Cruise on down to the Coast for some good eats

This year's annual convention for the Mississippi Press Association took us back to Biloxi to the Beau Rivage. It had been a couple of years since we had been to the Coast, so I was excited to get back down there and eat some great seafood. Since Hurricane Katrina, a lot of new restaurants have opened, along with some old favorites.

An old favorite of many is McElroy's on the Bayou in Ocean Springs. Their original location was in Biloxi until the hurricane wiped it out. A sign still stands at the original site touting they're coming back soon, but it's been almost six years and no construction has begun, so I'm guessing they're not coming soon. Anyway, I had never been there and it's just on the other side of the Biloxi Bay Bridge, so that's where our first meal was. Their menu features a good selection of seafood and fish. We ended up with fried crab claws, blackened Mahi Mahi, and broiled Mahi Mahi. Everyone was happy with their selection and we all left there stuffed to the gills. McElroy's is a great choice if you want traditional Gulf Coast seafood.

A few months back, I tuned in to Food Network and "Diners, Drive Ins, and Dives" was on. One of the dives featured was Darwell's in Long Beach. It looked like the neatest place and I couldn't wait to try it. So, we took the scenic drive along Beach Blvd. and trekked over to Long Beach for lunch. The exterior of the cafe lets you know that it's going to be a cool and funky place. The building is painted with brightly colored flowers and designs. Upon entering, we were greeted by chef and owner Darwell Yeager himself. You order at the front counter and the menu is posted on the walls. Darwell explained the menu and the day's specials to us, pointing out that they do pretty much anything, but don't fry anything. The kids chose burgers, which were featured in Beach Boulevard magazine's best burgers on the coast article last year. John and I shared the Taste of Darwell's platter. It featured small portions of Shrimp Creole (their most famous dish), Crawfish Étouffée, and Seafood Gumbo, along with slices of French bread. Everything was delicious, some of the best we've had. When we ordered drinks at the counter, we were given a styrofoam cup and directed to a tiki bar area, where we were greeted by Darwell's dad, Papa D. He's a colorful character who is responsible for all the art in the restaurant. He even sketches designs onto the cups when he gets your drink for you. The place is full of his prints that are available to purchase. As we finished our meal, Darwell came by our table to make sure everything was ok. He told us of his upcoming participation in a new project headed by Guy Fieri called America's Chefs. Fieri hand-picked a team of nine chefs who, early next year, will travel the country and abroad and cook for our military and their families. Food Network will document it all as these chefs help boost morale and show appreciation to all branches of the military. Darwell is so excited to be a part of this program. He is just the nicest guy and you can see his passion for cooking and serving others. It's definitely worth the drive to Long Beach to get some, as their slogan says, "real food for real people."

Darwell's Cafe in Long Beach

Papa D's cup art

Taste of Darwell's

Darwell's burger

 

On our way back to the hotel after lunch, we stopped by Le Bakery in Biloxi. Anybody who knows me knows that if there's a bakery in town, I'm going. This bakery features homemade breads and pastries, as well as po-boys and Vietnamese fare. We opted for a chocolate almond croissant, pecan baklava cup, and piña colada cake. Everybody gobbled up their pastry before I could get a bite, so they must have been good. The piña colada cake definitely was good.

We met up with fellow newspaper friends for dinner on Thursday night. Our friends' only requirement was for oysters. So, we headed over to the Half Shell Oyster House, which is directly across from Hard Rock Casino. Their original location is in downtown Gulfport and this one just opened in May. I don't eat oysters, so I can't tell you first hand about them, but the experts in my group gave them two thumbs up. There were several options, including on the half shell, Oysters Bienville - topped with an herb, mushroom, crab, shrimp and Italian bread crumb mixture, covered with Parmesan cheese and baked; Oysters Rockefeller - topped with an herb, fresh spinach and cream cheese mixture and baked; Charbroiled Oysters - charbroiled over an open flame with butter and herb sauce; BBQ Oysters - charbroiled with New Orleans style buttery BBQ sauce; as well as fried oysters. If you love oysters, this is the place for you. The menu has many delectable sounding offerings. I had a tough time deciding, and finally chose the Seafood Pot Pie. It consisted of shrimp, crawfish, crabmeat, corn, peas and carrots in a traditional pot pie filling with a crisp buttermilk crust. It was soooo good. My favorite part of a pot pie is the crust. This crust was so tender and flaky, just the way I like it. For my side, I chose the asparagus. It cost an extra $2.00 and was totally worth it. It was grilled and topped with a gorgonzola sauce, and was so delicious. John ordered the Wahoo special, but we're pretty sure that's not what he got. The ticket said Mahi Mahi. I'm not quite sure how it was prepared, but it was good, too. We were too stuffed at the time for dessert, but their offerings sounded yummy. They offered Homemade Key Lime Pie, Bananas Foster Cheesecake, and Cinnamon Roll Bread Pudding. Next time I go, I'm saving room for dessert.

View from the Half Shell restaurant

Seafood Pot Pie and Asparagus with Gorgonzola Sauce at Half Shell

By the time we walked back to the Beau Rivage, I was ready for something sweet. I stopped by the hotel's coffee shop and got a Mississippi Mud dessert. It was a triple layer dessert with a thick walnut cinnamon cookie-like crust, a layer of chocolate mousse, whipped cream, and topped with a square of dark chocolate with the BR logo. It was divine. On another night, we tried the Tiramisu and Strawberry Sponge Cake. They were good, too.

Mississippi Mud

Tiramisu

Strawberry Sponge Cake

One day for lunch, we drove along Beach Blvd. toward Gulfport to see what restaurants there were. We ended up at Snapper's, which is very laid back and casual and located on the beach side of the highway. The food was good, but the view was better. Of course the water doesn't compare to that in Alabama and Florida, but as far as the Mississippi Coast goes, the view was beautiful. The menu consisted of traditional fried seafood and fish, as well as po-boys and sandwiches.

View from Snapper's

John attended the convention banquet on Friday night, so the kids and I opted to eat at one of the restaurants at the BR. We were joined by a friend of mine whose husband went to the banquet, too. We checked out the menus at several of the restaurants and settled on Stalla, the new Italian eatery. We really enjoyed the warm atmosphere and the service was superb. The kids built their own pasta. They offered about five different pastas and five different sauces to choose from with the option to add chicken or shrimp. I chose a Caesar Salad, which caught my eye with the topping of pancetta. My friend ordered the Veal Porterhouse special they offered. Everyone loved their selections. The best part was dessert. For some reason, Anne Morgan is on a Tiramisu kick, so that's what we ordered. It was heavenly and has now tied with Zoe's for best we've ever had. My friend ordered cannoli. She was served two cream and chocolate chip filled cannolis with pistachios, cashews (we think), and mini chocolate chips on the side.

More Tiramisu at Stalla

Cannoli at Stalla

For lunch the next day, we took a short walk to downtown Biloxi to the Ole Biloxi Schooner. I don't remember where I had heard about it, but it was on my proverbial "to dine at" list for the Coast. It was your typical fried seafood type of restaurant with po-boys, fried seafood, and fish. The portions were huge and could have been shared. I had a shrimp po-boy and onion rings, which were thin and extra crispy, just like I like them. I ate them until I hurt. I'm not sure of the age, but you could tell the restaurant had been there for a long, long time. We got there around 12:30 and it wasn't even half full. By the time we left, it was packed. It's obviously a local favorite.

Onion Rings and Shrimp Po-boy at Ole Biloxi Schooner

After a sunset cruise in the Gulf with some of our newspaper friends, we opted to go to Memphis Q at the BR for dinner. I had thought they only served BBQ, but found that they offer a variety of dishes. John had a steak, Anne Morgan had salmon, and John Taylor and I split the Mahi Mahi. (We're on a Mahi Mahi kick, too!) Everyone's dishes were tasty. Our fish was served with jasmine rice with crawfish etouffee and green beans. John Taylor cleaned his plate, except for the green beans, of course. This was a good choice for family dining.

Steak at Memphis Q

Mahi Mahi at Memphis Q

For years, I wished my kids would order something besides chicken strips everywhere we went and now that I'm having to buy adult priced entrees, I wish they WOULD get the chicken strips. John Taylor has been thrilled since he turned 11 and has been bumped off most kids menus, but it's killing our pocketbook. I will warn you that the days of cheap food at a casino are long gone. I guess it's their way of making money on the folks who don't gamble, too. Anne Morgan even went to the buffet one night with friends and it was nearly $30 by the time they added tax and tip. I'm trying not to complain too much, since I know these days with them will pass too quickly. I'm just so glad they're not picky eaters or I'd be stuck at fast food joints eating chicken strips all the time.