Fire on the Bayou in Orange City, FL

In honor of Fat Tuesday, today we visit a cajun restaurant in Orange City called Fire on the Bayou. I found this restaurant when they showed up on the top of the listings for Orange City restaurants on my phone. It was new to me.

They had all the standards you would expect, ranging from poboys, seafood boils, gumbos, and more. I ordered the Taste of Nawlins, served with Jambalaya, gumbo, red beans and rice, and andouille sausage. The portion size of this dish was huge, with just one of the bowls being enough for a meal. The jambalaya contained chicken and sausage and had a good kick to it. It was much more stew-like compared to many other versions of the dish, but I enjoyed it. Of the three, the jambalaya was my favorite. Gumbo was my second favorite, topped with three large shrimp. The red beans and rices were good, but seemed pretty ordinary compared to the gumbo and jambalaya. The andouille sausage topped the red beans & rice. Slices of French bread were served on the side, perfect for soaking up the stews...

I enjoyed my meal at Fire on the Bayou. I would gladly return.

Sassagoula Floatworks & Food Factory in Disney's Port Orleans

I ventured over to Disney's Port Orleans hotel for dinner on a recent evening. After wandering around the property looking at the different food options, I ended up at Sassagoula Floatworks & Food Factory in the French Quarter section of the hotel. The restaurant was set up food court style, with several different counters serving various menu options.

I tried the Jambalaya. It was served in a large bowl topped with a square of cornbread. As far as taste goes, the jambalaya was good, but it also sort of lacked something. It consisted of chicken, sausage, and rice, and that was about it. I'm used to seeing a little more in jambalaya too. Usually there's vegetables in there as well. Celery, green peppers, and onions seem pretty standard in the dish, but there was no trace of them here.

Someone else ordered the Shrimp and Grits. Definitely the better option. The large portion consisted of a large serving of grits topped with a freshly made serving of shrimp, various vegetables, and sauce. Sundried tomatoes aren't normally in here, but they were added upon request. It was really tasty and definitely outshined the relatively boring jambalaya.

Beignets were also ordered for dessert. Doughnuts topped with powdered sugar are always good, and these were better than other theme park beignets I've come across which are basically square funnel cakes. These were light and fluffy and had the proper beignet consistency.

Although my jambalaya was a little subpar, everything else I tried at Sassagoula Floatworks was good. I'd go back!

New Orleans Cajun Seafood in Orlando, FL

New Orleans Cajun Seafood is located in Pine Hills, near the intersection of 50 and Kirkman. They are in a small building that appears to have once been another sort of fast food restaurant, perhaps a Captain D's. If this is what once occupied the building, New Orleans Cajun Seafood is a huge improvement!

I had a pound of crawfish on one visit, smothered in cajun garlic butter. Of the crawfish I've had in the Orlando area, New Orleans Cajun Seafood seems to use the most potent flavoring. The crawfish are completely overloaded with garlic and the cajun spices give them a nice spicy kick. I also had a side of corn and potato, also covered in the same seasoning as the crawfish. Using the potato to soak up even more crawfish juice made it even tastier.

I tried the Soft Shell Crab Po-boy on another visit. Served on a baguette, this sandwich was filled with the deep fried soft shell crab, lettuce, tomato, pickles, and sauce. The sandwich was good, although the soft shell crab did seem slightly past season with the shell being a bit too hard in a couple spots. It was still mostly good besides the occasional hard part that I spit out. 

The crawfish at New Orleans Cajun Seafood seem to be the star menu item. I've noticed that's what most other patrons are eating on my visits, and they were superior to the po-boy. They also serve Vietnamese food here as well, such as phos and other soups. Perhaps I'll give these a try on a future visit to New Orleans Cajun Seafood...

Central Grocery in New Orleans, LA

I've never had a good muffuletta in the past. I've tried ordering these sandwiches several times at various restaurants in Florida, but they always end up being disappointing. More specifically, every muffuletta that I remember trying has always been very dry and bland tasting. Central Grocery is a New Orleans restaurant which was recommended I try while in the city. They advertise that they are home to the original muffuletta. I was setting myself up for having a disappointing sandwich, but it turns out the original is indeed the best.

The muffuletta from Central Grocery consisted of a large sesame roll filled with mortadella, salami, mozzarella, ham, provolone, and olive salad. This olive tapenade is what set Central Grocery's muffuletta apart from the others I've tried. In the other muffulettas, whoever makes the sandwiches is always really stingy with the olives. At Central Grocery though, they piled the olives on, adding a whole bunch of flavor to an otherwise boring sandwich. The oil from the olive salad also provided some much needed moisture to the sandwich, preventing the muffuletta from being too dry.

Thanks to Central Grocery, I now know that muffulettas can be much better than I've experienced in the past!

Jacques-Imo's Café in New Orleans, LA

After a day of wandering and riding streetcars around New Orleans with no real destination in mind, it was decided it was dinner time. A random streetcar stop was chosen which appeared to have some nearby restaurants, and we started exploring. A Lebanese or sushi restaurant were the winning choices for the area until Jacques-Imo's was spotted. I had overheard people on the streetcar talking about the restaurant, so we decided to check it out. The sign out front advertises Warm Beer, Lousy Food, and Poor Service. It sounded like a gimmicky way to get people to pay for the experience of a bad restaurant. We were there and overheard people taking about the restaurant, so why not? Turned out that Jacques-Imo's was not any of those things and ended up being my favorite dining experience in New Orleans.

Jacques-Imo's appeared to be a somewhat typical looking bar when entering the restaurant. That's until they take you to their table through their show kitchen to the multi-level dining room in the back. Once seated and we took a look at the menu, Jacques-Imo's was much more of a gourmet fine dining establishment than I was expecting. The meal started with garlic cornbread. I've had cornbread and I've had garlic bread, but I have never had the two combined. It was delicious.

Under the appetizers, there were two items that have been on my food bucketlist for a while. I was debating which one to get, but we ended up trying them both. The first was Boudin Balls. These were stuffed with jalapenos and pepper jack cheese, served with Creole mustard sauce for dipping. I was told before going on my trip that I had to try Boudin Balls. These deep fried balls of mystery sausage meat were somewhat reminiscent of a jalapeno popper, only way better!

The other appetizer which I had to try was the Fried Rabbit Tenderloin. As someone who had a pet rabbit for years, I always wondered what rabbit meat tasted like. Until Jacques-Imo's, the opportunity didn't easily present itself to find this out. The meat had somewhat of a creamy quality which was very nice. I'm not sure of this is a characteristic of rabbit meat itself, or if perhaps the creaminess was infused into the meat from being fried. Either way, I can now say I've eaten rabbit and it was very tasty.

A spinach salad came next. It was topped with a fried oyster, which was unexpected.

I had the Stuffed Catfish for my entree. To blackened filets of catfish were served over a mound of crabmeat stuffing. This was topped with hollandaise sauce and scallions. This dish was bursting with flavor. The seasoning on the catfish was somewhat spicy, countered with the creamy hollandaise. The crab stuffing was also very nice!

The catfish was served with two sides. I chose the Red Beans & Rice and Corn Macque Chow. The red beans and rice was good, but nothing new to me. I had never heard of corn macque chow though. It's apparently a sort of stew made from corn and other vegetables. I enjoyed the dish!

Jacques-Imo's Cafe wasn't on my list of restaurants to check out in New Orleans. My visit to the restaurant was completely random, but I'm glad I ended up there. Jacques-Imo's Cafe turned out to be my favorite food experience while in New Orleans!

LA Boiling Crab in Orlando, FL

I had lunch at LA Boiling Crab in the Mills-50 District of Orlando. Surrounded by Vietnamese and Chinese restaurants, this place specialized in New Orleans style po boy sandwiches, crawfish, crabs, and other types of seafood. 

I ordered the soft shell crab po boy. This sandwich was filled with fried soft shell crab, lettuce, tomato, onion, and mayonnaise. It was served on a French baguette with a nice, crispy crust. The crab was very tender and the batter that it was fried in had plenty of flavor.

I shared an order of beignets for dessert. These four fried fritters were topped with plenty of powdered sugar. They were light and airy on the inside. They may be a type of doughnut, but beignets aren't just any doughnut. Beignets are the official state doughnut of Louisiana! An appropriate end to a meal at a restaurant with LA in the name.

I had fun at LA Boiling Crab. It had been a while since I've eaten Cajun food, so having a po boy and beignets was enjoyable. At some point I want to return here and try some of their crawfish and crabs which smelled delicious as I was eating.

Dixieland Diner

I visited the Orange City Food Truck Bazaar. I tried a truck serving Cajun food that I had never eaten at before called Dixieland Diner.

I ordered the Shrimp & Grits. This bowl of cheese grits was topped with chopped tomatoes and several large shrimp. The shrimp had a nice spicy seasoning and the grits were cheesy. Overall, I found these to be very tasty. The first response from someone I was here with was a look of disbelief and the comment "you paid $9 for that!?" The portion did appear to be on the small side, but I guess the bowl was bigger than it looked because the meal filled me up.

I liked my shrimp & grits. I'd try Dixieland Diner again, although think I'll try something else here the next time I visit for some variety.

Mojo Cajun Bar & Grill in Orlando, FL

When Mojo opened on Church Street in the space once occupied by Rosie O'Gradys, some of the reviews I read about the restaurant mentioned Mojo was more about the drinks than the food. Because of this, I was expecting one of those awkward restaurant situations where I'm one of the very few people eating while everyone else is drunk at the bar.

Maybe something has changed at Mojo since these initial reviews were written. When I visited Mojo, the restaurant was filled with diners and the bars were almost completely empty. Even more, everyone I ate here with was impressed with their Cajun food.

I ordered the Jambalaya with a side salad. The salad came out first, consisting of mixed greens, onions, peppers, mushrooms, and tomatoes. The salad served it's purpose. Nothing great, but not bad either...

My jambalaya was served soon after. This rice dish was filled with lots of chicken and andoullie sausage, then topped with several large shrimp. This jambalaya actually had a nice kick to it, unlike the bland Cajun food I've had at other restaurants. A large piece of delicious cornbread was also served on the plate, with it's sweetness contrasting the spicy rice.

Overall, I was very pleased with the food at Mojo. I enjoyed the food, prices weren't bad given the location, and the dining environment was nicer than I was expecting. I'll definitely be back...

House of Blues in Orlando, FL

A few months ago, I was invited to attend the House of Blues Gospel Brunch in Downtown Disney. That was an awesome food experience, and since then I've attended a few concerts at the House of Blues. I've definitely gone to the House of Blues enough in the past year, but I never actually ate at the House of Blues restaurant on all those visits. Last time I ate at the restaurant was at least three or four years ago, so when I met up with some relatives visiting Disney and found a good deal on restaurants.com, I figured it was about time I return to the HOB...

I ordered the Jambalaya, consisting of rice, chicken, shrimp, and ham, topped with andouille sausage and green onions. I liked it, although I personally thought I could have used a little more spice. Otherwise the portion was large and very filling. House of Blues was kind of overpriced at $18 and it would have been nice if some sort of bread was included, but it is on Disney property. You have to expect it to be overpriced...

While House of Blues isn't my favorite restaurant in Downtown Disney, I personally think it's one of the better ones. I seem to like most anywhere that serves Cajun food, and this is no exception. I would definitely visit again!

Zatarain's House of Blues Gospel Brunch in Orlando, FL

The House of Blues Gospel Brunch takes place every Sunday morning in Downtown Disney. It's something I had never seen in my years of living in Central Florida, but when I was invited to try the new Zatarain's sponsored Jambalaya Bar at the brunch, I figured it was time to give the Gospel Brunch a try!

It was strange seeing the House of Blues filled with large round tables instead of concert goers...

The Zatarain's Jambalaya Station was the first thing that greeted everyone near the entrance of the House of Blues. Here, a chef prepared freshly made jambalaya from whatever ingredients you selected. The Zatarain's sponsored food are offered for a limited time in October and November, so hurry in if you're after the jambalaya.

Several other buffet tables were also set up. There was a salad bar with several different types of salads. The breakfast bar had a nice selection of typical southern breakfast items, including eggs, waffles, biscuits & gravy, grits, meats, and pastries. The lunch bar featured foods like fried catfish, rice & beans, macaroni & cheese, collards, and chicken. Nearby was a carving station providing freshly sliced meats, and the dessert bar can't be forgotten either.



At the far side of the House of Blues, there was also an Omelet station providing custom made omelets.

After checking out the food choices, it was time to eat! I started with with the jambalaya, catfish, and cornbread. In my jambalaya, I choose crawfish, shrimp, andouille sausage, as well as all of the vegetarian toppings. I really enjoyed the jambalaya, especially with good Cajun food being a rare find in Orlando. The cornbread was also really good. It was really moist with great flavor!

I didn't get a chance to try the omelets, but that didn't stop me from snapping a picture of one...

Next came a plate of salad and breakfast items. One of the salads was Caesar and the other was a mixed green salad with crumbled blue cheese. For the breakfast, I tried scrambled eggs, sausage, home fries, cheese grits, and a biscuit. The standouts here were the cheese grits and the biscuit.

A visit to the lunch buffet table came next. I had red beans & rice, collard greens, macaroni & cheese, roasted chicken, and some more of the awesome cornbread. I liked everything here with the exception of the macaroni. It was very dry in my opinion.

Finally, I picked up a plate of bread pudding, key lime pie, apple cobbler, and a brownie for dessert.

After forty-five minutes of eating, the show started. Apostle J.L.Cash came out and did a good show for another forty-five minutes. There were many mentions of Jesus, god, and similar topics. These are not musical themes I normally seek out, but this was expected in a Gospel Brunch. Much of the audience was getting really into the show with lots of dancing and crowd participation, so I suppose the show was a success!

I enjoyed the House of Blues Gospel Brunch. The food was really good and was definitely on par with the nearby breakfast buffets elsewhere on Disney property. Getting the show along with the food was an added bonus!