The Hart Family had visited Maple Tree Inn a few years ago and found their Cajun and Creole cooking to be fun and most importantly, delicious.
Décor: The restaurant itself is very narrow. The bar and a few tables create a small walkway into a slightly more spacious dining room, on the evening of December 23, the end of this dining room served as the stage for the band. The ceiling is covered in carved wood tiles and everything is dark wood and industrial lighting. The best word to describe it is "cozy".
Food appearance: Food is served with much attention to detail. Jalapeno Cornbread Muffins are served in linen-lined baskets, plates are garnished just-so and even your plates and silverware are refreshed between courses! All the food looked utterly divine and I wished I had packed a spare stomach in my purse!
Food taste:
THE APPS
We began our meal with a complimentary basket of Jalapeno Cornbread Muffins served with onion-chive spread and butter. The fresh jalapenos added a surprising zing to the muffins and the onion-chive spread was perfect for cooling down the heat.
We ordered Crab Mornay, Mr. Charlie's Oysters, Oysters 2 x 2 x 2 and Hickory Buttered BBQ Shrimp with Sweet Potato Fries.
The Crab Mornay was a little lackluster I must admit. The description promises "delicate lump crab meat" and didn't really deliver on their promise. Had I not known there was supposed to be crab in the creamy sauce coating my crusty garlic bread, I would have absolutely no idea there was even crab in it. It was disappointing.
Mr. Charlie's Oysters are dipped in bread crumbs, flash fried and broiled with garlic butter and Asiago cheese. They may have been my favorite appetizer we had! The oysters were delicately fried, the cheese and butter were the perfect additions. I would've been absolutely thrilled to have had these oysters as my meal!
Oysters 2 x 2 x 2 are a variety of roasted oysters. We were given 2 Rockefeller, 2 Bienville (cream sauce with garlic, mushrooms, shrimp and provolone cheese) and 2 Deviled (spicy topping with sweet butter, roasted bell peppers, capers, and seasoned breadcrumbs). I sampled each of the varieties and I wouldn't say I was crazy about any of them necessarily. The Rockefeller were standard, I honestly had no idea there were mushrooms or shrimp in the Bienville as the provolone cheese all but swallowed the oyster, and then there's the Deviled. I'd like to consider myself no stranger when it comes to all things spicy but these had me sweating. The spicy filling was so hot I felt like I was gulping down water by the bucketful. It was a little too much.
The Hickory Buttered BBQ Shrimp we ordered was actually the dinner portion, hence the addition of sweet potato fries, but the flavors were spot on! The shrimp were succulent and plump and the BBQ sauce coating them had the perfect smoky-sweet flavor.
THE ENTREES
The restaurant had 2 dinner specials for the Christmas event - Cajun Prime Rib and Smoke Roasted Leg of Lamb. Nate and his brother, Sam went for the prime rib. For obvious reasons, I didn't try it. Maybe Nate can offer a play-by-play in the comments?
I went for the Dis and Dat Platter, which they were happy to customize to make pescatarian! The normal platter is filled with Hickory Buttered Shrimp, Crayfish Etouffee, Ribs and Red Beans and Rice. Obviously the Ribs and Red Beans and Rice aren't exactly friendly to my tastes so I asked if there was any possibility of me swapping them for something out and they were more than happy to oblige! I swapped the beans and rice for the Vegan Ratatouille and the ribs for some extra shrimp. What the menu fails to mention is that every item is accompanied by a side dish. My Hickory Buttered BBQ Shrimp were served on top of a bed of jalapeno-cheese grits with extra BBQ sauce on the side (hot and mild), the Etouffee was served atop steamed white rice, and I was given a giant pile of thin-cut crisp fries and my ratatouille! How can they possibly expect one person to eat so much food?!
Mama Hart opted for the N'awlins Bouillabasse, which I had definitely been eying on the menu. I didn't try it but based on the small amount left in her bowl at the end of the meal, I can safely assume it was good.
Papa Hart ordered the Duck and Andouille Cassoulet, again, I didn't try it for obvious reasons but it certainly looked tasty from a culinary perspective.
Sam's girlfriend ordered the Jumbo Blackened Scallops which were exactly that - JUMBO. They were the size of hockey pucks! They looked absolutely fantastic, and once again, I had definitely been drawn to it on the menu before I settled on my platter.
THE DESSERT
I know what you're thinking, you just read about enough food to feed a small country, how can these people possibly have had room to fit another meal in the same week LET ALONE the same evening? Yeah, I'm with you, which is why I didn't partake in the sweets. There was absolutely no way I was going to be able to put anything else in my gullet.
However, Nate, Sam and Brittany didn't seem to have the problem.
Nate and Sam each ordered their own set of Beignets and Brittany ordered the Peach Cobbler, which had I brought my second stomach along for the journey, I would've also eaten.
The Beignets were soft and pillowy, actually they reminded me a lot of the sopapillas from New Mexico but instead of being filled with honey, blanketed in powdered sugar.
Mama and Papa Hart polished off their meals with some libations and I sipped water and enjoyed the lively jazz wafting through the dining room (and occasionally paraded through).
Service: Our server was attentive and made sure our meal was everything we needed it to be. He checked on us frequently, double checked with the kitchen to ensure everything I ate was all pescatarian-friendly, and was willing to answer any questions.
Cleanliness: Everything was cleaned quickly and even the restrooms were spotless!
I eagerly await the next visit to Maple Tree Inn for more jazz and Cajun cooking! Give it a try if you're ever in the area!
I hope you had an excellent Festivus, Christmas, Kwanzaa and a happy New Year! Stay tuned for some more great recipes and stay safe out there, readers!
The prime rib was very good! While not a connoisseur of prime rib I am somewhat picky about it. Since it's a well marbled piece of meat it tends to have a lot of fat in it that can make it more trouble than it's worth even if the actual meat is great. I ordered it rare (came out more medium-rare, but still to my liking) and the cut was very well cooked. The marbling melted away in my mouth, and the taste was excellent. I would recommend serving some kind of side anjou, since the "cajun" was a little muted, but overall I'd recommend.
ReplyDeleteAu jus, not anjou
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