NOLA's A Taste of New Orleans

NOLA's opened a month or so ago in the former E 3rd Steakhouse location. It's owned by the same people that brought you E 3rd, Zip Fusion, and K-town BBQ. They're open for lunch, dinner and have a Jazz Brunch on Sunday.. but honestly you can come by for lunch or dinner and still enjoy some live jazz.


NOLA's Taste of New Oreans at 3rd & Traction..

They have about six beers on tap: Spaaten, Sierra Nedava, Blue Moon, and for those that want a little New Orleans: Jackamo IPA are the ones I recall seeing behind the counter a couple weeks ago. Unfortunately they don't have a menu online but they do have images of the menu on their Facebook page.

Last week after the Arts District neighborhood walk we had dinner there. I ordered the Cajun Bloody Mary and was pleasantly surprised. My favorite bloody mary is still the one I got at Commander's Palace last year, with the one from Jazz Kitchen in Anaheim (it's got that crab boil on the edge and is zesty & spicy)

The one at NOLA's is in my top five. They put the jalapeno in the Bloody Mary, not on the side. That definitely gives it a bit of kick. I will definitely order it again!

How authentic are they? As far as menu offerings there's something for everyone. As far as that spiciness I like, my Bloody Mary was the best part. Thankfully there's Tabasco for everything else. I'm guessing it's tame so those who've never had New Orleans style food can season to taste (and I suggest you do or you'll leave disappointed like another friend of mine did on another visit)


Mini Cornbread muffins with cinnamon butter spread.. were sweet and just the right size.


Red Beans and rice, a New Orleans standard had bits of turkey meat cooked in it

Sean ordered the Beans and Rice with fried chicken.

While I didn't try the chicken, Sean said he thought Popeye's was better.. =(

I ordered the Jambalaya:

Jambalaya is a rice dish with chicken and pork andouille sausage mixed in. YUM!

The dish was huge. I wasn't sure if this was supposed to be family style or not, but based on how much is served in the entree, you can easily share the dish with one or two other people.

Dinner was a little bit pricey. The total for 2 entrees and 3 drinks came to around $70. Not something we can do too often. Sean suggested when we come back that we do a split plate. We each had a cup of my own dinner and about a cup of Sean's beans and rice and still had a considerable amount of leftovers to reheat the next day for lunch. Splitting our plate would also have allowed for room for dessert which I wasn't able to order as I had no room, even after walking a couple hours that night.

I would definitely want to come back here, perhaps try the Jazz brunch. That said you can hear music of varying styles (and decibels) every day. One thing I would suggest for those trying to go on a date or have a conversation, sit toward the back of the restaurant (near the entrance). Otherwise, you will want to bring a notepad & pen with you. In their defense, I'd been here a couple weeks ago and the band playing that night was not only good, but played at a moderate level so you could converse with the person at the bar next to you.

NOLA's A Taste of New Orleans
734 E. 3rd St. (at Traction)
Los Angeles, CA 90013