Besides music, cuisine is yet another dimension where New Orleans excels in, having carved a niche for itself, mainly thanks to its unique cross-cultural heritage which is duly reflected in its cuisines. Not just the variety of cuisines, but the city is also renowned for the range of its eateries and which can serve food in bone china or paper plates and the dining area can be a roadhouse or look like a castle!

The city’s unique & one-of-a-kind culture is seen in the traditional cuisines and be it a gumbo or a po-boy sandwich, the fare served today is almost identical to what the original inhabitants may have eaten over 200 years ago. Cajun & Creole cuisine is synonymous with New Orleans and caters to all taste-buds.Here are some of the traditional dishes that one must try while in New Orleans.

Gumbo

Gombo: With a rich variety of ingredients and the ways to mix them

There is perhaps no other dish that can claim to be a true representative of New Orleans than gumbo, a thick stew, with French and West African origins, served over rice and made with a roux, that is a mixture of butter and flour, and a wide variety of ingredients such as celery, peppers, okra, onions, chicken, sausages and seafood.

With a rich variety of ingredients and the ways to mix them, there is a healthy, even if fierce, competition between various styles of cooking gumbo.

And it is no surprise that ‘authentic’ gumbos can be relished at numerous restaurants all over New Orleans, be it Mr B’s Bistro, with its ‘Gumbo Ya Ya’ or the Gumbo Shop, famed for its seafood okra gumbo. Both these outlets are located in the French Quarter. Excellent gumbo can also be had at Liuzza’s by the Track, near the Fairgrounds Racetrack, which offers gumbo that comes with chicken, sausage and shrimp, all together!

Po-Boy Sandwiches

A po-boy sandwich is essentially a baguette or French bread filled with lettuce, tomato and pickles, along with roast beef, fried shrimp or even oysters

Another dish that can claim to be born in New Orleans is the po-boy sandwich. Said to have been created for the first time in 1929 during a strike by the city’s streetcar drivers and motormen, “the po-boy sandwich” owes its name to a distortion of ‘poor boys sandwich’. According to legend, during the strike a local restaurater had decided to feed the striking workers free of cost and hence a hearty and inexpensive sandwich was created that was handed out to the striking ‘poor boys’.

A po-boy sandwich is essentially a baguette or French bread filled with lettuce, tomato and pickles, along with roast beef, fried shrimp or even oysters. Then a generous dose of mayonnaise or ketchup and served. Despite its underprivileged origins, so popular is a po-boy sandwich in New Orleans that an entire festival is organised every year in the city and locals test the limits to their creativity and imagination at the Oak Street Po-Boy Festival.

A po-boy sandwich can be best relished with a cold bottle of Barq’s Root Beer or other local brews such as Abita. As the dish is ubiquitous to New Orleans, excellent po-boys are available all over the city, though some local iconic spots include the Parkway Tavern, Domilise’s, Mahony’s or Killer Poboys, with each serving its own variation on the po-boy sandwich and which are equally delicious and filling.

Café du Monde

The iconic Café du Monde, a café that is open 24 hours a day, everyday, except Christmas Day

No culinary experience of New Orleans can be complete without a visit to the iconic Café du Monde, a café that is open 24 hours a day, everyday, except Christmas Day. It dates back to 1862 when a Café du Monde Coffee Stand was established in New Orleans French Market. Even 162 years after it was set up, its menu has remained consistent, with dark roasted coffee and chicory as well as beignets or French donuts and white and chocolate milk. The coffee can be either black or with half milk.

Culinary tours and itineraries are popular amongst all travelling to New Orleans as this allows the travellers to immerse themselves into the heritage and distinctive world of New Orleans! To know more click here.