New Orleans is famous for so many reasons but none more so than the awesome cajun and creole cuisine that is available throughout the city. Be careful though because not all restaurants offer the same quality so it’s crucial that you do your research prior to visiting the Crescent City. We decided to pay a visit to a world famous restaurant, but is the Mothers New Orleans menu really that awesome? Let’s find out!
During our recent weekend trip to New Orleans we participated in what turned out to be an awesome, private walking tour of the French Quarter. As we spoke with our tour guide Tony, we talked about the topic of creole/cajun cuisine and his favorite restaurant recommendations.
There is the high-class and low-class restaurants and no middle ground
Tony pretty much summed up how he feels about New Orleans right now and he then asked us where we were heading for dinner after the tour. We told him Mother’s and immediately he responded that we made a great choice and this was definitely one of the better restaurants in town. But of course we had to see this for ourselves rather than just taking someone’s word for it…
Location and Hours
Mother’s Restaurant is located at 401 Poydras Street at the intersection with Tchoupitoulas Street. It is a short walk from the heart of the French Quarter across Canal Street and is open seven days a week from 7:00AM to 10:00PM. Reservations are unfortunatley not available so please be prepared to wait outside for a while before being seated.
Mother’s is divided into two main sections with the main dining area combined with a large banquet hall and dining room known as ‘Mother’s Next Door’. After speaking with the manager it is clearly two different environments yet both offer awesome experiences.
Whether you want to enjoy an evening dinner with a relaxing ambience or perhaps you are looking for a space for a private party with a little more elegance, Mother’s has plenty of space to accommodate your needs.
The stereotypical waiting line outside Mother’s makes this a restaurant that is surely worth the wait…let’s find out what the food is like!
Cajun Dining Experience
Dating back to 1938 when the restaurant first opened its doors on what is recognized as ‘Restaurant Row’, Mother’s Restaurant is most famous for their ‘Ferdi'(ham) po’boys but of course there is so much more amazing cuisine to sample here.
So go ahead, join ranks with the not-so-few, but intensely proud – the Mother’s crowd.
After being seated we were presented with our menus and immediately faced a difficult decision. With such a wide variety to choose from, where do you even begin? We asked our waiter for a recommendation and he suggested the famous Ferdi po’boy so Heather opted for the Turkey Ferdi with ham (alternatively you could have roast beef).
I continued the fine New Orleans style tradition with Jerry’s Jambalaya that was served with red beans and rice and potato salad.
You may be wondering why the world famous po’boys are such, well Heather opting for the ‘Ferdi’ certainly has some history behind it. A local merchant by the name of, yes you guessed it, Mr. Ferdi asked for some ham to be added to his roast beef po’boy and it was immediately a hit! Hence there you have the origin of the ‘Ferdi po’boy’.
Another ingredient on this po’boy which is popular on many others is the famous debris which is basically bits of roast beef and au jus gravy that are left on the side of a freshly carved roast beef joint.
Heather is unfortunately not a huge fan of roast beef but kudos to her for trying this! After removing the debris (it was a nice added ingredient to my jambalaya I may add!) she enjoyed the rest of the po’boy but a word of caution that one of these is still A LOT of food especially with the French bread that is delicious but satisfies your appetite pretty quickly.
I have tried jambalaya from a number of different restaurants around USA, but I would go as far to say that Mother’s was the best that I have experienced so far. With a little tabasco sauce added to really spice it up, this jambalaya was incredible and that is from someone that really does not like rice.
Jerry’s Jambalaya is considered to be a Creole-Italian recipe given that it includes tomatoes and Italian herbs. Regardless of how you want to define this particular recipe, I can highly recommend this especially if you like your dish a little spicier.
Customer Service
Customer service at Mother’s Restaurant was in one word…AWESOME!! That’s pretty much the best way to summarize our time at Mother’s. We want to give a special thanks to our waiter who made our dinner an extremely enjoyable experience.
Our drinks were frequently refilled, our food order was taken quickly and the delivery of our food was quicker than any fast-food restaurant. Sometimes you may be concerned that the quality of the food is lost when it is delivered so quickly, but I can assure you that both of our dishes were fresh and clearly prepared to the highest quality.
Our table was positioned in the back corner near the kitchen so we were able to see some of the fine roasts being prepared and carefully manicured before being cut and readied to be served. Hands down this was one of the best customer service experiences we have encountered so kudos to Mother’s for having such a great team of employees.
Summary
If you are looking for a typical New Orleans dining experience, be sure to visit Mother’s Restaurant because you will be treated to amazing cuisine combined with excellent customer service that will certainly make the wait worthwhile. In answer to the question of this title, is the Mothers New Orleans menu really world famous…of course I can’t speak for everyone but I would concur that the cuisine is worthy of world-class recognition.
Mother’s has received a number of Zagat awards for their cuisine and this is definitely well deserved. Dining in New Orleans is one of the most enjoyable experiences not only if you love seafood, but also because there is such a myriad of choices available. Reading reviews and following advice is great but at the end of the day you have to experience the restaurants for yourselves.
We are delighted to be giving Mother’s a positive review and hopefully this will encourage you to check them out the next time you head to NOLA!
Disclaimer – We would like to thank the New Orleans CVB for hosting us on this trip, and Mother’s Restaurant for their gracious welcome and service throughout the evening. These are solely our personal opinions/experiences and we were not financially compensated for this post.
