Two years after manager Melvin Rodrigue was on the show to announce the quarterly event at Galatoire’s known as The Fried Chicken Brunch, we finally made it there.
This event is held not in the restaurants but in the adjacent space known as Galatoire’s 33 Bar & Steak. I have always loved the space that is 33, and have been to several events there as well as regular a la carte steak dining. I liked the food too, but it is now used for events and spillover from the original next door.
The Fried Chicken Brunch is held four times a year and sells out. It is all-you-can-eat fried chicken and fixins. And unlimited champagne. This started at $50 pp++ but is now 10 dollars more. This is not much of a deal for someone like me who isn’t a drinker, but for larger parties of fun seekers, it could be a loss for the restaurant. I guess it evens out.
We sat down in a dining room overflowing with Mardi Gras revelers, and birthday celebrants. This is Galatoire’s, after all. Champagne is poured immediately, and the food starts coming out just as fast.
A deviled egg per person comes on a small dish.
This is not my thing, but Tom enjoyed it, as did another guest at the table. A pile of fried chicken arrived next, and soon the table was filled with sides. There was macaroni and cheese, collard greens, cole slaw, creamed corn, and little cornbreads that I mistook for Madelines until I bit into one.
Someone on the show said that the fried chicken at Galatoire’s was to die for, but it was lost on me. Perhaps it was the sheer quantity of the food being cranked out at a fast pace, but it seemed a tad greasy. It was golden brown and looked like something Mom would make. It was a light battered and crispy crust, without a wallop of flavor. I also found it a little tough.
Don’t get me wrong. It’s still fried chicken, so by definition it was good. But it wasn’t exceptional in any way, and that was a surprise. This is Galatoire’s, after all.
The same could be said for the sides, which were even more ordinary. The macaroni and cheese was made with elbows clumped together with what Tom calls DayGlo cheddar. It wasn’t especially creamy but was rather dry. Again, it’s mac’n’cheese, so it’s going to be eaten. But it will never be thought of again.
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Ditto the corn, which seemed right out of a can of creamed corn. Better than straight corn, I guess.
The cole slaw was interesting, in that it was a smaller portion than the other sides, and was comprised of shaved vegetables. There wasn’t much to it otherwise, but I can never pass up even a mediocre coleslaw because of its nutrient content. No one fought me for it.
The one exception to all this mediocrity was the collard greens, They were exceptionally good and very spicy. Very spicy. There were chunks of meat throughout. It was a fairly large portion of this, and it was all gone. Our guest raved about these collard greens, and I concurred.
The little cornbreads that I confused with Madelines were also just fine. A little dry, and not especially corny in flavor, or any flavor.
What we did like about all this was the frequency with which our champagne glasses were filled.
When I made the reservation it asked if we were celebrating anything. I said birthdays because my sister and I have been trying to mutually celebrate our December birthdays but it just hasn’t happened. She couldn’t make it today but I did get 2 bread puddings and requested no singing.
This bread pudding was fantastic. I don’t even eat that because of texture issues, but this had the density of a cake and tasted of vanilla, except for the banana slices on top. The sauce was not gooey and thick as it usually is around town. I almost wanted one of these myself. It was exceptional.
The tip is added to the bill and the reservation is guaranteed by a credit card, so I assumed it was prepaid. But we did get a check and left soon after.
The Fried Chicken Brunch at Galatoire’s is nothing I need to do again, but there is something to be said for satisfying curiosity. And there are worse ways to spend a few hours on a Sunday afternoon
