Mother's Restaurant

"MOTHER!" - Glenn Danzig

New Orleans has a wealth of places to find a nice po boy. My first stop on the NOLA tour was Mother's Restaurant, and I will admit both joy and disappointment.

As a disciple of Adam Richman, I had to go to Mother's. Following his path can be a joy and a burden. The main sandwich highlighted during Man v. Food was the Ferdi: root beer glazed ham and debris (tiny shred of beef) with all the fixings. This sandwich looked amazing on television, but deep down inside I knew I wouldn't freak out about this po boy.

My companions both chose different sandwiches. Our NOLA friend got a po boy of just debris, and the misses got the fried shrimp po boy. As soon as the sandwiches arrived, I was immediately pulling shrimp from her po boy. We ultimately decided to share our sandwiches three ways.

The debris itself was pretty delicious, but it felt like something that I could have easily done on my own. However, perhaps that's the point of Mother's. The shrimp was soooooo great! I could have ate three of those by myself.

And now the Ferdi. I thought the Ferdi was okay. Separately, each component would work as its own sandwich, but the parts together didn't ring my bell. The debris has a nice flavor, but it really overshadowed the ham, which is supposed to be famous. I would have like to try the ham by itself.

As for the prices, Mother's takes advantage of its notoriety. The Ferdi was $11.75, and he shrimp po boy was $14.00. I can justify a pricey bit of seafood, but twelve dollars for some beef and ham, that's a little outrageous. Being located in the Central Business District doesn't help, too. I spent forty dollars on three sandwiches, no drinks or sides. That was the biggest disappointment.

I learned my lesson, NOLA. More about my journeys later . . .

Service! When you have someone from the staff flag you down for giving you the wrong order you have to give props.

These people are serious about food! We are dairy and soy free. This crew knew what they cooked with but when I talked with the cook he made sure my food was straight. I had a great drink during my wait. Then a staffer chased me down noting I had picked up the wrong order. Slip ups happen all the time. But clean ups are rare.

Thanks!

Mother's in New Orleans doesn't quite live up to its reputation. The po' boys, a supposed highlight, are disappointing with French bread that's soggy as hell, making the overall experience pretty mid. While the flavors are decent, the poor execution leaves a lot to be desired.

In contrast, NOLA Poboys hits the mark. Their po' boys come with perfectly crispy bread and flavorful, well-seasoned fillings. The difference in quality is clear. If you're looking for an authentic, satisfying po' boy experience, skip Mother's and make your way to NOLA Poboys instead. It's a game-changer.

Let me say this! There was NO WAY I could be in Downtown New Orleans without trying Mother's Restaurant. No matter what search engine utilized, anytime I searched for food, Mother's Restaurant came up. Based on the reviews on Yelp and the images, I decided I had to try it.

Here we go.

We had an extended lunch break so my colleagues and I walked over. Once we got there the line was down the sidewalk, I was immediately like "heck no," however, my homegirl said that the reviews stated that the line moves quickly. Oh boy... However, to my surprise, I must admit, the line moves super fast. I will guesstimate it took us about 13 minutes to get to the front and boom, we were inside.

Once inside, the door person provides you with a menu and you get in line. As you are in line, you have the pleasure of seeing all the food that is setup on the food line and OhMyGoshhhhhhhhhhh. Why would they do this to me???? I promise you, my eyes wanted one of EVERYTHING. Everything looks amazing. As you progress through the line, you get to the cashier and that's where you place your order. Upon placing your order, you get your receipt, pick up your drink (drink sold separately, it is not part of the plate) and head to your seat. Once at your seat, one of the staffers comes around to get your receipt as they may retrieve your order. Once your order is picked up, they drop it off to you along with your receipt... Sidenote, I love this concept. It's smooth and efficient.

Once my food was in front of me, I swear I felt my eyes smile. Everything on my plate looked AMAZING!!!! Now... Let's talk about the taste!!!

Order:
¼ Chicken Plate - Dark
Fried Thigh
Fried Drumstick
(2) Sides
Cabbage
Red Beans & Rice

Babeeeeeeeeeee... You can keep it all. Oh my gosh! I am so upset and feel like I've been bamboozled. Now, don't get me wrong! Nothing was Nasty. However, Nothing was mind blowing either. Ugh!!!

The cabbage was bland and had no seasoning. Based on the chunks of ham, I assume the idea was for the ham to add flavor to the cabbage... Welp, it didn't. Rating: 4/10

The Red Beans and Rice tasted like the microwaveable packs. Though I know it wasn't, the flavor profile was so simple that it was too simple. The dish tasted like Red Beans and Rice... No added spices. No kick. No flair. Just Bland. Tuh!!!!! Can you say it over it??? After 2 bites, I left the bowl there. It was a no for me. Rating: 2/10

The Chicken:
The chicken was super crunchy just how I like it. The meat was moist. The seasoning was present but not over seasoned. The chicken arrived fresh and piping hot... Of my 3 items, the chicken would def steal the show.

Though I didn't have the great experience I hoped for, I enjoyed the chance to experience Mother's Restaurant.

**P. S. They don't have Sweet Tea.. I should have known then.

This was recommended to me by the front desk clerk where I was staying. It was breakfast but I just felt like trying the fried chicken. Note - everything is made from scratch and if you order the fried chicken it's a 30-minute wait. The time flew by and it was worth it.

The potato salad complimented the fried chicken just right and I ended up packing up half the plate to take with me. Added bonus, the parking lot next to the restaurant doesn't charge if you show them your receipt and are out of there within 90 minutes.

During our family vacation we dined at Mother's restaurant and I must say, the food was absolutely delicious! Their country style eats are a must-try for anyone looking for a hearty and satisfying meal. I had a sausage egg and cheese biscuit. The biscuit was so soft on the inside but crispy on the outside I wanted more.
The atmosphere at Mother's is casual and inviting, perfect for a laid-back meal with friends or family. The service was friendly and attentive, making our dining experience even enjoyable.
I would visit again to try more of their dishes.

Don't come here expecting a fine dining experience. It was delish for what it is, a solid local spot with lots of history and tasty food.

The whole place is decked out with NOLA gear and authentic autographs and pics from throughout the years.

Staff was aloof but we came in just before closing so I give them a break.

If you want a great sandwich, stop on by.

At lunch there was a line initially to get inside the restaurant but it moved quickly. We ordered at the counter before finding a table where they brought the food. I ordered the red beans and rice which had the perfect proportion of beans to rice. In the side portion there was a nice size serving of meat. I also had a cup of Jerry's jambalaya it had a nice flavor combination combining chicken and sausage. The Gulf Shrimp Po' Boy had great flavor. The proportion of shrimp, to toppings, to bread was ideal.

We love this place!! Every time we visit New Orleans, we make it a point to stop and eat.
Friendly staff, don't let the initial store front fool you, there are two additional larger sections to it.
Did my best to capture our family of 16 and their orders for brunch.

Get the fried chicken 10/10. Best we ever had!

I cannot believe this place is rated so low. This place is a local institution. I've been hearing about this place for as long as I've been watching food television, which is a long time now. I came here for my first time over the Christmas season, and it was my breakfast, so I was actually first in line as it opened. I got inside and was instantly dazzled by the rustic décor covering every inch of the walls.

As we were trying to look at the menu and pick out what we wanted, I was also looking around at all the pictures of all the famous people that had ever been there. There are a Lot of those. Anyway, we picked our food items out and went to the front counter to order. Not the friendliest folks, but they were nice enough.

I ordered a Crawfish Étouffée Omelet with a side of Grits. This was great. A nicely cooked omelet smothered in etouffee. The was very well seasoned, as I would hope in NOLA. And the grits were typical build-your-own, meaning they were completely bland and ready for your salt or sugar or salt or pepper. Couldn't ask for anything else. So good.

I also got my hands on a Debris Biscuit (I added a slice of cheese). Good, old fashioned biscuit that got progressively soggier over time by sopping up the juice from the debris. Very unctuous, and well tied together by the cheese. Just a lovely little sandwich.

We also grabbed a Bran Pecan Muffin. It was good. Not dry. Needed more pecans, though. You can never have enough pecans.

Enough ramblings. Basically, this place was great. It's never gonna be Michelin recommended or anything, but the location, the history, the swagger, and the simple, delicious food was good and memorable and I will probably come back the next time I'm in town.

Pros:
This place is just dripping with history. Almost every famous person ever had a picture on the wall here. And the culture was set with tons of Saints stuff. Loved it.
The menu was very traditional NOLA. Simple, easy, and it was all so delicious. Tastes like someone's mother made it for us.

Cons:
None, really. The staff was a little grumpy, but I would, too, if I had to work that early in the morning.

Tips:
Get the etouffée omelet! It paired really well with the smooth grits.