New Orleans: Coop’s Place

Coop’s Place
1109 Decatur Street
New Orleans, LA

When we were looking for places to eat in New Orleans we were warned against the French Quarter restaurants for being generally high-priced and too tourist-centric. However, there were a few diamonds in the rough, including Coop’s Place. For Southern cooking in the vicinity of the French quarter this is one of your best options. Coop’s, with less than a dozen rickety table and a retro bar, probably qualifies as a hole in the wall. Coop’s also has a pretty strict seating policy – no reservations allowed – you just tell the hostess your party size. The host then continuously scans the line (which often snakes around the block) and when one of the tables in the tiny place opens up with your group size– you’re in (even if that 2-top that just got a table arrived a half hour later than your 4-top)!

The menu at Coop’s is pretty extensive and has touches of both Cajun and Creole cooking. A posted menu board also lists some daily specials including Shrimp Etouffee and Alligator. M couldn’t decide among the options – so he was really pleased that there was a sample platter featuring some Southern Favorites ($12.95) – Jambalaya, Gumbo, Red Beans & Rice, and some BBQ shrimp and pasta. M was especially a fan of the jambalaya and gumbo, both of which were extremely flavorful and full of spice. The BBQ shrimp was also good, but could not measure up to the other offerings.

L was decisive however – and was prepared to tackle the LARGEST PLATE OF FRIED CRAWFISH EVER (our name, yours for only $11.25). We did not know going in that this was going to be the LARGEST PLATE OF FRIED CRAWFISH EVER when we ordered, but when the mammoth plate arrived, we were prepared for the challenge. The plate itself was probably about 12 inches diameter and was piled high with piping hot, fresh-out-of-the-frier crawfish. Needless to say we were pleased (and we only ended up finishing about ½ of the plate). Coop’s Place is definitely a NOLA experience, from the regulars at the bar, to the abundant crawfish supply, if you can spare the wait; it’s a great French Quarter option.