Menu and Food

I think the first impression I got when I looked at the menu was the best on to have: wow. I was pretty overwhelmed at first because everything on the menu sounded so delicious. I was caught off guard trying to figure out just exactly what I wanted. It seemed to me that a lot of their food is just good, home-cooked type, which they do very well. Thankfully, David Link stepped in to save the day—once again—and pointed me to exactly what I wanted to eat: the grilled cheese sandwich, served with tomato soup. Of course, your first reaction is probably the same that I had when he said this: a grilled cheese sandwich? But believe me, this is what you’ll want to get on your first visit. It is simply the best grilled cheese that I have ever had ever—bar none, seriously, it’s that good. It’s made with a cavalcade of cheeses, spread thick on a fresh focaccia bread, and grilled to perfection. And the tomato soup just accentuates it even more.

Menu Selection Rating—4 out of 5 stars

Quality of Food Rating—4 out of 5 stars

Atmosphere

Chelsea’s is a great place to eat, especially after a long day at work, because it has such a quaint and relaxed atmosphere. Our waitress was so laid back—even with our huge group. And the décor is nothing short of awesome as well, decorated in a sort of indie fashion that you’d expect from a place like Chelsea’s.

Atmosphere Rating—3.5 out of 5 stars

Overall Review

Overall, Chelsea’s was a great place to eat, and I can see myself going back in the future. Really, the only concluding remarks I can make is that it’s pretty clear that if you’re in the mood for a good meal at a great relaxing restaurant, Chelsea’s is your place.

Overall Rating&mdash3.83 out of 5 stars

Urbanspoon Rating—

Menu and Food

The menu can, at first, be quite overwhelming. Aside from their exclusive dishes, you’ll find classics such as Spring Rolls, General Tsao Chicken, fried rice and others. Their selection is impressively broad in terms of the traditional Chinese dishes, but also very mature and features several exclusive dishes. I was hit with a dilemma when trying to order, and only after an arduous elimination process did I finally settle on the kung pao chicken. One important thing to note here is that spicy in Chinese (火) in no way compares to Cajun spicy. I recommend asking for extra- or super-spicy for you Cajun folk. Otherwise the chicken was delicious. So were the dumplings, spring rolls, fried rice, sesame chicken and hot fish—all dishes we ordered. Of course, delicious really doesn’t do the food justice. It was absolutely scrumptious and the aroma that permeates the restaurant is so appetizing that it was almost cruel to my starving stomach. Coming from someone who has been to China and tasted authentic Chinese food, believe me when I say to you that this is as close as I’ve gotten in the US—it was just that good.

You might be wondering how after such a wonderful review PF Chang’s marks low in the menu selection rating. There’s really only one caveat that prohibits me from awarding them this distinction: price.

Menu Selection Rating—4 out of 5 stars

Quality of Food Rating—4.5 out of 5 stars

Atmosphere

PF Chang’s is marketed as a high-end restaurant, and as such the interior décor is very fancy. It’s decorated in a very balanced mix of ancient, dynasty-era Chinese and modern Westernized style. It makes for a comfortable atmosphere to enjoy a flavorful meal. Moreover, the waiters were all very accommodating. They were extremely polite and very helpful when wading through the huge menu. They were also very helpful when delivering a baby. (This almost happened. A women started having contractions behind us. I almost thought the poor kid would have to apply for dual-citizenship.)

I’d say that the only thing that marks against PF Chang’s was their wait time. On a busy weekend, a half-hour wait time would be understandable; on a Tuesday night, this is unforgivable. With this kind of crowd, you’d expect the exact type of service and quality of food you get—which slightly mitigates the negative impact.

Atmosphere Rating—3.5 out of 5 stars

Overall Review

Overall, I was extremely satisfied with my experience. After one visit, I know that I’ll be a returning patron. I think it’d be a great place for a date, although a tad expensive for a normal college student. I highly recommend stopping by PF Chang’s if you haven’t already. I also recommend lifting a pair of their chopsticks. They just look so fancy. (Disclaimer: I am in no way advocating petty theft.)

It’s worth mentioning here the recommendations I got via Twitter:

• @ngscheurich recommends the oolong blend hot tea.
• @deegeebee recommends the lettuce wrap.
• @jbeswick recommends getting Northern Style Spare Ribs as an appetizer.

Overall Rating—4 out of 5 stars

Urbanspoon Rating—

Menu and Food

Roul’s is, pretty obviously, a hole in the wall. It’s a really tiny place—there’s only room for a dozen or so people inside and a handful outside. But what it lacks in square footage it makes up in taste. The thing about Roul is that he’s basically good at one thing: hamburgers. Therefore, you only go to Roul’s for these hamburgers. Sure, there are other things on the menu, but this is, ostensibly, the best burger in Baton Rouge—get the burger. It’s huge, well seasoned, with peppers at its core, and just so scrumptious. I just can’t believe it took me this long to get to this place.

Menu Selection Rating—3 out of 5 stars

Quality of Food Rating—5 out of 5 stars

Overall Review

I really can’t say much more about Roul’s. There’s not much there in terms of a traditional restaurant to review. I’d like to comment on the atmosphere or service or something else, but really there’s just not enough of an establishment to review. But the burgers—they just make up for that. I highly recommend trying Roul’s.

I have yet to taste a better burger than this in Baton Rouge, so until some other restaurant comes around to dethrone Roul, this is our pick for best burger in Baton Rouge.

Overall Rating&mdash4 out of 5 stars

Urbanspoon Rating—

Last year, I participated in this event (several times, but don’t tell anyone) and it was really awesome. Root Beer Floats (especially at Sonic) are always good, but even more so when they’re free.

This got me thinking: what is the best pizza in Baton Rouge? I’ve been to many of the parlors here in Baton Rouge, but it’s hard to clearly discern the best. Mellow, Reginelli’s, Whole Foods, Schlitz’, Fleur—they’re all so delicious. So tell me, what do you think is the best? Democracy might be the only way to solve this perennial dilemma.

Menu and Food

Overall, the food was very good. It’s something you’d expect from a typical Italian restaurant. The menu was large enough for anyone to find something to eat. Their signature is their pizzas. I tried the chicken parmesan po-boy. The other members of my party had their house salad garnished with sauteed shrimp and the meatball po-boy. Everything we eat was very good and prepared with the utmost of culinary quality. I was very full after the meal with no room for dessert (which is good considering they didn’t have cheesecake, which is my favorite dessert). My po-boy was an interesting Cajun-influenced version of a typical Italian dish. I was considering getting the chicken parmesan until I saw it as a po-boy. I recommend getting this dish or their meatball po-boy, which was incredible. The meatballs were so delicious. For their menu selection we give them a 4/5 because, despite the po-boys, there aren’t many original dishes.

Menu Selection Rating—4 out of 5 stars

Quality of Food Rating—4.5 out of 5 stars

Atmosphere

We sat outside at Di Giulio’s, which is a fantastic setting on such a day as when we visited. I imagine it would be nice for any family or general party. In fact, there were a couple of other parties outside enjoying the breeze and an after-work meet up. Inside, the restaurant is slightly more intimate and I imagine that it’d be a great place to take a date. Italian is always a great choice so I give it romantic points. I recommend this as your next date spot. I know it’ll be mine. (Speaking of which, do I have any single lady readers?)

Atmosphere Rating—4 out of 5 stars

Overall Review

My overall experience at Di Giulio’s was good. It wasn’t fantastic like my experience at Dingo’s was, but then again not every restaurant has a Patrick Muller. Regardless, we recommend Di Giulio’s as a good Italian pick in Baton Rouge.

Overall Rating—4.13 out of 5 stars

Urbanspoon Rating—

Yelp Rating—4 out of 5 stars

Their tall size is a 12-ounce drink and flavors available in this promotion are: classic, hazelnut, vanilla, and caramel. Notice that this applies only to their Coffeehouses and not to their kiosks (e.g. Mall of LA).

This is just a promotion. CC’s is trying to generate attention to their coffee, so they’re giving it away. Full details are available via the press release.