With the best name ever attached to a New Orleans restaurant, the Gumbo Shop sounds, looks, and is a great place to eat the Creole classics. Not only do they cook very well here, but prices are much lower than you'd expect for a place in such a prime tourist location.
The Gumbo Shop was opened in the 1920s by the Porpora family, reflecting the dominance of Italians in the French Quarter in those years. The Roberts family bought it in the 1960 and operated it steadily until selling it in late 2008 to Hicham Khodr, the owner of the Camellia Grill and a few other restaurants. Khodr says that he plans to open up other locations of the Gumbo Shop around town.
The restaurant isn't as old as it looks, but the building is. One of the first new buildings after the big 1794 fire, it's one of the oldest structures in the French Quarter. Yellowed paintings made in the 1920s on the burlap covers of cotton bales cover the walls of the dining room. Further seating is available in the carriageway and small courtyard.
This is not a restaurant to go to when the city is loaded with visitors, because they all want to come here. The middle of the afternoon is less frantic; they stay open straight through. The annual Reveillon dinner is a legendary bargain.
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