Randy Fertel's Review of Uglesich's Restaurant
Uglesich's Restaurant1238 Baronne St. (at Erato), New Orleans Click on the photo or here to receive a 237K JPEG version of the photo.One of the great things about New Orleans cooking is that we treat not only our haute cuisine, but also our everyday, with total seriousness. Take for example the poor boy. 'Nuff said. But when you take your poor boy, by all means take it at Uglesich's - by far the funkiest and the best poor boy joint in New Orleans. Anthony Uglesich's parents opened in 1924. In Louisiana, Yugoslavians (as we once called them) are the heart and soul of the seafood industry. For one thing they make up 90% of the oyster fishermen at the mouth of the Mississippi River where, as we all know, the most succulent and the saltiest oysters in the world are farmed. So when a Yugoslavian opens those dozen raw oysters you're slurping, or confects that oyster loaf (that is, poor boy) you're crunching, you know you're in good hands. Now situated just outside the business district, Uglesich's was once on the other side of Canal on Rampart Street. When Anthony's mother told me that, it occurred to me that that was the time and that was the place where jazz came into its own. "Sure," she said, "there were plenty musicians around. Once my husband was watching TV and ol' Louis Armstrong came on. 'Look,' he said, 'There's a man I've shucked a lot of oysters for.'" Once Satchmo's favorite oyster bar, Uglesich now often serves the musical elite of New York and LA who, haivng "discovered" it now often throw as large a party as you can imagine is such a little place. Those parties are private of course; but if he's in town you're quite likely to see Aaron Neville who grew up nearby. Maybe it's the oysters that give Aaron that lovely voice. . . . Be forewarned however, Uglesich's locale and decor are part of the reason we call it funky. Obviously Anthony has used his profits to send his kids to college rather than to renovate. But locally we think the look - with cases of Barq's root beer stacked on the concrete floor of the 10 table dining room - is just right. Too, be warned to come early or late. After 11:30 and until 2:00 you will wait to be seated, or even to stand at the tiny oyster bar - there's room maybe for three if you don't mind an elbow in your ribs. But come expecting to see the political and business elite of New Orleans. What to order? Well, or course expect nothing but seafood, most of it fried (though all fried in canola oil), and all of it with generous caloric counts. The only menu is on the back wall which includes this classic placard, a favorite of many New Orleanians: Grilled and Spicey!
By the way, don't believe a word of it: Gail and Anthony are not the spiciest, but rather the sweetest couple you'll ever meet. The poor boys are hard to get around because they are so outstanding, and hard to get through because they are so large. Still, it would be a shame to miss their appetizers. Anthony's shrimp remoulade, rich in Creole mustard, paprika, and minced green onions, rivals - dare I say it - the remoulade at Ruth's Chris. And Anthony and his wife Gail have added some incredible and extremely creative tidbits on the appetizer menu. If your pockets are deep ask for an appetizer platter which might include some or all of the following: fried green tomatoes topped with grilled shrimp and their exquisite remoulade; fried mirliton (a favorite local squash) covered with crawfish sauce; or toasted French bread rounds with shrimp and black olives in a vinaigrette. You may not get to your main course! But their new plate lunches are exquisite, too. Paul's Fantasy - named after a local businessman who eats there daily with his extended family - is delicious: grilled shrimp over speckled trout with brabant potatoes. Their soft-shelled crab is truly the most succulent you will ever put in your mouth. But your best bet is to put yourself in Anthony's hands: give him the general directions your tastes go in and he'll send out what just came in off the truck from down the river that morning. At some point, however, the point here is to eat some oysters, raw, fried, or sauteed. After all, who could pass up the opportunity to eat oysters where Baronne meets Erato - the muse of love poetry.
This World Wide Web document is provided as a public service by Yatcom Communications, Inc. Yatcom Communications is a consulting/public relations company dedicated to using computer technology to promote the City of New Orleans, Louisiana, USA. Copyright © 1995, Randy Fertel, rfertel@aol.com. All Rights Reserved.Used with permission. Comments are welcome: e-mail to vno@yatcom.com |
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