Acadiana's Un-Official Food Critics

Greek Dining

2009-01-09T21:01:00.007-06:00

If you are in the mood for Greek food, may we suggest two of our favorite places?

If there is one thing the two of us are passionate about it is our love for Greek Food. Having traveled, we have become picky. So let us tell you our favorite places to dine!!

One of our favorite places is Zeus. We have only eaten at the Zeus on Ambassador, so I cannot speak about the other locations! (I think Amos is going to talk about Athena's - and there is a huge difference in those two locations!)

First, I love the feel of Zeus. The decor, the music, the atmosphere and even the little party type area in the back is very comfortable! We have never had bad service or food while dining there! I am a creature of habit and ever since I tried the Chicken Arabi Sandwich (it was actually not in the restaurant, it was a plate lunch from Bach Lunch one day) I haven't ordered anything else since! They serve either just the sandwich, or you can buy a plate which includes hummus and a greek salad. The Chicken Arabi sandwich is a panini type sandwich. It has chopped chicken - possibly shwarma with a garlicy mayo. It is amazing delicious and I cannot seem to order anything else, even if it is my intention when we arrive! The bread is delicious and grilled I think it is even better. As a whole, it is a wonderful meal!

I find they have the best salad, always generously topped with a mound of Feta. Their hummus is very good and always a good portion as well and every meal comes with a never ending supply of freshly warmed pita.

I have had the chicken shwarma plate and also the gyro plate before. Both are delicious. Amos too is a man of habit always ordering the Gyro plate. This comes with juicy gyro meat, lightly pickled red onions, rice, hummus and a greek salad. You'll never see better portions for the money in any greek place that I know of!

We have dined with friends and they have never had a complaint either! I know that the pasta dishes and the lamb kabobs are big hits as well! I don't think there is anything that wouldn't be worth trying at Zeus. But be forewarned, if you try the Chicken Arabi first you may never try anything else again! smirk!

Good Points: Everything from the food to the servers to the atmosphere!
Bad Points: that they aren't located closer to our house!
Would I recommend this restaurant? To everyone - always!!!
Would I dine there again? Definitely! And after writing this I am very hungry to go there soon!

Rating:

Our other Favorite place is Athena-Greek-&-Lebanese-Express on Kaliste Saloom Rd. I refer to this restaurant as "gas station greek" because the fact that it is in the back of a gas station.

The first time Safia took me to have "gas station greek" I must say I was a bit skeptical. We have all had the gas station food that sits under the heat lamps all day. The corn dogs, potato wedges, and pizza that has enough grease to change your car oil. But I was pleasantly surprised not by the atmosphere , which I was not surprised to see. The heaters with trays of typical gas station food in the front, the coke and Icee machine at the side of the store. But the back of the place was a surprise. To my amazement there was multiple upright rotating spits in the back with fresh lamb, beef, and chicken. I, like always at greek restaurant got the gyro plate, which comes with gyro meat,greek salad, rice, hummus and a piece of pita. Not bad for the price of $6.50. Then you can ad a 44 oz soda for a little over a dollar more. But how about the taste? Great, everything tasted good but, I was disappointed with only one piece of pita. I also noticed that the price was the same from a couple years ago, but the to go boxes your food comes in have mysteriously become smaller.

Good Points: Food is great, with a great price
Bad Points: Portions have become smaller, and the atmosphere is still a gas station.
Would I recommend this restaurant? To everyone, especially those in a hurry for fast food that doesn't taste like fast food.
Would I dine there again? Of course

Rating:

On another note about Zeus. I do enjoy the food and atmosphere, yet I do have a small problem with this restaurant. The manager is very rude to his waitresses/waiters in front of the customers, which is not very professional.

Pizza Place in New Iberia

2009-01-09T19:56:00.003-06:00

One of our favorite places to dine at is a little place located in New Iberia! The Pizza Place has been around for what seems forever! I think Safia and I have been regulars there since the mid 70's! While it isn't much to look at and it doesn't come off as a memorable place, it plays a part in our lives!

The Pizza Place is a favorite for Amos and I! We used to have lunch there almost once a week. We are usually greeted with our drinks when our waitress comes to the table, as they know where we will sit and what we will be ordering!

I thoroughly enjoy all of their food! They have a really unique spaghetti and meatballs. It's not for everyone (this means you Amos! lol) but it's thick zesty sauce and big meatballs is really good! My pizza of choice is the Pizza Place Special. It contains pepperoni, ham, hamburger, onions, green peppers and mushrooms. It's a great balance of the meats and the veggies. A favorite among most of our friends is the Nina. I think that is what it is called. It's a shrimp and jalapeno pizza. The crust is pretty tasty and nice and thin!

If you are ever in New Iberia and looking for a new place to eat, whether lunch or dinner, go check out the Pizza Place. They are located on Center St and Washington, right by the tracks!

Good Points: Great food, great service, really reasonable prices
Bad Points: Not the tidiest of places
Would I recommend this restaurant? Yes, definitely! I always do as a matter of fact!
Would I dine there again? Yes, hopefully next week!

Rating:

They have an terrific lunch special 8" pizza and a small
house salad for about 6 bucks. The pizza is good although I enjoy the corneal on the bottom of my pizza. And extra cheese on the top of pizza is a must to keep the toppings on. We always go early and it is quiet, plus we get to watch some Price is Right. I sure miss Bob Barker, but I guess that young whippersnapper Drew Carey is alright. The service is good too. I haven't tried anything other than the Pizza and salad because I am old enough to be set in my ways. But if everything else is like the pizza then I bet its good. They also deliver, not sure how far they deliver but I'm sure its most of New Iberia.

Good Points: Best Pizza, Waitstaff is pleasant and attentive
Bad Points: Restrooms really need to be updated, but I can look past that.
Would I recommend this restaurant? Definitely, one of the best that New Iberia has to offer
Would I dine there again? Hopefully soon.

Rating:

AppleBee's

2009-01-05T20:07:00.000-06:00

Amos and I enjoy the rather quick but good meal on occasion, and for Christmas had received a gift card for Applebees. Our local Applebees is located on Johnston. We had been there a few times before and after our last visit had not planned on going back due to the lack of quality with the food But strangely enough, we had received a gift card and decided to give it another chance. Why not, since the meal wouldn't cost much anyway.

The appetizer we started with was queso and is was pretty good, but if you just get chips and salsa, I hope you like plain chips because the salsa is very bland and not very tasty at all.

Like Chili's they have the trio platter but I have had it before and it is nothing like Chili's. The burgers aren't very good and the chicken isn't nearly as good as Chili's . The Steak Quesadilla "towers" that look excellent in the picture come to your table not only not resembling a tower but the taste doesn't resemble food. This time though I opted for the Quesadilla burger with a burger or chicken if you like, pico de gallo,lettuce and mexi-ranch sauce. To top it off it has pepper jack and cheddar cheese. All this sandwiched in between two tortillas. And it comes with french fries. The food wasn't bad after I got my burger centered back into the middle of the tortilla so I could taste everything at once. The fries looked like I had the bottom of the barrel but they tasted alright, just a little small. Overall it wasn't to bad we had good service and the food was tolerable. Just glad I had a gift card and didn't have to pay for the whole meal.

Good Points: Quesadilla burger was a nice change, Curbside pickup haven't used it but it's a nice touch
Bad Points: overall the food isn't that good
Would I recommend this restaurant? Not to someone I like
Would I dine there again? No way-- so remember no gift cards for us to Applebees for Christmas or birthdays please

Rating:

As Amos stated, we have generally not been overly excited with Applebees in the past. Since this was definitely our last visit, I will not only tell you about this trip, I will tell you what we have experienced as a whole on all of our trips!

This time around we did go with the chips and queso. Not horrible, but not memorable! The salsa was that of something out of a jar! The portion of queso, especially for the price was a little annoying. Especially when you compare the amount to the size of the "skillet" it is served in. If you are dining at Applebees and get an appetizer - I would strongly suggest the spinach atrichoke dip. It was some of the best I've had!

For dinner I ordered a pasta bowl. It was the 3 Cheese Chicken Penne. It wasn't too bad! The sauce didn't knock my socks off! The chicken though was seasoned really well. I think it added a lot to the dish where the sauce and everything else was lacking in flavor. Definitely not the best I've had.

Previous trips to Applebees I have ordered a steak dinner. It was okay, but left me a little unsatisfied! I find the fries they serve are ALWAYS over salted. I once got the Grilled Cheese BLT and a Caesar Salad. This was the one meal I was very pleased with! The bacon on the BLT was not over done and a thick, good quality bacon!

I did take a bite of Amos's quesadilla burger and think it was really tasty!!

Good Points: Good service, pretty quick, clean restaurant and conveniently located! Oh, and they are never busy when we go, though I think I know why! lol
Bad Points: Most of the food on the menu is substandard! Nothing really amazing about it!
Would I recommend this restaurant? Maybe it just isn't for me - or I always order the wrong items
Would I dine there again? Not intentionally. But if friends wanted to meet there, I would put on my big girl panties and deal with it!

Rating:

Phoenician Grill

2008-12-30T20:06:00.000-06:00

Amos and I are lovers of Greek food! We usually cannot get enough of it. So much so, that I started making a wonderful hummus here are home. Well, we usually go to the same 2 or 3 Greek/Mediterranean places. We decided it was time to try something new. Well, a few months ago we bought one of those 50/50 Friday Deals and it was for the Phoenician Grill on Johnston Street. So we decided to take a trip and try it out yesterday for supper. Here's how it went:

I was really excited to try Phoenician Grill. From the sounds of it, this place might really be the best in the area. We were only one of three tables when we arrived at 5:30 pm. But first impression left me a little disappointed as they we already out of tea. If you know me, you know I drink Tea wherever I go. I gave up soft drinks a long time ago! About mid meal I received an unsweetened tea.

We ordered the Halloumi Cheese as an appetizer. It came with pita and was okay. It wasn't the best I've had. Though it tasted good, it was hardly cooked and I really enjoy the fried outside when done right!

For the entree I ordered the Combination Plate. It came with Gyro meat, chicken shwarma, greek salad, hummus and rice.

First, the meat I don't believe came off of a rotating spit like I am accustomed to. The lamb and the chicken both appeared to have been in steak form and seared then cut. It was nothing like I imagined it would be. The rice had no real taste and the hummus was pretty bland as well. I know not all Greek/Mediterranean places are the same, but the one thing I assumed would be good was the greek salad. I was sorely mistaken! This was the worst greek salad I have ever encountered!

This meal, though not cheap, was one I wish I could forget! I left very unsatisfied and disappointed!

Good Points: The restaurant was very clean and the staff was very pleasant and attentive
Bad Points: The Food
Would I recommend this restaurant? I don't think I would!
Would I dine there again? Not ever!

Rating:

Happy Eating!

Enjoying a variety of foods, I ordered the Phoenician Sampler. It came with Chicken Shwarma, Gyro Meat, Rice, Greek Salad, Grape Leaves also known as Dolmathes,and a Kibbi which is ground lamb meat with wheat and spices deep fried. What can I say about all of this food? At least the rice was good. I took one bite of the bland kibbie and decided that I was not going to eat it. The Grape leaves which are one of my favorites were rolled in the size of a dime not like with more grape leaves than meat and rice, and to top it off the Grape leaves were so overpowering that I couldn't taste the insides.

Good Points: No wait to get in
Bad Points: Food wasn't very good (no wonder there was no wait to get in)
Would I recommend this restaurant? No Way
Would I dine there again? Not Even if the food was free

Rating:

A Hello & Welcome

2008-12-29T23:08:00.000-06:00

Amos and I would like to welcome you to our brainchild! We hope to offer many suggestions as well as cautions when dining in our fair area!

I think if anyone knows about food it is definitely those that dwell here in Acadiana. Food is not only a way of survival but a way of life! Eating is just as important as breathing to some and I think everyone should enjoy food as well as life!

We have traveled quite a bit throughout our life together and have experienced a lot of tasting throughout the world! It is because of these journeys by foot (and taste buds) we have grown to have an opinion when it comes to dining.

Amos and I hope to help you find that great hidden place you may never have known about or never thought to try! We enjoy many types of food and enjoy the experience, though not always pleasant, of trying new places and different food. We hope you find our insight helpful! Happy reading.......and eating!

Regards,