The tall ships became an obsession with me, mainly because I was trying to get videos for the grandboys, and because nothing ever happened the way the media said it would. But it made for some good eating. I had breakfast at Chemin à la Mer on the balcony the day they were supposed to arrive. Thankfully, one did. I would have been bummed by my $75 breakfast. The account of that breakfast was already posted on this site.
On Sunday I was at Delacroix with a friend from elementary school. We went to Delacroix after a mass and reception at the school. I made the reservation last Wednesday while I was Chemin à la Mer and the boats were not coming in as expected. The open spot at Delacroix was for 2:30pm which was all I could get.
We showed up two hours early and got on the wait list as a walk-in, but it was madness and we waited at least an hour. There had been some additions to an already wonderful menu. I couldn’t believe my eyes when my friend ordered a salad with grilled chicken. It was enormous as any salad priced at $27 should be. It was a gorgeous salad with Little Gem lettuces and a lot of perfectly grilled chicken, but what a waste!
We had spent a long time watching trays of beautiful sandwiches and plates of pretty food with piles of nice fries. I was nearly crazed by temptation to get everything I saw when we sat down. I saw Daube and Cavatelli, the 2026 hip version of Grandma’s N’Awlins favorite.
The cravings for fries, wild catfish and grits and some other enticing things faded away because the Daube would be enough. I also got an app of crawfish bisque, which I don’t remember them having the last time I was at Delacroix. It’s a pity it’s on the Southshore and such an effort to get there, because I’d be a regular. I love the place!
The crawfish bisque came and it was not the color I expected, nor the consistency. It had crawfish boulettes instead of stuffed heads. Tom always said stuffing heads was a fool’s errand (my words, not his…though you get the idea.) there were two boulettes that had dropped to the bottom and resurfaced with my spoon. This atypical crawfish bisque was okay, because how could such a thing be bad? But it stands in contrast to (Billy’s)what I consider the best duck gumbo out there right now.
I also ordered the Leidenheimer loaf with butter. which is their bread service at $3.
Because we talk so often about Daube on The Food Show I have taken to getting it wherever I see it, which is not a lot.
This version was clearly made with Grandma’s cut of beef, and braised exactly right. The Cavatelli pasta is definitely not classic but I liked it. It was a good dish, and one that I would get again. But with all that great seafood it seems a shame to eat Daube and Cavatelli pasta.
Good is good, though, and Delacroix is very good.