[Evelyn]

Herbsaint, located in the Central Business District of New Orleans, was originally a collaboration between Susan Spicer of Bayona and a former extern-Donald Link, who is also the chef co-owner of Cochon. Susan decided to focus on Bayona and Link took Herbsaint as his own. The restaurant, is minimalist in its decorating style, but still warm. The guests at a table next to me were interior desingers and were quite impressed by the "excellent lighting". Perhaps it was the well made Sazerac I was enjoying, but it did make the room look inviting. The restaurant was perpetually busling, as was the small bar, which did a pretty good "take-out" business in addition to serving diners and those waiting for tables. This proved to be a bit of a detriment for those of us in the dining room, as the wait for a cocktail or a glass of wine was quite long.

I decided to opt for small plates after having a longish lunch at Cochon. I asked my waitress for some guidance and ended up trying some of the dishes that were considered "favorites".

Fried Frog Legs with Fines Herbs-The plump frogs legs were lightly battered and fried perfectly, then tossed with a red pepper sauce dusted with chopped herbs and stacked in the shape of box reminiscent of something a child would build with 'lincoln logs'. The only way to really enjoy these was as fingerfood, so, I dug in. A finger bowl and a new napkin arrived just as I was sucking the last bit of meat from the final leg. Very Good.

Shrimp and Green Chile Grit Cakes with Tasso Cream Sauce-I found this dish rather disappointing. The grit cakes had a texture more like a hushpuppy. I would have preferred them to be more moist. The shrimp sitting atop were smallish and a tad overcooked. The tasso cream sauce had a very good flavor (I would have loved it simply tossed over pasta), but, suffered from a slow delivery to the table.

Beef Short Rib on Potato Cake with Dijon-Horseradish Dressing-Another very popular dish that I found disappointing. Nuggets of shortrib were sauteed to give them a carmelized "crust". They rested atop a basically flavorless and slightly dry potato cake and were accompanied by a dollop of the creamy, and nicely flavored sauce. The shortrib had a nice flavor. Unfortunately, the carmelizing ended up toughening and drying out the external portion of the meat. Once that portion was removed, there wasn't much left to enjoy.

After such an enticing lunch at Cochon, I was sorely disappointed in my meal at Herbsaint. The service was also an issue here. The servers were quite pleasant and well versed on the menu specifics. The problem was the lack of sufficient staff. I suspect that the kitchen may also be lacking in numbers, as the arrival of courses at my table and others went from speedy to glacial as the restaurant filled up. Plates arrived from the kitchen untouchable from time spent under the heat lamps, tables went unbussed, cocktails undelivered and checks hard to acquire. Perhaps I just caught them on an off night. After seeing firsthand what Chef Link is accomplishing at Cochon, and knowing his (and Herbsaint's) reputation, I wouldn't rule out another visit, but, I can't say I'd rush back (except perhaps for another excellent Sazerac on my way to Cochon).

[Rail Paul]

Herbsaint's website and link to menus

[beachfan]

How sad. Pre Katrina, it was my favorite in New Orleans, and it won my "best gumbo" as well.

[Evelyn]

I'm still hoping it was an abberation. The place was packed. Cochon's food (and I tasted the excellent gumbo there) was so superior, I just can't imagine that the food at Herbsaint could (always) be so inferior with what I saw Link put out at Cochon.

[SFJoe]

beachfan, on Apr 26 2007, 11:35 PM, said:

How sad. Pre Katrina, it was my favorite in New Orleans, and it won my "best gumbo" as well.

Mine, too. Hope it was just an off night.

[foodie52]

I had enjoyed a meal there as well, pre Katrina.

[pixelchef]

It stands to reason that the attention paid to making Cochon a success has resulted in Herbsaint suffering. Some chefs aren't capable of multiple successes, but I do think that one shouldn't jump to conclusions. Though with a palate like Evelyn's being left in disappointment, it doesn't seem to bode well for Chef Link. Hopefully, like the rest of you seem to also be wishing, it was just an off night.

[little ms foodie]

We just had an awesome meal at Herbsaint- in fact it was my favorite meal of my trip!

We started off in the bar with cocktails- Dayne was very impressed that they were doing a "cadillac" sazerac using Kelt, one of his favorites.

We got the gumbo of the day which was pork and tasso- it was very good, not amazing but hard to stop eating. We also got the Louisiana Shrimp and Grits with Tasso and Okra which was soooo yummy! the grits were down as a cake but I liked that as there was some texture from them being pan fried.

At the suggestion of our waiter I had the Muscovy Duck Leg Confit with Dirty Rice and Citrus Gastrique which I am still thinking about. the dirty rice was amazing! and the duck just fell apart when you looked at it.

Dayne had the pork belly dish which was on a bed of lentils, he just loved it!

For dessert we had Banana Brown Butter Tart with Fleur de Sel Caramel- YUM!!

Service was great, it was packed but not overly loud and I loved every bite.

[Rail Paul]

Donald Link, who runs Herbsaint, is opening a sausage and food emporium in his Cochon property.

It’s all preparation for his newest venture, Cochon Butcher, which opened Tuesday. The 1,000-square-foot combination meat market and 25-seat cafe is inside the same century-old brick warehouse that houses Cochon, the down-home Cajun restaurant that gained Mr. Link national attention.

Mr. Link, 39, wants Cochon Butcher to be “like all the little specialized markets in Cajun country, where everybody goes to get their Cajun meats and sausages — things you can’t get at the regular grocery store.” Though a sprinkling of mostly mass-produced Cajun meats has long been available in New Orleans supermarkets, this is the first time the city has seen all the iconic Louisiana-style charcuterie items house-made by a notable chef and under one roof: the thick smoked sausage known as andouille, the garlicky fresh links called chaurice and the smoked seasoned ham known as tasso.

Transplanting Cajun cuisine into the kitchens of sophisticated American restaurants from the rural communities of Southwest Louisiana where it lives has always been tricky. Most urban chefs get Cajun food right to roughly the same degree that Hollywood actors manage to reproduce faithful Southern regional accents — which is to say, almost never. Most people outside Louisiana, meanwhile, are burdened with wild misconceptions of the cuisine that were formed in the days when anything from fish to popcorn could be rendered “Cajun” with the application of a spice mix.

Cajun sausage, etc

[Ron Johnson]

I will be dining at both Herbsaint and Cochon this weekend, so I will be able to post a side by side comparison. I can't wait.

[Evelyn]

I ate at Cochon last night. It was still quite good. But, not as good in the past. I'm chalking it up to the fact that it was a very slow night. The oyster roast and the rabbit liver dish was still excellent. A couple of the meats on the boucherie plate were underseasoned. The rillettes were very good. The head cheese overly salty. Still one of my favorite casual places in NOLA though.

[Ron Johnson]

I ate at Cochon last night. It was still quite good. But, not as good in the past. I'm chalking it up to the fact that it was a very slow night. The oyster roast and the rabbit liver dish was still excellent. A couple of the meats on the boucherie plate were underseasoned. The rillettes were very good. The head cheese overly salty. Still one of my favorite casual places in NOLA though.

We went to Cochon last night. I was a little underwhelmed. The oyster roast was fantastic, everyone at the table who ordered it was raving about it, but the main courses were not as strong. From the mains we ordered ham hocks, rabbit, cochon, brisket and the oyster and bacon sandwich. For sides we shared smothered greens, mac n' cheese, bread dressing, green bean casserole. The oyster and bacon sandwich and the greens were delicious, but everything else was just fair. the ham hock was impossibly salty (and this is coming from someone who loves salt and never complains about it) and it was served on a sweet potato puree that was essentially baby food. The black eyed peas in the bowl were lost in the salty broth. The cochon was good, but the meat had been pressed into a cake form and pan-seared. This second cooking of the delicate meat only dried it out. The mac n' cheese was pretty damn good.

We skipped desserts. Wine list is very nice and fairly priced. It's an attractive room with a festive atmosphere.

Tonight: Upperline and tomorrow Herbsaint.

I will post the Galatoire's review on the N.O. thread.

[ulterior epicure]

I ate at Cochon last night. It was still quite good. But, not as good in the past. I'm chalking it up to the fact that it was a very slow night. The oyster roast and the rabbit liver dish was still excellent. A couple of the meats on the boucherie plate were underseasoned. The rillettes were very good. The head cheese overly salty. Still one of my favorite casual places in NOLA though.

We went to Cochon last night. I was a little underwhelmed. The oyster roast was fantastic, everyone at the table who ordered it was raving about it, but the main courses were not as strong. From the mains we ordered ham hocks, rabbit, cochon, brisket and the oyster and bacon sandwich. For sides we shared smothered greens, mac n' cheese, bread dressing, green bean casserole. The oyster and bacon sandwich and the greens were delicious, but everything else was just fair. the ham hock was impossibly salty (and this is coming from someone who loves salt and never complains about it) and it was served on a sweet potato puree that was essentially baby food. The black eyed peas in the bowl were lost in the salty broth. The cochon was good, but the meat had been pressed into a cake form and pan-seared. This second cooking of the delicate meat only dried it out. The mac n' cheese was pretty damn good.

We skipped desserts. Wine list is very nice and fairly priced. It's an attractive room with a festive atmosphere.

Tonight: Upperline and tomorrow Herbsaint.

I will post the Galatoire's review on the N.O. thread.

Ron, how was Herbsaint?

[Evelyn]

I ate there about three weeks ago. It was a much better meal than I had last time.

[ulterior epicure]

I ate there about three weeks ago. It was a much better meal than I had last time.

Thanks Evlelyn. Due to timing, it looks like it'll have to be either Herbsaint or Cochon for me. I'm currently leaning towards a quick lunch at Cochon right before I leave town.