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| - I am always reminded by the similarities between Baton Rouge and J Alexander's. Gleaming hardwoods, massive tables and booths, low lighting, can cause a double-take. While there are also similarities with certain menu items, Baton Rouge offerings tend toward the steak and barbecue route which were popular with guests celebrating friendships and birthdays this holiday weekend.
Baton Rouge is always a go-to choice with my friends because of the varied menu. This evening, we started the meal with a crowd-pleaser, the Louisiana Spinach dip. It featured chunks of artichoke hearts, in a creamy cheese and spinach sauce. Sour cream (today's had an odd gummy texture) and salsa are also served with the ring of tortilla chips. Before our meals arrived, we had finished off every chip and polished off every last bit of the dip.
For the main course, I had the 10 oz portion of baby back ribs. A 16 oz portion is also available. While the ribs were fall-off-the-bone, fork-tender, they were good, not great; they did not taste as if they were smoked for several hours. Included with the meal is a choice of sides ranging from potatoes to coleslaw to cinnamon apples. I had the latter and they were below average. Instead of sweet, cinnamon apples that were chunky in texture, the apples today were over cooked and mushy. The baked potato, all dressed, looked better - I should have gone that route.
The chocolate cake for dessert was amazing - exactly what chocolate cake should be. Several decadent layers of cake covered in a rich layer of icing, the large portion of cake was delicious.
Service was good - the waiter was friendly and helpful and related well with all of us.
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