Fezzo’s

Seafood, Steakhouse And Oyster Bar at 720 I-10 S Frontage Road in Scott, La.

Every once in a while, it’s nice to stretch our legs and get away from our own backyard. On this particular adventure, my wife, daughter and I headed southeast to Nicholls University for the Scholars Banquet, excited about what the scholarship offer might be.

At midday the girls started scrolling through their phones for lunch opportunities. 

The quiet drive was occasionally broken up with a “hey, how about … nah,” and then “what about … no,” followed by more scrolling as we tacked on a few more miles. 

As we passed a packed Fezzo’s Seafood Steakhouse and Oyster Bar in Crowley, we finally agreed on a lunch spot — Fezzo’s in Scott. 

I was thinking to myself, “We’ve been here before, but sure, we can do this.” Our previous stop at this place came on the return trip from New Orleans, after we gorged ourselves with some of the best food the city has to offer. 

Fezzo’s is in a frontage-road location at exit 97. After navigating around the roundabout and making a few sweeping turns, we reached our destination.  It was still the lunch hour, but the dining crowd was light. The wood and brick interior made for a warm and pleasant feel. 

A friendly greeter promptly walked us to our table where we were immediately met by our server, who took our drink orders and informed us of the daily specials, one of which sounded perfect. 

In typical fashion, we all ordered something a little different. My daughter ordered a crawfish bisque with a fish bites appetizer. My wife had shrimp and okra gumbo and the special — grilled catfish over angel hair pasta topped with a shrimp Alfredo sauce with a bread pudding dessert. I ordered a simple steak wrap, which consisted of cuts of grilled steak and melted cheese folded into pita bread, served with fries and salad. 

The food arrived quickly.

There are gumbos that blow you away, and then there are gumbos like this one, which was average at best. It was loaded with shrimp and plenty of okra, but required table seasoning to bring it up a few notches. 

The fish special looked promising, but looks can be deceiving. It consisted of simple noodles and a catfish filet topped with Alfredo sauce that anyone can get out of a jar, with a few shrimp placed on top for good measure. 

My daughter’s crawfish bisque was not up to par. Bisque is a creamy dish, closer to a rich soup than anything else, and the menu described it as having been made with a blond roux. It turned out to be nothing more than gumbo with a couple of stuffed crawfish heads added. Her breaded and fried fish bites were done just right. 

As for my steak wrap, the steak lacked any flavor or pizzazz. It was simply cubed cuts of grilled steak placed in a pita which was two sizes too big for the filling. 

But as for that bread pudding — I won’t lie. This was by far the best bread pudding I or anyone at the table had ever had. It was pretty, it was moist and it was a wonderful balance of sweet and cinnamon. It was perfect. And it was the warmest dish delivered to our table. So, we finished on a high note. 

The takeaway from this is that the fact that it’s a popular restaurant doesn’t mean the food is going to be good, and you don’t have to travel far to find exceptional food. Appreciate what we have in Lake Charles. 

As for the Scholars Banquet, we are ecstatic to announce that our daughter will enter the Culinary Arts program at Nicholls University, and one day I will have the pleasure of writing about her. 

An Extra Dish

AUBRI’S TAQUERIA

Tacos! Just so we’re on the same page, this Extra Dash section is pretty much dedicated to burgers, tacos, fried foods, sweets and all those little things we’re supposed to eat in moderation. I might throw in a few healthy options just to make my doctor happy, but today we are doing tacos at Aubri’s (1850 North Hwy. 171 in Lake Charles). 

Aubri’s looks nothing like what you’d expect a Mexican restaurant to look like on the outside. It looks like any other brick building you see around the area. Even the inside is simple — open wall to wall with a few banners hanging from the ceiling, with a no frills counter to order from.  

As you take your drink and your seat, you’re served fresh chips and salsa. I ordered the Asada tacos on corn tortillas. They consisted of juicy, grilled and seasoned steak in warm tortillas. The flavor, the freshness and the vibrance, visually and in the flavor are what really matters when it comes to Mexican food, or any food, for that matter.

I believe a lot of people overlook this taqueria based on the fact nothing screams Mexican restaurant on the outside. But do yourself a favor and walk through the doors and order up some of their fantastic food. You’ll forget about that exterior.