Wednesday, May 25, 2011.
La Carreta, Again.
The Marys deigned to permit my embarrassing presence during lunch at their favorite spot: La Carreta in Mandeville. We were the only ones sitting outside in the glaring sun and still, humid air. Summer has been put off long enough and is firing away with all its resources.
The girls ate what they always do: beef soft tacos for ML, the great chilpotle shrimp with avocados and tomatoes for MA, and several baskets of chips with several bottles of salsa and a boat of queso. I like the chiles rellenos over there--they grill instead of fry them, which makes them lighter and better. Rice and beans. They make a version of this with huevos rancheros that's even better, but I wasn't hungry enough for that. Or anything else for the rest of the day.
Last week's dinner gave me enough information to update my Commander's Palace review, and to make the restaurant the subject of my weekly column for CityBusiness. I wrote about it three years ago there. But I think restaurants of Commander's caliber should be revisited editorially every now and then. The Times-Picayune, on the other hand, only reviews new restaurants, as if those were the only ones anyone ever dined in. It's not just the T-P doing that, but most newspapers. Bad for food journalism, but good for me. It enlarges my niche.
La Carreta. Mandeville: 1200 W Causeway Approach. 985-624-2990.
