Tag: cajun

Categories
restauranting

J. Gumbo’s

I love Cajun food! And I feel like I should have been more excited when J. Gumbo’s opened up right downstairs from my office. It took over the Rickshaw Dumplings space. I feel like no one has really gotten excited either. Doesn’t get a whole lot of business. I feel like it’s the way it looks. Something about it doesn’t look right or cool or Cajun-y. I tried it anyway.

It was set up as counter service. The staff was really nice. They have free samples. I tried several of the dishes. They were all decent. I picked the Voodoo Chicken because it was the most flavorful. $8.95 for a good size bowl over rice. The corn bread is good!

Well, free samples, quick and friendly service. Now how does this place get more business? I don’t know. Looks like they have several locations across the country.

J. Gumbo’s – 61 W 23rd St (b/t 6th and 5th Ave) New York, NY 10010

Categories
seafood travel

Hot N Juicy Crawfish (Orlando)

It’s funny. When I did a search of nearby restaurants on Yelp at my parents’ home in Orlando, all the restaurants were in Universal Studios or Disney World. I did see a restaurant in the strip mall close by called Hot N Juicy Crawfish. Dang. I’m there.

Apparently it’s a chain restaurant with restaurants spread all over the country –Las Vegas, California, D.C. and here in Orlando. Man vs Food TV show did a thing there —http://youtu.be/VbeCuujOvX0

We ordered The Drool bucket (1lb of Crawfish, 1lb of Shrimp, dozen slices of Andouille Sausages, 2 corn, 2 potatoes, 1/2lb of Snow Crab Legs and Calamari appetizer $37.99). They ran out of Snow Crab, so they gave us King Crab Legs. We also got the Etouffee ($6.99) and Fried Catfish Basket with Sweet Potato Fries ($11.99)

The waiter says the crawfish is flown in daily. Dang. That’s a lot of work. They were really juicy and flavorful …and kind of spicy. We got the lowest level of spice (Baby Spice) and that was still kind of spicy. It was the right amount of spiciness. But maybe the “Hot n Juicy Special” seasoning we ordered it with added to that heat. Really flavorful head sucking. I even sucked the heads of the shrimps.

The best deal is the all-day Happy Hour Monday through Thursdays $1 bottled beers! That’s any bottle beer, whether it’s Heineken or Blue Moon. Three per person, but still such a good deal.

Man, I wish there was a Hot N Juicy Crawfish in Brooklyn. But only if they can give me fresh crawfish at $10/lb and $1 beers. Dreamboarding it.

Hot N Juicy Crawfish - 7572 W Sand Lake Rd. Orlando, FL 32836

Categories
concert/event restauranting

Great Jones Cafe

I just went to catch my friends Marcellus Hall & the Hostages at the KCRW CMJ party tonight. Also saw Hands and the Duke Spirit. It was nice to have a few beers and bands after a long day in the office.

Then we went to Great Jones Cafe. No Jambalaya today, but the Gumbo was great! And the Jalapeno Cornbread with butter was great!

It was expensive for Cajun. Gumbo was $17.99, but still good. I just gotta remember I’m rich …maybe not in my wallet, but in my soul.

A super bonus was that Mark Ibold from my favorite band ever (Pavement) was bar tending at Great Jones Cafe. Marcellus said he knew him way back in the Matador days and before. I tried to get Marce to get the guy to take a photo with me. It didn’t happen. I was too scared. I did go up to shake his hand. It’s weird. I’m just realizing now that I might have met him a couple times before.

Great Jones Cafe - 54 Great Jones St (btwn Lafayette & Bowery) New York, NY 10012

Categories
burger

Live Bait’s Big BBQ Bait Burger

Jody and I were trying to find a place to watch the Florida/UCLA game and ran into Live Bait. Appropriate choice for Gator fans I suppose. I got the BBQ Bait Burger (andouille sausage, american cheese, onion rings & bbq sauce $12.95). It was monstrous.  The sausage and everything else got lost in itself. But it was still a nice greasy mess. I should have risked my camera by taking photos halfway through.

Live Bait – 14 E 23rd St (btwn Madison Ave & Broadway) New York 10010

Categories
brunch

GOODS Food Truck Brunch

Lakana texted us that she was working brunch over at the GOODS food truck with a SMS photo of Andouille sausage and Biscuit with Peach Jam. Looked good now that I can see SMS photos on my phone. So I grabbed Rusty to watch me eat.

I ordered the SMS photo special. It was good, but a little pricy at $8.25 for the quantity. Lakana also gave me a Biscuit w/Cheese & Honey and some Beignets to try. Those were really good. I liked it more than than the SMS photo special.

Had Rusty get us some lotto tickets and mini vodka bottles from around the corner. That Arnold Palmer I had turned into a John Daly.

GOODS Food Truck – corner of Metropolitan and Lorimer, Williamsburg Brooklyn NY 11211

Categories
bar/drinking

Honeychiles’ Cajun Food

After the Gainesville class photo, a few of us went to Honeychiles’ at the Charleston bar where they used to have free pizza. Now it’s Cajun food. Reggie Watts was dead on when he tweeted, “Quote of the day-“The pizza’s all gone and some punk rock guys opened a cajun restaurant”. Cajun food is popping up everywhere in Williamsburg (Tchoup Shop at d.b.a. and Goods Food truck). Cajun is the new Bedford.

Small Jambalaya ($5), Boiled Peanuts ($3) and Smoked Cheddar ‘N Green Onion Hush Puppies ($3). I was disappointed to see that the Jambalaya was plain white rice topped with the jambalaya stew, rather than it cooked all together. It seemed more like a gumbo over rice than a jambalaya. Either way, it was meaty and fantastic. The boiled peanuts were great. Tasted like there was a bit of coffee grinds added to the boil. The corn bread was also good.

There was a couple next to us going to town with the Scallop (Seafood of the Day) Po’boy and a French Fries & Gravy Po’boy. I’m not sure that French Fry sandwich looked good, but it is definitely up my alley ($5).

All in all good food while watching the out of town bands loading in their huge vans and trailers’ worth of gear. I’ve never seen so much equipment in NY. No ones gonna be able to fit down there to watch them play with all them Marshall stacks.

Honeychiles’ (at the Charleston) – 174 Bedford Ave (btwn N 7th & N 8th St) Brooklyn 11211

Categories
bar/drinking burger

Tchoup Shop – Cajun Food at d.b.a. Bar

I gathered my friends to check out the cajun pop-up restaurant in the back of d.b.a bar last Sunday. A great sounding menu and I’ve been craving for some New Orleans food since we were there a couple months ago.

The gumbo and cajun burger were so good, although a little on the small side. Chunks of everything in the gumbo, including pieces of shelled crab. It was perfectly spiced. I didn’t need to add anything, even though I was hoping to when I saw some of their homemade sauces. The burger was juicy and well-made. Great New Orleans food here. Better than Popeyes.

Tchoup Shop – Sundays 2-8pm @ d.b.a bar – 113 N 7th St (btwn Berry & Wythe) Brooklyn, NY 11211

Categories
fast food travel

Krispy Krunchy Chicken’s Jambalaya

On our way out of New Orleans, we stopped for gas at the Magnolia Discount, where there was a Krispy Krunchy Chicken inside. Jambalaya $1.49 small! It was small, but filled with so much meat. Even though the rice was overcooked, probably because it’s been sitting around waiting for customers, it was still the best Jambalaya I tried in New Orleans. At these low prices, you could really get your fill. Gasoline station Jambalaya, FTW!

Krispy Krunchy Chicken @ Magnolia Discount – 9201 Airline Highway. New Orleans, LA 70118