Metairie does not have a lot of first-class glamorous dining options, so I was thrilled a few years ago to see TANA Italian open.
I was suspicious in the beginning that this would not be a classically delicious Italian establishment, because Chef Michael Gulotta likes to mix it up. He’s a terrific chef with an authentic Sicilian New Orleans background, but he’s also very creative and playful.
Nothing about the place was a surprise: it is indeed glamorous, and it is indeed not classic. Maraschino cherries in the olive salad, for example. It’s now less than three years after arriving in Old Metairie, and already, big changes have occurred. The bar at TANA has become a pricey private club, an idea that wouldn’t raise eyebrows in a more populous well-heeled community, but I’m surprised by this development.
I couldn’t wait to see what this was all about, so I joined a friend for lunch there recently. It was also a chance to try out the new lunch menu, 3 courses for $28. For a place like TANA, that’s a great deal.
TANA is an Italian restaurant, so I felt silly ordering a burger, but it was National Burger Day that day, and I wanted to IG a pic of a burger. My friend got the Italian salad, and I chose the Caesar. For wntrees, I got the burger, and she got a shrimp pasta. Dessert was gelato or sorbet made in-house each day. They make their pasta too. And the house bread, which is a wonderful little seeded Italian loaf.
The Italian salad was typical, with pieces of olive salad (no cherries), and pieces of salumi and cheese. There was a creamy dressing on this that my friend loved. She was totally pleased with her choice.
My Caesar looked like a wedge of quiche. There was nothing wrong with the salad, but I just couldn’t get past its appearance. I could taste the anchovies in the dressing, which I always like in a Caesar.
We had the third choice for an appetizer as an add-on to our order. We also got the meatballs. While these weren’t the best or worst meatballs we have had, both of us liked them rather well. And the sauce was particularly good. The meatball duo was served with two really toasty slices of ciabatta.
The Shrimp and Pistachio Ziti looked like a large pile of pasta to me, but my companion was quite happy with this ample serving. It had a nice dusting of Parmesan cheese on top.
My burger had a good flavor, but the patties had been overworked. It was a smash burger, of course, and the cheese was great, as were the dressings. But when ground meat is dense and a bit tight of a grind, it ruins a burger for me. The dressings were nice, but this was a complicated burger with tomato jam and caramelized onions. Good crispy fries.
Each of us picked a different frozen dessert. I didn’t find it creamy enough to be called gelato, but it was luscious and had a great flavor. My friend enjoyed her blackberry sorbet.
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This lunch menu is not large, but the price is right. I liked it well enough, which is what I say every time I leave this restaurant. There was one day I was thrilled. That was the day I paid $36 for bracialona. It was fantastically delicious and totally classic, like I fruitlessly wish everything else was here.