Had the pleasure of dining at this new establishment tonight. My girlfriend (born in New Orleans) and her parents (lived there over 15 years) read a great review of it in the paper and decided we had to try it. Boy am I glad we did. Friendly staff, located conveniently near 440 and the Crabtree Valley Mall.

Between the 4 of us, we tried the gumbo (amazing!) and sugar cane shrimp (even more amazing!), and for entrees we had the crawfish etoufee (x2), red beans and rice, and blackened catfish, all excellent.

By the time we were done, there was not a single grain of rice or bit of sauce left on any of the plates. Portions are nicely sized, satisfying without stuffing you silly. Which is good, because when we got the bread pudding, it was phenomenal! We only got one to share between us (oops!), and after the first bite, it got a little competitive with the spoons because it was so good!

And while we weren't busy devouring our meals, the rest of the time was spent chatting about New Orleans memories with our very friendly waitress, a New Orleans native (as is the chef).

Summary? If you are used to New Orleans food or want to try it for the first time, do it right! Go to Battistella's!