New Orleans Bread Pudding
Chef Monte loves to talk about how he makes all of his dishes – except one: His New Orleans Bread Pudding. One bite, and you can understand why. Yes, it’s sweet, as all good bread pudding is. But there’s more. Is that brown sugar? Chef Monte furrows his brow. “No – no brown sugar.” Then what is it? “I don’t want to talk about how it’s done.” We get the distinct impression that the best thing to do is to eat it, and enjoy it in silent bliss. So we do. A...
Read MoreVoodoo Ribeye
What makes people drive 200 miles for a steak? In the case of Monte’s Voodoo Ribeye, it’s a secret mix of spices, rubbed on a hand-carved and hand-trimmed steak, then blackened and topped with stuffed oysters and shrimp. (Some people say there’s a vegetable medley and Fettucine Alfredo served alongside, and sure enough you can see them right there in the photo.) “I have some customers who drive from as far away as Memphis for the Voodoo Ribeye,” says Chef Monte in his thick Nigerian...
Read MoreMonte’s Famous Stuffed Shrimp
When you’re dining at Monte’s, sneak a peek at some of the plates leaving the kitchen. You’ll notice that a lot of them carry Monte’s Stuffed Shrimp appetizer. There’s a good reason: Monte takes four large, fresh Gulf Shrimp, tops them with his homemade seafood dressing, fresh crab meat, and Imperial sauce (his take on New Orleans remoulade sauce), pops them in the oven until they’re piping hot, then adds his delicious lemon-butter sauce. The result is a tangy, creamy...
Read More