Number Twenty-Six
Restaurant des Familles
Seafood.
Lafitte: 7163 Barataria Blvd. 504-689-7834. Map.
Lunch and dinner continuously WE TH FR SA SU
Nice Casual.
AE DS MC V
Website
Lafitte and the communities around it abound in fishing camps and charter fishing boats. It makes sense that a restaurant should tap into the bounty. It's a touch upscale from and much better looking than the typical seafood joint. But Des Familles cooks the basics like boiled shrimp remoulade, gumbo, and seafood platters. On the other hand, it can get more ambitious, with sauces and unique preparations. Also here: the only Sunday brunch worth talking about on the West Bank.
Restaurant des Familles is named for the bayou outside its windows. At one time in the dim past, that was the Mississippi River. The restaurant came in 1993. Washed out by Hurricanes Katrina, Rita, and Isaac, it always came back quickly and picked up where it left off.
A large wall of glass that gives onto the lazy old bayou creates most of the atmosphere. In a visual almost laughably typical of South Louisiana, alligators waddle right out of the bayou and up to the dining room windows. Note: these wild reptiles are not pets, and are as dangerous as they are reputed to be. Keep your distance.
The dining room is spacious and airy. Sometimes there's live music. It's not hard to find, but easy to zoom past. If you don't know the area, print out the map.
BEST SEAFOOD DISHES
Alligator sauce piquant
Crabmeat Remick
Oysters Lafitte
Shrimp remoulade
Barbecue shrimp
Fried calamari
Oyster-artichoke soup
Turtle soup
Seafood gumbo
Catfish or soft-shell crab Foster (with artichokes and mushrooms)
Redfish Marcelle (fried, with crabmeat and shrimp)
Fried catfish meuniere or amandine
Fried seafood platter (with gumbo)
Fried oysters, shrimp, or soft shell crabs
Shrimp Diane (garlic butter, pasta)
Crawfish etouffee
Crab cakes with bearnaise
Broiled stuffed crab
A detailed review of this restaurant can be found here.
