New Orleans Street Food

What do you think of when you hear New Orleans? The music, the people, and most notably: the food. Our food scene has greatly evolved in the last few decades, creating space for all kinds of cuisines. Cooks and chefs have dipped their toes into some of the most delicious dishes, and it often starts off as street food or pop-ups. Many brick and mortar restaurants started off with a dream, an idea, and the will to test it out. How lucky we are to be able to benefit from this.

New Orleans street food is a mixture between culture, history, and flavors in one of the most accessible ways of eating. You don’t have to get fancy to get really good food here. Whether it’s an Asian-Cajun fusion or a newfangled poboy creation, our street food delivers. In this guide, I’m sharing the best New Orleans street foods and how to experience them like a local.

Beignets and Coffee (Please Add More Sugar Than This Picture)

Street Food To Go

New Orleans street food is not complicated. It’s meant to be a no-brainer decision that excites your palate and leaves you satiated, all while making a very small dent in your vacation budget. You can get street food from food trucks, street vendors, corner stores, farmers markets, and any other to-go style eatery.

You can get anything from Cajun, Creole, Asian, French, African, Spanish, and more. Our street food vendors are not few and far between, and all of them have their own flair. A few of my favorite spots to eat street food are festivals and the local farmers markets. I’m never disappointed, and I always feel like I am coming away with a deal. One of my favorite foods is paella, cooked fresh at the market I attend on Sunday mornings. It feeds me for two meals, and I sometimes feel bad about how inexpensive it is. That’s a good deal.

Crawfish Pie FTW

There are so many types of street foods that you can eat in New Orleans that I probably won’t be able to name them all. I’ll try, and you can knock a few off the list when your’e visiting. Your tummy will thank you.

Poboys

On your visit to New Orleans, I must insist that you try a poboy. This classic sandwich (AKA poboy sandwich) is served on French bread (could be crispy or soft depending on who makes it). Inside the sandwich you will find anything from fried shrimp to roast beef and gravy to French fries. Get it “dressed” with tomato, lettuce, pickle, and mayo, and you have yourself an authentic New Orleans meal.

Verti Marte is a great example of where to get this, street food style. Take it away and eat it on a bench or in your room at 2 am. You’ll be happy you did.

Beignets

Naturally your second most important food item to eat while visiting New Orleans is a beignet, and you can get them from a number of places. This fried, doughy goodness comes topped with powdered sugar. Don’t wear black clothing and laugh unless you want the rest of the city to know you just stuffed your face with these delicacies.

Despite the fanfare of Cafe du Monde, my local preference is Morning Call and The Vintage.

Muffuletta

The muffuletta sandwich may not be as popular as the two aforementioned street food items, but believe you me, this is worth the eating. It’s a thick sandwich stuffed with Italian meats, cheese, and topped with olive salad. The bread is round, and you can eat them hot or cold.

For me, there is only one place to go, and that’s Central Grocery. They make veg muffs (as I like to call them) where they leave off the meats, and you can buy them in halve or whole. Another place you might go is Napoleon House.

Boudin

Boudin is one of these items that people go bonkers for if they like it. It’s sausage made with pork, rice, and Cajun spices. You can eat it by cutting it up into little pieces, served alone or even with mustard. Local New Orleanians love it, and some places have expanded into crawfish boudin and other meat boudins. Traditional is pork.

Get your link at a market or specialty shop, or even in a poboy sandwich if it’s on the menu. You can knock out two foods with one meal.

Crawfish

Being a very big fan of the mudbugs, I love grabbing and going with my boiled crawfish order. If you’re not experienced in how to eat them, you may opt to sit at a restaurant and hope someone can assist in a tutorial. I’ve been that person, and luckily New Orleanians are friendly and love to show off our foods to visitors. Don’t be afraid to ask. At festivals I enjoy eating crawfish pies and crawfish Madeleine. Many, many dishes from which to choose.

As I said, the best place to try these (depending on how you get them - boiled or already peeled) are a festival or restaurant. As a local, I go to the seafood market and bring them back to my house where I can shamelessly stuff myself until I feel like I’m birthing a crawfish.

My guide on when is crawfish season in New Orleans will give you more on this topic.

Pralines

Pralines are just so good. They are very sugary and sweet, but they are a must try in the food department in New Orleans. I eat them on special occasions, and I never tire of these treats. They’re simple, made from sugar, butter, cream, and pecans. You can find them at many stores or bakeries around New Orleans.

My very favorite ones come from the New Orleans School of Cooking. I could eat an entire box.

Snowballs

While snowballs are seasonal overall, I couldn't leave them out of this list because they are so "us" in New Orleans. Right around St. Patrick's Day, the stands open and we are flooding them for our favorite cold treat. There are so many flavors from which to choose, and you will be very happy you got one, especially in the summer. This is not a snow cone, as the ice is shaved so fine, it's like eating a cloud with flavor. This is New Orleans street food at its most local.

Some favorite spots are: Hansen's, Chance in Hell, Pandora's, and Plum Street.

Favorite Farmers Market

You can find street food in all areas of New Orleans. There isn’t one particular neighborhood that has the corner on street foods. I pass multiple every time I am in the car, as food truck popularity has soared and people want inexpensive and quicker options when they are eating. Not everyone has time to sit down at a restaurant, and this is a perfect way to feed the city, regardless of which area you ‘re staying.

French Quarter

Most visitors start in the French Quarter because that’s where many people choose to stay while visiting. It’s packed with food options, and you can find street food options all over the place. It may be more crowded than other areas, depending on the time of year. If the French Quarter is your main hangout area, you’ll be well taken care of here.

Marigny & Bywater

Located just outside of the French Quarter, the Marigny and Bywater neighborhoods are filled with delicious food options. While these areas have become more “on the map” in terms of popularity, you’ll be able to find low key and laid back spots to satiate your hunger. A great spot to check out is the Saint Roch Market, where multiple vendors are located in one building.

Mid City

Likely one of the lesser explored areas when people visit New Orleans, Mid City has tons to offer food-wise. My very favorite farmers market has a Thursday market in Mid City, and I love getting dinner when I go. From breads to paella to boudin, I could stock up for the week every time I go. Don’t sleep on this area for food, my friends.

Uptown

While on your trip to New Orleans, I’m going to guess you’ll probably spend at least some time Uptown. Uptown includes the Garden District and other areas as a general reference point. Here you’ll find a bit more upscale eateries, but definitely in abundance. It’s an area that I greatly enjoy when I do eat out, and I’d say an area that includes some of my top things to do in New Orleans.

Festival Street Food

As a local, I’ll give you my tips on trying New Orleans street food. First and foremost, don’t be afraid of it, and think about including it in your trip to shake things up. It’s something I often do when I travel to other places, and I enjoy it at home here in New Orleans as well. You’ll rarely get a bad meal, and that includes street food.

Go Where Locals Eat

Friends, do not follow the visitors who have tried 2 restaurants and have no benchmark as to what our good food really is. Make sure you take local recommendations, and you’ll have a much better experience. Anything you find on my lists is tried and true.

Visit During Off-Peak Hours

If you’re waiting in long lines, my recommendation is to leave and try another spot. We have way too many good places to waste your time waiting. Go at times that are not busy if you must eat at a certain eatery, but please don’t spend your precious time in a line.

Bring Cash

Most vendors do take card, and even prefer it, but have some cash on hand in case, especially at festivals. It’s also good for tips as well, if you’re the tipping kind

Try Smaller Portions

My hack in life regarding eating is eating many small things or splitting items with others so I can try as many things as possible. Keep this in mind if you’re like me and have a limited amount of space in your belly but your eyes are giant.

Check Cleanliness

Do a quick once-over to make sure where you’re eating is rather clean. There’s nothing worse than getting sick on a trip, and you don’t want someone’s dirty workspace making your hard-earned vacation memorable in a bad way.

Stay Hydrated

And I don’t mean with booze. Hopefully you’re carrying your reusable water bottle with you everywhere so you can stay hydrated. If not, grab yourself a cup of water when you’re eating so the salt doesn’t suck all the juice out of you and you end up in a hospital with a saline IV hooked up to you.

Ask for Recommendations

Don’t be at all afraid to ask locals for recommendations. If someone is sitting next to you at a bar, ask. Maybe the hotel front desk person can offer you something good. And hey, if you’re reading this, I already have a few listed!

Be Open to New Foods

New Orleans has all kinds of different foods than people are used to. Whether it’s crawfish, raw oysters, poboys, or beignets, my best advice is to come open-minded and hungry. When I visit other cities, I try to try their local fare as well so I am practicing what I preach. I always come away happy.

New Orleans street food is one of the most fun and approachable ways to experience the city. Chances are, you’re going to try at least a few of the classics (like beignets and a poboy) and if you’re feeling adventurous, you’ll mix in a few more along the way. While New Orleans is known for its incredible sit-down restaurants, there’s something special about grabbing a muffuletta and a bag of Zapp’s chips and eating along the riverfront. Whatever you choose, you’ll walk away a little fuller and a lot happier. Let this city continue to surprise and delight you, because one of the very best ways it does that is through its street food. Bon appétit!

If you liked this blog, you might also like my blog on the evolving food scene in New Orleans, or the one I wrote about the best bars in New Orleans.

Here is a great guide on where to stay in New Orleans to walk everywhere.

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