Day One: Mike Anderson's After a 6:30 a.m. departing flight from Cleveland, a connection in Houston, a "delayed" bag and a long day's work fueled only by a 6" Subway sandwich, I was ready to eat. I settled on Mike Anderson's after reading the comments in this post. The exterior of the restaurant give the unassuming air of a hunting lodge, and the interior follows suit closely. The decor is a pleasant mix of hunting and fishing paraphenalia (taxidermy, fishing lures) and sports memorabilia (MAs is located a stone's throw away from LSU) The booths around the bar feature their own individual 15" Sharp Aquos LCD televisions, to allow each patron to choose their own channel (or, for the truly savvy, the power button is easily accessible) Traveling alone as I often do, I sat at the bar. I began my adventure with an Abita Purple Haze. This has also been mentioned earlier in this post... I have had it bottled back home in Cleveland, but never on draft. It was served up in a satisfying frozen mug, and (like most craft brews) was infinitely more satisfying from the tap. I knew I was in capable Southern hands when my salad was announced: "Brought out your salad to getcha eatin' on sumpin'" The house salad (included with entree, choice of cole slaw or salad) came with a Parmesean vinegarette dressing. The mixed lettuce was a little too heavy on iceberg for my liking, and the croutons were blatantly from a box. Still, it was fairly fresh, and I was hungry. Oysters Rockefeller ($12.95) arrived next, on a metal plate that kept each of the six equally piping hot. These were definitely a treat, as fresh oysters aren't something I see every day. My entree, Joilet Rouge ($20.95), was the only item served on a ceramic plate (the salad, appetizer, and potato were all on metal) It was excellent... full of flavor but neither so spicy nor so rich that I felt the need to slow down. According to the menu, none of the dishes promise a particular fish, allowing the freshest available to be used each day. My Joilet Rouge was Black Drum, which I had never had. It was marvelously fork tender (I'm sure as much credit to the kitchen as the fish itself) and extremely fresh. The baked potato (included with entree, choice of baked potato, French fries, or stuffed potato) was of a very managable size and was at the ideal temperature. I want to stress that all of the portion sizes were very well sized... At no point in the meal was there so much food that one course detracted from my ability to enjoy another. Often, ordering an appetizer and an entree leaves me "sampling" each and wasting food. This wasn't the case at MA's at all. A great meal! Thanks to all for the recommendation. I'll let you know where I end up tomorrow... Tom
