Harold & Bell's Restaurant

06/13/09

best in town

by hkrr

BEST FOOD IN LA AND WOULD BE TOP 5 IN NEW ORLEANS. WHEN I WAS IN NO I GAINED 200 POUNDS SO I'M A EXPERT ON NO/SOUL FOOD. BEST IN LA SOME PLACES YOU GO FOR BS SERVICE BUT THIS PLACES YOU GO FOR THE GREAT FOOD LIKE SOME GRAND MA THAT CAN SERIOSLY COOK THATS HNB NOTSOME NO COOKING PLAYBOY BUNNY.

• Pros: best in CA
• Cons: NO WINDOWS

02/20/09

Don't Pass the Salt

by luckysun

Maybe my hopes were too high for this place. My wife and I stopped in for lunch and she had the jambalaya, served with red beans and sausage, which consisted of a scoop of jambalaya over a big plate of red beans and two large sausages - twenty-two dollars. Although it was certainly authentic cajun/creole food, it was very salty, which maybe goes with the territory, I'm not exactly sure. But for that price I'm thinking it could have been more on the jambalaya/shrimp/cajun spices,etc, and less on the salt. All I know is my wife was not thrilled with it and I ended up eating most of it myself. I had the meatloaf sandwich -- also quite salty, but still decadent and tasty, which came with some very good fries; I devoured it. Obviously cajun/creole food is not meant to be healthy, I get that. But it is meant to have a medley of distinct flavors other than salt. There's probably other stuff on the menu I would enjoy more, maybe the chicken, ribs, or fish; not so sure I'll be back to find out (I know my wife won't). On the upside, our waiter was friendly and fast even though it was busy.

• Pros: Authentic, decadent Cajun/Creole food in a city where that's hard to find
• Cons: Too salty and too expensive

12/06/08

Great food, great service

by pasadenagal

I LOVE this restaurant!! Just returned on Sunday afternoon. I had no complaints about the service, our waitress was friendly and attentive and refilled our soft drinks when empty. The Southern fried chicken is the very best I've ever had--a half bird with thick, flavorful breading and juicy meat. YUM. Meals are served with a green salad (or clam chowder), cole slaw, french fries (or another choice), corn on the cob, and warm buttery garlic bread. You won't go hungry! It's the friendliest place around. It's just about the best restaurant around!

09/19/08

Great Food, Very Authentic, but VERY SLOW SERVICE

by LeonandValerie

The food was very authentic but our server was slower than molasses. We were visiting Las Vegas for the weekend and decided to drive to LA just to try this restaurant. I was satisfied until I saw that the server maybe came by one time without having us flag her down. Every time we needed a water refill or requested another soda we had to flag her down. You would think that when it came time to pay the bill, she would have been "Johnny on the spot", nope. My husband had to get the bill and take it to her and stand there to ensure that she ran the credit card. I think this establishment needs to hire another type of staff; I noticed that other diners experienced the same type of service. I understand hiring individuals from the neighborhood to ensure jobs in the community but please make sure you hire the right individual.

I will definitely return when I go back to Vegas this year but hopefully some staff changes have been made and I don't experience the same type of slow service that I have in the past. Once again, GREAT AUTHENTIC FOOD, VERY SLOW SERVICE.

Food Recommendations: Gumbo, Spicy Sausage, Catfish (2 can dine off of one plate with this entree), PEACH COBBLER WAS AWESOME.

05/27/08

Poor Service, Food Quality has definitely changed

by KA519

I took my mom to Harold & Belle's for her birthday. I have been here several times and usually love the food. This day the clam chowder tasted like cream of mushroom soup with a few clams dropped in. The jambalaya was horrible but the catfish was good. I pretty much could have fried fish at home though and opened up a box of Zatarin's for more flavorful Jambalaya. We all agreed that the quality of the food seems to have decreased. There was only one server in the restaurant along w/people cleaning tables and bringing water so of course everything took forever. The parking though is what sealed the deal for me. I pulled into the valet paking lot and the guy told me to pull forward into an available space. The lot was practically empty. Now he did not park my car or take my keys after I parked so when I left I went to my car and was about to leave. He ran up to me demanding the $3.50 valet fee. I wanted to know what I was paying him for when he neither parked my car nor brought it to me. He said that I should have parked on the street which I very well should have had I known they were so rude. Anyway, I responded again that he did not valet park my car. He took my license plate number and got on the phone to call the police on me. Now, I just want you all to know I did not cuss him out, threaten him or anything. My bill was well over $100, which was to be expected so the money was not at all an issue. I am a professional and am college educated so please dont' picture me as a trouble making chick causing drama over $3.50 because I definitely maintained a respectful demeanor the whole time. It is just that I have never supposedly, valet parked my car and still had my keys in my possession to go and get my car to leave at my leisure, so I did not see the sense in paying him a valet fee for a service I did not receive. This experience along with the fact that the food was not so great this time has made me decide never to patronize this restaurant again.

05/17/08

Harold & Belle's

by jackier7

I went there on Tuesday 5/13/08. The food was good and plentiful. Not my first time. A bit pricey for where it is located. The parking or shall i say no parking is less than desired. Three of us visited the restaurant. We took a visitor from another state. He like the chicken wing dinner but not the corn on the cob or the mashed potatoes, The other party found nothing special about the cajun spices. I liked my chicken and red & rice.

• Pros: lots of food
• Cons: parking & location

04/20/08

H&B is cool............

by qteondty

Okay I love the shrimp and I am from NOLA and it is okay. The bread pudding is not like my grandma's but, if you don't know what good pudding is then it is okay. The service is the worst especially if you get Terri's table. Pure g***to, slow and not one apology.....the asst manager is my buddy and if you are a female you get better drinks from the bar than the guys lol....

02/28/08

BEST Louisiana Food outside of New Orleans in Los Angeles area

by KitNikKim

Crawfish Ettufee appetizers and dinner are to die for. The chewiest crawfish..not dry. Bread pudding was good. But crawfish, bread, etc..WHEW!! Good...BUT..and there is a but...Pricey. Big plates, but -pricey. Appetizers range in the high teens. Great personalities at the restaurant. Very community atmosphere. Two people cost $120- and that's with 2 $10 drinks a piece. Pricey. But good.

• Pros: Great food.
• Cons: No good parking-crowed and small lot. High prices.

02/22/08

Okay, but not worth the high price

by calds75

I haven't been here in awhile but I do remember the food being really good. The problem with this place is that it is so small, you feel like you are eating with the whole restuarant and not just the people you came with. And the prices are really too high for the amount of food you receive. I love to eat and I have no problem with spending good money on good food. However, I do have a problem with not getting enough of what I order but plenty of stuff I can make at home (i.e. white rice). And the parking is absolutely the WORST. Now the parking and the size of the place can't be helped because as far as I can tell, there isn't any surrounding land to purchase so unless they are planning to move, at the very least, they could give you more of what you paid for.

• Pros: Good etouffee
• Cons: Parking and size of restaurant

12/30/07

Red Beans and Rice.

by merriweather

There is no other restaurant in Los Angeles that has Red Beans and Rice like Harold and Bell's. Always order them, with anything you order...you'll never be disappointed. I'd love to know how they make them. I would eat every night at this wonderful restaurant if I didn't care about my weight. The crab cake sandwich is to die for. The fish is unbelievably fresh and the the warm, cozy and inviting ambience makes coming to this establishment all worth the trouble of driving through the traffic to get there. I love the service and the servers (all of whom have been there forever) and the light and friendly attitude is contagious. I love the bar with locals hanging out and having a drink, watching a college or professional game of some sort and everyone cheering...very cool. This excellent 'comfort' food is just plain fabulous and consistent....I love this place because it never changes. I can count on it being the same every single time I go in. The portions are huge.

Every time I go with friends or family I feel like I've stepped into a New Orleans restaurant with the best food in town. An absolute gem of a restaurant in the middle of Los Angeles. What, seriously, could be better than that?