A couple of weeks ago on a Saturday night, I was invited to dinner with
a group from Lafayette, visiting for the baseball game. Since I was busy at work, I wasn't even sure I would be able
to join the party, but at the last minute, I got away and sat down to a wonderful and memorable meal at Upperline Restaurant (1413 Upperline St., Uptown; 504-891-9822).
By the time I had joined the group, they had already ordered a round of
appetizers and polished them off; the famous Fried Green Tomatoes with Shrimp Remoulade and the Oysters
St. Claude. In the midst of interrupting a party of ten and introducing myself to many new faces, I fired
off to the waiter an order for Fried Green Tomatoes as my appetizer and the Beef Tournedos with Stilton Cheese as an entree,
and of course, a Stoli and Soda with lemon to help cleanse my palate before dinner.
The wait for the food helped me warm up to some of the personalities at
the table, and it wasn't long before I realized I was in the middle of a "family-style dining" environment. By "family-style," I
mean is that it's not uncommon for one person to unabashedly ask for a sample of the food from the plate of their dining
companion (or anyone else at the table, for that matter). Fortunately for me, I had two things going for me; this practice
is not uncommon to my own family, and my next-seat-neighbor ordered Tom Cowman's Famous Roast Duck. I knew I was
in for a sampling of some outstanding food.
My order of Fried Green Tomatoes turned out to be memorable;
perfectly fried tomato slices topped with jumbo boiled shrimp, drizzled with spicy remoulade sauce. I enjoyed every
bite. I was barely finished my last morsel of shrimp when the entrees came (remember that I was late in showing
up... had to play catch up). I was impressed at the variety of food placed on the table by our waiter. I had a
fish dish to my left, roast duck to my right, and right in front of me were gorgeous Tournedos of Beef, cooked medium
rare and topped with Stilton Cheese and Mushroom Sauce; I don't think anything could have made me happier.
I gladly traded a couple of bites of beef and a several broccoli spears for a duck leg that turned out to be exceptional.
The duck had a balanced roasted flavor with crispy skin and meat the melted in my mouth. It was a treat to eat it by
itself or accompanied with one of the two sauces, a Garlic Port Reduction or Ginger Peach Sauce. Several
of the diners at the table ordered the Sauteed Black Drum, perched atop cornbread and cooked greens.
Already a great dish, one of the women in our party requested that her fish be coated in pecans, and the rest of the diners
followed suit. What started as a simple request turned into a trend at the table, and later prompted the chef to mention
that it was a great idea and could be a future addition to the menu.
As our meal was winding down, I introduced myself to the friendly and outspoken
owner, JoAnn Clevenger. Although a complete stranger, I was treated like a VIP guest; she gave me a tour of the
restaurant and even brought out the chef to introduce him to the table. It was during my conversation with JoAnn that
my dessert arrived; I returned to the table with a bite mysteriously missing from my Creme Brulee. I am pretty
sure of the guilty party, but the remnants of my dessert was a perfect ending to a wonderful meal at one of New Orleans'
best and most underrated restaurants.
