Evan’s Gourmet — Restaurant in Laguna Beach

Ordered two kids' Mac & Cheese, the Catfish Orleans and Shrimp Etoufee and sadly they were from poor to unremarkable. Kiddo Mac & Cheese came with watery cheese sauce and gummy grated cheese on top, which channeled Costco. Virtually tasted of nothing. Chick-Fil-A's Mac is honestly better and we had to send both back. The waitress kept trying to get us to over order, which I didn't like. The suggestion to add shrimp to the kiddo Mac seemed helpful, but my son who eats curry couldn't stomach it due to the amount of chili powder. Again, not the hallmark of good service. The Catfish came out after less than 10mins and so was obviously precooked and tasted microwaved, evidenced by the soggy breading. The grits I subbed from the herb rice looked great, but the jus just didn't hit and tasted of nothing. The Shrimp Etoufee flattered to deceive, again the biggest let down was the lack of unity the dish had in terms of what it was trying to achieve and poor blending of too many flavors. I'd eaten here a couple of years ago and thought it was ok, but upon return I can safely say I'll never go back. The wine was well chilled, but I had really hoped for a beer and they had none. I've had Creole cuisine in various parts of the Creole community and this just doesn't justify the price tag. Ambience is nice, but the waitress was standoffish when we voiced our concerns and I was left with little choice but to forego a tip. I hope they up their game, since the concept, venue and atmosphere remain...

I'm from the South so finding a place that serves Southern/Cajun/Creole cooking is tough here in SoCal.

On top of that, catfish is damn near impossible to find out here, let alone GOOD catfish.

My wife and came for our 16th wedding anniversary. We came here when it used to be Cafe Zoolu (the scene of one of our first dates) a nd the food then was outstanding...

It's even better now.

I can't say enough how delicious everything was. The catfish was fried to perfection - moist and tender - then triple layered with lumps of crab meat on a bed of rice covered with a sauce that just made my eyeballs bug out with how tasty it was after I took my first bite.

The spicy garlic shrimp appetizer? I'll get that as my entree next time. It came with spicy cream sauce that was so f-ing good I had to refrain from using all the bread to soak it up and eat it, lest I leave no room for the main course.

Service = excellent. Kelly our waiter was great, we met Michael the owner and even the Chef came out to check if everything was up to snuff.

My wife and I were STUFFED and can't wait to go back again on Date Night

I can't recommend this place highly enough. Just wear your fat pants...

I say this as someone who grew up on Mississippi Gulf Coast and enjoyed Cajun/Creole seafood on the regular. If you are looking for Etouffee, do not look for it at Roux Creole Cuisine. Even though we were assured by an employee whose "dad was from Baton Rouge" that it is just like the real thing, it is not. The proper description for the very expensive dish should read, "Several shrimps in a weak broth served over rice." It seems like a dish that someone would make if they only had several shrimps, no butter, and no trinity while needing to feed as many people as possible. It lacked all flavor or any resemblance to a proper Etouffee, a dish comprising rice smoothed with a rich, thick sauce developed by slowly cooking the trinity, butter, stock, and eventually the seafood. This dish lacked all the technique and taste for a nearly $40 dish. It tasted cheap, and would not recommend it.

However, I will say that the fried oysters were on point, and would...