Alma Cafe — Restaurant in New Orleans

☝️Be prepared for the rips here and there!

I know, in NOLA we are used to paying Entergy birds and squirrels fees, but Entergy has no competitors, unlike Alma.

So, in order. The food is delicious and I would go for breakfast in this place every day. Coffee is very good. The design is very light and clean and sitting by the window is just a pleasure... But the greed of the owners killed me as a client already at the time of the second visit.

When I ordered salmon lox something something for $ 23, I expected at least a full-fledged dish, and not a basic sandwich with goat cheese and three pieces of lox from above.

Yes, it was exactly basic piece of bread, cheese and lox for $23. No veggies, greens, nothing.

In Walmart, for $23, you can buy literally half of a whole salmon. So, you know.

If you decide to turn an ordinary dish into a vegetarian, as you are offered on the menu, then be prepared to pay for each change as add ons. Like original price of the dish + changes. One day my dish magically grew from $20 something to almost $30.

Drinks refills? No way! You already breathing their air for free!

And in the end... your check will come with: a performance fee (probably it is kind of a thanks to them that they came to work), a credit card processing fee (no matter if you go with cash, I tried one day to pay with cash 😂), a tips to a waiter (20% mandatory, why they should pay their workers when you can) and who knows maybe they come up with something else this morning 🤔

If I go to eat outside, I'm looking for a place where I will feel at my grandma's home where they love me, but not look at me as...

New location, light, clean and open. It was a slow night and the service was quick. The dinner menu isn't online but we were expecting something similar to the variety on their lunch menu. We were very wrong. Extremely limited dinner menu and pricey for the quantity. $20 for 6 oysters and $28 for a burger is a little much - even for New Orleans. The biggest surprise was the extra charges on the bill - on top of the 10% New Orleans taxes they tacked on their exhibition tax and another fee of 3% titled PF Services which I'm assuming is a credit card processing fee. Keep in mind this fee was added before I gave them payment so apparently everyone is paying a credit card fee - even if paying cash. A nice little bonus for the restaurant charging an extra 3% to every customer - especially when the average credit card processing fee is 1.4 to 2.5 (slightly higher for American Express). It's one thing to overcharge for your food but don't sneak in extra fees. If you can't afford your business do...

I had high hopes for Alma, but unfortunately, it missed the mark—especially for the price point. We went during happy hour, expecting at least a decent deal, but were shocked by how expensive everything was. I ordered the Providence roll, which came with three shrimp and was 99% bread when you actually cut it open for $18. Yes, you read that right—three shrimp, in Louisiana, during happy hour.

The food lacked seasoning across the board. I had to hunt down salt for my fries, and the $20 single octopus tentacle was spicy but still somehow bland—no depth of flavor, just heat. Honestly, the best part of the whole experience was the draft beer.

This place might be trying for upscale, but overpriced, under-seasoned food doesn’t cut it—especially when you’re living in a state known for bold, flavorful cooking. Won’t...