New Orleans: Lucky Cheng's Restaurant in the Quarter

Ed's Note:  I'd like to take this opportunity to introduce you to a new member of the Virtually New Orleans team, Stephen Blum.  Stephen is working with me on developing content for the web site as well as selling advertising and soliciting new businesses as sponsors.  In other words, he's the salesman I'm not.  Stephen's contributions to the site will be more than just sales, as this first review will show.  So, there will be two of us from VNO posting to the appropriate newsgroups in the future.  Feel free to address any comments or questions you have to Stephen at [email removed].

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Lucky Cheng's Restaurant
730 Rue St. Louis in the French Quarter
504.529.2045

"Little lamb, who made thee
Doest thou know who made thee?"

Could it be that Blake inked these lines after dining at Lucky Cheng's Restaurant?  Located in the French Quarter across the street from Antoines on St. Louis St., Lucky Cheng's oriental cuisine and drag queen parade fits New Orleans as well as glass slippers fit Cinderella.

Not for the timid or abashed, the irreverent waitresses may sit at your table to take your order or on your lap (given the right signals).  The high heeled, short dressed, mini-skirted, cosmetically improved wait staff are fabulously supported by equally irreverent busboys, whose attentive service allows the stars of the floor to be stars.  At least four different busboys serviced our table while our very attractive Philippina waitress, named Leila, strutted her stuff down and around center aisle.

Oh yes, and the food. For starters try the Roasted Crab and Coconut Bisque, a creamy seafood soup with an initial delicate crab flavor only to give way to a not too hot but still spicy after-taste.  Seasoned with mint, cilantro and accompanied with glass noodles the Crab Bisque was sensational.

As an appetizer the Vietnamese Style Crawfish and Shrimp Hand Roll was extremely clean and interesting in that the spring roll was uncooked.  It was enjoyable but nothing out of the ordinary with the red chili tamari dipping sauce proving to be too mild for our Yat tastes.  It must be noted that I did not follow our waitress' advise --Lucky Cheng's Crawfish Rock and Roll.

A large house salad of mixed greens with black sesame vinaigrette was excellent, especially the tomatoes which soaked up the tasty sesame vinaigrette.

For entrees we tried the Jumbo Shrimp Stir Fry and the Voodoo Charred Yellowfish Tuna.  The Jumbo Shrimp , like the crawfish and shrimp handroll, was clean and healthy but lacking in scintillating flavor.  It would have been a perfect meal for my mother who "doesn't like anything spicy anymore".

Our second entree was spectacular and recommended by Leila -the Voodoo Charred Yellowfin Tuna!  Locals who feel that blackened anything is nothing short of burned black pepper dressing shouldn't be fooled by the name, the wonderful tuna filet was not charred.  The tuna was seared, cooked on a hot fire to seal the outside to maintain the inside juicy.  Ordered medium rare - that's right its cooked to your specification - It was as delicious as tuna could ever be!

Both entrees were served with thin rice noodles and vegetables.  The Jumbo Shrimp order was served with Singapore noodles and lemongrass/ginger broth, and the Voodoo Tuna was served with a Thai tamarind sauce on top of crispy noodles. Both sauces were flavorful and enticing enough to our palates to keep on eating even after our stomachs had had enough.

The recommended desert, Chocolate Slipper filled with raspberry mousse, was 86ed by desert time.  Instead we ordered the Chocolate Sin Cake which , standing erect,  very much lived up to its name.  There were five appealing deserts in all.

For drinks we had Chinese beer and a tasty Piña Colada on the rocks.

Cinderella's glass slippers might not fit all of the waitresses at Lucky Cheng's but all of the waitresses would certainly have fun trying them on.  Lucky Cheng's is a great addition to the New Orleans dining experience.  Its hard to imagine how we survived all these years without having at least one mainstream drag-queen place to eat.  However, if all you want is to see some drag queens, try walking down Iberville St. near Decatur St. because Lucky Cheng's Restaurant is fairly expensive.

Due to its popularity we strongly recommend making reservations, and once you're there, listening to the waitresses recommendations.  The disco beat, though not disco loud, was my least favorite part of the restaurant;  but not the spacious front bar from which the beat emanated.  A large horse-shoe mahogany bar beneath lovely fan transoms above large glass panelled doors, distinctive of creole townhouses,  services diners without reservations and locals chilling out. Lucky Cheng's has three locations nationwide (also in Miami Beach and New York) and deserves a full 5 Yat rating for its superior service, outlandish ambiance and excellent food.

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