Banana Bean Cafe

About a year and a half ago, I visited Banana Bean ("The Patina of Key West") twice, and was unimpressed; however, I kept my mouth shut because I have numerous friends with serious foodie credentials (chefs, dessert makers, etc) who frequent Banana Bean.  I knew I would eventually have to give them another shot.  So my friend Crumpet, Big Lady who Lunches Partner extraordinaire, and I have tried it out twice in as many weeks. 

On our first visit, the special was a catfish po' boy with mac n cheese.  The serving of both was enormous - certainly enough to feed two.  I got one to go for Husband (who doesn't "get" mac n' cheese) with the "shrimp boil" potato salad.  I took the mac n cheese home and had it for dinner, and Husband was quite fond of the po' boy.  We also tried the (white) grits with goat cheese on the side - very tasty, but needed a pinch of salt and the sweet corn crepes with pork confit; the crepes themselves were good, but the filling left a little to be desired.  The addition of some vegetables and/or cheese would have made them excellent.

We visited again this week, and were pleased to see the catfish po' boy was a special yet again.  Crumpet opted for the "Calle Ocho," which was recommended to me by a readers and I chose the po' boy (top of post), which was really great - I actually ate the entire sandwhich, minus about half of the bread (which is good, don't get me wrong, it's just that bread products can occasionally get in the way of the meat within).  The catfish is dusted in cornmeal and was perfectly fried - not at all greasy, dried out, or dirty tasting, the way some catfish can be (it does, after all, live in mud).  The sandwich was topped off with some decent sliced tomoates and shreeded lettuce.  A little spicy homamade mayo was on top, and tartar was there, too.  It had a nice kick to it.  Alos along was a tiny side of cole slaw.  The sandwich, despite all of the goodies inside, maintained its structural integrity throughout its consumption; a good sign for a slower eater like Lisa.

The Calle Ocho is a type of Cuban sandwich - it contains slow-roasted, very moist and tender pork tenderloin along with Manchego cheese (not overpowering) and a fantastic olive, pepper & caper salad.  It was really, really good.  The sandwich is built on "Cuban" bread, which here looks very similar to a small baguette, and then pressed to seal in all of the goodness, and get the olive salad to melt into the bread.  Yum.  Since I had purchased the last of the po' boys, I chose the Calle Ocho to take to Husband at work.  He ate it in about 7 seconds flat, which is not particularly uncommon with him, and also thought it was quite tasty. 

Sides (other than a little cup of cole slaw) are not included in the sandwiches (which are around $9) at Banana Bean, but are reasonably priced and are huge.  We ordered a side or the really good Shrimp Boil potato salad, which contains sweet corn and is spiced with Old Bay seasoning (or similar), and were given a side which could have easily weighed a pound - no joke.  Crumpet ordered a side of sweet potato fries (below), which are very simple - they are not battered, they are just simply fried and seasoned.

The table next to us had the red pepper and tomato soup and it looked amazing.  Another table nearby had the ginger calamari and it, too, looked very good.  There's a limit to how much one can eat for lunch, however, and we had to cut ourselves off at some point.

Banana Bean is a small restaurant.  There are about 10 tables and they are close together; in the summer time, they make great use of the sidewalks and patio.  Some people out there don't like sitting close to other tables, but I kind of like it.  For instance, the table next to us contained two nice ladies who are printmakers, which was pretty cool.  I didn't even know there was a printmaking co-op in Columbus, but there is.  And sometimes you can take classes there.  It was quite interesting.  You never know who you'll meet in a cozy restaurant.

On the wall of the restaurant is a live feed to an outdoor restaurant somewhere warm, on a beach, so if you feel like having a 30 minute vacation, or getting more bitter about how cold & gray it is here, position yourself so that you can have a view of the tourist in Hawaiian shirts drinking beer on vacation.

I'm glad I've given Banana Bean another shot.  It's really great; they serve breakfast all day, and it looks great - a few people have added yummy-looking pictures of breakfast items on the Columbus Food Group.

Desserts include crepes and sweet potato creme brulee with toasted marshmallow topping, which is outrageously sweet, but good nonetheless - definitely for sharing.  The coffee is really great, a fact which was touched on recently on Columbus Underground; I guess they have someone roast and blend it to their specs, and they do sell it by the pound if you are so inclined. 

Info:  Banana Bean Cafe 410 E Whittier St. (German Village area) 614.598.4943

Comments

[Robin Emrick]

Thank you Restaurant Window for giving us another shot, we have been opened for two years now as of Dec 6th 2007. We look forward to seeing you at the Cafe and appreciate your review. There are so many great places to eat in Columbus we sincerely appreciate everyone that enjoys and supports the Banana Bean.
May God Bless and Never Stop Dreaming....

Robin Emrick
Ceo/President

[AL]

glad you gave it another try.. I knew you weren't a fan a year ago when we exchanged notes... brunch is pretty good too, more so in the summer when you can sit out back...

cheers..

[Susan]

So glad you are a convert! The regular cuban is also great. Also had the omlette once for lunch - wonderful. Will seek out the coffee - which reminds me I need to do breakfast/brunch there.

Was at the Tip Top again this week. Had spicy corn chowder (yum) and the eggplant fries. You were not kidding! I could have eaten then until I fell over in a stupor. Very seriously good stuff, and I rarely eat anyone's fries of any sort.

Susan