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| - L'Academie is my go-to restaurant for mussels and fries. With a good part of their menu devoted to pasta, meat and seafood dishes, there is a lot of choice for everyone. But with seven different mussel preparations, I slip into a mussels' mindset as soon as I walk up to the multi-level restaurant. On a Monday evening during a holiday week, the restaurant filled up quickly with office parties and large family celebrations. Luckily, we were able to score a banquette seat on the main level to people watch.
I was in the mood for calamari as a starter, thinking it would complement the rest of the meal. Unfortunately, the squid was soft and mushy and the coating, soggy instead of crispy. Definitely, not recommended. The field greens side salad with the creamy house dressing was much better, refreshing and tasty.
For the main course, I ordered the mussels (special pricing Sunday-Wednesday) prepared Mariniere-style, with a white wine, butter and lemon broth. As always, the mussels were delicious. And the fries, served with mayonnaise, were exactly how I like them. This dish is the reason I return.
When we saw the dessert tray, we had to stay. I tried the pecan pie - with its creamy filling and crusty pecan topping - and carrot cake. The former was delicious, with a robust, sweet filling. The carrot cake, however, was just okay - not great.
Service was fine. The staff refilled our bread basket frequently so that we could take full advantage of the flavorful broth.
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