Cuisine Review

There has been much buzz – positive and negative, about Oysterella’s. Located on the causeway, caterer Clifton Morrissette is trying to transfer his successful party business into retail. It is an ambitious undertaking that opened last year.

Too loud, poor service, not enough food, too expensive – these comments for a while drowned out any positive feedback I heard. Over the last five months I have eaten here four times – at both lunch and dinner. I will address the comments heard above, and then the food.

While I am sure that initial design could have mitigated any noise issues, the back of the restaurant is basically one large cavernous room. I only sat there once and it was hard to hold a conversation. I am told acoustical changes have been made to mitigate the noise level in the back.

Portions are way out of control at restaurants, containing more calories, fat, salt and sugar that we often need in an entire day. “This is way too much food,” we say, but it seems to either be eaten or wasted. So now price is equated with the mountain we get. The question should be quality compared to the price, not quantity.

At Oysterella’s, I never found I was not given enough food and have had no questions about quality. Nevertheless, they have decreased their prices by about a third, I am told, and increased portion sizes.

I am not discounting the validity of the comments made. Obviously there is truth to them or the restaurant would not have undertaken some changes. It is the whole experience that shapes our opinions. So, if they have made some changes, and you have been but weren’t completely happy – why not give them another try?

Oysterella’s is mainly a seafood restaurant with other specialties mixed in. If you have not been inside, the first floor is reserved for private parties, and can hold quite a crowd, with a nice bar and party area that can open up onto patio space right on the Delta. The upstairs at first is similar to the old Oyster House layout, with dining tables interspersed and bordered by booths surrounded by windows affording a wonderful view.

A large comfortable bar with some seating provides the gateway to the enormous back dining room. Set up just like the front, it is massive in scale with fantastic views. The décor is similar to an old yacht club, with dark wood paneling, comfortable seating, old photographs and lots of old oyster plates hanging on the walls.

The menu has a large selection of appetizers, an oyster bar, salads, seafood with some beef mixed in, sandwiches and homemade desserts. The lunch menu has a few items not found on the dinner menu. I will say up front there is one item so good that I can, and have, eaten my weight in it. That is the seared spicy tuna – rare seared tuna tossed in a spicy sesame mayonnaise served with soy glazed fried wonton chips. The tuna has always been quality-grade, the mayo has a wonderful amount of wasabi and the chips are hot and fresh. This is sublime.

On my last visit I took my children and got them to try it and even my daughter loved it. Other items in this area include crab stuffed jalapenos, Royal Street shrimp – tempura battered shrimp tossed in spicy red pepper butter sauce I know many have enjoyed.

On a lunch visit, I ordered the Causeway Cobb salad one time that was quite nicely done. Any of the salads can be topped with oysters, shrimp, crab, chicken, steak, seared tuna or the fresh catch. I got the Cobb with seared tuna. Cobb is my favorite salad, so they had me won over just by having it on the menu, and you can hardly find it around here.

The tuna was pink and fresh, and the homemade blue cheese dressing was excellent. Someone with me got the Caesar with fried oysters – on this visit she was not impressed, but my son loved the large serving of fried oysters he had recently for dinner. She did enjoy her bowl of roasted corn and crab bisque – tender, picked crab in a creamy warm base.

On Christmas Eve I ate at Oysterella’s again for lunch with another friend. Essentially, they have platters of soft shells, fried catch, oysters, shrimp, blue crab claws, stuffed crab claws along with specialties such as fresh catch Bienville – fried fish topped with crawfish, tasso and mushroom cream sauce.

All items come with a side choice of fries, macaroni and cheese, slaw, fried green tomatoes and others. My friend ran to the Shrimp and Grits – sautéed shrimp, peppers onions and spices in a Creole cream sauce served over smoked gouda cheese grits with a side salad. The shrimp were fresh, nice quality and size and she found her meal to be good, no complaints, but she was not licking the plate. I on the other hand had the Debris sandwich, with roast beef, ham, pickle, cheese and gravy, that was a hefty sandwich. I could barely eat half of it. I have been with a group another time where two did rave over the Shrimp and Crab Au Gratin, were both are in a cream sauce with brandy, topped with parmesan and breadcrumbs.

My last visit was an early dinner with my two children. They bounced in ready to order burgers, and after I chided them, my son decided to order the Oysters. Sitting here with me now he said “they were awesome, I didn’t know they just tasted good.” There you have it, and he did get 14 of them.

My daughter got the burger, which at first blush looked small until it got on the table. It is large not in dimension but depth, and has sautéed onions that bring a sweet smoky flavor to the sandwich. I had an excellent platter of fried flounder, crisply fried, fresh tasting with plenty of lemon to squeeze. We loved the fries.

You are not going to get taken advantage of here, no sandwich or salad I ate was over $11, and no entrée above $20. They are doing a good job of trying to establish a quality, engaging atmosphere with local flavor. I recommend you either try Oysterella’s again or try them for the first time now to make up your own mind.

Hardly anyone falls in love on the first date.

Kinnon Phillips is Lagniappe cuisine editor. Contact him at kphillips@lagniappemobile.com.

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