Dooky Chase's Restaurant

This place was the highlight of the trip. Ever since I saw them on high on the Good on Netflix I had to get there. The food was so good. The chicken was tender and moist and so was the bread pudding. I can't say how classy it was, the art on the walls just felt real old world New Orleans and I loved it. The server was so friendly and sweet especially since we got there right when the does open. Which I recommend ! The mint julip was perfect. Yes yes yes to Dookey Chase.

Not pictured i.e. the gumbo that was packed with seafood and had the right amount since. They got the right ones back there cooking it up

Truly a dining experience! Ambience is a step into a well curated art gallery. Art ranging from Charles White to Jonathan Green!
We were fortunate to get in at opening but I highly recommend a reservation as there were no major conventions or conferences in the city!
We were greeted warmly and seated. The entire service team was attentive and on point.
The food lived up to its billing! Gumbo was good and the stuffed shrimp were perfection. The bread pudding was good, I didn't prefer the amount of sauce that accompanied it though.
The highlight was speaking to Stella Chase Reese. The epitome of grace and wisdom. She engaged my son and I as old friends. The art of hospitality! Other staff also made the rounds to check on us as well.
The legacy continues and I wish them the absolute best! We will certainly be back! With a reservation of course!

Well, it is Dooky Chase...what more can I say about the new orleans staple. Beautiful art and photos of famous patrons are on display while you wait to be seated at the busy institution. The dining room is classy l, but with a family feel. The bathrooms are clean and beautiful (I hate dirty bathrooms)

The food! Hubby had the GF fried chicken with rice and beans. He loved it. I had the regular fried chicken (give me that gluten! Lol) with string beans. I really liked both items. Also, try the rum punch. It is a winner. Getting a reservation can be tricky, so book early.

During my many trips to New Orleans..I hadn't made it to Dooky Chase's, but I am glad it finally happened!

Note: you must make reservations!!! Let me say it again...Reservations are mandatory! Although this is the rule, the 'Foodie' Gods smiled upon me & my friend! We were defeated upon arrival and was going to get take out, but we asked if there was seating in the bar area! We were told 'No', but the bar manager was very training new staff and stated we could sit at the bar with the understanding that this was a training exercise! Done and Done...in fact..any mistakes made...please send them our way...we don't mind! Haaahaaa

We ordered cocktails, appetizers and entrees! ALL DELICIOUS! We didn't mind helping out the trainees! Our chicken creole...red beans and rice w/fried chicken was AMAZING!
I am not a big dessert person...but Baybee...that PEACH COBBLER WAS A MOMENT I'LL NEVER FORGET...Whoa!

The staff were caring and super friendly! The history of this establishment is reason enough to visit and learn about how this restaurant provided food to African American Entertainers that passed through New Orleans who couldn't be served at other places!

This history is honored through serving the menu items that made Dooky Chase's famous! The art work throughout the dining room and bathroom is also breath taking!

If you are lucky enough to snag a reservation..enjoy your meal and consider yourself fortunate to be in such a historic restaurant that has Amazing Food & Service!

The restaurant hostess was frazzled when we arrived for lunch around 1:30 PM on a Thursday. They had three large parties booked around 2:00 PM. She said they were booked for the next 2 1/2 hours. The bar was practically empty, but when we tried to sit there, the hostess said they were also booked. About 10 minutes later, while we were weighing our options, our suitcases in tow, and she said she could seat us. We had just arrived from the airport and were hungry. We thanked her profusely. The menu was limited. The majority of the options were shrimp, which I didn't want. I opted for three vegetables: string beans with potatoes, sweet potatoes, and mac & cheese. The string beans were good (5/5). The sweet potatoes were good (5/5). The mac & cheese was different from what I expected (1/5). It was more like cheesy Kraft Mac & Cheese.

A good number of servers/staff were on hand to assist with the party in the dining room, while the other parties were located in private rooms. The service was pretty good, and our waiter was quite cordial. We enjoyed our food and drinks and were in and out quickly.

Many customers entered looking for a warm lunch. Some were seated, others left. A sign on the door would have told patrons that the restaurant was reserved for the afternoon.

If I am correct, Ms. Leah arrived on-site to assist.

*****MAKE A RESERVATION! ***** and make sure y'all follow dress code. I'd say it's basically, don't wear anything you wouldn't wear to church or a family gathering. Check their website for exact dress code.

Got recommended this spot for two things: fried chicken and peach cobbler.

Here's the thing, I've never seen my partner clean up fried chicken the way he did and we've had our fair share of fried chicken back home in Los Angeles, CA. The skin was crispy and so flavorful - even the chicken breast which tends to be the driest piece was juicy and so well seasoned. 10/10 we may have ruined fried chicken for ourselves, is what i'm trying to say because it was THAT good.

The peach cobbler looked like a mess, maybe because we ordered take out? But for whatever it's worth, it still tasted good.

The lavender lemonade vodka cocktail we got while we waited for our order was so refreshing and well crafted. This cocktail definitely sparked the need for us to find ourselves a bottle of lavender syrup as soon as we got home to make our own.

BUT - the service and customer care experience just left such a bad taste in my mouth that it's hard for me to give this place 5 stars. To be fair, we did NOT make a reservation which was our oversight.

We thought maybe we could see if they'd take walk ins or if anything we'd just order take out and eat at a park we found near by in google maps.

As soon as we walked in, the host asked if we had a reservation and as soon as they found out we didn't, it was like we didn't exist. I asked if we could order take out and they directed us to the bar area on the other side of the building.

We walked over to the bar area and I've never had a bartender make less eye contact or small talk.

The lady who took my order at the end of the bar was... not very friendly. She couldn't really hear me and seemed somewhat rude to be honest. I asked if we could eat at the bar area since no one was there and she said I'd have to ask the host. At that point I was already so over being there that I didn't want to interact with anyone else if I didn't have to.

It took 20-30 mins for us to get our food and we went to a park just a short walk away.

Would I come back? Sure, I'd give this place another visit with a reservation made to see if my experience is any different but g'damn this place and their employees seem so much more pretentious than it needs to be. It also shouldn't matter if I'm ordering take out or dining in to be treated with better service.

Just do yourself a favor and make a reservation so you can possibly avoid being treated less than.

I wanted to love this place so bad!

I heard so many great things about the restaurant and absolutely loved the history behind it. However, the food did not meet the mark.

We had visited the day prior & there was an hour wait & the hostess advised us to make a reservation for the next day.

The aesthetic of the restaurant is very charming & the art was absolutely beautiful! I will note that there is also a dress code.

The staff was friendly. However, the hostess informed us as we walked in that we weren't allowed to have our water bottles visible .

I ordered the Stuffed Shrimp with a side of Macaroni & Cheese & Fries. The Stuffed Shrimp & Macaroni were so disappointing in taste, but also lukewarm warm. The stuffed shrimp tasted like it had come straight from the freezer for some odd reason & had an off putting taste . The Macaroni tasted like something you would find in a school
Cafeteria. My partner ordered the Fried Chicken with Jambalaya & Sweet potatoes. I really enjoyed the fried chicken & sweet potatoes but he was not a fan.

Something that really threw us off though is that they charged us 50 cents for bringing our water bottle in . We're visiting New Orleans and traveling the city by Uber & it was especially hot this trip so we always brought water with us. So we were surprised that we were penalized for this even though we both ordered cocktails and did not take one sip of the water we brought.

Food was phenomenal. IMO, the best fried chicken I've ever had. Thin, crispy batter and skin, well seasoned and juicy meat. Cooked to perfection! I don't like when my fried chicken is a ton of batter and grease, and this was definitely not that!

Gumbo was delicious and homey. I just wish there was a tiny bit more rice and maybe a couple more shrimps. But as a starter, this was the perfect portion!
Collard greens, were some of the best I've had!
Red and beans and rice were nice. It's tough to beat my Mama's, but this was a good and different style.
Sadly, the peach cobbler and banana bread were not my favorite. Just personal preference.
I found them drowning in sauce, which is nice for some but just not me.

Service was wonderful. Michael and Chase were very attentive, helpful, and friendly!

Overall, AMAZING historical gem with some of the best fried chicken I've had. I wished I had a bigger stomach so that I could eat more!!!

I was so excited to try this place as it's a New Orleans staple... been here since 1941, though I must admit that the name didn't excite me at all!

The ambiance is light, open, with an old school formal look...
Table cloths and bold red walls. The Zulu King on one side and the queen on the other.

They were busy, so I figured that's a good sign. Started with garlic bread, which was good! The gumbo also had great flavor, but didn't have not 1 shrimp in it, not cool! Again, it was tasty so, there's that. Honestly, I really had my mouth fixed for char-broiled oysters, which we could not order since it was lunch time-- that was disappointing! Anyway, I had the shrimp Clemenceaux and that was packed with shrimp pretty decent flavor.... Note, it does heat up very well.

The service was disappointing, our waiter did not return to our table for refills or to check in... even after I had to flag him down and tell him that my seafood gumbo was missing the seafood- note the video, this was right as I received my bowl he said he would handle it, but NOTHING! However, he kept checking on a table of two, which was strange! I know this is a staple and I can now say I've been there, but Can't say I would go back and I don't recommend.

The Mrs. and I had lunch yesterday at the venerable Dooky Chase's Restaurant.

We arrived about 12:30 and didn't have a reservation. The hostess said it would be about an hour so we decided to wait in the bar.

The bar is very small and was packed. The bartender seemed a bit overwhelmed so it took a while to get our drinks. As our drinks arrived the hostess let us know that our table was ready. I think we waited 20 minutes at the most.

We were seated at a table in the main dining room. From what I can tell, the restaurant is made up of three dining rooms. All with a different color scheme. The wall decor is made up of paintings from various artists in different styles. I found the space to be comfortable.

We looked over the menu while we enjoyed our drinks. It took a while for our server, Ricky, to show up but we didn't mind. The one thing I learned in New Orleans is that nothing moves quickly and you just have to embrace NOLA time.

We started our meal off by sharing a bowl of the Creole Gumbo. We had some on a food tour the day before and were really disappointed. Dooky Chase's more than made up for it. It was seasoned perfectly and was what I was expecting to find in New Orleans. Not some hotel kitchen abomination.

The Mrs. ordered the fried chicken. Three succulent pieces of beautifully crisp dark meat(you can choose dark, white, or mixed) perfectly seasoned with some of the Creole heat. For a side dish, she ordered the onion rings which were light, crispy and just so good.

I was torn between the red beans and rice or the Shrimp Clemenceau. Ricky talked me into the shrimp which were sautéed in garlic sauce, peas, mushrooms and brabant potatoes. The flavor was incredible. I wasn't sure about the peas and potatoes together but they balanced really well together in the dish.

For dessert we ordered the Peach Cobbler. I'm not really a cobbler kind of guy but it was really good. Very rich and buttery.

Our meal at Dooky Chase's was one of the best we've had on our NOLA getaway. I wish we had places like it in Los Angeles.

One thing I will say is that you need to be patient when it comes to service. I noticed a lot of tables would wait a while to have their order taken. Some diners appeared more frustrated than others. There were times where it seemed a bit chaotic being that some wait staff weren't sure if a table was assigned to them.