Fleur de Lis Cafe (Old Sweet & Savory location)

Had a great lunch at the new Fleur de Lis Cafe on Friday. We only live a few blocks away, but had had so many less-than-stellar experiences with Sweet & Savory that we hadn't eaten there in years. Upon learning that ownership had changed, we decided to give the new place a try. I'm glad we did. We will certainly be back.

I had the Benedictine BLT with peppered bacon with a side/house salad. Everything was fresh and delicious. My husband had a turkey, avacado, bacon & aioli wrap. The wrap isn't actually on the regular menu. But we had seen it written on their outside sandwich board as a special the prior week. And they were kind enough to re-create it for him. He said it was excellent as well.

The owner stopped by the table and chatted for a bit. The service was spot on. I wish I could remember our server's name (mabe Jen?). The other great thing I noticed is that they serve breakfast (in addition to lunch) until 5pm everyday. LOVE THAT! Cause I'm just not an early-bird. But I do like my breakfast food.

The dinner menu also looks really good (they gave me a copy to add to my menu file). Lamb chops, braised pork belly, filet mignon with oysters, crawfish and wild mushroom creme, pan seared flounder a couple of different burgers. Including a "million dollar burger" that involves quail eggs, peppered bacon, crawfish tails, Kenny's white cheddar and black truffle mayo. Oh, and it looks like there are about 7 vegan options also.

We stopped in for brunch on Sunday; it was also our first visit since it changed hands. The interior was largely the same, with a few minor changes. Service was much improved - I don't think I ever saw more than two servers at Sweet & Savory, but there were at least four working at Fleur de Lis on Sunday.

The menu is much expanded, with dinner options and more selections for brunch and lunch, while retaining many of the S&S favorites, like the strata and the curry chicken salad. We always liked S&S, but the food under the new management is better, even on the the S&S items. There is a definite focus on farm-to-table/local sourcing, including their beer selection (Hoptimus on tap!).

We also noticed 1/2 priced wine Tuesdays and Thursdays.

I went a couple weeks ago and really enjoyed the place. I originally went in for dinner on a Friday, and saw that they had banana's foster french toast on the menu for breakfast the next day, so I came back the next morning for it.

The dinner was phenomenal. I ordered the sweetbreads for an appetizer and the filet mignon for an entree. The sweetbreads came cooked perfectly, nice and browned on the outside and soft and creamy inside. They were served with a goat cheese, which would not surprise me if it came from Capriole Farms, since there's a noted focus on local items. All in all it was a great starter, and definitely showcased one of my favorite foods. I want to go back for the marrow and microgreens.

The entree I ordered medium rare. It's the best way. The steak was the most perfectly cooked piece of filet I've seen this city. It had a tiny ring of brown on the outer edge and the rest was all, uniformly medium rare. The sauce was seasoned great, and the steak was accompanied by mashed potatoes and leeks. The leeks were mostly mixed into the potatoes, and the entire thing was sauced with a delicious oyster, crawfish cream sauce. Very good meal. It was so good that my friend that had decided not to eat an entree ordered one for himself. Definitely in the five star range in my book.

Breakfast...The french toast was great. The bananas were ripe, cooked just right, and the brown sugar sauce was spot on. My personal favorite part was the vanilla ice cream that it was topped with, which I was informed was made on premise. I got bacon (what's breakfast without pork) and it was thick-cut and cooked just the way I prefer. Over all, not as much "wow" with that dish as the dinner, but a great tasty and filling start to the day.