Saturday, June 23, 2012.
Zachary's Never Left.
Routine Saturday. Minimal breakfast, featuring a whole-wheat and pecan waffle I have not quite perfected. The flavor is good, but the things are way too heavy, collapsing under their own. No lunch, as dictated by a noon-to-three radio show on WWL.
Afterwards, we invited Dan and Cathy Scott to a possible dinner at Zachary's, the teeny bistro on Florida Street in old Mandeville. Last time we tried it, nobody was there, the lights down, and no sign explained why. Zac Watters, the chef-owner, explained that he was the best man at a friend's wedding, and had to take that Saturday off. Another problem with running such a small business: it's hard to afford a backup. (As I know myself from running the New Orleans Menu for thirty-five years. If I don't write it, it doesn't come out.)
We took a table in the back corner of the room--the only one with enough light to take pictures. (I think I may have left my usual light fixture at Arnaud's last night.) Everything at Zachary's is too small, including the tables--something you don't realize until a bottle of wine and an assortment of shared appetizers hits the table.
We started with Kotare Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand--a place that I think makes better S.B's overall than anywhere else. It was certainly fine with the amuse-bouche--fried oysters on their shells napped with a rich, spicy sauce that might have passed for chili con queso. Not a bad idea.
The four of us split two appetizers, one of which is outstanding. It was a pagoda (see photo below) of crabmeat and avocado cubes. These were stacked between thin, crisp bagel slices, and doused with a tangy, nearly invisible sauce. A handsome delicacy. Also on the table were peeled barbecue shrimp (above). The sauce had a heavy hand on the Worcestershire sauce, but was enjoyable enough. Would have been better had not the bread been a little stale. Well, at least they had bread, along with whipped butter made into a sculpture on a slab of rock salt.
The menu at Zachary's is as small as the restaurant. About a half-dozen entrees, counting the specials. I liked the sound of three dishes. I let everyone else order before I did--a ruse that makes sure nobody else gets what I get, and we taste the maximum number of dishes in a visit. This time the strategy backfired: the others ordered the very three entrees I was thinking of.
Fortunately, they were big enough that I got to taste them all. Cathy had the best. She is of Greek heritage, and so was lured by a big bone-in lamb t-bone with a deep, intense brown sauce. The lamb was cooked a little less than she asked for (medium), but not enough to worry about. They served two of the lamb steaks, and one of them fell to me.
The pork chop from the regular menu went to Mary Ann, and she found it good and simple--just what she likes. Dan bought the scallops, which struck me as overpriced at $36 for four. They were not especially great scallops--their modest grittiness betrayed them as having been scooped up from the bottom of the sea, the effects of which require more cleaning than was done. Nor were they seared to anything like the crusty brown we've come to love. Fried oysters alternated in the line of bivalve meats, all of which relaxed atop a chaise longue of pureed peas. I thought this just missed.
Since everybody else beat me to the appealing entrees, I went back into the appetizer sections for a spring roll with a very peppery aioli (brought in the tiniest black iron pot I've ever seen). Tasty, but it should have remained an appetizer as the chef intended. I also took them up on the crabmeat au gratin, which had a good bit of lump crabmeat, but wasn't a gratin in any standard sense. The sauce was like melted butter with not enough solid matter to thicken around the lumps. Almost a soup.
Two excellent desserts. The first was a rich, hot bread pudding surrounded by an equally rich, caramel custard sauce with bananas. The second was unique: quarters of a waffle stacked with fresh apple and pineapple slices on top, with a light sauce that tasted of molasses. Indeed, this was a lot like what I made myself for breakfast this morning, but much better.
As they always are, the Scotts were very entertaining. They've just moved into a house they spent a lot of time refurbishing. Now they're working on the landscaping. They were glad when I called and asked them to dinner, because it gave them an excuse to get out of the heat.
Zachary's. Mandeville: 902 Coffee. 985-626-7008.
