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Restaurant Rebirth
Warehouse District & Center City: 857 Fulton St. 504-522-6863. Map.
Nice Casual.
AE DC DS MC V
Website
ANECDOTES AND ANALYSIS A sort of culinary solar system, with Emeril's at its center, has wrapped a rich field of restaurants around itself in the Warehouse District. Its The new additions get more and more interesting. The best of them during the past year is Restaurant Rebirth--the fourth eatery to occupy this address. The turnover tells us that just being in the right neighborhood doesn't guarantee success. But I think that Rebirth has an offering interesting enough to pull in significant numbers of diners from not just the local crowd, but also visitors from the Convention Center and other attractions.
WHY IT'S NOTEWORTHY
The first time I attempted to dine at Rebirth, I figured I could just walk in. I was told that the next reservation would only come open in about three hours. The next time we tried, we did call for a reservation, and were able get a great table--but by the time we were halfway through, the dining room was full and so was the bar. Clearly, the management has found a niche.
[caption id="attachment_51581" align="alignnone" width="480"]
Steak tartare and carpaccio.[/caption]
WHAT'S GOOD Manny Pineda is at the dining room helm, with Chef Ricky Cheramie in the open kitchen. I know Ricky from his work at the Bombay Club, but before that he worked at Commander's, K-Paul's, and a few other eateries in that circuit. For his part, Manny had time at Emeril's and Mr. John's Steak House. This rebirth is staffed solidly. The menu concept is also a good one. One entree sums up the tastes of Rebirth: chicken Rochambeau, a modernized version of an old Antoine's classic. A half chicken has its breast and leg quarters cooked differently--roasting one and making a confit of the other. Beneath all this chicken are some slices of prosciutto and a brown sauce with some leafy savory vegetables. Bearnaise goes over the top. An old idea but a great one. We find such ideas throughout the Rebirth (good name) menu.
BACKSTORY
Two lines of old brick warehouses along both sides of Fulton Street looked pretty bleak when restaurants began opening the in neighborhood. But Taqueria Corona made a go of this address it for a few years. It was replaced by the very successful La Boca, which a couple of years ago moved around the corner to better visibility. Chateau du Lac, looking for a spot with more and younger traffic than it has in Old Metairie, thought it was a great locale for a French bistro, but construction in the adjacency made the place a dud. The owners of Rebirth had the place back open again before December 2015 was out. The restaurant is named for a snag the owners hit when trying to open their previous restaurant.
[caption id="attachment_51579" align="alignnone" width="480"]
Chicken Rochambeau at Rebirth.[/caption]
DINING ROOM
The premises are only slightly larger than they were in the Tacqueria years. Just about a dozen tables, barely adding up to a hundred seats. Tyhe best of them are between the bar and the glass-windowed front door. Tables snake around the open kitchen and bar. A few tables are out on the sidewalk, but that needs further renovation to be comfortable.
REVIEWER'S NOTEPAD
More ruminations appear in our Dining Diary. Click on any of the dates below for those reports, each written a few days after a meal at Restaurant Rebirth.
5/24/2016 ~
[title type="h6"]FULL ONLINE MENU[/title]
[caption id="attachment_51582" align="alignnone" width="480"]
Cafe au lait creme brulee, with beignet-calas.[/caption]
BEST DISHES
Starters
»Oysters & angel hair, grilled wild mushrooms, tasso, parmesan black pepper cream
Mississippi style barbecue pork belly, cooked greens & hominy, fried okra, watermelon rind relish
Shrimp boulette, stuffed jumbo shrimp, japanese eggplant, battered and deep fried, Creole tomato glaze, braised pork belly cracklings, sugar-cane pepper jelly gastrique
»Quail La Louisiane, foie gras and boudin-stuffed quail, marmalade, crispy kale, pomegranate molasses, pickled mustard seeds
»Filet mignon tartare & carpaccio, roasted marrow crostini, demi glace gelee, pickled mushrooms, confit shallots, crispy capers
»Gumbo du jour
Soup du jour
Garden salad, yellow teardrop tomatoes, red onion, fresh herbs, house made farmer’s cheese, candied pecans, Creole sugar cane vinaigrette
»Grilled romaine caesar, fried oysters, cornmeal fried oysters, marinated artichokes, crispy capers
Entrees
»Gulf seafood al ajillo (shrimp, crab claws, oysters, & fish broiled with white wine, parsley, olive oil, crushed red chili peppers, saffron, grape tomatoes, lemon & sherry)
»Fish of the day, housemade gnocchi, riesling poached crab meat, fennel-endive marmalade
Double-cut tomahawk pork chop, bacon, braised haricots verts, brabant potatoes, crispy shallot rings, sugar-cane Creole glaze
Duck bamboo (pan roasted duck breast, bamboo dirty rice, confit duck leg, candied yams & currants, pickled bamboo shoots & blackeye peas
Chicken & mirliton Rochambeau, pan roasted chicken breast, cold-smoked confit leg quarter, panéed mirliton, tasso, marchand de vin & bearnaise sauces
»Blackened scallops, crawfish & tasso maque choux, fingerling potatoes maison, fried fennel pickles, sweet chili saffron glaze
»Filet mignon or ribeye steak, Mrs. Emma's chimichurri sauce, housemade steak sauce, or bearnaise
Desserts
»Cafe au lait creme brulee
Chocolate marquis, lavender honey, cocoa nibs, candied orange zest, fresh berries
»Vanilla bean whipped creole cream cheese
White chocolate bread pudding
FOR BEST RESULTS
Be sure to reserve if going on a weekend. Scale back your order from what you'd usually get in a French place; the portions are unexpectedly large. The specials include some of the best food here, so find out all about them before making any decisions.
OPPORTUNITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT
From opening day to now, the seafood entrees have been of less interest than those using terrestrial foodstuffs.
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
- Service+1
- Value +1
- Attitude +2
- Wine & Bar +1
- Hipness +2
- Local Color +1
SPECIAL ATTRIBUTES
- Sidewalk tables
- Romantic
- Good for business meetings
- Open Monday lunch and dinner
- Historic
- Easy, nearby parking
- Reservations accepted
