126749 Wed Jul 09 11:41:52 -0700 2003 28 9 New Orleans 0 687697 We're going to be spending a few days in New Orleans and I want to make sure we visit some good restaurants. We have a 16-month old, so I'd like suggestions to restaurants that would welcome kids. We don't need a kid-friendly menu/she usually eats her own food, just somewhere where she won't be a disturbance. Inexpensive/not fancy/not touristy, good cajun food, like crawfish/shrimp etouffee, jambalaya, red beans and rice etc. We're from Minnesota so I need good, spicy cajun food, it's pretty rare up here. Wed Jul 09 11:41:52 -0700 2003 0 Windfall 1 687699 Copeland's if family friendly and has a good range of food and prices. There several locations, I live in Illinois so I don't have access to the phone book but I do know that they have a website. Wed Jul 09 12:19:30 -0700 2003 687697 0 LiketoEatout 1 687703 First of all, New Orleans is more known for Creole food than for Cajun food the epicenter of which lies in Southwest Lousiana (Acadiana). That being said, if you must have Cajun food, I would suggest K-Paul's. If you are interested in Creole food, which is more indigenous to New Orleans, I would suggest reading the board a little ways down to get more ideas. My favorites are very numerous and all have been reviewed within the last month on this board. I would steer very clear of Copeland's which is a chain restaurant and, in my opinion, has atrocious food, decor and service, in that order. It is a tourist trap to boot. Good luck and enjoy your time in New Orleans. Wed Jul 09 15:09:17 -0700 2003 687697 0 Daniella 2 687706 If your heart is set on cajun, go to the Bon Ton. K-Paul's is also good. Mulate's & Michaul's cater to the tourist trade; both offer live music and so-so food (okay, I guess, but not great or shining examples of their particular genre). The Gumbo Shop isn't strictly cajun, but their various gumbos are acceptable, and their menu is varied enough to accomodate a wide variety of palates. Red beans & rice are universally available in New Orleans, and they're not particularly cajun. I admit it--I'm partial to Popeyes beans (damn, they're good--don't want to know what goes into them), but Frankie & Johnny's is another good choice for RB&R. I, too, would stay away from Copelands. Quality & cleanliness have declined quite a bit over the last few years. It's a chain that uses fat (cream, butter, deep-frying) to compensate for the inferior quality of ingredients. Too many other good spots to patronize on a short trip to NOLA! Wed Jul 09 15:50:39 -0700 2003 687703 0 Hungry Celeste 3 687707 Sorry, I should have got my terms right. I guess I meant Creole. I'm looking for good, casual/inexpensive, restaurants that serve creole that aren't specifically geared to children/toddlers but would tolerate their presence. We actually have a Copeland's in Minneapolis, it's good enough to keep me going in Minnesota, but I want a little more in New Orleans. Wed Jul 09 16:12:23 -0700 2003 687706 0 Windfall 3 687709 Interesting that you said that Celest. I wouldn't admit this had you not said it first. I haven't found any red beans and rice that I like more than the local Popeye's. Thanks for going first, Spencer Wed Jul 09 17:37:11 -0700 2003 687706 0 Spencer 4 687712 I'll chime in as another closet fan of Popeye's red beans and rice. The late Chef Jamie Shannon of Commander's Palace firmly believed their secret ingredient was ground-up hot dogs. Wed Jul 09 18:15:06 -0700 2003 687709 0 Doc 5 687714 I never would have thought of hot dogs as the secret...I can't envision Warren LeRuth adding ground hot dogs! Leftover chicken frying grease has crossed my mind, though. Thu Jul 10 08:30:16 -0700 2003 687712 0 Hungry Celeste 6 687718 I've always heard their secret ingredient was lard. Thu Jul 10 09:55:50 -0700 2003 687714 0 NolaFoodie 7 687723 from Recipe Goldmine POPEYE'S RED BEANS AND RICE 3 (16 ounce) cans red beans (2 cans with liquid, 1 can drained ) 1/2 to 3/4 pound smoked ham hock 1 1/4 cup water 1/2 teaspoon onion powder 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt 1/4 teaspoon red pepper 1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon lard 1/4 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper 4 to 5 cup long grain rice, cooked and drained Pour 2 cans of beans with their liquid into a 2-quart saucepan. Add smoked ham hock and water. Simmer over medium heat for 1 hour until the meat starts to loosen from the bone. Remove from heat and cool until the hock is cool enough so the meat may be removed from the bone. Place the meat, beans and liquid in a food processor. To the mixture add onion powder, garlic salt, red pepper, salt, and lard. Process for only 4 seconds. Beans should be chopped and liquid thick. Add the third can of beans that have been drained of their liquid. Process just for a second or two; you want these beans to remain almost whole. Pour bean mixture back into to pan and cook slowly on low heat stirring often until ready to serve. Serve over rice. Thu Jul 10 11:40:44 -0700 2003 687718 0 NolaFoodie 5 687722 What a crock! Come on, dear, why would you want to propagate such a stupid urban legend? The poster below (NolaFoodie) is right on the mark about the use of lard (it's a helluva lot cheaper than hot dogs and the expense and labor to process them). Thu Jul 10 11:08:15 -0700 2003 687712 0 Creole 6 687729 I'm just repeating what Jamie told us he thought. Sorry if it annoys you - perhaps you should look into one of the lower-caffeine brands. Thu Jul 10 20:24:26 -0700 2003 687722 0 Doc 6 687731 By the way, Creole, my previous reply (about the lower-caffeine brands) would include a winking smiley or somesuch nonsense if I were the type of person who used emoticons. Didn't intend it as snottily as it may have read. Thu Jul 10 20:30:21 -0700 2003 687722 0 Doc 7 687735 Hey, no explanation required! I can take it as well as I give it (unlike a lot of posters on these food forums who take offense at just about anything). However, I do have a very low threshold of tolerance for a couple of things, stupidity and repetition of urban legends among them (just imagine how that lack of tolerance for the former affects my life here in New Orleans -- really, really scary, isn't it?). You may find it interesting to note that Tom also occasionally relates that story about being able to replicate the taste of Popeye's red beans using ground up hot dogs -- maybe you two have more in common than you realized. Also, just as in the law where simply repeating some slanderous/libelous statement of another (even with the caveat that it was only what that other person said) makes you liable for defamation, no matter how you preface the retelling of an urban legend, you are still an active participant in the perpetuation of stupid myths. BTW, I drink full octane Union coffee, but I seem to be just as big of an a-hole without it (or so I'm told). Fri Jul 11 10:26:04 -0700 2003 687731 0 Creole 8 687746 Glad to hear the coffee isn't affecting your disposition! I wonder if Jamie knew the hot dog thing was an urban myth. He seemed perfectly serious when he said it, but then again, he also convinced some friends visiting for Jazzfest that it was traditional for first-time visitors to swim across Bayou St. John while their host watched from the bridge. By the way, I've switched to Union coffee myself, and prefer it to Community's New Orleans blend. Fri Jul 11 16:39:19 -0700 2003 687735 0 Doc 3 687713 Hey, I've found your advice in the past to be great. But, you're telling me to go to Popeyes the next time we are in your fair city :-) rlc Wed Jul 09 21:41:04 -0700 2003 687706 0 Rlc 4 687715 I love Popeyes. What do I eat on the parade route at Mardi Gras? Popeyes. What do I eat at a picnic in the park when the symphony plays outdoors? Popeyes. What did I bring to a recent July 4th party as a BBQ alternative? Popeyes. If you want to feel like a true local, saunter into any Popeyes around lunchtime and listen to people talk (a truer form of cultural tourism than taking a cemetery tour). I also appreciate the sideshow entertainment provided by Al Copeland, founder of Popeyes (no longer owner). His antics are always good for a laugh. BTW, I haven't eaten at Chicken Box yet. How does it compare to Popeyes, or say, McKenzies (which is a completely different kind of fast-food chicken, but that's a discussion for a new thread)? Thu Jul 10 08:39:09 -0700 2003 687713 0 Hungry Celeste 5 687719 Well that answers a question that I came away with after visiting New Orleans last May, which is where do people *really* eat? People on vacation usually want to go somewhere special, but that's not what they do at home every day. In New York we might tell visitors to go to the trattoria or brasserie of the moment, but what we really eat most of the time is food from street carts, pizza and falafel. Walking and driving around New Orleans I didn't see anything like that and found myself wondering about it. Especially when as a tourist you're dependent on restaurants and take-out and after a few days you're thinking, where do people here eat for cheap? So next time I'll know...go to Popeyes! Note on Mulates: I went there for the dancing not expecting much of the food and indeed it's soundly mediocre. There are some very good, mostly older dancers who go there though, including a couple deep in their 80's. I hope I'm still waltzing at that age! Thu Jul 10 10:48:11 -0700 2003 687715 0 lintsao 6 687725 Locals do eat at Popeyes, but neighborhood poboy shops are also a mainstay. One difference from NYC--most folks here have decent-sized kitchens (even in student apts) and home cooking is still a favorite pasttime for many. IMHO, most of the restaurants that get play on this board are indeed patronized by locals (if you're referring to cheaper eats, see the recent thread). Still, if you look around NO, you'll see that the same national chains populate our city streets--we have our fair share of Applebees, Dennys, Shoneys, Bennagins, Outbacks, Arbys, Waffle Houses, etc. Clearly somebody's keeping these joints in business. Thu Jul 10 12:03:49 -0700 2003 687719 0 Hungry Celeste 7 687727 I think it's the suburbanites and out of towner non chowhound types who are here on "bidnuss". My company has a large home office operation in Minneapolis and when those people come visit, they all want to know where the Appleby's, the Olive Garden and the Shoney's are near their hotels. No matter what suggestion I try to make, they turn their nose up at it. They will only eat what they know. I sould sooner slit my wrists than eat at one of those awful places! Egads!!! Thu Jul 10 16:22:09 -0700 2003 687725 0 Daniella 8 687728 OOPS... put in my work e-mail address instead of my home e-mail address on my previous post. Please, please, please don't send e-mail there. It is monitored and I'm pretending to work right now. Send any e-mail to the Yahoo. Thanks!!! Thu Jul 10 16:24:42 -0700 2003 687727 0 Daniella 8 687733 I'm sorry to say that most of my office coworkers tell me that they patronize the Applebee's, Canon's, Shoney's, etc. regularly -- these are people who have lived here all their lives. One such woman drives to Slidell specifically to eat at the Cracker Barrell! So it's not just suburbanites and non-adventurous visitors who keep those places in business. Fri Jul 11 09:53:09 -0700 2003 687727 0 Sarah C 5 687720 Chicken Box is good, and REALLY cheap. It's a little greasier chicken than you get at Popeye's, but it really is more like homemade. Very tasty. I haven't had McKenzie's chicken. Thu Jul 10 11:00:46 -0700 2003 687715 0 Catherine 6 687724 Is the McKenzies chicken shop still open? I haven't eaten it in a while; I seem to recall that it was pressure-fried with a light, kinda moist crust. Thu Jul 10 11:54:44 -0700 2003 687720 0 Hungry Celeste 5 687721 Actually, I have eaten at Popeyes when traveling through other areas in Louisiana. I enjoyed it. The only problem I had was in the amount of variance in spice between different locations in the same city (Layfayette). I guess I would avoid Popeyes in New Orleans, as we can get good spiced chicken in Nashville. But a good oyster po boy outside of Louisiana--no way. I tried one at a Copelands in Cincinnati, and it just was not "there". Wrong kind of bread. Thu Jul 10 11:05:53 -0700 2003 687715 0 rlc 5 687732 I like Chicken Box, although the chicken is not particularly spicy. But it's good, hot, moist, and has a nice crusty skin. (My cats love it too.) The one near us now offers some sides like greens and dirty rice, but these are kept in the cooler and sold in cartons, so you either have to take them home and reheat them, or avail yourself of the microwave on the premises. The food is so cheap it's practically free. We have noticed that Popeye's has been offering some low priced specials, no doubt to counter the competition. Fri Jul 11 09:42:30 -0700 2003 687715 0 Sarah C 5 687855 >>BTW, I haven't eaten at Chicken Box yet. It's horrid. Don't bother. The pieces are small, their definition of "white and dark" meat is different than mine, sides are atrocious......and didn't the previous poster give enough of a clue? "My cats like it?" In quantity, he's selling chicken for as low as 29 cents per piece. He sez he can do it because he buys "in volume." Right, like his 8 stores buy more chicken than Popeye's or KFC? Me thinks not. Yechhhhhhh. Fri Jul 18 00:16:15 -0700 2003 687715 0 cajun-gwailo 2 687854 >>>>I would steer very clear of Copeland's which is a chain restaurant and, in my opinion, has atrocious food, decor and service, in that order. It is a tourist trap as is the Court of....and Brennans. Yech! Fri Jul 18 00:12:48 -0700 2003 687703 0 cajun-gwailo 1 687717 Go to http://foodfest.neworleans.com/rest.php. This is a New Orleans restaurant listing that can be searched by neighborhood, price, food type, and meal/time of day. Also includes reviews and ratings by a local food critic. If you just want advice though, I think you'll love the following: New Orleans Food & Spirits, Court of Two Sisters (brunch buffet or dinner), Old Coffee Pot, Dragos, Gumbo Shop, Acme Oyster House (the one in the FQ). Thu Jul 10 09:32:35 -0700 2003 687697 0 Septane