Alesia Restaurant – French & Vietnamese Fusion

So we were waiting to go back to try some more of their dishes (and we definitely will go back!) before posting, but we decided to just go ahead tell the world about this place. A combination of French and Vietnamese, Alesia Restaurant, isn’t the typical grab a bowl of Pho restaurant. Don’t get me wrong, we do have our favorite go-to Pho places. But Alesia’s has that homey local restaurant feel with a lot of class, that we think separates it from the others. It even has a little bakery set up inside, with both indoor and outdoor setting. We were craving more on the Vietnamese side on our first go around, but next time we try more of the French dishes.

This Clam Chowder came with the Banh Mi for lunch. It was pretty good on the side, we had no complaints. Their Banh Mi really stood out because of the quality of the Pate, ham, and thin sliced salami. The bread was also one of the freshest we’ve had in a Banh Mi.

One of my favorites to order for Vietnamese food is the vermicelli dishes, this one didn’t disappoint either. They even served the heavily caramelized grilled pork skewer on the side :).

How can we not go without desert? Their yummy crepes were the perfect end to our first time meal! Shout out to Alesia and their owners for giving us a great experience. We will be back!

http://www.alesiarestaurant.com/index.html

Location: 7204 Central Avenue St. Petersburg, FL

Roadtrip Stop: New Orleans

Texas was a long drive, but we got to see some family and good friends. I think we were excited for this next stop the most.  After a grueling drive from the Dallas/Fort Worth area, took about 8-9 hours, we arrived at New Orleans.

We want to mention the hotel for our stay, Country Inns and Suites in downtown New Orleans. It was worth booking in advance for the cheap price and we enjoy our room and service. The location allowed us to be in walking distance to every place we visited.

We stopped to eat at Drago’s Seafood Restaurant, popular for their charbroiled oysters, which was recommended through one of our friends.  They were cooked with a garlic butter sauce and topped off with some parmesan cheese. We also had to try some fresh oysters and some of Louisianas local brews, Abita Lager (recommended for all you drinkers out there). Still not satisfied, we ordered a fried catfish dish which lead us to believe the only thing worth going to this restaurant for are the oysters alone.

After filling our tummies we took a break back at the hotel. We then headed out to explore the French Quarter a bit and eventually wound up on B0urbon Street. We had a few drinks but one we recommend trying is the hand grenades from Tropical Isle. It definitely completed our full New Orleans experience. We walked back to the French Quarter to get some coffee and beignets at the infamous Cafe Du Monde. A bit disappointed on the service, we literally waited 20 minutes before switching waiters and being served.  The beignets, however, were very much worth it. They were literally covered in powdered sugar, and after we finished we looked like we got just out of a blizzard!

The last thing we did before leaving New Orleans the next morning was make a trip to Johnny’s Po Boys. We ended up ordering a half and half po boy consisting of shrimp and softshell crab. It was the first time we had a softshell crab po boy, we thought it was over rated at first till we hit the huge cluster of crab which made us a instafan.

Drago’s Seafood Restaurant

Hilton New Orleans Riverside
2 Poydras St
New Orleans, LA 70140

Tropical Isle

721 Bourbon St
New Orleans, LA 70116

Cafe Du Monde

800 Decatur St
New Orleans, LA 70116

Johnny’s Po Boys

511 St. Louis St
New Orleans, LA 70130

Brenda’s French Soul Food

While visiting San Francisco, the beginning of a long day started with a trip to Brenda’s French Soul Food. We had a long walk from our hotel to find this place and it was not a pleasant one, plenty of SF hobos. After finding this place we were pleasantly surprised once we walked in. The atmosphere was very homey and we were just in time for the breakfast crowd.

We came here for was the “Flight of Beignets” and it sure didn’t disappoint. It came with four different kinds of beignets:  plain, apple, chocolate, and crawfish fillings. Our personal favorite was the chocolate.

Flight of Beignets

And of course never listening to Charmy I decided to order one more dish. We tried to take on a gigantic bowl of shrimp and grits. Overall the dish was good, but we both thought they added way to much cheese.

Shrimp and Grits

Another note before I end this, if you do ever find your way here do try their watermelon iced tea. It was quite a refreshing treat and a highlight of our breakfast.

Written by: Roger

Brenda’s French Soul Food
652 Polk St
San Francisco, CA 94102