New Orleans Iconic Food And Drink

We recently visited New Orleans as part of our road trip around the 'mojo triangle', New Orleans, Memphis, and Nashville - the birthplace of jazz, blues, rock and roll and country music.

New Orleans is known for its food, from simple Po' Boy sandwiches to classic cocktails such as the Pimms Cup and more refined Creole and Cajun cuisine. In simple terms, Creole cuisine is referred to as city food whilst Cajun is more rustic country food.

These are some of the dishes that we tried in New Orleans, and specifically what New Orleans is known for.

Beignet



A beignet is a deep-fried doughnut. Served hot with lots of powdered sugar, they are generally plain with no jam and are well known as the iconic food at Cafe Du Monde and Cafe Beignet in the French Quarter, New Orleans.

Gumbo


Gumbo is a stew that originated in southern Louisiana during the 18th century. It consists of a flavoured stock thickened with a roux, meat such as chicken or andouille sausage, onions, peppers and celery and sometimes seafood. The gumbo above was a simple dish I ate at a cafe, more luxurious dishes are eaten in one of the many restaurants.

Sazerac




A Sazerac is a cocktail invented in New Orleans containing rye whiskey, bitters, and Absinthe. This Sazerac was drunk in the Monteleone hotel, famous for it's rotating carousel bar. Served quite strong you could really taste the whiskey in this cocktail.

Muffuletta



A muffuletta is a popular sandwich made of round flattened bread, similar to focaccia and filled with salami, ham, provolone cheese, and olive salad. Traditionally served cold, although many places will toast it for you, this is a total meal in a sandwich. The one shown above was half a whole muffuletta, so you can see how big they are.

Po' Boy


A Po' Boy is a submarine-type sandwich from Lousiana, served on bread similar to French Bread and consist of roast beef, chicken, ham or fried seafood. A "dressed" Po' boy has lettuce, tomato, pickles, and mayonnaise. It is said this sandwich was invented when the New Orleans streetcar drivers went on strike in 1929 as an inexpensive sandwich of bits of leftover roast beef and gravy.

Shrimp And Grits



Shrimp and grits is a traditional dish from South Carolina, North Carolina, and Georgia. Grits are made by boiling ground maize and is similar to porridge in consistency. A traditional breakfast dish grits are also served well seasoned and accompanied with shrimp as a main course for dinner in some of the finer restaurants. I had this dish in Mr. B's bistro, an excellent New Orleans restaurant known for it's refined Creole food.

Pimms Cup



A Pimms Cup, although invented in London in the 1800s, was brought to New Orleans by a restaurant and bar called the Napoleon House bar in the late 1940s. Consisting of Pimms No 1, lemonade, a lemon-lime soda such as 7 Up, lots of strawberries and topped with ice, it is very refreshing on a warm day garnished with cucumber.

For information on well-priced food when in NOLA check out this post, 10 Cheap Eats In New Orleans by 2foodtrippers and for some more recommendations Where To Eat In New Orleans Now by Lisa from LL World Tour.

These are some of the dishes we ate and drunk in New Orleans. Which would you try?

27 comments

  1. Oh wow food porn at its finest, this all looks so incredible. I'd like to try out the Beignet as this looks like my kinda sweet treat. These are all food dishes that I haven't heard of before of tried so it's nice to see something different, but it does make me hungry. I hope you had a lovely time in New Orleans.

    Kirsty x
    http://cosmeticsbeautyrainbow.blogspot.co.uk/

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  2. Oh My Gosh! I have always wanted to go to New Orleans, ever since I was a young teenager. This food and drink paradise that you have described make me want to go even more than ever!!!

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  3. The Muffuleta looks amazing! I'd heard of Gumbo, but never what is was! Everything looks yummy!! xx

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  4. Looks delicious, I've never been to New Orleans and have never tried Gumbo, heard of it before, would love to try it. Well that and everything else of course ;-)

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  5. Wow absolute food heaven! The Sazerac cocktail looks amazing all that alcohol in it! I think after one of those it would be time for bed.

    Katie x

    www.katiejaneonline.com

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  6. The food in New Orleans is one of the things that draws me there... gumbo, cocktails... yummmmmm! H x

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    1. A lot of the food is proper comfort food, and very tasty.

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  7. Deep fried doughnut? Yes please. Just the thought makes me drool. If I visited New Orleans, a proper key lime pie is top of my to-eat list.

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    1. Aha yes, we had Key Lime Pie in the Key West, it is very similar to lemon meringue pie.

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  8. I want to to visit New Orleans so bad, hopefully when I visit the states some time this year I will get a chance to enjoy this food

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  9. Oh how exciting, what a lovely trip to the New Orleans filled with lots of food. Always good . x

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    1. I have to admit, food is always a big part of my holidays!

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  10. Ooh yum!! I've always wanted to visit New Orleans. That gumbo looks fab! xx

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  11. It all looks so good! You're making me very hungry haha

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  12. Wow, these look amazing! I would love to try the muffuletta and po' boy, they look lovely! :) x

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  13. I'm having serious food envy right now! I never knew New Orleans was famous for its food, but theres so much to check out here x

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    1. Yes it has a lot of really great restaurants like Muriels, and Commanders Palace.

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  14. I love learning about new foods! I want to try that beighnut! X

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  15. That all looks sooo nice, I love that different place have different types of foods. Thats why it is great fun traveling.

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    1. I agree Stephanie, it's part of the fun travelling!

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  16. I have always wanted to try gumbo. That donut looks nice too as does the Pimms! xx

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