HALF-BREWED!
Restaurant August is located in New Orleans, Louisiana. The options for a tasting menu was limited in New Orleans. Restaurant August was one of the few that offered a degustation menu.
Ambiance
The restaurant was located in a French-Creole historic building from 19th century. I loved the use of wood for the decoration. Though the place looked very old with oxidized mirrors, it was clean. The ceiling was high with bricks on the walls. There were three different dining rooms. The overall feeling of the ambiance was sincere.
Taste
I wanted to start by expressing my love for Cajun cuisine. It has become one of my favorite cuisines in the world. There were so many great restaurants in New Orleans that you can taste the wonderful local food.
There is no Michelin guide in New Orleans, thus no Michelin awarded restaurants. I have stayed in New Orleans for a week, but unfortunately, the only restaurant that I had a tasting menu turned out to be my least favorite. I honestly suggest that you visit other restaurants instead of Restaurant August.
August had several different options for a tasting menu. I chose the standard tasting menu, however, there were two vegetarian tasting menu options as well.
As a starter, lemon custard was served inside an eggshell. I didn’t like the idea of eating anything inside an eggshell except the egg itself. Besides, the lemon custard wasn’t so tasty.
The first course was cured lemonfish with pickled royal red shrimp, green tomatoes and Cajun caviar. It was served as if it was a salad. I wasn’t able to taste the fish because the sour flavor was very strong. Fennel was a good combination with the fish.
Next course was crab tagliolini. Fennel was used once more. I wasn’t able to taste the crab as in the previous dish. The sauce was somehow sweet. I was unhappy that the taste of the crab was lost.
Red beans and octopus with celery and shallot wasn’t a success either. The octopus was cooked more than it should. The sauce with the red beans wasn’t tasty.
Lamb with loin, sausage, salsify, peas and mint was the best dish of the tasting menu. It was really delicious.
The finale was dark chocolate buttermilk drops with almond cereal, crème fraîche and luxardo cherry. This was an interesting dish, with a strong alcohol taste.
After all the great meals I had in New Orleans, this tasting menu was a disappointment.
Creativity
Unfortunately, I didn’t find the menu creative. The use of eggshell for the presentation was an unsuccessful attempt.
Service
The service was very mediocre. The dishes weren’t explained in detail. I felt the lack of care.
Value
I don’t recommend to have a tasting menu at this restaurant. A bad tasting menu doesn’t promise a good à la carte experience either. It was definitely not worth the price. There were many amazing restaurants in New Orleans offering local food for a good value. The wine menu was mostly French.
