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How to eat well for $15 or less: Martin Wine Cellar
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Martin Wine Cellar's egg salad sandwich
When you are looking for gourmet meals for a fraction of the price at a gourmet restaurant, make a trip out to Metairie and visit Martin Wine Cellar, a family-owned business founded by David Y. Martin, Jr. in 1946. Along with boasting an impressive selection of liquor, beer, and more than 2,000 wines, Martin’s deli serves up fresh sandwiches, salads, daily specials ranging from red beans and rice with sausage to grilled scallops, and a Sunday brunch menu that changes weekly. Every single menu item is less than fifteen dollars. When my boyfriend and I ate at Martin, our bill was as follows:
• Egg salad sandwich dressed with lettuce and tomato: $5.49
• Grilled vegetable sandwich: $9.89
• Two glasses of water: Free
• Tax: $1.38
• Tip: $2.00
TOTAL: $18.76 ($9.38 per person)
The vegetable sandwich is loaded with grilled squash, zucchini, portobello mushrooms and tomato, topped with fresh spinach, gruyere chees
e and arugula kalamata olive pesto, and served on a cibatta roll (see photo left). Though pesto is usually quite strong, this particular pesto complements rather than overwhelms the wonderful flavor of the perfectly grilled veggies. Like most of the other sandwiches, it is large enough to fill you on its own. If your appetite is particularly big, try a cup of the soup du juor or some well-seasoned french fries. For a healthy option, order one of Martin’s generously portioned salads. You will see a selection of side salads as you approach the counter. If all of the food simply looks too good to decide, I recommend the trio salad; choose any three of the following side salads for only $10.49: chicken, chicken tortellini pasta, coleslaw, Creole shrimp pasta, egg, fruit, oriental pasta, potato, tomato pesto pasta, and tuna. Do not forget the dessert counter (see photo below) after your meal!
No matter what you order, you can be sure that you will receive a high-quality meal. All of the salad dressings are made in house, a sign of the extra effort Martin’s chefs make to ensure that their food is top-notch. The chefs also make all of the soups from scratch, hand-squeeze lemons for their wonderfully refreshing lemonade, and of course, make every salad and sandwich to order. In addition to making only the freshest food, Martin’s chefs also go to great lengths to use quality ingredients. They use 100% sirloin for their hamburgers and only Albacore tuna for the tuna salad. All of the seafood is delivered fresh daily. If quality ingredients are not available in New Orleans, no problem; Martin flies in H&H bagels from New York and roast beef from Chicago.
The extra effort to bring quality food to customers at a reasonable price is an indication of the pride that Martin takes its business, a pride that has lasted for generations. You can see this legacy reflected in the names of the sandwiches. Mr. Martin’s Meatball (house–made meatballs in marinara sauce on toasted french, dressed to order) and the Cedric (thinly sliced roasted chicken breast, Swiss, fresh spinach, red onions, tomato and mayo on 7–grain) pay tribute to members of the Martin family, past and present. The Uptowner (oven-roasted turkey, ham, Swiss, lettuce, tom
ato and mayo on an onion roll) and the Baronne Beast (rare roast beef, ham, lettuce, tomato and mayo served hot or cold on French) remind us of Martin Wine Cellar’s original location in uptown New Orleans, flooded during Katrina. Mark your calendars now—the original location will reopen on June 1, 2010!
Unlike other upscale wine sellers, Martin never forgets customers on a budget. When you walk in, ask for the “Best under $10” rack, a whole selection of wines too good to be true at such a low price. If you know very little about wine, Martin’s staff is friendly and eager to help you select just the right bottle at any price. When dining at Martin, you can open any bottle that you purchase in the store. Drive out to Metairie with some friends, grab a cheap bottle of wine, and treat yourself to a gourmet meal.
The Necessary Information
Martin Wine Cellar
New Orleans
on Magazine Street
3500 Magazine Street
(corner of Magazine and Aline)
New Orleans, LA 70115
Phone 504.899.7411
toll free 1.800.298.4274
Metairie
714 Elmeer (1200 block of
Veterans Memorial Blvd)
Metairie, LA 70005-2731
Phone 504.896.7300
Bistro/Deli 504.896.7350
toll free 1.888.407.7496
Mandeville
2895 Highway 190, Suite A-1
Village Shopping Center
Mandeville, LA 70471
Phone 985.951.8081
toll free 1.866.210.0488
Baton Rouge
Perkins Palms
7248 Perkins Road
Baton Rouge, LA 70808
Phone 225.610.1190
toll free 1.866.963.3475
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