The new generation of the Riccobono family is doing some nice new things at the Peppermill, modernizing without destroying the restaurant's menu and style. A couple of weeks ago I built a dinner entirely from dishes they've done for decades. In a way, they were the same. In another way, they'd been buffed up to keep up with current standards. I see a lot of that going on there, and a few new dishes, too.
I depart every meal at the Peppermill lately with the feeling that it's on the verge of breaking out and getting as hot as it was in it early years, when you couldn't get into the place. But it remains under-appreciated, and for a ridiculous reason: because some people find the presence of older diners offensive. How does the age of the other diners affect the food and service? They don't, is the answer.
If the Peppermill stopped serving breakfast, a lot of people wouldn't know what to do with themselves in the morning. It has become the best and most popular place in Metairie for that meal, very plain to very fancy. Not quite as busy at lunch and dinner, the Peppermill does even better cooking with those meals, blending Creole standards with New Orleans Italian dishes, many of which are now served only here.
The Peppermill began in the 1970s as a fern restaurant, a feminine spinoff of the old Buck Forty-Nine Steak House. Josie Riccobono was its tastemaker. She died right after the hurricane, but her grandchildren have moved into place and have lately modernized much of the menu.
The lush, ornate look of the early days gave way to a cleaner, more modern new environment after Katrina, which required a major renovation of the whole restaurant. The two rooms offer many private corners; many of the regulars have favorite tables.
The sheet of daily specials includes much of the best food. They're unusually good with veal here.
| Attitude | 2 |
|---|---|
| Environment | 1 |
| Hipness | 0 |
| Local Color | 0 |
| Service | 1 |
| Value | 2 |
| Wine | 0 |
