Mosca's (Avondale, LA / NOLA)

[Jason Perlow]

Mosca's Restaurant

4137 U S Hwy 90 W, Avondale, LA

Phone: (504) 436-9942

A menu which doesn't change

Italian Crab Salad

Filet Mignon with Roasted Potatoes (more like a whole chateaubriand)

Arrived medium-rare, as ordered

Mosca's Italian Oysters

Italian Shrimp

Chicken a la Grande

Edited November 24, 2003 by Rachel Perlow (log)

[ronnie_suburban]

Wow! Just seeing pics of the menu and the food brought me back instantly and I don't think I've been there in 10 years. Looks like it hasn't changed a bit.

How was your experience there?

=R=

[Jason Perlow]

I'm not how you woul'd describe Mosca's. It's not really an Italian restaurant, although it bills itself as such. The very limited menu that hasn't changed in a zillion years makes it more like Peter Luger's than any other place I've visited.

The Italian Crab Salad, while not particulary impressive looking, is deceptively tasty. I could have eaten a whole bowl of this stuff -- its just regular chopped lettuce with a few other marinated veggies (cauliflower and red pepper I think) tossed with a LOT of lump crabmeat in a lot of vinegar and oil dressing. This was a great start to the meal.

The filet mignon was HUGE. Had to be at least 12 ounces or so, it looked like an entire chateaubriand. As you can see from the pictures it was cooked perfectly and the accompanying potatoes, which appear to be cooked in pan juices, were very very good. It was a really good quality chateaubriand as well.

The Italian Oysters were similar to some of the other oyster stuffing dishes we had that week at Uglesich's and a few other places. Very good, but very typical new orleans fare.

The Italian Shrimp I could have eaten several plates of. This is basically an italian-seasoned take on Louisiana BBQ Shrimp like they serve at Pascal's Manale except that they are not swimming in butter -- the emphasis is on the herb seasoning and I think these are broild a bit more and don't even require peeling -- the shell gets really crisped up and you can essentially eat these whole, they don't have the heads on.

Chicken a la Grande is a authentic italian roasted chicken dish, with lots of herbs on it (the primary ones being oregano and rosemary I think). This is lots of peices of cut up chicken put under the broiler until the skin gets really crispy. Moscas somehow manages to do this without the meat getting dried out too much. Very tasty and one of the best chicken dishes I've had in New Orleans.

[Mayhaw Man]

Brett Anderson has a report on the situation at Mosca's.

I, for one, will be in that number when they reopen the front doors to their little roadhouse in Avondale (or more accurately, Boutte). I love that place. Chicken Grande, Oysters Mosca, Italian Crab Salad. All of them are delicious and while I can make acceptable versions at home, I love the place. Where else could I have eaten dinner firmly lodged in between the Hansen's (Hansen's Snobliz-the best snoball on earth) and Carlos Marcello (mob kingpin better known locally as "The Little Tomato Farmer)?

Good luck to them.

Mosca's in today's Times Picayune

[Rachel Perlow]

Hmm, a month from last week? Keep an eye on this one, Brooks. Maybe it'll be a our goodbye dinner or lunch when we visit in April.

[Mayhaw Man]

Hmm, a month from last week? Keep an eye on this one, Brooks. Maybe it'll be a our goodbye dinner or lunch when we visit in April.

←

I understand that they have already ordered their first rail car loads of garlic and olive oil. It looks pretty good.

[highchef]

this morning's paper had an article. They say next month. That is one of my favorite places anywhere.

[HungryC]

I, for one, will be in that number when they reopen the front doors to their little roadhouse in Avondale (or more accurately, Boutte).

Oooh, I feel compelled to point out (for the sake of geographic accuracy) that Mosca's is more that eight miles east of Boutte. It is slightly (like half a mile) west of Avondale proper; some would call the area Waggaman, but IMHO Waggaman is on the river & doesn't stretch back to US 90. In long-days-gone-by, its precise location was called Willswood Ponds (and the structure itself was the Willswood Tavern, I believe). I just don't want anyone mapquesting Boutte and getting turned around....4137 US 90 in Avondale will yield accurate results. Located on the south side of the highway (eastbound side).

[rich]

Glad to hear they're coming back. I first ate there in 1978 - one of the top 20 meals ever.

[Mayhaw Man]

I am seriously fired up about dinner tonight. There is so much of this place that's really messed up, but, happily, Mosca's is back in action.

First stop: Walgreen's for a major league bottle of Pepto Bismol. The perfect finish to a meal at Mosca's.

[Robert Peyton]

Had a great meal at Mosca's this evening with a large party.

http://www.appetites.us/archives/000465.html

[HungryC]

Robert, did anyone in your party have the italian sausage? On my last visit, the sausage machine was still broken. Just wondering if it's been fixed.

[Mayhaw Man]

The sausage thing seems to be hit and miss-always-storm or no storm. I had dinner there a few weeks ago with someone who ordered it and when they said no, he pointed out that they were out every time that he came. It's really good when they have it, though. Really good.