Mouthwatering Cajun/Creole in New Orleans

Li'l Dizzy's Cafe

★★★★☆ 4.4 (989) • $$

"Hands down the best food I had during my trip to New Orleans. I can't think of one bad thing to say about this place. The fish was fried toPerfection the Mac and cheese was 10/10 I couldn't think of a better place to try. Service was great and the food came out fast. They have indoor seating and outdoor seating definitely worth the trip"

Heard Dat Kitchen

★★★★★ 4.7 (725) • $$

"Upon arrival we weren't sure if this was the correct place because it looked so small! But it indeed was! There's really only outdoor seating and a few inside. We came as soon as it opened and it did take awhile for food to come out but the girl the took our order gave us a heads up! So do not come hangry because it does take awhile for the food to come out but just know ITS WORTH THE WAIT! We got the bourbon street lovers - chicken over Mac and cheese. It was delicious. Chicken is nice and juicy but is still crispy. Mac and cheese is full of flavor. My personal favorite was the superdome. It's blacken fish topped with mash potatoes, crispy onion rings in a lobster sauce. YUMMMM. At first I thought it being fish was going to be sus but I'm really glad I tried it! This was one of my favorite things we had out here. This place is a must! You will not regret it!"

Mandina's Restaurant

★★★★☆ 4 (914) • $$

"Excellent sandwiches. Also had the crab claw appetizer, was excellent. Service was prompt and friendly."

Olde Tyme Grocery

★★★★★ 4.5 (714) • $$

"This was the best little find! We needed a quick bite before heading to a wedding because well, you aren't really sure how good wedding food is gonna be no matter how good the blissful couple's intentions are!! It was their wedding but also our baecation so we needed it to be QUICK AND GOOD! We called 10-15 min out and ordered a fried shrimp po boy all the way with the fixings except no hot peppers. Id done my research so i knew a whole would be plenty for he and I. We arrive and its the cutest little spot. It was mid Monday afternoon and parking was easy but definitely limited around the shop itself but plenty of street parking in surrounding area and its near a college/university as well. Walking the shop they have EVERYTHING you could want with your sandwich from bottled can drinks both non and alcoholic and snacks GALORE! One thing I had been doing is collecting little LA specific goodies as we visited different gas stations or stores in our time in Lafayette. They had fried hand pies and ginger cakes. Those were dessert for what was one of THE best po boys Ive ever had! The shrimp were plentiful, plump, perfectly cooked and seasoned to perfection. The bread was soft and the toppings fresh! Maybe a lil creole mustard would have taken it up a notch but it was solid and a LOT of sandwich for the price! We added a bag of Doritos cook ranch and some drinks and life was swell! Definitely if you want to try a po boy this is a solid spot. They have a fried catfish po boy they only offer on Fridays we would have loved that one, especially if the batter is the same as what it was for the fish. Sorry no pictures to share, half of it didnt make it to the hotel and the other I was tight on time to consume and still get ready in time for the wedding. Bon a petit'!"

Restaurant Rebirth

★★★★★ 4.6 (678) • $$$

"Interesting/creative food, good service and atmosphere. The food was so good that I even forgot to take pictures"

Daisy Dukes Express

★★★★☆ 4 (871) • $$

"Great filling food, Large variety of menu offerings. Always a great Bloody Mary and mimosa to start your day.This is our go-to spot when in the downtown area. It's close to our hotel. There is another location closer to the Hilton we now prefer this location. Just a short walk but we'll worth it. Our food is always delivered hot and comes out at 1 time so we can all eat together. They have no problem serving 6 at a table."

Cajun Mike's Pub & Grub

★★★★☆ 3.9 (894) • $$

"Came to NOLA for an extended fun birthday weekend. We couldn't find this place, drove around the block to find out that it literally was behind us when we parked! Nathan was our bartender. Great service! Mac made our food. OMG...Soooo good! The seasoning on the sweet potato fries was so good that I didn't put any ketchup on them. The sample with poutin balls, jalepeño poppers, hot wings, and mozzarella sticks. We ended with the alligator poboy. Again, it's so flavorful! This is a small, dark bar. It's cozy and not pretentious at all. Just what our weary selves needed. Relax, eat, drink, and chat with folks at the bar.Definitely check it out."

Cafe Sbisa

★★★★☆ 4.4 (693) • $$

"I Really enjoyed dining here. The ambience is perfect, along with the live jazz band. It just added more of an impressive atmosphere to restaurant. The food was amazing, I throughly enjoyed the lamb chops. It came with a creative corn porridge. If I were to try and give a better description I can't. But I can say OMG it was good. I strongly recommend this place, of course for dinner. But you can even make it a great night for drinks, and live music."

Toups Meatery

★★★★☆ 3.9 (856) • $$$

"I have been waiting to go to Toups, and I'm glad that I recently had the chance. Two friends and I had the chance to visit last week, and overall, it was a good visit. First we ordered drinks. The Sally Fields Forever was amazing! It's a relatively small but mighty drink. It's not too sweet, but it was a great mix of sweet and tart. It was alsoPretty strong. I would definitely order again. As someone with a gluten allergy and dairy intolerance, I had to be careful with my order. The turkey necks are roasted, then fried with flour, but my friend loved them. The shrimp appetizer was also good, even though it was light on the shrimp. The highlight of that dish was the sauce. I ordered the pork chop, which was good, not amazing but good. The pork chop was well cooked and not dry, which is impressive since it's such a thick cut of meat. The chop definitely needed a sauce- I used pepper jelly on my leftovers, and it was fantastic. The collards were also pretty good. Not too salty. My friend who ordered the steak also enjoyed her food. Our server was great and worked as a cook for a few year, so he was able to answer all of our questions. The restaurant seemed pretty clean and the restrooms were also relatively clean. I enjoyed my food and would come back, but I would try another dish. I recommend at least trying this spot out once."

Prejean's

★★★★☆ 3.8 (824) • $$

"Stopped here on the way to New Orleans, craving some fried Cajun food and this place absolutely delivered!My household is full of seafood and Cajun food lovers, so we were in heaven from the start. We started off with a dozen chargrilled oysters and every single one was packed with flavor.For the main course, my boyfriend and I shared the seafood platter which was a feast in itself. It came with fried shrimp, fried catfish, fried oysters, fried crawfish tails, fries, and hush puppies. The fried catfish was the star for me-crispy on the outside, tender and flaky on the inside, with perfectly seasoned breading. While everything on the platter was delicious the hush puppies stole the show. I'm not even sure what goes into making a hush puppy to be honest but what I do know is that the ones here were the best I've ever had.Service was decent and fast too. Even with a party of nine, we were in and out in just an hour and a half and back on the road.If you're ever passing through, I highly recommend stopping by this spot."

Basin Seafood & Spirits

★★★★☆ 4.2 (670) • $$$

"We were meandering in the area and stumbled upon this fine establishment and, to our delight, found it to be some of the best food we had on our trip to New Orleans. My partner had the jambalaya and I had the Royal Red Bordelaise. We paired it with a Vinho Verde and had catfish as an appetizer. All were spectacular. Adding to this, our server, Ty, was hospitable and amicable. He humored us as we asked him a million questions about New Orleans and his experience as a local. He even recommended music venues, which we visited afterwards - and they were also amazing. The ambiance was relaxed, which we needed after our evenings spent in the French Quarter. I highly recommend this place!"

Tujague's Restaurant

★★★★☆ 3.5 (821) • $$$

"Checked out Tujague's new Happy Hour menu and WOW! It was great! They have a ton of discounted bites and even discounted Veuve on the menu. I loved sitting in the courtyard and the service was great. Not on the happy hour menu, but the Grasshopper cocktail is a must-try!"

Brigtsen's Restaurant

★★★★★ 4.5 (464) • $$$

"I finally made it over to Brigsten's for my birthday and it truly did not disappoint. Every single dish had an amazing flavor, the cocktails were great, excellent options of wine too! I have no complaints at all. Our server Ben was also very friendly and knowledgeable about the menu. The vibe of the place feels like you're in someone's home and I really enjoyed how each room had its own art and section. I wish the BBQ shrimp had more shrimp because YUM! It was absolutely divine. The sauce was cooked to perfection- genuinely some of the best I have ever had in the city.The pork was cooked so well & the dijon sauce was the flair it needed. The fish was excellent as well as the duck. Truly, everything was amazing here. I'd recommend this spot & will definitely be back!"

Melba's

★★★★☆ 3.5 (737) • $$

"A friend suggested this place as a stop off for dinner after a late flight in. Great selection. It has a quirky vibe along with modern technology (like kiosk ordering). Nice daiquiris and excellent poboys.As for the specifics on the roast beef poboy, plenty of tasty roast beef, but it could have used more gravy. That's was the only thing I could suggest to improve the sandwich.They have a literacy campaign they highly publicize inside. Nice community involvement there. Now, add the laundromat inside, and you have to admit it's a truly unique business. The dining side has a patio as well as inside seating, so depending on the weather you can make yourself as comfy as you like."

Mansurs on the Boulevard

★★★★☆ 4.3 (488) • $$$

"I got the Cedar Plank Redfish. It was absolutely on point, as usual. I highly recommend!"

Pascal's Manale

★★★★☆ 3.6 (681) • $$$

"My father really encouraged us to come here. He had lived here for many years and advised us this was the place. In the maze of rooms we were seated in a smaller room in front, which was nice. It never felt crowded or noisy. Our server Susie eventually came around and was prompt to ask us if we wanted drinks and appetizers and the promise of warm bread. Ultimately their warm bread is bread in a white paper bag. It wasn't warm enough to melt butter. Each table was delivered the same white bag of bread. It really is wasteful to use so many bags when a traditional presentation of warm bread in. basket is more effective. We decided on cocktails and the Combination Remoulade, advertised as crab meat and shrimp topped with golden remoulade sauce and a ring of spicy cocktail sauce. For dinner I gave into the calling for Original Pascal's Barbeque Shrimp, the specialty of the house prepared in a spicy and tangy sauce. My wife had the special, red fish stuffed with crab and shrimp with a spicy cream sauce. It came with steamed veggies. The Combination Remoulade wasn't as promised. It was shrimp and crabmeat on lettuce with their version of remoulade. On the side a plastic dressing container with seafood sauce that wasn't spicy but rather tasted like they had opened a jar and poured it in. My wife liked the remoulade a lot. I thought it was pickle forward and tasted a lot like tartar sauce, which she likes as well. The biggest detractor for this was that the shrimp were not cleaned, the telltale black line down the back of each was still obvious. My wife's fish was nice, and a nice mix of flavors. The spicy element was jalapeño that appeared in small chunks in the cream sauce. Easy for her to avoid, but that telltale grassy taste was evident. On the side she had plain, unseasoned steamed vegetables. Clearly an afterthought since the literally like came out of the steamer and on to the plate without any thought to flavor. For my entree, the flavor of the shrimp sauce was delicious, but tangy is not a word I would use, and absolutely not spicy. Even my wife, a verified spice wimp, would not use the word spicy. The huge bummer here is that they charge you $28 for a plate of shrimp, offer you a bib and a pile of napkins, and bring you a bowl/plate of unprepared shrimp in liquid. Yeah, I knew what I was signing up for and ordered it anyway. I have peeled a lot of shrimp and crawfish in my life and none were this soupy or difficult. Peeling and deveining them all made my meal unappetizing and not worth it. It was tempting to sop up the sauce with bread, but there were so many legs and antenna and, like the remoulade, bits of shell. The thought of carrying that to my mouth on the bread made that much less temptingSo, we have done it. We can check it off the list. We had bbq shrimp at Pascal's Menale. Happy to say I will leave tables for others in the future, I don't need to go back."

The Chimes East

★★★☆☆ 3.4 (732) • $$

"Saturday nights are packed because Chimes are good at providing A1 service, but they check you in quickly to get you in the queue. Our table was ready in 30 minutes, and our server immediately took our the order. The ambiance is always live, with multiple TVs, great music in the background, the smell of chargrilled oysters, and the variety of seating that makes everyone feel welcome. We sat outside in the patio area, but the heaters didn't disappoint. The food was delicious, as always, and they never missed a beat. I also love how the staff look out for each other; they work hand in hand."

Clesi's Restaurant & Catering

★★★★☆ 4.1 (495) • $$

"The seafood oysters were on point! My partner loved the alligator bites. Situated in a nice quiet neighborhood, and should be given good recognition for its service and food."

Monday Restaurant + Bar

★★★★☆ 3.7 (590) • $$

"The food was soooo good that I forgot to take a picture! Cheeks, the waitress, was absolutely amazing! She knew her food and recommended the best! We started with the seafood spinach dip sooo good! I ordered the blackened redfish, loaded mash potatoes and Brussels sprouts. My sister had the lamb chops...OMG they were thin and well seasoned with asparagus and potatoes. My other sister ordered wings and truffle fries which were perfectly seasoned and fries were delish. I'm definitely returning the next time I'm in Nola!"

Palmettos on the Bayou

★★★★☆ 4.3 (429) • $$

"I came here as our first stop of road trip. The interior was amazing. Food was good. The service was really nice. They introduced the bayou a little and we got to walk around after dinner. I would love to come back here again."

Liuzza's By The Track

★★★★☆ 4.3 (406) • $$

"The loveliest time at Liuzza's! After a walk through the park, we headed to Liuzza's for lunch. This small neighborhood spot offers great quality NOLA favorites. Our server, Kaysee, was an absolute sweetheart and provided the best service! We ordered the fried green tomatoes and bbq shrimp po'boy. Kaysee brought us out a little of the crawfish etouffee to try because she recommended dipping our fried green tomatoes into it. So good! Everything was tasty and delicious. Definitely a worthwhile place to stop by for both the food and the service."

Mason's Grill

★★★★☆ 3.8 (492) • $$

"Brunch was delicious! We had a French toast and eggs. One of the best French toast I have had as well as the coffee is strong. Owner of the restaurant is present and has great customer service."

Gazebo Cafe

★★★★☆ 4.2 (391) • $$

"Great daiquiris, blended to perfection. Walk up to the window, place your drink order and head out with a delicious daiquiri. I tried the orange creamsicle is was so good, reminded me of a push up pop, loaded! Service was great! There's seating right outside, you can be seated, and enjoy some delicious food from the cafe menu or head out for a stroll and sip in the French Market!"

Clancy's Restaurant

★★★★☆ 4.1 (405) • $$$

"As noted in my previous review this is an Uptown neighborhood institution. It's classic, genteel, sometimes loud, yet a typical upscale NOLA white tablecloth restaurant.We came with several friends and had a table upstairs. There are a series of rooms, and we were at the room with wine storage, vast wine storage.Seated right away we got water and ordered drinks. I got a Sazarac, a favorite infused with Absinthe. OK, I had two. The waiter warned that on the third I would be carried home. I had two.They brought the ubiquitous French bread in small bags. So light with a thin crust.As a group we ordered fried oysters and they were delicious, full of rich flavor in a white sauce.We had small side salads that were incredibly fresh and dressed lightly.I had the Pompano (fish) for my entree and it was perfectly prepared and flakey. It was a large portion. It came with small potatoes that I found to be too salty for my taste.For dessert I tried the bread pudding, absolutely deliciousService was so professional and yet light and friendly, like eating at a friend's house with a person who really knows how to entertain with class.It's difficult to get reservations, but worth the try as it's always packed full.Apologies, but when I'm with a group I refrain from taking many pictures. It's tacky and I think rude to pull out a phone and start clicking, especially with folks you haven't seen for some time"

The French Press

★★★★☆ 3.7 (496) • $$

"Great food and service! Wonderful brunch spot! I'd highly recommend The French Press, especially for brunch. The wait staff is very friendly and helpful at recommending great dishes."

Criollo Restaurant

★★★★☆ 4.2 (383) • $$

"Another delightful lunch at Criollo. Not cheap but not nuts either. And it's so good, so nicely served, with so many genteel little extras, in such pleasant surroundings. OK so what extras--a little coat/umbrella rack delivered to the table as we removed our garments and bags. An ice bucket for my sparkling water. Not with any pretension, just a natural hospitality. The menu has the standard things you'd expect in a hotel; and the "New Orleans" things you'd expect here are done with their own twist and they're really good: gumbo, crab cakes, beignets. On the beignets: theirs are nothing like the lovely fried dough pillows you'll get at Café du Monde; Criollo's are about an inch in diameter and packed with creamy crab and corn. Super rich, but a treat. So the food: all great, or I'd never have bothered writing this. Besides the beignets we shared the shrimp crab avocado stack, a wedge salad and the crab cakes. The crab cakes were probably the best of the lot, but not by much. The blue cheese dressing on the salad was much remarked for its smoothness. Lastly the staff. New Orleans is a tourist town and sometimes staff are out to impress. At Criollo they all just seemed like nice friendly people, with very good manners, who wanted to offer us a lovely meal. Just a pleasure. I don't know anything about the leadership of the Monteleone Hotel, where Criollo is located. But from our experiences at Criollo I think they must be something special."

Ralph's on the Park

★★★★☆ 4 (415) • $$$

"I love Ralph's and I am not sure why it doesn't have a higher rating. Service and decor are both great. The drinks are good - I had the milk punch without the peppermint. Their biscuits are some of the best in NOLA. I got the eggs, bacon grits brekkie with a side of biscuits. My friend had the turtle soup. It is quite good - not too tomato-ey like some places. And then the bbq shrimp and grits which were good. But def get those biscuits. Coffee was unusually good as well."

Kenner Seafood

★★★★☆ 3.8 (459) • $$

"This is one of those times I'm completely perplexed with the 3.8 mediocre Yelp rating because the bustling dining room with locals at 4:30 in the afternoon, friendly service, 2023 Gambit Award, Best of New Orleans say otherwise. Oh the nay sayers! But, thanks to my Yelp buddy, Omar, and his recommendation this is our first NOLA stop!The interior screams NOLA's rich jazz history with yearly, framed and signed Jazz Festival posters adorning the walls. The well worn restaurant and the menu speaks to a the love of Cajun cuisine found here. Kenners is a restaurant and seafood market. The array of displayed blue crab - picked, whole and shucked oysters speak to the love of seafood and the local fishing industry. As typical of hubs when he's excited about trying a unique spot, he orders a little of this and a little of that. We had a sampling of all our favorites! Our thoughts:*The tamales, Delta style, were a must for this tamale lover, were the typical cigar size and great! *The seafood Gumbo was on target with its rich dark roux color, yummy shrimp and served Cajun style with half a blue crab and white rice. *The fried shrimp were delicious, perfectly cooked with a nice crispy texture and butterflied. Oh my, just perfection! Loved the jalapeño hush puppies, too - savory not sweet. *The cup of red beans and rice was warm comfort in a cup, seasoned with sausage. *The fried crab claws were slightly over cooked and were the only disappointment. Thank you Omar for the recommendation! We'll return perhaps sooner than later Cheers!"

Daisy Dukes Cafe

★★★★☆ 3.6 (503) • $$

"As excellent for breakfast as it was last time I was here a few years ago.Crabcake Eggs Benedict with grits, yum."

Cafe Pontalba

★★★☆☆ 3 (675) • $$

"Stopped by here because we were famished and it was the nearest place. So glad we did! Not sure why it doesn't have more stars on yelp. It was very tasty and affordable. Our waitress was funny, nice and attentive. Love the open ceiling to floor windows and ceiling fans going. Very NOLA!"

R & O Restaurant

★★★★☆ 3.7 (422) • $$

"Best only I have had in NOLA.the soft shell crab and their signature poboys were amazing.And their onion straws/rings were amazing too!"

Jubans Restaurant and Bar

★★★★☆ 3.9 (338) • $$$

"Juban's has great food, excellent service and a nice ambiance. We had a group of 12 and a private room for a work dinner. Our server was amazing. He was friendly, listened well, made good suggestions, and provided wonderful service. The food was excellent as well. We had several appetizers, main dishes and desserts. I ordered the Hallelujah Crab. It is a fried soft-shell crab, seafood stuffing, Creolaise, tartar mashed potatoes - served with hands raised. It was really good. I highly recommend Juban's. If we return to the area, we will definitely eat here again."

Cecelia Creole Bistro

★★★★★ 4.6 (240) • $$

"I have picked up dinner twice while working in the area. Both times I ordered the maple bourbon cornbread! And this last time I also ordered the Parisian gnocchi with crawfish it was amazing and didn't want to stop eating it reservations always recommended sign on door...it's true...they were busy!"

Please-U-Restaurant

★★★★☆ 3.9 (332) • $$

"I'll be honest, my medium-rare steak was overcooked and somehow dry, although still pink in the center. My husband's French toast was made with wheat bread, which was unexpected and definitely not the preference. It made the toast fall flat, though he said it was still tasty and made well. Just wished it wasn't wheat. It's typical diner food. Nothing fancy, but solid. Maybe we didn't love-love our dishes that day, but it wasn't all bad. I enjoyed the seafood gumbo and mashed potatoes, and I loved the gravy. We had a wonderful experience overall. Service was excellent from the moment we walked in. Everyone we spoke to was warm and gracious. Our server was wonderful! We loved their homemade salad dressings, so she made a way for us to buy some to take home. We could easily be regulars here!"

Felix's Restaurant & Oyster Bar

★★★☆☆ 3.4 (436) • $$

"We came to this location for the happy hour deals on the oysters and had a really great time! $1 oysters or $1.50 chargrilled oysters. The food here is very delicious, the rooftop area is very nice overlooking the water, and the service is excellent. We tried the bread pudding and it was also very good."