New Orleans, Louisiana

For the Gamecock Eats premier of the Man on The Street food blog, I could not think of a more fitting place to eat, or to talk about food from, than New Orleans, Louisiana. I also could not think of a more fitting place to share in an adventure with my beautiful girlfriend, Audra Kate, than New Orleans, Louisiana. We turned this into the most epic road trip as we drove across Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and into Louisiana. 

I consider myself blessed to have a profession that allows me the privilege of traveling the US. Unlike many people who look for attractions such as museums, parks, or sporting events when they travel, I immediately begin researching what the area is know for from a culinary standpoint.  To say that I was excited when I received my work assignment to NOLA would be an extreme understatement.  During the weeks leading up to my trip, all I could think about was shrimp, oysters, crawfish, and the opening dish for my culinary journey: fried chicken. Audra Kate and I made lists of restaurants and dishes to experience during our trip. And experience them we did! Please enjoy our trip through The Big Easy.

The litany of food options I wanted to consume in copious amounts all took a back seat to the one place that I have been dying to visit since seeing Anthony Bourdain visit NOLA years ago: Willie Mae’s Scotch House. The little white building on the corner of St. Ann Street looks like an unassuming house, but it is the epicenter for fried chicken in The Big Easy. Willie Mae’s Scotch House has an interesting history, but more importantly, it has the best fried chicken I’ve ever put in mouth. In fact, that fried chicken was so delicious, I tweeted something I never dreamed of saying: it was better than my Mamaw’s fried chicken. And yes, I did ask for forgiveness right afterwards. As a Son of the South, fried chicken is a staple, not only in local restaurants, but also on Sunday afternoons at grandma’s house. And this chicken fits right in on Sunday afternoon dinner gathered around Mamaw’s table after church.

I set my expectations as high as possible for fried chicken that was not prepared in my Mamaw’s kitchen. But I guess my expectations weren’t high enough! This chicken should have a place beside the Mona Lisa in the Louvre because it is a work of art. It was perfectly seasoned, perfectly cooked, and so juicy, too! The presentation was aesthetically pleasing, the crunch was music to my ears, and the texture and taste were nothing short of perfect. Audra Kate and I were both amazed at how good this food was.

Chicken was the main event, but I cannot let the supporting cast go unmentioned. I ordered red beans and rice for my side, which were so good that they could stand on their own two feet. The consistency and seasoning were so perfect, it’s as if each grain of rice and every bean were individually cooked. Audra Kate ordered green beans with onions, and those were also delicious.

The verdict: Willie Mae’s Scotch House is a must when you visit NOLA. Just don’t tell your grandmother.

Next on our list was a very eclectic place called Jacques-Imo’s Café, which was recommended to us by one of Audra Kates’s friends. We were excited to get a taste of the local cuisine. We walked in past the bar to the hostess stand and they seated us right away. However, I was not expecting to walk through the kitchen to get to our table. We both laughed as we peered into the kitchen to get a glimpse of what they were cooking.

We started the meal with two appetizers: fried boudin balls and jambalaya. The jambalaya was good, but left a little to be desired, it needed some seasoning.  But the boudin balls, which were stuffed with ooey-gooey pepper jack cheese, were delicious!

For entrees, I ordered Crawfish Etouffee, and Audra Kate ordered Shrimp Creole. They both were so good. The whole dish was cooked and seasoned perfectly. I would have preferred more rice in my etouffee, though. Or maybe some good bread to help sop up the buttery goodness on the bottom of the plate! To accurately blog about our dishes, I obviously had to sample Audra Kate’s Shrimp Creole. It was very close, but I think I liked her dish better than mine!

The verdict: The atmosphere was very cool, the server was awesome (nice, but she loved to talk!), and the food was awesome! I cannot recommend this place enough.

Another favorite place we tried was a local’s place called Frenier Landing in Laplace. It was no more than five minutes from our hotel, and beside a boat landing on Lake Pontchartrain, hence the name. There is a restaurant and an oyster bar, and we decided to sit in the oyster bar. I knew the second we walked in that I would order the oysters, as the guy at the back bar was shucking them as fast as he possibly could. The place was swarming with locals, so we found a place to sit at the bar. We kept searching the menu for an entree, but neither of us could get past the appetizers and oysters’ sections.  We ordered a dozen oysters on the half shell, half a dozen chargrilled oysters, and a pound of peel and eat shrimp.

Holy freaking cow was this place good. The oysters on the half shell tasted like they just came out of the gulf. They were salty and briny, lots of liquor, and they removed the oysters from the abductor muscle, so they slid right off the shell.  As you can tell from the photo, the peel and eat shrimp appetizer was only missing some sausage to make it a Low Country Boil.  The corn and potatoes were good, but those shrimp. Man, oh man, those shrimp!! They were heavenly. They were cooked to perfection and bursting with flavor! They were also very easy to peel. We did notice that the shrimp still had the heads on them, which we don’t see very often here. I want to say that I saved the best for last, but everything was just so damn good at this one, I can’t pick a favorite. The chargrilled oysters were next level though! They were broiled with garlic, butter, and parmesan cheese. And yes, we did use the bread to sop up the garlic butter at the end. Audra Kate still dreams about those oysters and keeps asking to go back.

I ended up going back to Frenier’s Landing two more times during my trip. I ordered shrimp and oysters both times and they were just as delicious as the first time. It was at this point in my trip that I began to receive hate tweets from my Gamecock Eats brethren. Apparently, other Gamecock fans like oysters too and I overshare food pictures on Twitter. Do you think that stopped me from tweeting about it? Not one bit. Verdict: Please don’t pass up the chance to visit Frenier’s Landing. The views are beautiful, too!

On Saturday, we spent the morning downtown because Audra Kate had to fly home. There were two New Orleans staples that she had to have before she left: Café Du Monde and Willie’s Chicken Shack. Our first stop that rainy morning was Café Du Monde for coffee and beignets. The sweet pastry was hot and crispy and covered in powdered sugar (just like my beard and shirt after I finished the bag). They were the perfect complement to our coffee. Verdict: Always a must when in New Orleans. Just don’t forget the napkins and cash!

After hitting the casino to win the big bucks, and drooling over Tiffany jewelry and Brooks Brother’s suits, we found ourselves at Willie’s Chicken Shack for lunch. Audra Kate raved about how good Willie’s was, but I was skeptical. Let me tell you, those tenders were amazing! They were so tender (pun intended), juicy, and well-seasoned. Even the dipping sauce was so good. And don’t forget the star of the show: the honey butter biscuit. The warm biscuit was so fluffy and drizzled with the perfect amount of honey butter. And yes, we did wash everything down with a 32oz. Hurricane. When in NOLA, right?! Verdict: Delicious, but please don’t order friend chicken from here – this is a tenders place. Visit Willie Mae’s for bone-in fried chicken. 

This trip was one I will not soon forget. The company, the food, and the city of New Orleans with its rich culture were all nothing short of amazing. I am proud to share a glimpse of this food tour with y’all and I am already looking forward to my next blog-worthy field assignment. Here’s hoping for Italy!               

Until next time, Gamecock Eats!

-USCEngineer04