Neyow's Has Arrived! — My Southern Brand

Houston is no stranger to New Orleans and Louisiana Creole cuisines; in fact, Houston is sometimes referred to as “NOLA West” by many people along the Gulf Coast. Outside of New Orleans and Louisiana, Houston has the highest concentration of Creole restaurants due to its strong relationship and cultural exchanges with the two. Often, Creole food is mistakenly interchangeable with Cajun food; even though the two are similar, they are still distinct. Cajun food, or “country food,” is more of a spicy cuisine that’s very prominent in the swamps settled by Acadians and in the Acadiana region of Louisiana; this type of food is mostly cooked using the “Holy Trinity,” which includes onion, celery, and bell pepper. In contrast, Creole food, or “city food,” is a blend of the various cultures of New Orleans that include African, Spanish, French, Caribbean, Native American, etc.; Creole food is generally less spicy than its Cajun cousin, is cooked with a lot of tomatoes, and was developed mainly by Louisiana Creoles in New Orleans. One restaurant that exceeds expectations with its Creole offerings and cooking is Neyow’s Creole Café, a popular New Orleans mom-and-pop restaurant that has now landed in Houston. Let me take you on a journey to this Creole destination…

LOCATION

Neyow’s Creole Café is located along Houston’s popular Richmond Strip among several ethnic restaurants, patio bars, and strip clubs. The restaurant is a huge beige building that’s accompanied with sufficient parking, both regular and valet. Inside, the space is very wide and seats plenty; the maroon colored walls are decorated with festive Mardi Gras beads and cultural decorations, New Orleans Saints pieces, and other decorations that are reminiscent of the Gulf Coast region. One thing that I really like about Neyow’s is the fact that you can see the cooks behind a large window while they cook.

Owned by the lovely and friendly, Mrs. Tanya Dubuclet, Neyow’s Creole Café is a family-run restaurant that is big on customer service and building relationships; great customer service is right up my alley. The New Orleans hospitality is second to none and keeps people like me going back to get spoiled by the warm atmosphere.

FOOD

Accompanied by my friend and the King of New Orleans himself, Kyle, I knew I was going to be in for a 504 treat. We were serviced by Tanya’s family members, Tana and Brittany; I must say that they had given us THE best service I’d ever received at a restaurant, they kept us entertained with jokes and laughter, and they sat down to talk to us about random stuff, which I enjoyed. Well, let me stop rambling and get to the food…

Kyle ordered the shrimp po-boy, which looked pretty good; it was a hefty size and included the “correct” kind of po-boy bread, which is French bread. I can definitely conclude that the shrimp po-boy included so much shrimp to the point that Kyle couldn’t close the sandwich all the way. Also, he ordered the sweet potato tots with his meal; I didn’t taste his meal because my order was Texas-sized, and I didn’t want to spoil my appetite for my food. LOL.

**Shrimp po-boy - $9.75 and sweet potato tots - $3.50**

For me, I ordered the “Seafood Platter,” which included farm raised catfish, fried shrimp, fried oysters, a stuffed crab, and two sides. When I tell you that the kitchen ministry cooked everything down to the tail of the shrimp with love, I mean that with every fiber in me. Let me start with the lone catfish. The catfish was huge and was seasoned well with Creole seasonings, which I liked; it was very fresh and was perfectly and softly fried without being too greasy. Next, the fried shrimp was amazing! I love shrimp, and I couldn’t find one thing wrong with them; the platter came with about 6 jumbo shrimp that was fried with similar seasonings as the fried catfish. Furthermore, the fried oysters were plentiful, including about 9 within the platter; they were chewy, and again, they were seasoned with same Creole seasonings as the fish and shrimp. Along with the shrimp, the oysters were hot off the stove! Not only were the aforementioned three items great, but the stuffed crab was also awesome. On this platter, the stuffed crab was more like a crab cake, but hey, I was pleased with it, no matter the naming convention; the stuffed crab was really moist. It reminded me of a soft salmon croquette but with crab meat. Last but not least, I chose French fries, my favorite sides, and red beans and rice for my sides. The French fries were hot, crispy, and plentiful; they were literally served as a huge bed for the meats of the platter. The red beans and rice was very flavorful; the sausage offering was pretty hefty, which is important when consuming red beans and rice.

Wait, there’s more! Because Kyle and I had pretty much become family at this point, we were treated with a cup of filé gumbo, a sample of smothered okra with rice, and Neyow’s famous dish, char-grilled oysters; I could have cried because I was overwhelmed with so much great food. LOL. The filé gumbo was outstanding; it tasted just like the gumbo from your grandmother's house during the holidays. It was prepared with shrimp, crabs, smoked sausage, ham and Creole seasoning and was served over white rice. The smothered okra with rice was pretty good; it reminded me of the gumbo texture-wise, but it had the kind of flavor you would want to have with your fried chicken. Behold! The 6 Parmesan garlic char-grilled oysters were nothing short of amazing! The flavor literally swept me off my feet, and the smell alone was very inviting; they were super buttery and garlicky from the garlic butter. The French bread that accompanied the oysters was perfect after I would dip it, piece by piece, into the garlic butter. Talm bout good eatin’!

Lastly, I don’t want to forget the drinks. Kyle had water, as usual, while I had a concoction of Sprite and pink lemonade, one of my favorite drink mixtures. No drinks are pictured separately.

CONCLUSION

Neyow’s Creole Café has now become my favorite restaurant in Houston! Everything was literally perfect; from the customer service and tasty food to the large food portions and inexpensive prices, Neyow’s can’t be beat! Price-wise, this place definitely gives you a bang for your buck; Kyle’s shrimp po-boy was $9.75, and his sweet potato tots were $3.50. My “Seafood Platter” was a whopping $21.50! On any given day, the filé gumbo is $6.oo a cup and $9.00 a bowl, the smothered okra (a Friday special) is $10.75, and the char-grilled oysters are $11.99 for 6 and $19.99 for 12. Also, my drink was $2.75.

Oh yes, Neyow’s gets 5 stars (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️) from me! I am definitely going back ASAP!