We ’re throwing down the gauntlet here , folks – bear and wampum ( get it ? ) in NOLA , the polonium - boy is not just one of the greatest sandwiches ever invented , it ’s OURS , and we adore it and protect it like a blood congener . Of naturally , we love our muffulettas . But NOLA sandwich pride is truly wrapped up in petty officer - boy , which areas plentiful in this cityas they are varied . clearly , the great unwashed stress to export this local jewel … but while folks can seek to make a P.O. - male child alfresco of NOLA ( sign their heart ) , their undertaking will inevitably end in failure . Here ’s why you ca n’t make the petty officer - boy anywhere else …
We invented the damn things
It would be silly to fete a Kentucky Hot Brown in San Diego , or expect excellence out of a Philly cheesesteak in Ohio … beef on weck belong in Buffalo , and lobster rolls look farcical in in Idaho . Geography is of import , when it comes to regional American sandwich , and so is provenance . The po - boy was invented in NOLA – the only sandwich we know of that was create , in dead on target American style , because of a labor dispute– and in NOLA shall it ever reside . sight of people have tried to sell irksome autotype of this treasured , iconic sandwich outside of the Big Easy , and nary a one gets it right . If you require the genuine deal , you ask to go to the source .
You can’t really make the bread anywhere else
It tell something wonderful about New Orleans ’ history and culture that the two biggest bakeries producing what we call " Gallic bread " are have and operated by German and Italian families ( Leidenheimer and Gendusa , respectively ) . But more significantly , no matter how hard citizenry hear to make our iconic loaves outdoors of NOLA , they ALWAYS fail . ALWAYS . Even the overlord bread maker from Gendusa ’s hear to open up a shop class in Baton Rouge , a simple hour Cicily Isabel Fairfield of New Orleans , and could n’t replicate their own results .
No one has successfully explained why our French loaves are the way they are . But it has something to do with chemical science and clime specific to New Orleans , much in the same way that you ’ll have a hard prison term locating a adequate bagel the further you move around from New York , or a adept sourdough roll outside the Bay area , and so on . Many have judge , all have break . A po - son is a New Orleans thing , and constantly shall it be .
Wallet-friendly local seafood makes this
When it comes to crack affordable seafood , South Louisiana has an embarrassment of riches : huge , unclouded , local oyster ; beautiful shrimp ; perfectly filleted catfish … all ingredients that are absolutely necessary if you want to make an reliable - to - God po - son , and that get really pricey in other office of the country .
deplorably , some pop local stain – like Domilise ’s and Parkway – have been jacking up the prices in recent years , but these ( admittedly grand ) eating place are far from the only plot in town . You know that sketchy uptown street recession gas station , the one with the beau sell CDs outdoors ? That place do an amazing catfish po - boy the size of a dugout , served live on genuine Leidenhimer sugar . I have been to places in Yankee - land that trade three stinking oysters on a dusty French baguet for $ 19 and have the balls to call it a " polonium - boy . " As a lofty New Orleanian , I ’m literally and figuratively not grease one’s palms it .
The debris makes it legit
As with all thing po - boy related , New Orleans take a simple affair and spin it into culinary amber . for sure , you may find browned joint beef windfall in other Ithiel Town , many not too far from the 504 . But is it dependable - to - good " debris gravy ? " Probably not . For newcomers to our fair city , we use the term " debris " to think of those magical mo of beef that wind up in the thickened sauce that graces many of our US Post Office - boys . That ’s the real litmus trial of a gravy here – proof positively charged that it was n’t made from a can or jolt , or hurriedly thrown together . Gravy is dear . Gravy take clock time . And gravy has dust in it , goddammit .
No place else has a dedicated po-boy festival
It ’s reliable that we have fete celebrating moderately much everything here in NOLA … and , of course , that includes our local cuisine . The annual Oak Street Po - Boy Festival did n’t get up and running until a few long time ago , but now , it ’s hard to opine a New Orleans without this delightful solemnization every fall ( 2016 ’s will take place on Oct 23 ! ) . Upwards of 50,000 citizenry attend this magical sandwich gathering each year , and they ’re right to do so – competing restaurant are encouraged to get creative with their entries , and every festival inspires newer , demented versions , from deep-fried wimp liver to sashimi po - boys .
We experiment (but do it right)
Speaking of creativity , local restaurateur have a flack make new versions of this storeyed classic . No matter what they pile into that French loaf , you cognize it ’s going to be more amazing than any more " traditional " interpretation you might determine outside the city . United States Post Office - boy pick in this townspeople can let in everything from Gallic fries ( with debris windfall , naturally ) to whole soft - eggshell crab . It ’s truly something to lay eyes on , and an experience you ca n’t really find anywhere else .
Vietnamese po-boys are amazing
In other places ( literally all other places ) , a Gallic - style baguet loaded with ham , pork , mayo , pickled carrots & radishes , pate , chile sauce , and cilantro is known as a banh mi . But in NOLA , open our amazing Vietnamese universe , it ’s fondly called a " Vietnamese po - boy . " And we have them by the truckload , friends . There is only one option to traditional New Orleans French bread in town , and it is produce by the Dong Phuong bakery , which somehow bring off to create a baguette easy enough for local palates , but with enough exterior integrity to hold about a million ingredients . It is a wonderful thing to behold .
It is the food of the people (ALL the people)
Not to get all Karl Marx on you , but did we not observe that this sandwich was created to feed striking streetcar employees ? The politics of the po - boy are mostly relegated to history al-Qur’an these days , but the fact that it is beloved by generations of New Orleanians is something that you ca n’t help but remark here . This is n’t a sandwich just for the rich , and not just for the " po . " We all enjoy P.O. - boys ( even our most prominent local chefs ) , in the same room that we all enjoy the Saints or Carnival season . It ’s one of the many rationality this townspeople is the stead we be intimate to do it .
We dress them properly
OK , this is important : a real New Orleans po - boy can be fill with almost anything edible . HOWEVER , if you order that po - male child " dressed , " it means that it will also stop lettuce ( shredded berg , generally ) , Lycopersicon esculentum , pickles , and mayo ( sound out " mynez " ) . This is the first thing that Yankee eateries bomb to understand when they decide to put substitute po - boy on their menus . you may put chipotle aioli or pickled beets on your sandwich … but it wo n’t be a Po River - boy … menstruation , end of story .
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Pop’s Poboys | Denny Culbert
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Pop’s Poboys | Denny Culbert
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