Take Two: French Quarter Fine Dining To Go

5/6/2020

FQJ's Hunkering Down blog

The Pelican Club offers a take-out menu of favorites and a discounted wine list.

"Dining out" has taken on a new meaning these days. Four of our favorite French Quarter restaurants will help you do delectable at home: Galatoire's, GW Fins, Italian Barrel and The Pelican Club.

by Kim Ranjbar
- photos courtesy featured restaurants

Everything is touch-and-go these days, especially in the restaurant industry. Owners are going back and forth over the financial feasibility of staying open for curbside and delivery, possibly offering jobs for employees who desperately need it or closing their doors rather than operating on a minimum and risking the health of everyone involved.

If there's one thing that's certain, the diners of New Orleans appreciate those who can still manage to serve us our favorites, even if it comes in a box. And at the same time, we're also more than understanding concerning others remain closed to wait out the storm.

Here's an update on several French Quarter favorites offering curbside and takeout… and even a few specials for Mother's Day!

Galatoire's
209 Bourbon Street
(504) 525-2021
Menu

Roasted Drum, Meunière Sauce, Creamed Spinach & Crispy Brussels Sprouts. Click for current menu.

Grilled Filets with Clemenceau Garnish. Click for current menu.

While you may not have the black and white tiled floor, mirrored walls or lively Friday afternoon confabs at your elbow, you can still get a taste of Galatoire's in the comfort of your own home. The historic restaurant has been going strong with daily to-go, “Family Style” offerings featuring dishes like grilled filets with Brabant potatoes, lamb chops in a strawberry Marchand de Vin, Oysters Rockefeller and Key Lime tartlets.

Not surprisingly, Galatoire's is also offering a special Mother's Day menu with bake-at-home dishes like a seafood eggplant casserole, roasted pork loin and Monkey Bread with roasted praline sauce and fruit preserves. They're also featuring a “Mimosa Kit” which includes two bottles of Gala Sparkling, a quart of fresh orange juice and a pint of strawberries.

Call (504) 525-2021 or email [email protected] Tuesday through Saturday to place your order and schedule a pickup time. Friday orders must be placed by 7PM on Thursday. Saturday orders must be placed by 7PM on Friday. Visit Galatoire's online to check out the current menu for your next family meal.

GW Fins
808 Bienville Street
(504) 581-3467
Menu

Tempura Fin Wings. Click for current menu.

Click for current menu

The folks at GW Fins were open, then they closed, but now they're back at it again and we couldn't be happier. Once again offering super-safe and efficient curbside pickup, the three-course “Fins Feast Menu” plus they added a new and delicious angle. Diners can now also order from a large selection of fresh seafood (like drum, halibut, scallops, and Gulf shrimp), GW Fins' signature sides, sauces and desserts, plus their own biscuit mix to make at home.

The latest “Fins Feast” menu features items like lobster dumplings, fried soft shell crab with spoonbread and crawfish maque choux, Mangrove snapper with shrimp Creole and Ponchatoula Strawberry Shortcake.

Naturally, GWFins is also offering a special “Mother's Day Package for Two” for the upcoming weekend. Choose from dishes like Barbeque Shrimp with goat cheese grits, Wagyu beef short rib and a chocolate mousse bomb with raspberry coulis. Add a gift-wrapped bottle of champagne or wine, or you can opt for pre-batched versions of their Chocolate Martinis and Mimosas made with freshly-squeezed orange juice and Mumm Cuvee Prestige. Put a cherry on top of the day by gifting Mom with a copy of Tenney Flynn's new cookbook “The Deep End of Flavor.”

To get in on this bounty, call (504) 581-3467 and place your order beginning at 11AM and schedule your pickup time. The fresh seafood and prepared, heat-at-home items are available for pickup from 12PM to 7:30PM and the 3-course “Fins Feast” pickup is available from 4:30PM to 7:30PM. Visit GW Fins online at gwfins.com or their Facebook page to see the latest menu.

Italian Barrel
1240 Decatur Street
(504) 569-0198
Menu

Porcini and Truffle Ravioli. Click for full menu.

Click for full menu

Oft overlooked, but never forgotten, The Italian Barrel over on the corner of Barracks and Decatur streets is still in full swing offering their full menu, though have switched to takeout only. Also, be sure to stop at the ATM before pickup up from the Barrel, as they are only accepting cash. A small price to pay when feasting on Prince Edward Isle mussels sauteed in white wine and garlic, porcini and truffle ravioli draped in a creamy white wine sauce, linguine tossed with pesto and sauteed jumbo shrimp or veal piccata in butter, capers and shallots.

Owner and chef Samantha Castagnetti is also slinging some mammoth Italian sandwiches, that would easily feed two, like the Verona – Italian cooked ham, fresh mozzarella and artichoke sauce served on your choice of ciabatta or focaccia bread. Call The Italian Barrel Tuesday through Saturday at (504) 569-0198 to place your order for pickup.

The Pelican Club
312 Exchange Place
(504) 523-1504

Click here for the full menu. See the link in the text for the Mother's Day special menu.

Like GWFins and other restaurants across town, The Pelican Club was closed for a spell, but has reopened once again for curbside pickup available Wednesday through Sunday. This time around, the takeout menu highlights new offerings, as well as a few favorites, all of which are available in both individual and family-sized portions.

Enjoy everything from creamy crawfish bisque and jumbo lump crab cakes with fried green tomatoes to Korean 24-hour baby back ribs and Thai Gulf fish and shrimp with citrus chili sauce and chinois slaw. Don't forget dessert like their fabulous white chocolate bread pudding or coconut cream pie. The Pelican Club's Facebook page has posted a Mother's Day menu.

The Pelican Club is also offering a large menu of discounted wines; sparkling, whites and reds. To place your order call (504) 523-1504 Wednesday through Sunday between 11:00AM and 7:00PM. Pickup is available Wednesday through Sunday between 4:30PM and 7:30PM at 615 Bienville.

Return to our Hunkering Down blog home or French Quarter Journal's home page.

Though she was born in the San Francisco Bay Area, Kim Ranjbar felt New Orleans calling her home as soon as she hit puberty. A graduate of granola U (a.k.a. Sonoma State University), Kim took her passion for the written word and dragged it over 2000 miles to flourish in the city she loves. After more than seventeen years as a transplant — surviving hurricanes, levee failures, oil spills, boil water advisories and hipster invasions — Kim hopes to eventually earn the status of local and be welcomed into the fold. Feel free to check out her blog at http://sucktheheads.com/ or contact her at [email protected].

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