Buffa's Bar & Restaurant — Restaurant in New Orleans

Food Hounds... what is better than great food, great service and smooth jazz playing live for your listening pleasure? Brimstone here to tell you about a fantastic location in NOLA whose tagline reads, "You've got cravings, we've got answers." - Buffa's Bar & Restaurant. A family run business that cares about not only their patrons; but humanity in general - following Katrina, Buffa's was one of the few places in the area who didn't lose their power... so they opened their doors 24-7 in order for people to have shelter and a warm meal. Moving along, the location has a very cool and laid back vibe... the front room is pretty much a typical bar; but the back room has live music, is very large and comfortable whether you're there with two people or twenty. Our server was beyond helpful; enjoyable and knowledgeable about everything on the menu - we had a perfect tour guide for our vacation of the taste buds!

We started with the Gator Balls - delectable, soft balls of gator meat that melt in your mouth with the assistance of their special butter sauce that slayed; it was SO good that it'd make you wanna slap your mama! The sauce carried its way over to their Boudin Balls as well... Louisiana homemade sausage consisting of rice, pork, green pepper, green onion, celery and garlic all wrapped up in delectable little balls - battered and then fried lightly to create a slight crisp to die for! Now in BOTH of these dishes, the balls are surrounded by a bevy of delicious crawfish that sucked up that BOSS of fresh buttery sauce and made these bowls of love WINS. The Honey Mustard Wings were incredible - the sauce made the wings seem as though they were dipped in the candy canes of all mustard; our mouths were bursting with the flavor of the sweet Creole honey mustard... soft, moist, tender and fantasmic. We reveled in their award winning Bratwurst Jambalaya over fettuccine... beer soaked and uber-delicious; loved the hefty chunks of tasty grilled chicken and bratwurst (notable mention: the crispy piece of French garlic bread was outstanding); a must have at Buffa's! The Jalapeno Cheese Poppers were crispy and oozing with spicy cheese while the Bleu Cheese Coleslaw was off the chain.

As we moved onto the entrees, the flavor behavior became more evident as the dishes were laid out in front of us! The Spinach Florentine consisted of a heaping portion of thin, light fettuccine and fresh veggies drizzled with butter, olive oil and grated Parmesan cheese. A flavor explosion came from the Blackened Ribeye - an 8oz slab of perfect well-done steak with a killer spice on the front and back end; eating this was a truly spiritual experience! I enjoyed the Dark Side Burger - a half-pound of meaty goodness doused with their infamous Chuck sauce (named after one of the owners); I wanted to kick it up a notch in the heat department, so I opted for the Ghost Pepper Powder! Served with amazing well-done, crunchy and crispy fries (the way I LOVE them), I give this platter a two thumbs up and kudos to the cats in the kitchen. Finally, the weekend special was the Fried Catfish Poboy... oh damn! Ginormous portions of Catfish battered and deep fried to a crisp on the outside while moist and tender within - the house made roasted red pepper aioli worked wonders and brought out the natural flavors of the fish without being overly fishy. Hands down... this Poboy was one for the record books - WIN! At the end of the day, we left more than just full - we were satisfied... Buffa's was a remarkable experience. Next time, we'd like to try their...

I decided to treat myself to Buffas because I felt like having some fried green beans blue cheese coleslaw and Buffa Burger I've been coming here for years so I wanted to frequent somewhere that I know I should have known something was going to happen when I ordered the green beans and I didn't get the sambal sauce that normally comes with it I had to ask the bartender to find out if they had it once I got the sauce I had my burger and my coleslaw I was excited I even ordered a peach Bellini daiquiri because that's something I didn't know Buffas had now for some reason the burger didn't Taste as good as it used to but I continue to eat it anyway as I'm eating my burger I noticed something running around over my plate can you guess what it was I'll give you a minute that's right guys it was a roach in all of the years that I've been going there never have I experienced anything so disgusting in my life the bartender apologized And said that they had sprayed this morning and that's why the roaches were running around I really didn't care to hear anything I was disgusted I was trying to keep the little food that I ate down and I was really irritated the bartender took my food away and said that she would have the cooks make it again but after seeing that roach I really didn't even want to eat anything because I knew I wouldn't be able to keep it down and I was disgusted at this point the bartender told me that I didn't have to pay for anything there were other patrons at the bar there was one guy that had just ordered his food not too long after me when he walked in but he decided to get his food anyway and eat it but to each his own I just sat there with a disgusted look on my face because I couldn't believe what had just happened I ordered a shot of tequila to take some of the frustration away which I paid for $6 and then I left needless to say I won't go back I know that all restaurants have some kind of critter issues I just never expected it to run around over my plate while I'm eating...

While I am open to giving another opportunity, my first impression was horrible. I've passed this place many times, I finally decided to give it a try. My visit was during the snow, therefore I am giving "grace" for the unfortunate event. I stood at the bar over 15 min without being recognized , I then grabbed a seat at the bar in which I was assisted with a food order. Food came in a timely manner, esp due to circumstances. The problem with this visit, I was continually overlooked from this point forward. I was never offered water or a soda. I finally stopped the bar tender for a drink in which I never received. I also had a to go order in which was brung in a regular container for red beans and rice, in which they spilled. I asked for a bag, I was told there arent any, but I had just watched other guests being brung a bag immediately before mine. I sat patiently waiting for over 30 min for my ticket. During this time the bartender assisted 6 wal k in guest at the bar on both sides of me. Also I sat center of the bar facing the register, which means I had to be passed from either direction, also there is a mirror facing the register in which I was center of the mirror. Everytime the register was accessed for orders, there was no way to miss me. It wasn't until a couple that sat at a table behind me saw what was happening moved to the seat next to me and asked was I being ignored. The gentleman asked what I needed. Within 3 minutes, the couple was acknowledged, in which, they both pointed to me. They stated this gentleman has been waiting on your attention for a while now.. It was only at this time did I receive service.. There was No way for my presence to have been missed in the entire building.. I sat center of the bar facing the register in full view of a mirror reflection, amongst ppl who did not look...