Clarence's Taste Of New Orleans

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  I stopped by Clarence's to order take out on a Friday around 5:15.  There was only 1 person in the dining room and 2 people at the bar.  I ordered and was told that it would not take long.  Thirty minutes and over 50 dollars later (for 4 po'boys and 2 beignets) I received my order.  As I left the bar area, I realized that the beignets were in one of the bags.  I had to wait for the desserts to be made.  You would think that I would have been offered a glass of water during my wait, but no.  I just sat there and waited, and waited.....
  My family and I was not impressed with the food and would not go back.

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  Posted on 06.29.11 Robin F.

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  I can say with 95% certainty that I have never had worse food at a restaurant in my 28 years of living. My family (husband, me, 8 and 3 year old sons) just left and I am in such disbelief that I had to vent. Let me start with the positives: the waitress was nice and it was a quaint little spot with not many patrons. THAT'S ALL. Now for the rest... My boys were excited that their favorite dish was on the menu. Mac and Cheese. As an added bonus, it was "homemade" Mac and Cheese. I ordered crab balls as an appetizer and seafood tortellini for dinner. My husband ordered 1/2 lb steamed shrimp appetizer and for dinner fried chicken and red beans and rice. It took 40 min for the appetizers to come out. My husband asked that his shrimp be steamed and spicy with old bay seasoning. They came out bland and steamed with what tasted like season salt. My boys snacked on the complimentary bread with no complaints. My crab balls were cooked in a sauce that tasted like unseasoned bleached white flour. I gave it a pass and didn't complain out loud. At least another 30 minutes went by and then the food came out. The Mac and Cheese was penne pasta with some cheap cheese and lard that was flavorless. My boys have never complained about Mac and cheese before today!  My tortellini noodles were soft and mushy and my dish was unflavored. It reminded me of a horrible chicken noodle soup... Minus the flavor. My husband took one bite of his chicken and looked at me like he was mortified. I asked to taste since I assumed it was just unseasoned. Well not only unseasoned but it tasted like they cooked it in hair grease. Unbelievable!  The oil must have been 18 weeks old. A poor chicken sacrificed, dishonored and disrespected. The red beans and rice were a Joke.  My 8 year old after 5 spoonfuls began to gag. He said he ate something that was burned!  My 3 year old refused to eat. I ordered bread pudding for dessert but after all that we asked for our check and I left the dessert. Didn't feel like yet another disappointment. It was bad enough that I was getting dirty looks from the fam for picking the restaurant. My husband did ask the waitress to tell the trucker with the dirty hat and apron aka the chef that he should really change the chicken oil.  My advice... If you are in this area, go to Popeye's and get better food for far less than $80.

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  Posted on 06.22.11 Katana W.

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  So I went back to Clarence's this past week.  I was super excited at the thought of coming... but for some reason, everything seemed off this time around... it wasn't what I had remembered on my past trip :(
  
  Ordered gumbo which was a solid start to the meal.  No complaints there.  My friend ordered a crab and corn chowder which was okay but nothing special.
  
  So then we moved onto the entrees.  We ordered an oyster po boy and fried chicken dinner.  The po boy looked good... however, it was somewhat underflavored.  Now, it wasn't a bad po boy by any means... it just wasn't a great one.
  
  The fried chicken was another story though.  Definitely not the Coop's Place fried chicken I was hoping for; it came overcooked and very dry.   I hate to admit it but going to Popeyes might have provided me with a better fried chicken meal :(  For sides, I ordered the cajun cole slaw (which was okay though a little too creamy for my tastes) and red beans and rice (which was definitely much blander than I had remembered it tasting from the last time I came).
  
  Lastly, we got some bread to go with our meal.  It was still good but it was cold and not exactly fresh.
  
  So, I don't know what happened.  Clarence's changed from a "must-visit-again" restaurant to a "i-dont-know-if-ill-come-back" restaurant in my book.  Maybe the chef had a bad day.  We all have them.  So I guess I'll give Clarence's another shot in the future... hopefully by then, things would be better again :)  If not, I don't know if I'd be willing to drive from downtown Baltimore to eat here.
  
  But in the meantime, as much as I hate to do it, I'll have to ding a few stars from my previous review to reflect my most recent trip as the experience was pretty disappointing.

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  Posted on 04.24.11 Dan A.

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  I must have been very bad recently to deserve to hit such a string of awful restaurants. Clarence's can go to the top of the list. Very casual. The only waitress was totally inept. The service was nerve wrackingly slow. 2.5 hours for dinner. 45 minutes for the soup to come out.
  
  Corn and crab chowder was pretty good. The seafood sampler appetizer was well received. After that, just bad, bad, bad. The grilled catfish was burned (actually, scorched) and tasted terrible. The crawfish etoufee had almost no crawfish and went pretty much untouched. The cole slaw was very salty. The red beans and rice was just ugly and had not taste at all. The pralines were grainy. The praline parfait was a little bit of ice cream in a parfait glass that was then filled to the top with whipped cream. The iced tea was so strong it was black and bitter.
  
  $177 ( with tip) for 4. Not again in my lifetime.

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  Posted on 03.05.11 Steve W.

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  I lived in New Orleans for 2 years (while doing Master's degree at Tulane, a very fun 2 years!) and although the food here is not spicy enough, I was pleasantly surprised to find a place like this in semi-rural Harford County.. Came here for lunch in April 2010, but the food was good enough that I remember the experience pretty well now.  IThe food does not compare with what you would actually find in New Orleans, but it is pretty good considering this is a not-particularly-sophisticated area of Maryland.. Service was quite friendly and the interior of the restaurant is quite nice. It is a casual place.  Prices seemed pretty normal.

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  Posted on 01.15.11 Mark N.

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  This was my first Cajun experience (from what I can recall).  I've been meaning to go to Clarence's for awhile now, and we finally had the opportunity for our weekly Friday lunch at work.  I've been hearing good things about Clarence's for awhile from different people.  I don't go to Edgewood often.  I've only gone back to that area a few times since graduating high school, and normally avoid the area if I can.
  
  I ordered the "Taste of New Orleans Sampler".  It had Gumbo, Jambalaya, and Red Beans and Rice.  Far more food than I could finish in one sitting.  The Gumbo was great.  The Jambalaya and sausage was very good (my overall favorite).  The read beans and rice were exactly what it sounds like.  I didn't think it was anything special.  The Jambalaya will be making a repeat experience on my plate in the near future.
  
  I don't have any Cajun food experience to compare Clarence's to, but I was impressed overall.  It was tasty, spicy, and satisfying.  I'll be going back for more.

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  Posted on 06.21.10 Christopher S.

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  I really wanted to like Clarence's but it just didn't happen. I went in with visions of having some of the best Creole/Cajun I've ever had, and I left with disappointment. I ordered the "Taste of New Orleans Sampler" which consisted of Sausage Gumbo, Jambalaya, and Red Beans and Rice. ALL of which lacked flavor. The Gumbo was the best of the bunch, and even that was plain. The Jambalaya had very little sausage, and could only muster a slight tomato flavor, and I won't go into much detail about the red beans and rice....a box of Zatarain's would have been better. And to top it all off the service wasn't that great either. I sat at the bar, where an awkward and unfriendly bartender took my order and poured me a Yuengling.
  
  So all in all, if you decide to take a chance on Clarence's do so with the knowledge that you may leave yearning for something better.

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  Posted on 05.17.10 Nate I.

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  Definitely the best place for Cajun food in Harford County.  Actually, it's probably the only place for Cajun food in the county, unless you actually consider Popeye's in that category.
  
  You'll also get to experience the local flavor of Edgewood as you make your way down to the restaurant, with its colorful ghetto apartment complexes and substance abuse treatment centers.  Not to worry.  Clarence's is located on its own virtual blacktop island, and the adjacent Marc train station provides the backdrop of intrigue and romance on the rails.
  
  Clarence himself is an interesting guy, and I've never eaten here without him coming out to say hello to the patrons and ask how they like the food.  Word to the wise, do not complain how hot anything is.  They have already warned you on the menu that you may not return entrees because you decided they were too spicy.  The red beans, slaw, and green beans are quite hot.  Even the dressing on the Caesar salad has a kick.
  
  The best items I've tried are the fried catfish dinner, which comes with two sides.  Although I've never had their sandwiches, their bread is amazing.  Top it off with a praline parfait for dessert to cool you down.
  
  Prices are reasonable, but they frequently have coupons and other discounts.  It's definitely worth checking out if you'd like to try something different in Harford Co. other than, say, Outback, Red Lobster, and Uno's.  They also have Yuengling (!) on tap.

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  Posted on 07.13.09 Heather K.

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