terrific, and the service is always marginal.

WHAT'S GOOD
Locals who haven't dined in Felix's in awhile may be surprised by how extensive the menu is--although it's always had more range than it appears. They execute surprisingly good versions of the classic grilled and baked oyster dishes, which one doesn't often find in such a casual place.

BACKSTORY
If you're a New Orleans old-timer, you pronounce the name "feh-LEEX." And you know that the place has been around at least as long as you have (since 1935). It has been owned for most of that time by the Rotonti family. The restaurant expanded greatly in the 1990s by taking over the space formerly that of Toney's Spaghetti House. After Hurricane Katrina, Felix's opened an Uptown branch on the corner of Prytania and Robert, but closed it after a couple of years. The French Quarter original was many months in returning to business, and when it did it reverted to its original Iberville Street space.

DINING ROOM
Two long rooms are side by side, with the neon-lit entrance on the left. The oyster bar is immediately inside, with what may be the most photographed neon advisory in the entire New Orleans restaurant community: "Oysters 'R' In Season." Although it's been renovated a few times, the place is well-worn. The service staff is famous for its inattentiveness. It's worth putting up with, because everything about Felix's--especially the food--is pure New Orleans.

ESSENTIAL DISHES
Starters
Oysters on the half shell
Oysters Rockefeller or Bienville (or a combo plate of both)
Char-grilled oysters (with lots of cheese)
Boiled shrimp
Shrimp remoulade
Fried crab fingers, catfish nuggets, or calamari
Crawfish cakes
Blackened alligator tidbits
Seafood gumbo
Turtle soup
Entrees
Fried seafood platters (oysters, shrimp, catfish, soft-shell crab, or combination)
Grilled or blackened fish
Red beans and rice
Jambalaya
Grilled or fried seafood poor boy sandwiches
Desserts
Bread pudding
Pecan pie

FOR BEST RESULTS
The rest of the menu is okay, but oysters are what you come here for. Eat raw oysters at the bar, but ask for a table before you do if the place is busy. The tables in the other room are better for full meals than those in the bar.

OPPORTUNITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT
The chaos in the bar and the method by which tables are requested needs much streamlining. The clean-up crew could be much more thorough.

FACTORS OTHER THAN FOOD
Up to three points, positive or negative, for these characteristics. Absence of points denotes average performance in the matter.

• Dining Environment +1
• Consistency +1
• Service -2
• Value +1
• Attitude -2
• Wine and Bar
• Hipness -1
• Local Color +3

SPECIAL ATTRIBUTES

• Small private room
• Open Sunday lunch and dinner
• Open Monday lunch and dinner
• Open some holidays
• Open all afternoon
• Historic
• Oyster bar
• Unusually large servings
• Quick, good meal
• Good for children
• No reservations