Dons Seafood - Lafayette — Restaurant in Lafayette

As a former resident of Lafayette, it was a pleasure to return to Don's, in spite of the circumstances (memorial dinner to celebrate the passing of my brother). My brother-in-law made the arrangements for this event; I assumed that he chose one of the limited menus for large parties, but was quite pleased upon arrival to see that the table had been set using the full menu. I had a hankering for fresh seafood and well made Cajun food.

The service for this event was excellent - we were a mid-sized party of about 17 people, and they managed not only to keep up with the many separate checks, but also keep the food and drinks coming without being prompted.

I ordered a bottle of champagne to accompany my dinner (crawfish etoufee). My server was adorable, admitting that she had never popped the cork on a bottle of champagne before. I was not put off or upset by that (there is a first time for everything); I walked her through the process before her manager came in right before the pop.

Each person who attended this dinner was pleased. There were several table appetizers, including hush puppies and platter of fried onion rings. mushrooms and catfish. And of course, Don's signature bread pudding was enjoyed by several family members, as weekly as an a la mode dish my niece enjoyed.

Time passed quickly at the event - before we knew it, we had to begin our storytelling and family photos. They did not rush us to leave, which was highly appreciated - we are a family of long goodbyes!

Because this lunch was on weekend, the restaurant was almost full. There is brunch, as well as oyster bar and cocktail lounge filled with hungry people and large groups. But our service was consistent and we got the attention we needed at the right time.

As a smoker, it was pleasure to be able to sit outside on the front patio - covered with comfortable couches, ceiling fans and television set for the sports fans. There is a fireplace, but it was not lit due to heat and humidity of summer.

We were very pleased with the service and food. It is a landmark in Lafayette, and we felt grateful to have been accommodated for such an important family event.

I look forward to dining here again on my next visit...

We hadn't eaten here in a few years. One reason was because we had issues the last couple of times we came here but also because the times we did return, they were too busy and the wait was too long for us. We finally caught them with no wait, so we dined in. The atmosphere was fine and our waitress was great. Unfortunately the food took a very long time to get to our table. I'm not sure why as we saw several people seated ten to fifteen minutes after us and they finished dining before we got our food. I can't blame the waitress for a problem that is the kitchen's fault. She apologized many times and stated that she didn't know what the problem was. It didn't matter too much because we weren't in a hurry. But we were disappointed by the food. Some items they hit out of the ballpark but others were a surprising miss. I mean how hard is it to do fries? Yet they were cold and rubbery. The gumbo was good but the bisque surprised me and not for the good. Their recipe is unlike any other I've had. In fact it appeared that they took the gumbo roux, threw in one stuffed crawfish head, and called it bisque. For me, that is not bisque. And the fried catfish...not sure how to describe it. The pieces were super thin. Plenty of batter was used to build up the thickness but that couldn't hide the fact that when you bit into it, you could not feel the sensation of fish on your palate or any flavor that you would expect from it. While there were good things on our plate, there were too many disappointments to make any effort to return. I'm not saying I would never go there again but I would probably only return if I was going with a group who chose this restaurant. I will throw in this disclaimer. Take my review with a pinch of salt as you will find this place full every night. They are obviously doing...

We were walk-ins for dinner and we were not greeted by the hostess, but we were  advised that there were a lot of reservations.  We were seated at a bare table without salt, pepper, or condiments, plus our server did not welcome us to the restaurant. I had the 1/2 catfish and 1/2 red beans and rice with 2 hushpuppies. My wife had the Shrimp Alfredo pasta, which my wife stated was very dry and needed more sauce.  Our server stated they had several customer comments that the dish was too dry but she offered to get more sauce.  My wife said her meal was very good once the additional sauce was added.  My meal was nothing special.  The rice was sticky and there were only two small pieces of sausage in my red beans.  The fried catfish consisted were three small pieces and as mentioned above 2 hushpuppies.  The hushpuppies were sweet. They also serve them as an appetizer.  There is every possibility the other meals on the menu are prepared and visually presented well, but a simple dish, such as I ordered, should set the expectation of good things to come. I have had better prepared fried catfish and red beans and rice at very simple eateries that took more pride in all of their dishes.

I also noted that when we were leaving the restaurant their were three employees at the hostess booth and they were discussing a particular customer situation within earshot of us and other customers waiting to be seated.  This was unprofessional conduct, inappropriate behavior, and as the restaurants initial face to its customers a very unskilled and immature appearance of ambivalence.  Hopefully not the appearance or impression the restaurant wants to leave with their customers.  We will not be returning or giving this restaurant a...