Ruby Slipper (Baton Rouge)

We finally had an opportunity to visit this location over the weekend. Wait times are what they are (packed), but with the No Wait app, we reduced an 80 minute wait down to just under 30 minutes. My girls asked why they don't they accept reservations and I told them if people are willing to wait on a first-come, first-serve basis, there is no need to bypass them for a reservation that may or may not show up.

I've eaten at the Orange Beach location, along with my wife and she has also been to the New Orleans location several times.

My first visit to O.B., I thought the food, service and setting were great. Of course, Baton Rouge can't replicate O.B.'s environment (beach vs. parking lot and Acadian Thruway), but for my first visit to the B.R. location, I thought the food was average to below average.

The Chicken St. Charles dish was "warm." The chicken tasted as if it had been fried ahead of time and kept under a heating lamp and the biscuits were "crunchy" along with the poached eggs coming out overcooked. The creole sauce was minimal and lacked any flavor. This happened for all of our dishes (3 of us ordered the same).

I'll give service a pass. They were busy. But at the same time, it could have been more attentive with other servers passing by. One drink was never given. Another drink was only filled after 3/4 through with my daughter's meal. And plates were not pre-bussed before receiving our check.

For being a new restaurant, I thought the restaurant looked unorganized (as you walk towards the bathroom) and dirty. Scuff marks laced the interior and exterior doors, the outdoor patio near the entrance is filthy and the restroom had not been attended to for the men's side. Little things that should normally be taken care with the right checks and balances.

I didn't complain. We ate our meal and tipped our server accordingly. But none of us enjoyed our meal. We all agreed that based upon this one experience alone (and maybe that isn't fair), we all like the small plates at Batch 13 better.

Not sure if this is a one-off or if this has been a typical experience for others that have eaten at Ruby Slipper in Baton Rouge that frequent this board? We'll go back. We want them to be successful. Because by all accounts, it looks like they have a great location picked out and are being supported very well by residents of B.R.