An old-time short-order diner, with cloth napkins, bowtied waiters and cooks, black-and-white tile, and chrome fixtures, almost disguised in a Greek Revival building located right at the riverbend in Uptown New Orleans where St. Charles Avenue meets Carrollton, Camellia Grill specializes in hamburgers, omlettes, and milkshakes. Pecan pie is also served at all hours, warmed like everything else on the giant griddle at front and center.

Camellia Grill has developed a sort of cult following through the years due both to the impeccable service and the old-style food, to the point where some tourists schedule a stop on their visits. While not busy all 24 hours of the day it's open, expect lines late at night, especially when the bars close, and at breakfast, when local workers and students are out.

Seating is strictly at the counter and thus rather limited, but the letter-W-like shape of the counter makes it easy to sit together with a group of four or five and carry on a conversation. Don't expect to linger, however. While you won't be rushed along while you're eating, due to the limited seating the management politely encourages diners to leave as soon as they're through. Camellia Grill is strictly business, a good place to eat but a poor one to socialize.

Whether a place like this can be called a time-warp or just timeless is a matter of opinion. Regardless, it's unique. However, maybe this sort of food just isn't my thing; I wasn't impressed by it on any of my visits. Burgers, at about a half pound apiece, were overly large and, being cooked on a griddle, too greasy. Toasting the bun using butter adds an unpleasant flavor, and the lettuce wasn't wilted but certainly was not crisp.

These could be good hamburgers, were the butter left out of the process, the patties smaller and thinner, and the meat better drained of its fat. Although chicken is available (as the only alternative to omlettes, burgers, and pie) it's an afterthought and isn't very good; pass it up for a burger and shake, or pass up Camellia Grill if you're watching your cholesterol.

One benefit does come to the food from being "old-fashioned": the milkshakes at Camellia aren't machine-extruded carageenan gum-based garbage. Ice cream, milk, and flavoring--real chocolate or vanilla!--are it, mixed in a blender and served brain-freezingly cold. They're meals in themselves, certainly not something I'd eat every day, but worthwhile.

The food aside, eating at Camellia, not unlike visiting a Japanese steakhouse, is like going to a show. The counter and cooking area are virtually spotless. Service, albeit somewhat hectic at peak hour, is utterly flawless, and the food is all cooked in plain sight by short-order cooks who are masters of the art, flipping three customers's burgers while keeping an eye on an omlette, toasting buns to perfection, and never burning a thing. Expect to be served in only a little more time than it takes to cook a hamburger, ten minutes at the outside.

There are better $8 lunches that can be had in Uptown New Orleans--Dunbar's on Freret and Lebanon's Café come to mind--but despite the greasiness of the food, Camellia Grill is worth visiting for the show, even if only once.


This review was shamelessly adapted from my earlier ChefMoz description and review at http://chefmoz.org/United_States/LA/New_Orleans/Camellia_Grill954321032.html

For those who are wondering, the latest issue of the Tulanian confirmed that Camellia Grill, closed in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, has re-opened.

Recommended: Yes

Kid Friendliness: Yes
Vegetarian Friendly: No
Notes, Tips or Menu Recommendations Have a milkshake, split a burger.
Best Suited For: Friends