Po'boys are basically the local version of submarine sandwiches, as seen in not only the use of that airy local French bread and sometimes seafood-based fillings, but also in that it has its own lingo too. For instance, being "dressed" means that you want it with mayo and veggies, while "debris" is in reference to roast beef shavings that fell into the gravy when it cooked. Not only is this place (401 Poydras Street, 504-523-9656) very popular for its po'boys, but these guys also lay claim to creating the term "debris" when a customer allegedly asked for it. Given that story, we knew that we had to come.
Unfortunately, I incorrectly envisioned these roast beef shavings to be the somewhat salty or charred edges of the roast. Instead, they seemed to be not much more than small shreds of basic roast beef in the end. Moreover, I think I got a bit too carried away by the thought of "debris" when I ordered a dedicated debris po'boy rather than the Famous Ferdi Special that includes not only roast beef and debris, but also some kind of ham that these guys are also known for. So I didn't quite get the taste that I was expecting and hence was a bit let down.
Well, it was still interesting to have tried though, especially since the juices drenched the heck out of the bottom half of the bread (a bit like an Italian beef from Chicago)...so much that I had to flip the whole thing over onto the still dry top in order to put it into my mouth. Their crawfish etoufee was also mildly soothing yet savory, and it was great to get some of those meat-flavored stewed veggies on the side.
1 comment:
12/09/07: I just ate at Mother's and was very disappointed. I have had better gumbo in Fort Worth and the shrimp po'boy was bland. And the attitude of the staff was not worth the poor food quality.
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