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Mon-Fri. 11:30 a.m. - 1:00 a.m.
Sat-Sun. 5:30 p.m. - 1:00 a.m.
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***Bar/Nightlife Review only***
I remember coming here twice with a group of friends just to have a little fun in and around the bar area. Personally, I didn't love the place as many others do in the area. I think the general scene here was a little too mature for my at the time, and it was crowded to point where it was hard to move around. You might find some refuge outside in the hall, near the back bar, or even in the front for smokers. And don't expect any quick drink service at the bar either, when they are slammed the bartenders seem to take their sweet ass time to serve you.
Later in the night I had trouble ordering just one drink. The bartender here seemed like he would ignore every person who didn't have their money out in hand, or you might have to yell to get his attention. This isn't classy behavior for a place in Palo Alto, I at least appreciate when a bartender acknowledges that you are waiting and can give you a sign or say something back. I would only come back here maybe to try the food or if some friends dragged me along.
I LOVE this place. I love the decor, I love the service...
My friend and I shared 3 appetizers: fries/sweet potato fries, calamari, and fish tacos. We thought they were appetizers but they ended up being DINNER PLATES. It was also my friend's 21st birthday so all that fried stuff was tasting sooo good with our drinks. I wasn't a big fan of the fish tacos; dry tortilla, bitter cabbage, and some spicy sauce. It just didn't taste that great.
Drinks...I would suggest the Blood-Orange Martini. Waaay better than the champagne cocktail (tasted like medicine) and the Pomegranate Martini (which wasn't bad, but not as AMAZING as the blood-orange)
Wow. I cannot put into words how happy I am with this place. Elaine's been working across the street for a couple months now, and I can remember looking at all the people outside on the sidewalk.
So, as Elaine was closing Coupa Cosas, she placed an order ahead of time so that we could walk on over and sit down to a nice meal. I guess the waitress thought we ordered out, but they were quick to let us eat in the lounge area.
I got the Bourbon Brown Sugar Skirt Steak, and damn, was that sucker a joy to eat. The steak was a perfect medium-rare, and the flavors were bold, but not overpowering. The watercress was slightly tangy. In fact, it was the only watercress dish I've ever finished. The yam and sweet potato gratin was pretty good. A bit too sweet, but if eaten with the watercress together, it should be OK.
Elaine got the crab cakes and cheese grits. The grits were pretty good, and she said that that crab cakes were OK. The only "problem," if you could even call it that, was that its flavor wasn't on par with the rest of our food.
Lastly, the dessert sampler hit the spot. Elaine said the pecan pie didn't fit in, but the bread pudding was delicious, and the doughnut things were good too.
We'll be back Nola. Trust.
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I've been her twice and must say that this place definitely has character!
As a vegetarian I would say that this place is limited...by limited I mean one vegetarian dish - the Vegetarian Portobello Mushroom Tostada ($14) - (grilled balsamic portobello mushroom, black beans, jack and cheddar cheeses, creole slaw, salsa fresca, sliced avocado, and sour cream in a tortilla bowl). I like the marinade that is used for the portobello but the salad is always on the spicy side for me (I understand it's cajun but still!)
Pros:
*Fun place to come for drinks (especially if you like mojitos)
*Good for large groups
Cons:
*Not vegetarian friendly (1 dish!)
*Not very attentive to refilling the water
*Always a challenge to find parking in downtown Palo Alto
*Long waits on the weekends
*Small menu
*Prices are a bit on the higher end for what you'd expect for this kind of food
Tips:
*If you're a vegetarian and looking for a salad spot I'd skip NOLA all together and go to Plutos for a third of the price
Bottom line, a fun place to experience at least once but not really worth revisiting
+1 great atmosphere. Its a little dark, but all the decorations are interesting and they really get the NAWLINs feel. nice and funny bartender! he had great food recommendations. thanks!
+1 food was pretty good. I'm not big on Cajun food, but i really like what i got.
appetizer: BBQ shrimp. it was fresh from the oven! very tasty, the bartender also recommended the ahi tacos which ill try next time.
i got the famous flank steak, medium rare. It was amazing! it is served with green beans, mashed potatoes, and thin onion rings. Although this place isn't a "steakhouse" they did very well preparing this steak.
my boyfriend at the Cajun chicken pasta, which eh finished in less than 5 minutes, he liked it alot. It was a little too "cajun-y" for me.
+1 prices were pretty decent. The pasta was about 15 and the steak was 17. bar drink are the usual. shots are like 9 bucks and 4 dollar beers.
***-2: the service was less than acceptable. It was not very busy. Our server seemed to alot more interested in the larger parties than a 2 person party, which i GUESS makes sense since her tip would be bigger on a 10 person party. But still, it was a bit inhospitable. She didn't introduce herself, asked what we wanted to drink and was gone for 20 minutes taking care of her larger party. she came over, asked what we wanted. She didn't check up when our appetizer was brought, and she didn't check on us when our entrees were brought. I wish i could have tipped the food runners instead of her. So she basically only talked to us to get our order and asked us if we wanted out check.
i wanted to see what the big hype was about NOLAs. its was a-ok
Too dark and slightly loud for me to have a nice meal with my loved one.
They have an open air court yard which can be lovely on a warm day. Love the interior decorations and the miniature rooms upstairs for private parties.
Cajun Jambalaya - Semi-Spicy.
Your senses have been transformed and you are teleported into New Orleans.
Ambience - Really neat…
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Came here a few times throughout the past few years and the food is ok. I prefer to come meet friends here for drinks and that part is always good. Can be crowded in the bar area so you have to scope out the place for a bar stool or table but that's ok. Don't like the fact that they only have a unisex bathroom downstairs.
If you want to experience Cajun/French and your in Palo Alto, this place is recommended.
I would take my high end posh clients here after work in downtown Palo Alto and they would love it!. Great atmosphere and the food is GREAT! My only complaint is that the wait is long, especially if you have a party of four or over; during peak hours (weekends- 7- 11pm).
Its right next to the popular college sports bar 'Old Pro', so it can get really busy in the area.
My favorites dishes:
Starters:
1. Creole Crab Cakes
PANKO-CRUSTED 100% DUNGENESS CRAB CAKES,
WATERCRESS SALAD, SPICY CREOLE VINAIGRETTE,
LEMON BUERRE BLANC
2. Crispy Fried Crawfish & Calamari
DELTA BLUE LAKE BEANS, VIDALIA ONIONS, WARM RED CREOLE
REMOULADE, LEMON AIOLI
3. Philly Cheesesteak Spring Rolls
SPICED STEAK, PROVOLONE AND AMERICAN CHEESES, SAUTEED
PEPPERS AND ONIONS, SERVED WITH SPICY KETCHUP AND
CHIPOTLE AIOLI
Dinner:
1. Big Easy Fried Chicken
SHALLOW FRIED BUTTERMILK 'DOUBLE DIPPED' PETALUMA FREE-RANGE BREAST OF CHICKEN, PAN
SCRAPING GRAVY, SMASHED SCALLION POTATOES. ROASTED TOMATOES
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This place is a gem!
FOOD: Every member of our dinner party was pleasantly surprised by the food, each dish had zippy flavor with out going overboard. If you dig New Orleans cooking this place is good...nothing like Bourbon St. but very respectable.
DRINK: Great selection of cocktails ranging from old stand-bys to New Orleans favorites like the Hurricane and such.
SERVICE: Solid, nothing amazing but if you come to this place service should not predominate your expectations.
One thing I hate about restaurants is when they change their menus and remove the staples. For instance, Friday night I came here because of their cajun shrimp and grits, well its no longer on the menu! I couldn't believe it, as everyone I have taken here raves about this particular item. Also, They have changed around their entrees. I had the "famous flank steak" which I have ordered before. The meat was great, with lots of flavor but there were only about 5 little strips! Also, it came perched atop some kind of potato concoction that was very bland and a bad pairing with the delicious steak.
I can't believe it.
Love to come here on he weekends! Lots of attractive people come and have fun here. I absolutely… Read more »
Night of entertaining events
Odd and yet interesting decor throughout
Love the New Orleans kind of feel
Always more enjoyable with rowdy co-workers!
I came here last night for our quarterly team outing!!! We rented a section of the upstairs for a good 3.5 hours! Fun times!! Our menu was quite extensive!! So much food and drinks!! I couldn't even attempt to look at the dessert! O_O
I really love the decor at NOLA. Totally Day of the Dead kind of art inside! Lots of smaller dining areas throughout the restaurant. And you can totally walk by this place at night and miss it! I really like coming here in the evenings when it's gets darker and there's more people. There's quite a lively feel like you've travelled to New Orleans, Louisiana... minus the humidity! hehe
When we arrived at our tables, they had set the tables with colorful mardi gras beaded necklaces and we had our own printed menu with the food choices! I wanted to order everything on the menu and try everything!!! :D
Shared Appetizer
+ NOLA frites: fried sweet and russet potatoes, okra, and japanese eggplants with spicy chipotle ranch dip :D
+ Crispy Fried Crawfish & Calamari with lemon-garlic aioli :)
+ BBQ Chicken Quesadilla: bbq chicken, manchego, cotijo, oaxacan cheese, salsa, sour cream :)
+ Slow Roasted Pulled Pork Sliders: smoky bbq sauce, and creole slaw :|
Kick-Starters
+ Chicken Andouille Gumbo: slow roasted chicken * andouille sausage gumbo seasoned with ham hocks, holy trinity, okra, dark roux, and rice (quite spicy, but LOVED the deep-fried cornbread/fritter thing on the side) :D
Entree (now this was the difficult decision)
+ Southern BBQ Pork Chop: cider brined pork chop, grilled and smothered with smoky homemade bbq sauce, scallion mashed potatoes, and green beans... :D I was only able to inhale 2 bites, but it was yummy!
but I also tried...
+ Skirt Steak: teriyaki marinated steak :D very, very good (i wish i had picked this)
+ King Creole Salmon: Creole-spiced king salmon (a bit greasy)
+ Big Easy Fried Chicken: fried buttermilk double dipped Petalume free-range chicken :D YUM!!!!
Dessert
+Beignets du Monde: rustic doughnuts with sugar, warm chocolate-caramel fudge sauce (I didn't have... cause I was way tooo FULL!)
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Dinner for 2 @ 6:15pm (with reservations) on a Saturday night
Appetizer: we shared 4 fresh oysters on…
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On the positive side, the staff/service, drinks and atmosphere were all pretty good. It's hard to do NOLA outside of NOLA, and they gave it a college try. Also, our appetizers were good (better than the main courses...read on)
On the down side (and a disclaimer here is that we've been to LA many times and eaten in New Orleans about 70 times, one half of us having lived in LA for 13 years), our main courses were pretty...blah. The fried chicken was dry and the side of tomatoes over-salted. The jambalaya was not that flavorful, and although high on rice, lacked a sufficient amount of heartier ingredients, like sausage, etc.
Overall, a decent place, but nothing to write home about.
The first time I came here I had dinner and it was really good! I don't remember what I had.. but I think it was some kind of pasta. It was a beautiful night so we sat outside and ordered some drinks. Overall, my first experience here was pretty good and I decided I would definitely come back.
The second time I came here was for my birthday. I got to Nola's at around 10 and the place already smelled like vomit. The bartender was pretty rude and served really crappy drinks... even AFTER my friend told him it was my birthday. I'm not expecting to get amazing service at a bar, but the thing is.. there were only 3 other people there so you would think that the bartender would have been a little more attentive. I left after an hour and went over to Rudy's to finish off the night!
Hopefully, the next time that I head over to Nola's I will have a better experience but for now I'll stick with the other bars.
Just went here last night to celebrate a friend's birthday. The first thing I noticed when arriving here at 5:30PM on a Friday is that it was really hot. I guess they don't have any A/C. The next thing I noticed were boobs. Lots of painted boobs on the walls. It's definitely a fun looking place to hang out at.
Left and I made reservations for dinner later on that evening. It was a 1 hour wait to get a table for 7 people.
I ordered: Guavapolitan, Onion Rings, Bourbon Flank Steak, and Cornbread.
The Guavapolitan was too sweet and had too strong of a hint of alcohol.
The Cornbread was dry and tasted a bit stale. I was not a fan.
The Onion Rings were good and the batter was tasty however it was too oily.
The Bourbon Flank Steak was very good! Kudos for this dish! The bourbon taste was unique and you could really taste the marination. The beef was cooked medium-rare, so it was very tender and juicy. I was a big fan of the sweet potatoes/yam tart in the middle --it worked very well with the bourbon tasting steak.
Since it was our friend's birthday, I whispered over the the waitress and ordered their famous "Male Genitalia" Sundae. It was so hilarious when it came out! The banana, two ice cream scoops, whip cream, and the brownie on the bottom was just perfect! :)
They did not charge us for the sundae either which gives them another +1 in my book!
Our waitress was very pleasant as well. Overall, I had a great dining experience here. It's definitely lively and entertaining. I recommend this place for a night full of fun and good food.
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I went to this place right after I visited the wine room (right across). The place was bumping, with big Stanford crowds.
The atmosphere was livid, i loved their interior design, it reminds me of a european courtyard, and right away makes forget I am inside a bar. Great decoration, artwork, and lighting. This place would be great for birthday celebration.
I got a glass of long island, it was well made, and it definitely got me going for the rest of the night........................
NEXTTIIME:
1.) try their food menu
2.) try the spicy mojitos.
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Cute unique place with great food!!
My friend just had a wedding reception here. I must agree with everyone else on the skirt steak. It was very filling and very delicious.
The inside is colorful,l unique, and fun.
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If you've never been, it's one of those places that you've got to check out at least once. It's got personality but lacks charm, if you get the drift. It's kinda like a cute girl but with funky smelling armpits. Good to be seen with yet not good to be close to...
- Cool decor
- Fun atmosphere
- Good (a tad above average) food
- Make sure to order - "Beignets" for desert... Unreal and deeelicious!!
- Drinks are very watered down (except for the beer)
- Prices are higher than average
- Parking is challenging
- Service is just "ok"
- Their bar is smaller than my living room
- The drink they're known for is the "Hurricane" - not enough liquor, too much filler.
Will go back very occationally (if I'm in the vicinity) but not a place I'd drive to specifically.... Nothing special, kinda played out.
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Almost exactly a year has gone by since the last MacArthur Park event and Nola after-party.
I've gotta say, our server was more than prepared for the onslaught of Yelpers. She checked on me regularly and always made sure my drink was full.
Oh and I bloody love the blood orange martini!
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I appreciate any bar with a cool outdoor area and this is one of those places. The decor is amazing… Read more »
Walking down the street in this Yuppy semiconductor valley town that has a Starbucks and Juice bar on every corner, the last thing you'd expect to see is an authentic Cajun restaurant. But get within a block of NOLA's and you are instantly transported into a mini version of the French Quarter.
From weird ass paintings to scrappy, worn down architecture, and a live Cajun band (where the heck do you get a real Cajun band in CA...wow!), they successfully replicated the tasteful and somewhat questionable sides of the Bayou. Almost the entire restaurant is outside on various rag tag patios of various levels. It looks very authentic. The kind of property that says "hey ma', lots of people are comin' to eat our food, let's build another floor on top of our roof." Because of the set up of the restaurant, personal space is at a minimum. Which could be both good or bad depending on who you invite to dinner and how crowded it is.
Dinner itself was an above average experience. Their not exactly known for their healthy appetizers. I'm sure our Philly Cheesesteak Spring rolls weren't endorsed by the American Heart Association. But they are really good. Who would've thought that I would ever dip a spring roll in Spicy Ketchup..odd...but somehow they make it work. It's tasty.
The real reason this place rocks though is because their Jambalaya is freakin' AWESOME. Don't be fooled by the steep price tag, this is the most loaded concoction "in 'da parish". I can't say I've ever seen ahi tuna, salmon in any Jambalaya before. But they pull it off. Their "real" gulf shrimp as well as the typical Nawlins' goods like andouille sausage and spices.
Service was outstanding and overall, it wasn't that expensive. I've spent way more money on dinner for much less food.
Bottom line? If you are craving a place for authentic (and even better than authentic) Cajun food, NOLA is the place to be in Silicon Valley.
Very cool looking place (the bulk of my stars are for the setting alone). The onion rings are good but nothing to write home about. I regretted my dinner choice (fried chicken) immensely - not because of the calories but because even KFC is somewhat better tasting (sad face). I liked their smashed potatoes, though, so I will give this place another shot and try something other than the chicken. Eventually.
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Let me start off by saying this review is TOTALLY biased due to the dessert they brought me on my birthday.
The food was good, but I honestly have a hard time remembering what I ate and no, that's not because I had too many of their delicious cocktails. My coworkers took me here on my birthday, which we casually let slip out when I ordered a large seasonal sangria (I believe it was agave and I KNOW that was good). I think I ate the veggie jambalaya....
BUT the real reason I love this place is that they brought out the most phallic dessert anyone of us had ever seen with a candle on top. I don't think I can post the real name of the dessert without the review being pulled, so let's go with C & B's and leave it to you to figure out. It was hysterical! (Check the picture section for a shot of the dessert.) Anyways, made for an awesome birthday lunch and now it's THE place to take unsuspecting people on their birthday. Lots of fun AND always nice to find a lunch spot with good cocktails.
I am torn as what we had for dinner was good. I am the first to admit I was one of those girls who came here a few times when I was in college. And I say a few times as I was smart and got the hell out of Dodge and moved to The City.
But that is neither here nor there, just laying the ground work. Had never actually had a meal here, so we had a Friday night date here. My guy like Cajun, and so it goes. Reservations at 8:30, check. Made them on open table, so it was super easy. No wait, love it.
Now, I forgot what a popular watering hole this is. Loud, Oh YES!! I can only guess it would not have been so loud during the week, but not a spot for a romantic Friday night date.
We had the gumbo, yum!! I had the wedge salad as I am obsessed with them. And 2 huge strips of yummy fatty bacon, I die!! Swine, I love you!!! Jambalaya as a topper. We had ordered the catfish and calamari, yet our waitress forgot it. i was stuffed, so there was no way I could have had anymore. All was good, yet not as though we were in New Orleans. Gumbo could have been a bit heartier, yet so it goes. As it was a warm night out, this was just right.
I would go back for dinner in the middle of the week, and cocktails saved for the weekend. Would I go back?
YES, just know it may be loud.
I am constantly baffled as to why and how this joint
gets good food reviews! The food, at the best of times
is massively mediocre AND! overpriced with what it
is (OK, so they have a high-rent burden being in Shallow
Alto).
Sure, NOLA's is the place to go for drinks and a lively
crowd, but NOT for good Cajun cookin'.
The Jamabalya is over cooked with the rice mushy
and soft - I don't think I've ever eaten here without
leaving disappointed. Why, one might ask then, do
you go there? Well, there's a definite social aspect
there and it's local to me and my friends want that
combination of booze, food and peeps; and the food
doesn't suck, just disappoints - so compromise. :))
Ok, I've gotten that off my chest - onwards and upwards!
ttfn...
This is my second time here and my second night in a row trying to eat cajun food. The night before I tried the fried chicken in santana row = FAIL. I thought that since I didn't get my fried chicken fix why not try it again here because I'm sure it'll be better here.....and YES! It was!! and only because I had some gravy with it to add more flavor. But I only ate half of it =(
I do recommend getting the skirt steak though. It was full with flavor and I wish I had ordered that, but luckily my friend got it so I got to munch on their yummy thin onion rings....
I was the only one that packed up the rest of my food =(
The drinks were good, but not strong. I got the Pomergranate martini and finished it and wanted some more. Their mojito is a little too minty though- too many leaves in there.
For the birthday girl, they brought out a banana sundae....shaped like a penis...look for the pictures posted....its really funny =)
Based on our Happy Hour service, it was not pleasant. We didn't get checked on much and had to flag our waitress down every time. We arrived at 5:30 with half an hour til Happy Hour ended.
So we order a round and an appetizer... after that, trying to get a second round was a challenge! I guess the early bird gets the worm and the late birds get bad service!
Speaking of bad, I had to ask for water a couple times before it finally arrived. With no ice and mine actually had some debris. GROSS.
On a the bright side, I was with great company to make it worth while! A gf's birthday brought us here and we enjoyed none the less.
Nola's has a fun variety of Mojitos, which were pretty good and a stiff Hurricane!
We shared one appetizer to hold us off til dinner down the street. The calamari and crawfish wasn't bad, but we've had better!
I wouldn't put Nola's on my black list. I'll give it a second chance for dinner.
Came here for a friend's birthday a few weeks ago.
I started the night with a Guavapolitan, which was basically a sugar-laden, alcohol-less drink. Skip, please.
For dinner, I ordered the Delta Crawfish, Shrimp & Scallop Etouffee. It was bland: no spices, no heat; not even hot sauce could have saved it. The only thing going for it were the scallops.
Z ordered the Famous Skirt Steak. Whoa, I wasn't aware that he ordered onion rings. Oh wait, he didn't! A heaping pile of fried onion strings entirely covered up what seems to be the famous skirt steak. This dish should be renamed as the famous WHAT skirt steak; Z's piece of skirt steak was so small that it took him a while to find it underneath all that greasy onion. Overall, this dish is just too carby from the hefty amount of fried onion strings to the smashed potatoes and corn hash that left our appetite and tummies underwhelmed.
After finishing our entrees, we were absolutely not full so we ordered Crab Cakes. Yuck: Too much breading and NO lump crab meat. And the creamy orange sauce just didn't make sense and certainly did NOT taste good. Orange sauce + crab = PUKE. I really wanted to puke.
For dessert, we ordered Beignets Du Monde. They tasted like mini doughnuts. It was a little doughy and not as light as I hoped. The sauces were okay. Overall, it was mediocre at best.
Nola's got potential, but too bad it fell flat on its a$$.
Will not be back. Will not recommend.
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This is a lunch time review.
WHY HASN'T ANYBODY SAID SOMETHING ABOUT THE PO-BOYS!?!?!
Before going, I read through most of the reviews and it seemed to be consensus that the skirt steak was the thing to get. I've also been on the hunt for a po-boy sandwich since i've never tried one before. Thankfully Nola's has a selection of them.
I ordered myself a skirt steak po-boy and boy was it good! The bread was soft, onion strings gave it a nice guilty pleasure and the spread was quite complimentary and kept things from getting dry. The only thing negative I have to say is the steak itself. Although flavorful, it was difficult to eat in a sandwich because you had to rip the meat off every bite. My solution...eat with a fork to hold the rest of the steak back when biting.
Service wise, it was quite lacking, I had come with a group of coworkers after the lunch rush and the server had forgotten our order of frites and for some reason the gumbo in 2 of our half and half orders tasted completely different, like they were different soups.
What was nice, was that even though they had forgotten our frites, they served it to us towards the end of the meal when we asked and made it complimentary.
Had things gone a bit more smoothly service wise, I'd give it a solid 4.
The atmosphere is nice in the sense that it is different but other than that I didn't find Nola's all that impressive. The food is decent but I would not be inclined to pay that much again for such quality. It seems more fit as a pick up joint.
Nola's, What can I say about this restaurant? Don't go there for the food go there for the drinks and the bar atmosphere.
I enjoyed the mojitos due to the muddled mint and they were not that strong in alcohol. They were the kind of drinks that crept up on you, which was a good thing.
Food wise:
I ordered the "Frites" and the fried calamari with fried crawfish to start. The "Frites" was very disappointing because it was about 75% french fries and 25% fried okra and Japanese eggplant. It would have been nice to have more fried okra but thus was only the beginning. The fried calamari with the fried crawfish was also disappointing., There were some fried green beans in the meal. The calamari was over cooked while the crawfish were tiny pies resembling crumbs.
For the entree, I ordered the etoufee. It was the most expensive item on the menu, $18.95. I figured scallops, shrimp, crawfish, and rice sounded appealing. I another huge disappointment. he etouffee included only two pieces of shrimp while the scallops were cut up on the mini side and there was not enough. I was expecting to have four shrimp and four pieces of a large scallop but again I was highly disappointed. Not only was the etouffee mostly rise, it was quite salty.
I would not go here again for the food. The only attraction here is the atmosphere due to it being busy and the mojitos.
I went for my birthday and was EXTREMELY disappointed when I learned they had changed their menu. I did NOT like the cheesy grits. I want the BBQ Shrimp and sexy grits back, please. I had the blackened fish and cheesy grits - I could do this at home (AND MUCH BETTER). I had an awesome time, though. It is always a fun experience when you add a fishbowl Hurricane!!! My birthday dessert surprised me and humored my birthday guests. I laughed for about 5 minutes after I realized what it was. Keep that on the menu!!!!!
My husband and I tried this place out after it was highly recommended to us by our close friends. They love the atmosphere of the restaurant. It's true that the building itself is pretty unique. With the open courtyard area in the middle, you do feel like this is what a restaurant in New Orleans would feel like. Overall, the dining experience was good.
The drink i got was the strawberry Mojito and it was delicious! I wished there was more drink and less ice because it was gone in just a few minutes and we never got any water to fill the need I had for a beverage during the rest of the very salty meal.
I only gave this place 3 stars because actually, I wasn't all that impressed. The food was pretty good but not great. The music was super loud which is fun when you want to party but not if you want to have a romantic dinner with your husband. The service was good, though, and the only reason why I wouldn't come back here is just because there are so many other restaurants around that I would like to try instead.
this is quite an interesting restaurant, all the paintings are just sooo random and freaky but hey it's what makes this place unique. haha
an outing with my department and we rented part of the upstairs and that was awesome, we got a lot space to ourselves and the tables were nicely decorated with you know what, beaded necklaces! :) the servers were very friendly.
the nola frites (crispy fried sweet and russet potatoes, okra and japanese eggplant) and calarmi were DELICIOUS! i died and went to heaven for a moment. hehe the spicy sauce that comes with it goes nicely with the deep fried goodnes. :)
the Chicken-andouille gumbo was not my cup of soup thats for sure. the first spoon had a very potent smoky flavor. i wasn't sure what i should be tasting considering all i tasted was smoke but after a few more tries i still didn't like it.
king creole salmon was almost perfect, it was a bit over cooked but over all it was definitely still good in my tummy. :) the potato spinach hash was delicious but a bit greasy.
lastly the beignets du monde (rustic doughnuts blasted with new orleans sugar sandstorm and warm chocolate-caramel fudge sauce) was a bit toooo sweet for me, not much of a sweets person but everyone else at the able were loving it! hehe
Two words: SPICY MOJITOS
Probably the first drink ever with Captain Mo' that I not only didn't wanna barf from, but actually wanted seconds or thirds! ['Captain Mo' - jito'? har har] Finally came in here for dranks and not just food...I do dig the atmosphere here, except on a Tuesday its really not that crackin' with people in my tax age bracket...
If you aren't feeling the 8-10 dollar dranks, invest with some friends in the 'Moron Bowl'. Its essentially a fat hurricane/long island but in 60oz form with 4 straws. How much could this deathly concoction cost? 20 bucks. That is a steal in downtown PA. Think about it...that's a few ounces shy of 4 pints! Gotta pinch them pennies, yadidimsizzlin?
Anyway, come on a night that its bumpin' and grinding, and you will have fun in the french quarter atmosphere with some well made drinks. I also do recommend the restaurant, though I guess there is better cajun food elsewhere; however, in DTPA its one of my favorite restaurants!
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I totally thought I reviewed this place already, but I guess I didn't! It has to be one of my… Read more »
Daaaaaaaaaannnnnnng! This place has 610 reviews ... there's probably nothing I can say that hasn't already been said... i'll make it short and sweet.
Right in the middle of downtown Palo Alto.
The whole restaurant is open air ... so if you come late bring a jacket.
Very Voodoo / New Orleans / Jazz feel. COOL!
New Orleans style food: Cajun goodness!
I had the crab bisque and some jerk chicken skewers - BOMB.
If you are in the area I think this is a must try. The bar is big and seems to be packed all the time. Prices are reasonable but I wouldn't say cheap. Service was quick and friendly.
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Went here for a friends birthday on Friday night. When I first walked in I was kinda hopeful. The atmosphere was pretty good and it seemed like a nice place to have a meal.
We arrived 15 minutes after everyone else, they were sat down having a drink and waiting for us to order. We sat down and had a look at the menu, decided on some drinks first. The scruffy looking waiter wearing a cap came over and took our orders for appetizers. He promised to come back and take our drink orders after he had dropped the ticket in the kitchen. He seemed to vanish for about 10 minutes, then out came our appetizers. We'd ordered some pulled pork silders, crawfish & calamari, BBQ shrimp and the Nola fries. The food was just OK, nothing that jumped out at me as great. We'd pretty much finished with the appetizers by the time I had managed to get a hold of the waiter and ordered some friggin drinks.
Drinks came at last. I'd ordered a hurricane. Didn't blow my mind. Oh well.
For the mains I'd decided to share with my date, we ordered the Big easy fried chicken and a Cesar salad. The mains came without having to wait too long, well most of them..... They forgot the salad which we got 5 minutes later. I started work on the chicken shortly after cleaning the corn on the cob (they don't take the hairy shit off in a restaurant, are you fucking kidding me? I gotta clean this myself?!). The chicken had a layer of grease sitting on top of the not so crispy seemingly dark meat 'chicken breast'. There was one piece, some mashed potato, gravy and two hairy corns. Prob the easiest dish on the menu to get right and it was a failure. They would have been better off buying in some KFC and selling it for 14fucking95.
The girls ordered some Sangria after we'd finished our mains. I had a taste... what the heck. Not quite sure what they put in it, but another simple thing to make that they fucked up. Seriously Nola.
We got the check, the service charge of about 18% was added on to the bill. If it was my birthday party I would have kicked up a stink, as there's no way that guy earned his tip.
I won't be wasting my time or money here again. 2 Stars. Would have been 1 but the others seemed to think the place was 'Okay'.
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July 26, 2009 - Palo Alto Bar Crawl details (on Twitter under #pabcrawl)
Stop 8 - NO PHOTO - TOO DARK - Nola (Mint Julep)
This was Stop 8 on the epic Palo Alto bar crawl. It was getting late but Nola's still had a decent crowd going. We weren't going to hang out too long here - we were on a mission to get Mint Juleps and that's what we did.
Nola has a nice atmosphere too though the bar area is very crowded and cramped. The restaurant area is fine, with several dining areas, nooks and crannies, rooms and open spaces - it's really like some New Orleans architect that was REALLY high on something designed this interior. Just sayin'
I've reviewed Nola before - have had some awesome experiences here, some not so awesome. This time was not for experiences - the Mint Julep took center stage and it was adequate. I couldn't really smell the freshness of the mint but that could be because this was Stop #8 and I couldn't smell a skunk if it blasted me at that instant ;p We finished it easily so it must have been good :)
And oh, this was bathroom break #4 - I discovered they have a little bathroom hidden away in a nook on the first floor - all those times I'd trudged upstairs in the past - such a waste of energy!!!! Bathroom gets passing grade.
~ 3 stars overall, would easily up it to 4 or 5 if I was eating here - food's prett good. But for a bar only experience, I'd recommend somewhere more spacious.
# REVIEW UDATE
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My first time here - and I loved it!!!
Easy parking in the underground parking garage less than 3…
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This place would have been ok in my book, because the crowd was fun to people watch and we even saw Michelle Kwon there!
However, staff was a bit rude to my friend who had reserved a room in the back, they wouldn't transfer his tab back there so he had them release the room. Which would have been fine, but the way the server approached us was with a side of attitude.
Then, I ended up gettin sick off their oysters, which I'm guessing from them being not so fresh, if they were fresh I wouldn't have yacked. And I'm positive I wasn't intoxicated as I only had 2 cran and vodka's that night!
One extra star for being with good company and Michelle Kwon!
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I love coming here with friends for mojitos, my friend is a bartender here and he hooks it up! I definitely suggest coming out to have some chat time with your buddies.
The food is ok, limited menu and kinda pricey. My classmate set up a few private parties at Nola's and they turned out really nice.
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Love the overall look of this place. Went here with a group in celebration of the end of a work related "issue," and it's certainly alright. The sangria I had was okay -- though watching my friends and co-workers race to finish the hurricanes was hilarious and itself worth the entire night.
The meal itself... I had the Creole Shrimp which wasn't impressive in the slightest. The dessert is where it was at and if only I had known that before hand. Ordered up some of the Beignets Du Monde and they were bloody delicious. Toss on some of that maple brandy and zomgz, how wonderful. But yeah, if you're going out for dinner to trully appreciate the dinner then -- get another dish? Creole shrimp is not worth it but I hear the jambalaya is.
I love you Nola. I really, really do. You would get 5 stars, but you have too many of those tactless Stanford undergrads getting loaded at the bar.
The food is incredible. I love everything they make. It's like you're trying new things, but you're being safe because you know it'll be SO good. And not creepy, like a lot of other New Orleans themed places. (Those little legs on the crawfish.. creepy!)
I love that it's "sort of" out doors. AKA they don't have a roof in the middle.
The decor is a blend of art, "art," and the art your kids make in pre-school. It has a kind of classy European feel to it, like you're somewhere, but really.. you're nowhere.
They have a bunch of private-ish rooms upstairs that you can reserve for little get-togethers. We had a work Christmas party here in one of those rooms and could get loud and crazy without disturbing others. Actually, they should reserve those rooms for those Stanford undergrads...
At night, they play whatever sports game on a large drop down screen that you can see from the whole restaurant. If there isn't a sports game, I've also seen surfing and other quirky things up there. Fun, and I mean it.
Conveniently located in Downtown Palo Alto, right RIGHT near a parking garage AND right near the police station (to pick up the rowdy Stanford kids...).
Downfalls: no air conditioning, the hostesses can be a bit oblivious at times, the proximity to Stanford (have I said that enough?), and I get a little nervous sitting in their "patio" area, but that's just because I think I'm going to get pooped on (birds), spit on (those you-know-whos), a drink poured on me (same people that spit) or someone's gonna come crashing down on my head. That has actually happened there once. Let's not get into it..
Bottom line, go there. You won't be disappointed.
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Palo Alto, CA
Category: Lounges
Palo Alto, CA
Category: Dive Bars
Palo Alto, CA
Category: Wine Bars
Palo Alto, CA
Category: Nightlife
Palo Alto, CA
Category: Sports Bars
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