Old Orleans > Reviews > Old Orleans - Quite A Disappointment :(

Author's product rating:   

Value for Money	Poor
Atmosphere	Good
Cleanliness	Good
Family Friendly	Good

Advantages:	Friendly Staff, Relaxing Atmosphere, Nice Cocktails
Disadvantages:	Overpriced, Slow Service

Recommend to potential buyers:

no

Full review

To say my Fiance and I don't get out much is understatement of the year!
We decided it was time we made more of an effort to get out and spend some quality time together wining and dining as it were and so for a change we opted to go to Old Orleans in Sunderland.

We had never been here before so it was a bit exciting to go somewhere new for a change.

The restaurant itself is nice and easy to find - no driving around in circles for hours sniping at each other, which obviously means that you can arrive still in good spirits and ready to enjoy your evening rather than sitting glaring at each other over the table adamant that the wrong turn was sooo not your fault! :)

Anyway there is a decent sized car park and it is situated right next door to a Premier Travel Inn which means that you could potentially make an evening of it and book a room next door - much better than one of you sitting supping coke all night in order to get you home safely!

We arrived at 8pm, tummys rumbling and eagerly awaiting a peek at the menu.
A sign at the door advised us to stand and await a table, however we had only been there for a couple of moments when a gentleman advised that there was currently a 10 minute wait for a table for 2 and we could wait at the bar.
This seemed fair enough - however I must say I was surprised there was a waiting period as there seemed to be several tables empty (and clean).

The music was at a decent level so you were able to hold a conversation without shouting over the music or straining to hear each other and the atmosphere in general seemed nice and relaxing.

We sat at the bar where my Fiance bought himself a Heinken - £2.20 - not too bad he reckoned giving the fact it was so icy cold and refreshing.
I opted not to have a drink until we got our table.

After 20 minutes a young couple arrived and they were seated straight away by a young waitress so as she passed us I asked how much longer we would have to wait for a table and to our joy she led us to a table too.

As we sat she passed us our menus and asked if she could get us a drink while we chose what to have for our meals.
I chose to have a French Quarter Martini - a sweet, slightly fruity cocktail - which at £3.95 was possibly a little overpriced considering the amount you actually get in a glass. My Fiance selected a large coke as he was the driver! The coke comes with an incredible amount of ice - yes it is nice and chilled - but also after some time ridiculously watered down!

We opted to have a starter each to tide us over. (Wedges with Chilli and Roasted Peppers)
The wedges arrived within 10 minutes - very tasty they were too! Nice fat wedges with chilli spread across the middle and a decent sized side salad.
The peppers didn't arrive though so when a waitress came to collect the plate we advised her that we were still awaiting a starter - she asked what it was and disappeared.
Our original waitress then returned and apologised as she had not heard the second starter being ordered. She also then advised the peppers were no longer available so we asked for Chicken Tenders instead.
Around a further 10 minutes passed and our second starter arrived - again a decent sized side salad was provided and the tenders themselves were yummy - the coating was not soggy, but nice and crispy still.
So all in all, despite the mix up, the starters were a good size, very enjoyable, correct temperature and at £3.50 and £3.95 a decent price too.

For our main meals we had ordered a Cheese and Bacon Burger and Chicken Jamabalya.
Around 40 minutes later our meals arrived - I can't help but think that was far too long to wait? But maybe that was just me thinking about my belly?? :D

I had a bite of my Fiances burger - this was very nice! Just the right amount of filling and all of it was neatly positioned in the middle - not like MacDonalds where everything slops out the minute you touch it!
It also came with a huge plate of fries and some more salad along with nice fat onion rings and home made coleslaw. Nice big portion - in fact he couldn't eat it all, not at all like him!! :)

My meal looked quite disappointing - a mound of plain rice with one plain chicken breast on a skewer laid across the top and my sauce down one side.
The sauce itself was yummy - nice and spicy without causing you to sweat to the point that your make up runs off!! Also nice chunks of baby corn and peppers helped to bulk it out making it more of a substantial meal.
Unfortunately the chicken was very dry so I had to chop it up and mix it into the sauce - and the quality of the meat itself seemed quite poor to me.
Not sure how much the burger was but my meal was £9.95 which I felt was overpriced.

We then ordered some coffee instead of having a dessert - but the coffee did not have enough milk provided with it and was very overpowering.

All in all our meal cost around £34. Not too bad you may think - but I must say I have had better for that price - or even less!

I certainly wouldn't go there again in a hurry - but it did make a change put it that way.