Roux
HOT CRAB DIP – Lump crab meat, pepperjack cheese, fontina cheese, sliced French bread crostini
ROUX IRON SKILLET CORNBREAD – Sweet corn, streusel topping, jalapeños, Steen’s Cane Syrup butter
ABITA BEER-BATTERED CRAB BEIGNETS – House-made remoulade trio of saffron, cayenne, chives
BANANA FOSTER PANCAKES – Bananas, praline pecans, house-made caramel rum sauce, whipped Cream
ALLIGATOR HASH – Crispy Cajun-beer-battered alligator bites, garlic brabant potatoes, sunny-side up egg and tasso hollandaise
CHICKEN & WAFFLES BENEDICT – Poached eggs, spice marinated fried chicken breast, hollandaise, and house-made waffles. Served with a side of hashbrown casserole
BREAD PUDDING – Baguette, pecans, poppy seeds, and Buffalo Trace bourbon butterscotch sauce
GATEAU SIROP – Steen’s cane syrup spice cake and Chaos Creamery vanilla ice cream
Designating its concept as “Creole Nouvelle” with offerings that look to offer a taste of New Orleans with their own Florida twist, Roux Restaurant on South MacDill was selected for brunch during a single day in Tampa Bay in part due to personal interest but also as a result of the full a la carte offerings on Mother’s Day, the French Quarter ambiance an added bonus with no lack of rustic elegance.
Oddly told that it would be impossible to adjust a 10:15am reservation to later, the dining room at least 3/4 empty during the course of a ninety minute meal, it was at a cozy two-top in the first of two adjoining rooms that seating was offered and with waters filled but cocktails deferred a three course meal composed of eight plates was soon to follow, the service friendly yet perfunctory with “everything is delicious” and “great choice” sentiments abound.
Adhering to Florida liquor laws, but still offering “Happy Hour” half-priced appetizers from opening until four o’clock, it was in a trio of sharables that the meal got started and although the skillet cornbread came across dry around the edges and still in need of more butter the Hot Crab Dip and Beer-Battered Beignets were entirely crave worthy in terms of taste as well as texture, the flavors similar but not redundant thanks to the sauce-trio served with the latter.
Progressing to entrees, everything from salads and sandwiches to pancakes or eggs offered with sides or a la carte, it was again in a sizable trio that the second course was presented and again presenting a “two good, one not” experience both the fluffy Fosters’ Pancakes and garlicky Gator Hash were noteworthy riffs on classic flavors, the “Chicken and Waffles” Benni unfortunately too complicated for its own good with weak breading and a flavorless waffle completely getting lost in the sticky, intense sauce.
Not shortchanging patrons in terms of portions, some food avoided due to taste while more was left over in order to save room for dessert, the final round entailed the restaurant’s signature bread pudding as well as the Chef’s gingerbread Gateau Sirop, both “for two” options served in cast iron with the former unfortunately dehydrated much like the cornbread while Spice Cake was presented beneath a scoop of quickly-melting ice cream, each moist bite little different than the last and delicious down to the very last spoonful of sweet, sumptuous sauce.
http://www.rouxtampa.com/
