(MANDEVILLE, La.) In the heart of old Mandeville at the corner of Girod and Monroe, there is a building that stands out more than the rest. The Rusty Pelican is a family-friendly establishment whose specialty is fried seafood and burgers. They have a somewhat small dining area that seems smaller than it really is because of how many people are always there. The atmosphere was pleasant with a dining area and bar that offered an impressive collection of exotic hot sauces.

The menu looked good, with a multitude of burger options and seafood baskets. I started with fried pickles. I was craving a burger, so I chose the the 5th Beach Burger, a burger with grilled onions, BBQ sauce, bacon and pepper jack cheese. All of the burgers come with fries.

The fried pickles came out first and were still steaming hot. The batter on the pickles was fantastic, very crispy and flavorful, perfect combination with the tangy pickle.

I wait not even ten minutes after my fried pickles, and my burger was already out. I go to take my first bite, and I can already see that the onions are beyond over cooked and the burger was grossly undercooked. I take the bite, and I was right; the burger looked as if it was on the grill for five minutes and the onions had been sitting on the stove for hours. I got halfway through my burger before I had to stop eating it because of the undercooked burger meat.

Another menu item that was good was the fries, very thin and crispy. I haven’t heard bad things about The Rusty Pelican, so I believe that I just got a faulty burger. But if you own a restaurant, every burger served should be quality, and the ingredients should be quality.

With all this said, The Rusty Pelican left a lot to be desired. While their fried pickles, fries and service were excellent, the most important part of my meal was not. The Rusty Pelican gets my rating of 5 out of 10.

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