(PHX) Soft shell crab / Oyster Po'boy ?
Maybe it's the Saveur top 100... I'm not sure, but I'm craving a soft shell crab sandwich or a fried oyster po'boy. I've never had either of these before, just really craving them. Northern 51 corridor is nice, but I'm willing to travel.
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Bill Hunt
Jan 23, 2007 08:14 PM
In the PHX-area, I'd opt for Baby Kay's first, then Pappadeaux. BK's is a standalone and the Romeros are from S. Louisiana. IIRC, Kay's son is the exec. chef now, though on a few visits, both Dr and Kay Romero were on site. Pappadeaux is a small chain out of Texas, and is a bit more into drinking on the patio, but some of the food is pretty good, even for a New Orleans native - not great, but hey, this IS Phoenix.
Now for the soft-shelled crab. Mid-May through mid-July is the "season" for Gulf soft-shelled crabs, so you are a bit early. That said, like I pointed out on the New Orleans board, there is a soft-shelled crab farm in Gila Bend, AZ. Yes, AZ! They have found that it is the cycles of light/dark, that causes the crabs to molt, so they raise them in an environment with disco-like strobe lights. I've had a few and they were good. This farming operation had expanded to worldwide status, but I do not know who might have them in AZ. The examples that I tried were good, but not up to Deep South standards, but that could well have been the prep. of the dishes and not the crabs. In the past, one could only have frozen soft-shelled crab, when the "season" was done, and they were bleak, at best.
As for VooDoo Daddy's, back when it first opened, we dined there, and gave it a #4 behind Justin's Ragin' Cajun (gone), Baby Kay's (Kay Romero at the stove) and Pappadeaux. We dined there 18 mos. ago and it was really bad - maybe an off day, but we have not considered going back - ever.
Hunt
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re: Bill Hunt
Is Desert Sweet the place that raises soft shells, or do they only raise shrimp? If it is Desert Sweet, according to their web site the local restaurants that use their products are Sassi and the Royal Palms, so you might contact those restaurants to find out if it's on the menu.
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re: kittyfood
Bill Hunt
Jan 24, 2007 03:57 PM
To my limited knowledge, Desert Sweet raises shrimp. I am trying to find the name of the farm for the soft-shelled crabs. DS had a restaurant on 7th St, just above Camelback, where Arnie's Deli once stood. We tried to eat there twice, but couldn't even be seated, despite the place being almost empty. It is no wonder, that they closed, and have been replaced (twice, if I counted correctly) by other restaurants. For me, bring back Arnie's, but that's another story.
If I can find the names, etc., I will post them to this thread. Sorry.
Hunt
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johnseberg
Jan 23, 2007 07:31 PM
I have a couple of friends that like Pappadeaux (chain) http://www.pappadeaux.com. I have never been there, myself.
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re: johnseberg
We had a dreadful experience at Pappadeaux and are not likely to return (sub-mediocre food and my husband threw up in the middle of the night after eating the etouffe). If you really want to try it, I'd suggest sticking with the patio and the appetizers -- the baked oysters were decent and the music was good.
Sarah C
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