Felix's Restaurant & Oyster
- Price Range: $$
- Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
- Parking: Street
- Attire: Casual
- Good for Groups: Yes
- Good for Kids: Yes
- Takes Reservations: No
- Delivers: No
- Take-out: No
- Waiter Service: Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible: Yes
- Outdoor Seating: No
- Good for: Lunch, Dinner
- Alcohol: Full Bar
16 Reviews for Felix's Restaurant & Oyster
I only had the oysters and alligator. Both were very good and authentic. It was a great place to sit with a bunch of friends and watch the shuckers go to work. I usually don't like bigger east coast oysters but these were pretty fresh and tasted great when sucked down with lots of hot sauce and horseradish. The alligator was served both fried and blackened. I like the fried better. Alligator is always a little tough when I've eaten it - no exception here byt tasty. Good times.
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I'm not a New Orleans native. But I love seafood. If you are in New Orleans and you also love seafood you should stop by this place. Best catfish poboy and oysters on the half I've ever had. I have 3 or 4 places I have to go when I'm in New Orleans and Felix's is one of them.
My only complaint is that the tables are pretty crammed together, but I can get over that once I've got my food.
I haven't been back since they moved (which I am assuming is due to the hurricane). They used to be located on Bourbon right across the street from Galatoire's. I'm anxious to visit and try the new location.
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The Good:
:: the different types of oysters: raw, chargrilled, bienville, and rockefeller. we had all 4 types and they all made me happy as a lark
:: the cold beer in the awesome plastic mugs, so you could walk around with them and not have to worry about glass breaking but also didn't have to drink out of a cheap plastic cup. nice!
:: their gumbo. freaking amazing. i wanted to eat it intravenously. it comes with a partial blue shelled crab. YUM on the flavor factor!
:: the waitress. her name was vicki. she was your definitive new orleans waitress: crabby then loveable. she told us some crazy stuff about katrina after we were done eating. my god, those poor people went through some kaka!!!
:: seems more of a place where locals go than tourists. the interior is definitely more local than acme's interior.
:: they are open later than acme is. bonus!
The Bad:
:: no outdoor or patio seating. a shame!
The Ugly:
:: none.
Would I go back? Definitely. If you want more options of how oysters are prepared and want less of a touristy feel while you are dining, definitely come here.
This place is IN.
I love Felix's!! There is not enough I can say about this place. To be honest the Oyster's are what I eat when I come here, but that is enough. I can not call myself an Oyster expert, but these are the best oysters I have ever had. From NYC to LA to anywhere else, Felix's are the best. When you add in that experience of standing at the bar, having them shucked for you while you eat and washing them down with a cold draft beer, AMAZING! Yesterday I had the fried and blackened Alligator, which was very good, but ultimately it is the Oysters that make this place shine. Let's not forget the fantastic Oyster shuckers (I am sure there is a proper name), I tried to figure out how many these guys shuck a day, but they have to get close to 1000! If you are in New Olreans this is a must.
*********UPDATE**********
So I went back to Felix's a second time and actually had Jambalya, Seafood Gumbo and Turtle Soup. I have to say that I was not happy with any of them. I still stand strong on my thought that Felix is a MUST for Oysters and missing the experience at the Oyster bar would be a shame.
I don't eat oysters but my husband, my sister and her boyfriend do. They shared 18 charbroiled, Rockerfeller (w/melted cheese), and Bienvelle (w/spinach & mushrooms) oysters. They smelled divine but they told me that they tasted good, not great. They all still vote for Acme across the street.
I had the blackened shrimp (w/the stuffed potato). I don't know what it is about Gulf shrimp...they're much smaller than the ones in LA. My sister said I need to look for prawns so I can get the ones I'm accustomed to. Ha!
The stuffed potato was just a double baked potato w/melted cheese.
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Localovore? It's even more expensive than being a pescatarian, or an all-organic vegan with a gluten intolerance. But, if it means dining at Felix's, it's worth it's weight in gold. Sure, you'll see lines across the street at Acme, but the menu is almost identical, and it's slightly less expensive. If you're on the move, and need something betwixt and between those vile hand grenades, hurricanes and daiquiris, belly up to the counter, and have a quick dozen on the 1/2 shell. For the novice, they'll give a handful of saltines to help you conquer your fear of the bivalve. My favorite part? You can make your own cocktail sauce. Two dozen and two beers for $25.
Take THAT Hog Island!
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One of my best memories of my first trip to New Orleans in 2001 features a dinner at Felix's so I'm thrilled to see it's still going strong post-Katrina. My fellow revelers and I wandered in and had the best, most fun waiter behind the counter. We still talk about him he was that awesome (seriously, when was the last time you talked about a waiter 7 years after the fact?). He was friendly, and funny, and didn't treat us like crap because we were young tourists in town to get drunk on supersized beverages that should really be illegal.
I tried a bite of the crawfish etoufee here and really liked it. This is noteworthy because back in 2001 I was still a pretty picky eater and I HATED shellfish. Now if only I can talk myself into liking oysters I think I'll really love this place.
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My boyfriend had to work a lot over the weekend we were in New Orleans but there was one thing he knew he wanted to do in his limited spare time and that was go to a crawfish boil. He's wanted to do this in the past, but it wasn't the season. In my head it was going to be something like the steamed crab we had in Baltimore. And it sort of was.
We couldn't figure out where to go before our trip. And once we were there we still didn't know. So, we were walking up Iberville and when we walked past Felix's we saw people inside eating mounds of crawfish so we beelined in. We barely got past the door when a guy at the bar, who was shucking oysters right there, asked if we'd like oysters and something to drink. The answer? Why, yes. Yes we would. So we ordered some beer and ate some oysters while the waitress prepared our table. We paid that bill and were escorted to our table.
For the boil we ordered 2 pounds to share. Like the crab experience in Baltimore, the taste was really good, but it was a lot of work for not much payoff. I guess it's the same when you get crab legs too. One of my boyfriend's coworkers who lives in New Orleans said that she thought it was a pretty good boil. Seasoned well, a bit spicy, good taste. So, we were glad our first one was liked by a local. Some of us were surprised by how much 2 pounds of crawfish looks like. In these photos one of these bowls/baskets is one pound. But actually, the coworker said when they order it in at the office they usually get 3-4 pounds per person.
On the menu was something else I'd never seen before: fried pickles. They tasted like fried stuff dipped in .. I don't even know what.
For dinner I had a half shrimp po'boy with red beans and rice. It was ok. Everyone who had the crawfish boil agreed that it was really good, but that the rest of the food was just average. Oh, and the oysters were good. Really big and juicy ones. And the Abita beer was good.
This place kinda scared me. As we were walking in i noticed about 8 dozen shucked oysters just sitting on the counter, not on ice. It's no like it was cold inside either...scary. We chose 1/2 dozen mixed cooked oysters and a plate of crayfish. We each had 1 oyster and got through about 3/4 of the crayfish. Not awful, but a bit sketchy.
Oh man this place has/had the best oysters in New Orleans. I visited this place pre-Katrina in 02' and I could not get enough frest shucked oysters. I think I had a dozen the first time and then after a couple hours of gambling at the Harrah's I got another dozen. This place was not crowded. Great service, but what else would you expect to receive while your in the south.
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If you like freshly shucked oysters, look no furrther than Felix's. Forget about the overcrowded Acme Oyster House or the fancy looking Bourbon House across the street. There's a reason Felix's can compete: quality! Strut on into Felix's and you will be greeted by a shucker asking if you want oysters right then and there while you stand at the counter. Mike and his brother Anthony are very friendly and can shuck faster than anybody can possibly eat. Mike claims to have wone a shucking contest and is the fastest shucker in New Orleans. Doesn't surprise me either!
The oysters are amazingly fresh and kept on ice throughout the day. And if you're a well known tipper as I was by my second visit, you will get at least 15 or 16 shucked to you if you order a dozen. The shuckers first prepare a seafood sauce condiment consisting of ketchup, horshradish, olive oil, and worstachire sauce. If you like it spicier, ask for extra horseradish.
The fried oyster po' boy is quite good too. Having tried oysters at a couple of places, Felix's is THE place to get your oysters, whether raw or fried.
I miss New Orleans!!!
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I was really excited to eat some good seafood on my trip to New-Orleans, so I looked up a bunch of places on Yelp and in my guidebook. Felix's restaurant came up, and I thought I'd give it a try considering it was a block from my hotel and I didn't feel like waiting in line to get into Acme Oyster House. I went pretty late on a Saturday evening (around 9:30 or 10?), and the place was pretty much empty, which did not bode very well. Our waiter was friendly and helped us promptly, but I was not too impressed by the food. First, we ordered half a dozen oysters on the half shell: I expected them to shuck them for us, but I saw them pull out a plate of shucked oysters out of a fridge... bad. I wouldn't say the oysters were terrible, but they weren't great either: a little too fat and not as fresh as I like them (it might just be that I'm more used to cold water oysters). Then I had a half shrimp po-boy with a side of jambalaya: it was all reasonably good but really not that extraordinary. I left a little disappointed... I'm not sure I'd go again. 2-1/2 stars.
(By the way... I tried the local brew, Abita, and to be frank, it kind of tastes like cat piss. Not impressed).
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Have you ever stood (not sat, but stood) at the counter at an oyster bar while fresh oysters were being shucked and slapped up on the counter right in front of you? There are no plates and no silverware but there's a pile of saltine crackers - if you want to eat your oysters on a cracker the way the locals do it (although some might say that's no way for an oyster purist to do it).
How about a place where there's literally a buffet of condiments (ketchup, lemon juice, tobasco, horseradish, worcestershire sauce) at the end of the bar so you can mix your own cocktail sauce until you get it just right?
A place where you stand and sip Abita Amber out of plastic mugs at the bar while the oyster shuckers are working so fast they lose count and have to tally up your empty shells to see how many you've eaten after you're done?
What about a place where 2 dozen oysters and 2 beers costs $26?
I know what you're thinking but trust me this place really exists. While all those suckers are waiting in line at Acme skip across the street and get your fill at Felix's. It's truly an "I've died and gone to oyster heaven" one of a kind experience.
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This was the place that turned my husand into an oyster lover. Don't go for a full meal or anything; just do as the locals do and cozy up to the oyster bar counter and start ordering. They'll come by the half-dozen or dozen, freshly shucked by the maniacs behind the counter, and you can either eat 'em naked or make a little ketchup/hot sauce/horseradish sauce in one of the paper cups they provide and the spoon it onto an oyster, which you place on top of a Saltine.
Be sure to order a Dixie or Abita to wash it down. Nothin' like it.
BTW, this was possibly one of our most romantic New Year's dinners, dressed up in our finery, chugging free champagne and slurping oysters with the locals. Everyone should spend at least one New Year's in New Orleans, these people seriously know how to have a good time.
Why would anyone wait in line at the bland corporate Oyster restaurant across the street, with a dressed down gem like Felix's just waiting to be enjoyed?
Felix's was my first Oyster place in New Orleans, I've been going since '91 and thankfully little has changed. It's been my first and last stop on every trip since. The place was closed for over a year after Katrina- they just reopened in Feb. In that down time they freshened everything up inside, but it still looks pretty basic- new tile and vinyl seating and plain walls, just like before. I don't come here to sit at a table or admire pictures on the wall. I come here for oysters and beer and conversation with the nice characters who work here.
Enter through the Iberville entrance where you'll immediately see the bar on the right- the oyster shuckers work up front by the window, and the bartender works mixing drinks further down the bar in the restaurant part. Up closest to the windows you'll find all the stuff to mix your sauce- horseradish, a whiskey bottle of ketchup, hot sauce, lemons, and paper cups. Some of my best New Orleans memories involve spending hours at the bar eating fat oysters passed down from the shuckers and drinking cold Abita beer.
Tip- your shucker picks which oysters you're going to get. My shucker this last visit has been at it at Felix's since '82! He'd seen a lot over all those years working in the quarter. So be a good tourist, be friendly and polite, and you just might get to enjoy some of the choice big fat oysters normally reserved for friends/locals. Even if you don't, they're going to be fresh and delicious and reasonably priced.
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A legendary little place famous for oysters. I wish I liked them raw. But, everything else I tasted was fresh, including the alligator. The prices are a bit steep, especially for lunch.
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