Cajun.
French Quarter: 416 Chartres. 504-524-7394. Map.
Lunch Thursday-Saturday. Dinner Monday-Saturday. (Closed Monday through September 17, 2010.)
Nice Casual
AE DC DS MC V
Website
WHY IT'S NOTEWORTHY
Chef Paul Prudhomme's restaurant has been a wellspring of creativity and inspiration for Cajun and Creole cooking for almost thirty years. He fired everybody up at a time when there was a lot of firing to be done. Many of the best chefs in New Orleans began their careers at K-Paul's. Many more were affected indirectly by his enthusiasm. The restaurant carries on in that tradition today. Chef Paul has been especially visible and involved since the hurricane. In March they returned the lunch menu that was popular in the early days of the restaurant, three days a week.
WHY IT'S GOOD
New Orleans historically has not had much genuine Cajun food in its restaurants. Although Chef Paul's style of cooking Cajun is all his own, the food here has an unmistakable Cajun soul. The ingredients are the freshest and best, with a strong emphasis on Louisiana product. Although the menu has gathered many permanent fixtures over the restaurant's almost thirty years, it changes daily and always has some surprises. K-Paul's was the first free-standing major restaurant locally to install a full-fledged bakery for its breads and desserts.
BACKSTORY
Chef Paul Prudhomme came to New Orleans from his hometown of Opelousas in the mid-1970s, and almost immediately began attracting attention for his new ideas about Cajun cooking. After a stint as executive chef over all the Brennan Family restaurants, he opened K-Paul's in an old French Quarter joint in 1979. It was an instant phenomenon, and from that day to this it's almost always been a packed house. Although Chef Paul is often in the restaurant, the kitchen is now managed by Chef Paul Miller, who's worked with Prudhomme since before K-Paul's opened.
DINING ROOM
A renovation in 1996 transformed the 1830s French Quarter building into a much more comfortable (yet still casual) restaurant with a decidedly New Orleans environment. Many more tables were created both downstairs and upstairs. Although they still accept walk-ins, you can now get a reservation--not available in the early years.
ESSENTIAL DISHES
The menu changes every day, as it rides the fresh foods market. These are dishes that have a good chance of showing up.
Chicken and andouille gumbo
Turtle soup
Leek and shiitake champagne cream soup
Shrimp and corn maque choux
Fried green tomatoes with shrimp caper dill remoulade
K-Paul’s fried oysters Pernod
Pan-fried rabbit tenderloin with Creole mustard sauce
Crawfish enchilada (in season only)
Cajun jambalaya
Roasted pear, pecan, and blue cheese salad
Bronzed swordfish hot fanny sauce
Crawfish etouffée (in season only)
Blackened Louisiana drum
Duck and shrimp Dulac, with oyster mushrooms and pasta
Blackened stuffed pork chop marchand de vin
Eggplant pirogue with seafood Atchafalaya
Blackened twin beef tenders with debris
Bread pudding with hard sauce
Chocolate hill
Sweet potato pecan pie
Custard marie crème brûlée, with a praline bottom
Thursday through Saturday, K-Paul's has a deli-style lunch upstairs. That menu changes often too, but this is a good sampler:
Chicken and andouille gumbo
Turtle soup
Fried soft shell crab salad
Chef's cobb salad
Fried popcorn shrimp caesar salad
Deep-fried shrimp or oyster poor boy
Marinara meat ball poor boy
Turkey BLT and cheese panini with avocado mayo on focaccia
Sweet and sour chicken
Shepherd's pie with mushroom gravy
Hoppin' john (blackeye peas) and smoked chicken breast
Fried flounder with corny cornbread dressing
FOR BEST RESULTS
Make a reservation, but show up right on time. If you're sensitive to pepper, ask whether the dishes you're interested are very spicy. Chef Paul's style has a way of being very robust.
OPPORTUNITIES FOR IMPROVEMENT
Sides are sometimes of much less interest than the central items on the entrees.
FACTORS OTHER THAN FOOD
Up to three points, positive or negative, for these characteristics. Absence of points denotes average performance in the matter.
- Dining Environment +1
- Consistency +2
- Service +2
- Value
- Attitude +2
- Wine and Bar +1
- Hipness +1
- Local Color +3
SPECIAL ATTRIBUTES
- Live music some nights
- Courtyard or deck dining
- Good view
- Small private room
- Historic
- Unusually large servings
- Reservations recommended
ANECDOTES AND ANALYSIS
Recent years have brought a closer relationship between New Orleans diners and K-Paul's Louisiana Kitchen. My correspondence clearly indicates that locals are dining there more often. Chef Paul Prudhomme himself has been on the premises more of the time. A jazz band is stationed on the sidewalk in front to entertain passers-by (and those in line, when the town is busy). It's been nice.
And the restaurant is returning the favor.
This review was updated with new information on 8/20/2010.
A list of over 350 full, current reviews is here.