"Food Wars" hosts Harry Kersh and Joe Avella travel across New Orleans, Louisiana, to find the best gumbo in the city. They'll be visiting three locations over two days to see what the city has to offer. This is "Food Tours."
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00:00Best gumbo in New Orleans.
00:01We're gonna be visiting three places
00:03throughout this episode.
00:04We're gonna get a tasting of different styles of gumbo.
00:07I'm telling you, man, we're eating like kings today.
00:09We're starting here at the legendary,
00:11the institution known as Dookie Chase.
00:14Have you had gumbo before?
00:14What is your gumbo experience?
00:16I have never had gumbo before.
00:17My first time in New Orleans, first time in Louisiana.
00:20I've heard a lot about it.
00:21It looks incredible, but yeah, never tried it before.
00:24I cannot wait.
00:25What actually is gumbo?
00:26Obviously, I've heard a lot about it.
00:27It is sort of a stew, not really,
00:30but its flavors are all its own in this area
00:33because it draws from French-Canadian,
00:36it draws from the Caribbean, it draws from Africa,
00:40it draws from Native American.
00:42So what's interesting about a gumbo is,
00:44although it could be technically made anywhere in the world,
00:47the only place where gumbo could have been born
00:49is right here in this part of the world
00:51and this part of the country.
00:53We are at the source.
00:54Wow, so it sounds like gumbo is literally a melting pot.
00:57Yes, correct.
00:57We've got an actual pot of stuff going into it.
01:00That's a good way of putting it.
01:00And it's also a cultural melting pot
01:01because it's really drawn from everywhere.
01:02That is an excellent way of putting it.
01:04I wish I said that.
01:05Ha ha ha.
01:11Of the many influences of this cuisine,
01:12there's a high French influence.
01:15You live much closer to France.
01:16What are your thoughts on French food?
01:18Yeah, I mean, you have the bases of these sauces.
01:21Obviously, you have like a roux,
01:22which I think is used to thicken things,
01:24which I think looks very different in France
01:26as it would over here.
01:27In France, you also base a lot of stews
01:29with what they call a mirepoix,
01:30which is that like carrot, onion, celery mixture,
01:33which I think is tweaked a little bit
01:34for the kind of Creole-Cajun palate, right?
01:36Right, you mentioned that they have a vegetable trinity,
01:38which I believe is celery, onion, bell pepper.
01:43Okay, so you're swapping out the carrot for the bell pepper.
01:45Yeah, and I prefer that, right?
01:47That's the beauty of like a stew
01:49or a stew-like dish as well, like a gumbo,
01:51because you can really take that base
01:53and then just put whatever you have into it
01:55and it'll come out tasting pretty delicious.
01:57So, I mean, you've already mentioned that
01:58you could find like chicken in here,
02:00there might be seafood in here,
02:01there might be duck in here.
02:02You're just kind of taking whatever you have available,
02:04getting it in there.
02:05Making something delicious.
02:06Making something delicious.
02:07I'm starving.
02:08I'm really ready to eat.
02:12Thank you so much.
02:13Yes, sir.
02:16I mean, I take a bite first because it's incredible.
02:20I know there's more stuff you want to explain to me,
02:21but I need to eat.
02:24This looks crazy.
02:26Perfect.
02:27Like trying to get like a bit of everything
02:28is going to be a challenge.
02:29I'm going to go for the sausage.
02:31Oh, man.
02:32I want to get a little rice in here, too.
02:34Flavors, the spices, everything hits you at once.
02:37Wow.
02:38All the protein from the chicken, the shrimp,
02:40the sausage cooked perfectly.
02:44The broth.
02:45Yeah, brothy is definitely the word I'd use for this.
02:47While it's quite a light broth in terms of like,
02:49it's not too thick, the flavor in there, man.
02:50Wow.
02:51The concentrated flavor.
02:52Yes.
02:54Chef Leah Chase, who was here for decades,
02:56and the menu here is based around her cooking.
02:58She was named the queen of Creole cooking,
03:01even honored by the James Beard Foundation for her work.
03:05Blessed by the Pope.
03:06Come on.
03:07A self-taught chef.
03:08All the recipes that she perfected here
03:10was what she ate growing up, perfected over decades.
03:14No formal training.
03:15Literally just like she ate it growing up,
03:17perfected these recipes,
03:18and we're still eating it today.
03:19It's really, really cool.
03:20This is the shrimp clemenceau.
03:22Oh, yes, yes, thank you.
03:24Dab out in some shrimp, peas, mushrooms,
03:27purple potatoes, sauteed in a garlic butter sauce.
03:31Fantastic.
03:31Thank you so much, sir.
03:32Enjoy.
03:34Yes, sir.
03:35I read about this online.
03:36This was introduced to the menu
03:36because Chef Leah was like,
03:37we gotta have something on the menu
03:38that isn't like, deep fried.
03:41Not everybody wants fried food.
03:43I saw Obama on the wall.
03:44Yes.
03:45I saw George W. Bush on the wall.
03:46Yep.
03:47I think Beyonce's eating here.
03:47Yep.
03:48They've covered a lot.
03:49Stevie Wonder, Ray Charles.
03:50Ray Charles mentions it in a song.
03:52There you go.
03:53Can't get much more historic or important
03:55to New Orleans than that, can you?
03:57Absolutely.
03:57I do love how a recurring theme of food tours
03:59is that we go to places that Obama has been to
04:02or Guy Fieri has been to.
04:04That's right, one or the other.
04:05Two biggest culinary icons of mine,
04:07Obama and Guy Fieri.
04:08Yeah, I don't think I've ever had a mouthful
04:10like this gumbo,
04:11which is a compliment
04:12because we've eaten a lot of food on this show
04:14and I've eaten a lot of food in my life.
04:15Yeah, and you're from Europe, sort of,
04:19where there's a lot of different cuisines there,
04:21but nothing over there is even close
04:23to what's happening here.
04:24I don't think so,
04:25not at least when this specific dish is concerned.
04:28I want to try this.
04:29I'm so glad I got,
04:29I wasn't sure I was going to be able to try it,
04:30but it's not bad.
04:31I think one thing that's impressive,
04:32given the different proteins in here
04:34and the number of proteins,
04:35to make sure that everything still has
04:37its perfect texture,
04:38it's really impressive.
04:39Chicken isn't mushy,
04:40it's still got a bite to it.
04:41I want to point out,
04:42I know this is a gumbo episode,
04:43but look at me,
04:44you need to try that right now.
04:45That's what we've got here.
04:46Peas, there's some mushrooms, shrimp.
04:48This is incredible.
04:49Sautéed in butter and garlic.
04:53Those shrimp are incredible.
04:54I know, oh my goodness.
04:55The amount of garlic in there as well.
04:57As an Italian, I can say,
05:00I have finally found a dish
05:02with the right amount of garlic.
05:04They did it.
05:05They figured it out.
05:06They got it right here.
05:07The number of proteins in here
05:09is so interesting to me.
05:10Like, generally speaking,
05:11I haven't had too many foods
05:12that combine this many proteins.
05:14You're getting like a kind of land, air, and sea effect.
05:17There's a lot going on,
05:18but it's all really working.
05:19It's not like they're contrasting or conflicting.
05:21You can tell that something like this
05:22has been worked on all day.
05:24Slow simmer, concentrated flavor.
05:27I mean, we're eating a bowl of history right now.
05:30I'm sure other people could look at gumbo
05:31and be like, yeah, yeah, soup, stew, I got it.
05:33Like, no, you don't got it.
05:35I could not think of any other gumbo
05:38that could be this flavorful, this delicious,
05:40this well put together
05:41that didn't take decades to perfect.
05:44Funny story that I heard when Obama was here,
05:46about to dip into her gumbo.
05:47I don't know if he did this
05:49or almost did it,
05:50but apparently he went to put hot sauce
05:52in the gumbo in front of her.
05:54And she was like, what are you doing?
05:56I don't know if the sauce actually hit the gumbo
05:59and intervened before then.
06:00You really have to back yourself
06:01to correct the president of the United States though,
06:03to be like, oi, oi, no, no, no.
06:06I don't care what you're running,
06:08the food is fine, eat it.
06:10Secret service diving in front of the hot sauce.
06:16That's really funny.
06:17They've also brought out fried chicken
06:18and I do really want to try that.
06:19This looks amazing.
06:21It could have been in a fried chicken episode.
06:23To be clear,
06:24we kind of wanted to include this
06:25in the fried chicken episode,
06:26but we didn't want to double feature someone.
06:29But we're getting the best of both worlds now.
06:30Okay, let's go.
06:37I'm cleaning this bone.
06:39Dude.
06:40Seasoned perfectly.
06:42The skin is so perfectly crisp, right?
06:45Yet inside, the chicken is incredibly juicy.
06:48And you can tell the flavor's like,
06:50marinated inside the chicken.
06:52Without trying to rewrite history too much,
06:54if this had been in the best fried chicken episode,
06:57it's a contender, for sure.
06:59Absolutely a contender.
07:01I'm sort of like telling myself this is healthy
07:02because it's kind of like a soup.
07:04There's enough rich things in here.
07:05No, I look at it like if it was made with love
07:07and you're having,
07:08you're enjoying the meal with friends or coworkers,
07:11that's gotta be good for you, right?
07:12I think so.
07:13It's good for the soul.
07:14Soul food.
07:14Yes, there you go.
07:16All right, well, I would love to stay here
07:18and finish this entire meal.
07:20They've set the bar very high.
07:22They certainly have,
07:23but I think we have more spots to hit, right?
07:24We have two more spots to hit.
07:25So let's hit it.
07:26All right, man, let's go.
07:28I have to apologize, Joe.
07:29Go.
07:30Once again, I've brought the weather with me.
07:32Yeah, this is ridiculous.
07:34We came to LA and it rained for like two weeks,
07:36which is unheard of.
07:37I think it rains a lot in this part of the country, though.
07:39This makes it, I feel less bad for this part, at least.
07:42You know what would really brighten up our day?
07:44What's that?
07:45Another bowl of gumbo.
07:46Some more gumbo.
07:47We're heading to Gabrielle,
07:49also in the same area, the Treme area.
07:52Spot number two, please put your phone away.
07:54Yes.
07:56There's plenty of Pokemon to catch after this.
07:58For once, I wasn't on Pokemon, but carry on.
08:01All right, spot two, Gabrielle, right down the street
08:04from the place where we just were.
08:06We do have a production van, so we had to get in,
08:08find new parking, drive down the street.
08:10It's a little quicker to walk, but it's not just us.
08:13So, but yeah, I mean, it really is a hop, skip,
08:16and a jump away from the first place we were just at.
08:18Here they have a 24-7 perpetual stock.
08:20So the stock they use to make the various gumbos
08:23is going 24-7, they're throwing stuff in there.
08:25So it's like just absorbing all of the flavor
08:29of all the delicious food that's been coming
08:30out of the kitchen since probably the beginning, right?
08:32It's all in there and they even add scraps
08:35from other meats, drippings from the duck.
08:37They're adding leftover wine.
08:41Not from glasses, from the bottles.
08:43So what we're having today, you cannot get anywhere else
08:46in the city, or dare I say, the world.
08:48That sounds absolutely fantastic.
08:49I'm very into it.
08:51When you get a perpetual situation like that,
08:53like a constantly simmering pot, again,
08:54you're getting the flavor of what you're putting
08:56into it right now, but also the flavor
08:57of all the stuff you put into it like a week ago,
09:00which I personally love.
09:01I feel like also it means it'll just be
09:02a little bit different every time.
09:04You could probably come back here like two weeks time
09:06and have a slightly different tasting dish.
09:08Well, NOLA.com had a best gumbo bracket on their site.
09:13With tens of thousands of votes,
09:14this was voted the best gumbo in New Orleans.
09:18Okay, the people's champ.
09:19People's champ right here.
09:20People's champ gumbo.
09:21So I am really excited.
09:22I noticed they have three different gumbos on here.
09:23Seafood, pen, a gluten-free one.
09:26Getting no thanks.
09:28Barbecue shrimp pie.
09:30I mean, come on.
09:31Gimme, gimme, gimme, gimme, gimme.
09:33Anything else on the menu catch your eye?
09:34Yeah, the alcohol.
09:36It's time for drinking.
09:38We're here in New Orleans, we've gone out every night.
09:40And every morning I wake up and I'm like,
09:41ugh, can't be doing that again.
09:43And then every day, I'm on the last one.
09:44Five o'clock.
09:45It's like, all right.
09:46So we're drinking a lot.
09:47Woo-hoo.
09:50Here we go.
09:50Seafood gumbo.
09:52This is the faux pas, the gluten-free
09:54sticky tomato.
09:55Oh, nice.
09:57Can I get another one?
09:58Whoa.
09:59It's good to have some bread out for you.
10:00Thanks.
10:02I think I got the good one.
10:03I have been informed that although they keep using
10:04the same stock, it actually isn't simmering
10:07or being heated 24-7.
10:09I do put it away and then bring it back out.
10:11But it's still the same stock?
10:12Yeah, it's the same stock.
10:13Yeah, okay, great.
10:14That's fine.
10:15This looks incredible.
10:15I'm very excited about this.
10:16So we've got three plates of gumbo.
10:17I have the seafood one.
10:19You have the sausage one.
10:20And we've also got the gluten-free one.
10:22And I know I was kind of joking off the gluten-free one,
10:23but looking closer on the thing,
10:25it's got steak, short rib, and beef shank.
10:28And there are three different meats, huh?
10:29Three different beefs.
10:30All right, it's the alpha male protein red.
10:33This is the one you eat before you go powerlifting.
10:35Sure.
10:36Sounds pretty good, actually.
10:37Well, I was gonna do some powerlifting later today,
10:38so that works perfectly, actually.
10:40Perfect.
10:41I mean, this looks amazing.
10:42Slightly darker color, maybe?
10:44Yeah.
10:45Compared to the other ones we've had.
10:45It's that perpetual stock, you know?
10:47But it definitely has a thicker roux consistency to it,
10:50right?
10:51Yes, glossy.
10:52So I've got the seafood one.
10:53It's got shrimp, crawfish, and crab in here, I think.
10:57Nice.
10:57Triple seafood.
10:58My guy's got the chicken sage, apple sausage,
11:01pen, and it's a duck roux.
11:03Oh, yeah.
11:04What up, ducks?
11:05All right, I'm excited.
11:11It's packed with flavor, right?
11:12Oh, yeah.
11:13Again, no seasonings on the table.
11:15Do not need them.
11:16I couldn't, I mean, you'd be mad to add it.
11:18Imagine seasoning this.
11:19What I love about it, because it's with the rice,
11:20it's soaked up all that flavor,
11:22so you're getting everything delicious
11:23with the roux in here,
11:24but also, like, it's a lot harder because of the rice.
11:26Rice really is, like, the perfect delivery vessel
11:28for this, isn't it?
11:29Yeah, yeah.
11:30I think just, like, a visual thing to point out,
11:31like, if you kind of take a spoonful of this,
11:33the way it kind of, like, gloops a little bit,
11:36it's so, like, glutinous.
11:37It has some gluten, yeah.
11:39I love this.
11:40Do you want to try some of it?
11:41There you go.
11:42That's so good, man.
11:43Thank you, sir.
11:44And we're bringing this over.
11:45Oh.
11:46Oh, there's that, yes.
11:47Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you.
11:54Very impressive.
11:55I actually might prefer this one.
11:56I think I prefer this one.
11:57We can swap.
11:58Yeah, yeah, I think I'm glad that we swapped.
12:00Wow.
12:01You know, when you get all this seafood
12:03into one thing, it doesn't clash at all.
12:05They actually work together, which I know is, like, obvious,
12:08but usually when you have, like, different proteins together
12:10it would be kind of like, eh, I don't know about this,
12:12but they're all working together beautifully.
12:14I've got to say, yeah, the roux,
12:15the sort of sauce for this one,
12:17the flavor is packed in there, man.
12:19Yeah.
12:20So, like, savory, umami, every bite.
12:22Yeah, look at this.
12:23Okay.
12:27Fantastic.
12:28I love it.
12:29That's glorious.
12:30Again, like, it's just not quite a dish
12:31that I've really had any version of before.
12:33Sure.
12:34Particularly in the UK.
12:35Yeah.
12:36These flavors, I think, are very specific to this area,
12:39so it's difficult to compare this to anything,
12:41but suffice to say, it's delicious.
12:43Isn't it delicious?
12:44The amount of flavor packed into here.
12:45I mean, these clearly came out of the same kitchen,
12:47but even between the two of them,
12:48you're just like, wow,
12:49so there's, like, distinct flavors that you're getting
12:51just by virtue of those proteins versus these.
12:54I think it's just fantastic.
12:56Yeah.
12:57I'm really impressed with how great this is.
12:58I really love the way the sausage in this one
12:59adds a real, like, smokiness to it.
13:01Yeah.
13:02Which, again, when you already have this, like,
13:03savory broth, it's just, like, savory on savory.
13:06That's beautiful.
13:07All right, I'm curious about that gluten-free one.
13:09I already can see it's a little bit more brothier
13:12than the other one.
13:13They didn't thicken it up.
13:13Is there a thickening agent, I guess, you could use?
13:15So that one, I think, has, like, a cassava flour,
13:18which is, like, a gluten-free flour.
13:19I think almond flour is gluten-free, isn't it?
13:21I think it might be.
13:22All right.
13:25And what a lovely wine, may I add.
13:27Oh, wow.
13:28Uh-oh.
13:30Yeah.
13:31Try this.
13:32Hit me.
13:33I need some beef.
13:35This might be my favorite one.
13:36Wow.
13:37This is really good.
13:38After you spent ages dunking on it, man.
13:39Hey, this is what the show's all about,
13:40learning things together.
13:42I flip and I flop, all right?
13:44We're big enough people to admit when we're wrong.
13:46That's the important thing.
13:52Right?
13:54Yeah, that beef is good.
13:55That's really good.
13:56The short rib.
13:57So tender.
13:59But still so meaty.
14:00Yeah.
14:01That's really good.
14:02Maybe gumbo doesn't need gluten.
14:04Yeah.
14:05I don't get too much of a textural difference either,
14:06actually.
14:07Do you?
14:08I felt a little bit.
14:09I felt the roux was a little smoother,
14:11or more brothy, I guess.
14:12Maybe slightly.
14:13Yeah, these have all been really good.
14:14I'm impressed by all of these.
14:15If I may make a recommendation.
14:16What's that?
14:17Get yourself a bread roll.
14:18Mop up some sauce.
14:20Recommendation will be taken under advisement, my man.
14:22That looks very good.
14:23How is it?
14:25Yeah?
14:26Yeah, that's the move.
14:27That's where it's at.
14:27That's the move.
14:29That's just awesome, right?
14:30Bread rules.
14:31Come on with bread.
14:32Can you believe they invented this
14:33like thousands of years ago?
14:34Can't believe it.
14:35It's a complicated process.
14:36Yeah, exactly.
14:37That's one thing, I've tried making it,
14:39and I'm like, I couldn't even have guessed how to do this.
14:41There's so many steps, you're just like,
14:43I'm adding what to what now?
14:44Yeah.
14:45Bread rules.
14:46So what do we got here?
14:47Okay, it's the barbecue shrimp pie.
14:48This is a homemade pie shelf
14:50filled with smashed sweet potato.
14:51Yo, yo, yo, yo.
14:53Okay, all right.
14:54And it's topped with New Orleans style barbecue shrimp.
14:57I'm gonna try a shrimpy boy first.
14:59See, savory pie.
15:00Usually a thing that the Brits do that Americans don't,
15:02but you guys are getting on the hype train.
15:05Okay.
15:07Shrimps alone are very good.
15:09Oh, it's like purple inside
15:10because of the sweet potato stuff.
15:11I love that.
15:16Yeah.
15:17This is very good.
15:18This is very good.
15:20Here, let's put it over there.
15:21Which one do I want?
15:22Pick a gumbo, any gumbo.
15:24I'll just pick this one
15:25because it's closer, but I think I also want to try it.
15:26The sauce on here, it's just kind of like that same roux.
15:29I think it's different, but you tell me.
15:31Let's have a go.
15:36Bread!
15:37Oh, man.
15:37The amount of wine in that sauce.
15:41The flavor just hits you.
15:43To me, it's like you'd never be stuffed up in this state.
15:47The second you take a sniff,
15:48it's like eat some gumbo, clears everything out.
15:50I love it.
15:51I'm not a guy with a great spice tolerance,
15:53but these have all been well within my bounds.
15:55Not to say it has no spice.
15:57It definitely has a little bit,
15:58but I wouldn't say spice is the focus.
16:00And I'm glad that
16:00because I thought everything was going to be super spicy
16:02just for the fact of it.
16:03I'm sure you can get a really spicy gumbo here,
16:05but I feel, and I say this on every episode
16:08when spice comes up, it's like,
16:09look, it can be as spicy as it wants to be,
16:11but I'm here to eat something delicious,
16:13not something hot, you know?
16:15I mean, if they want to increase the spiciness, go for it,
16:17but will that compromise the flavor?
16:19It doesn't need to be spicier.
16:21No, there's so much going on here.
16:23I think adding spice would just be detracting
16:25from all of the other work that you've done.
16:27You've taken like literally weeks in this case
16:30to make this beautiful stock, this beautiful roux.
16:34Why would you just like chuck a load of chili in there
16:35and kind of ruin it all?
16:37Don't do that.
16:38This isn't hot ones.
16:41Okay, this is absolutely fantastic.
16:43Really good.
16:44I get it now.
16:45Which was your favorite of the three gumbos
16:47that we've tried now?
16:48It's hard, right?
16:51The gluten-free one.
16:52Really?
16:53Look, there's no shame in admitting
16:55that you were wrong sometimes.
16:56Yeah, how about you?
16:57I think maybe the hen one actually
16:59might have done it for me.
17:00It was something about the smokiness of that sausage,
17:02how well that worked with everything else in there.
17:05One of the most intensely savory mouthfuls I've ever had,
17:09and they're so good.
17:10But all really good.
17:11Beef one was also great, gluten-free.
17:12Seafood, also great.
17:13Shrimp here, phenomenal.
17:15This place is so great.
17:16It's really cool.
17:17This is really fantastic.
17:18I like it a lot.
17:19Feels like a nice neighborhood spot too,
17:19just pop in here whenever.
17:20Have a delicious bowl of gumbo.
17:22And a lovely glass of wine.
17:23How's your wine?
17:24It's nice.
17:25Yeah?
17:26Yeah.
17:27It's a wine.
17:27Yeah, red.
17:28All right, I got one more gumbo I want to take you to.
17:30Unfortunately, we can't do it today,
17:32but we're gonna go tomorrow.
17:34Sure.
17:35And it's gonna be great.
17:36All right.
17:37So rest up for one more gumbo.
17:38We can sleep this one off, go again tomorrow.
17:40I'm excited.
17:41I got a gumbo hangover.
17:45All right, Harry, it's a new day.
17:48Time for some gumbo.
17:49It's about 11 a.m.,
17:50it's about 11 a.m.
17:52and we're heading over to Little Dizzy's.
17:54Yes, sir.
17:55I washed and wore the same shirt.
17:57You did not get the memo?
17:58I did not get the memo.
17:59Little Dizzy's opens at 11.
18:01We're getting there pretty much a little after 11,
18:03and from what I've heard, they're already queuing up.
18:06That means a line outside the door.
18:08This place is very popular.
18:09So hopefully we'll get a table.
18:10Okay, fingers crossed.
18:12It opened, no joke, 13 minutes ago,
18:16and there's not an open table in this spot.
18:18That's how popular this place is.
18:19So naturally we had to come here.
18:21I took you here because when you search gumbo New Orleans,
18:24this place had everybody's list, right?
18:27Yeah.
18:28Just had to take you here.
18:29Little Dizzy, assuming it was named
18:30after Dizzy Gillespie's and the logo there.
18:31Sure.
18:32Right?
18:33For someone who doesn't know jazz,
18:34you seem to know who Dizzy Gillespie is,
18:35so that's a good sign.
18:36Yeah.
18:36A little tiny bit.
18:38I know a little bit, but I know my man Dizzy Dizz.
18:40And yeah, we're here to try their gumbo.
18:42I want to say they have all types of amazing soul food here,
18:45but we're doing gumbo today.
18:46Of course.
18:47Yeah, I feel like they could also have been
18:48in a chicken episode.
18:49That's something that came up
18:50when we were searching them beforehand.
18:51But it sounds like a great spot.
18:52Like you say, super busy, super popular spot.
18:54Local neighborhood joint.
18:55We're back in the Treme neighborhood, right?
18:57I believe so, yes.
18:58Gabrielle's, where we went the other day,
18:59was voted the best gumbo in the Bracca,
19:01but this came in number two.
19:04But to be honest, I mean, these things are subjective,
19:06so maybe this should have won.
19:07We'll find out.
19:08A lot of celebrities have come through here.
19:10George W. Bush visited here right after Hurricane Katrina.
19:13I think I saw Obama on the wall too.
19:15From what I can gather, the family that built this place,
19:17it's kind of like New Orleans food royalty,
19:19is that right?
19:20Yes, absolutely, absolutely.
19:21The family's been in the restaurant business
19:22for generations.
19:23Unfortunately, they closed a little bit
19:24during the pandemic,
19:25but the outcry from the public was so strong
19:27they wanted those little Dizzies back
19:29that they have since reopened
19:31and they're here at this beautiful location.
19:33Nice, so it's very much a family business
19:35passed down through the generations.
19:36Absolutely, absolutely.
19:37What I like about it, you go in there,
19:38it's like very communal.
19:40Kind of learning like New Orleans,
19:41like they really emphasize community in their places.
19:44Like it's really, they want their restaurant
19:45to be the spot that everyone in the area
19:46can come in whenever, have a delicious meal,
19:48delicious bowl of gumbo.
19:50I like that.
19:51Yeah, even to kind of like break the fourth wall
19:52a little bit, when we're speaking to the owners
19:53and we're saying, oh, well then we're also going
19:55to this place or that place,
19:57the vibe isn't like a rivalry.
19:58It's very much like, oh, I love those guys.
20:00Yeah, I love what they do there.
20:01You should go check them out.
20:01Yeah.
20:02It's really nice, like communal vibe.
20:03Everyone's kind of supporting each other
20:04rather than trying to fight for supremacy.
20:06Absolutely.
20:07I'm gonna go get us a couple bowls of gumbo
20:09and maybe some sides.
20:11Sounds fun.
20:13I love New Orleans.
20:14I got married here.
20:14Did you?
20:15Yeah. Oh, cool.
20:17Not recently.
20:18Several years ago, yeah.
20:19My wife and I, we love it here.
20:20This is the first time I've been here since then.
20:22Yeah, this place is great.
20:23So after the ceremony, we did like a lap around the block
20:27with everyone walking around and we had a band
20:28playing with us as we were walking.
20:29It was a lot of fun.
20:30Yeah.
20:31I don't recall it being that expensive
20:32and I think anyone can do it.
20:34You can just, got a couple of bucks,
20:35you can walk down the street with your homies.
20:37Yeah.
20:38The band's following you around.
20:39I don't know for how long, but yeah.
20:41Oh, you really missed out.
20:42We were out last night.
20:43I think they got some footage of it.
20:44There was a second line band on the street.
20:46Just playing some jazz, some big bandy jazz.
20:48Yeah.
20:49People dancing.
20:50It's a lot of fun.
20:50I was told you guys were just going for a couple of drinks
20:52and I was feeling very tired, so I skipped it.
20:54Then you're in karaoke bars until like-
20:56Okay, we said we were going out
20:57for a couple of drinks in New Orleans.
20:59What are you surprised by?
21:02What do we got here?
21:03Gumbos?
21:03Gumbos.
21:04Thank you, sir.
21:05Awesome.
21:06There we go.
21:07That's chicken?
21:08Yeah.
21:08Serve that.
21:09Fantastic, thank you, sir.
21:10Thank you so much.
21:11I mean, you're kidding me with the sausage in here.
21:12Right?
21:13Now, I don't know about yours, Harry.
21:14Mine has a quarter of a crab in it.
21:18Now, I'm not quite sure if I'm supposed to dig into this.
21:20Obviously, I could,
21:21but I think this is just to add flavor to it.
21:23This thing is almost like 50% meat by weight.
21:26This is crazy.
21:27I didn't get a crab in mine.
21:28I feel like it's when you used to get
21:30like a prize in your cereal box.
21:31No, no.
21:32It's when you get an order of fries
21:33and there's an onion ring in there too.
21:34Yeah.
21:35Like a big ah-ha-ha.
21:36Yeah.
21:37I'm going in for a bite.
21:38I can't wait any longer.
21:39Yeah, same.
21:39Get some rice.
21:40Ooh.
21:44Wow.
21:45It is-
21:46The sausage is fantastic.
21:46It completely alludes me how something,
21:48how you can make something this flavorful.
21:50Wow.
21:51Yeah, that sausage in particular, so meaty.
21:53Yeah.
21:54A little bit smoky, salty.
21:57It's like everything I want from a bite of meat.
21:58Yeah, I mean-
21:59And it's also in this incredible broth.
22:01It makes perfect sense why the wine was out the door.
22:03People lined up for this and I don't blame them.
22:05God, that's fantastic.
22:06I completely understand now
22:08why when this place closed during the pandemic,
22:10the neighborhood demanded they reopen.
22:12The people revolted.
22:13Could you imagine having this regularly
22:15and then it being taken away from you?
22:16I'm going to lose my mind.
22:18You've had a taste of the good life.
22:20You can't give this up.
22:20Everything is amazing.
22:22Like of all the places we've gone this entire trip,
22:26this is one of the best.
22:27Yeah.
22:27This is my favorite thing about this type of cuisine,
22:29like soul food.
22:30Like, yeah, you got greens, baby.
22:32They're sauteed, we got butter and garlic here.
22:34Yes, yes.
22:36Yeah, I feel like in the UK,
22:37if you see greens on a menu,
22:38you're like, oh, the healthy option.
22:40It's like, no.
22:44So garlicky.
22:45That's a perfect amount of garlic.
22:47I don't think I could go any more garlic than that.
22:49No vampires within like a five block radius
22:51of little dizzies.
22:52That's right.
22:53I know we're here for the gumbo,
22:54but they do also have some very good looking fried chicken.
22:56Yes, yes, yes, yes.
22:57Famous fried chicken.
22:58We did not include them in our fried chicken episode.
23:00That's another thing about soul food.
23:01Every place has gumbo, every place has fried chicken.
23:04I heard that crunch.
23:05I heard that crunch, baby.
23:06Like, you can just see the skin on here
23:08has kind of formed like crackling.
23:10Oh my God.
23:11Get in there, man.
23:12Okay.
23:18You see where Popeye's gets the nerve, right?
23:22To be like so seasoned versus everywhere else.
23:25I've always been a big advocate for Popeye's.
23:27Yeah.
23:28When you come here to the source,
23:29this is 10,000 times better than Popeye's.
23:32But you're getting that style of fried chicken
23:34where it's just flavored like to its saturation point.
23:39Yeah.
23:40No seasoning has been skimped on here.
23:41Oh boy.
23:42We have had three amazing gumbo's.
23:45Started off at Dooky Chase's.
23:47Historic, if not for its food,
23:50but for the family and for its involvement
23:53in this neighborhood over the past, what,
23:5580 years in New Orleans?
23:57A long time, yeah.
23:58Five generations of the Chase's.
24:01Been bringing incredible food.
24:03The cultural significance is hard to overstate.
24:07We've had presidents dining there.
24:08We've had other world leaders dining there.
24:10We've had civil rights leaders dining there.
24:12You really do feel like when you step in there,
24:14you are kind of stepping into history.
24:16And the food is also just incredible.
24:18After that with the Gabrielle's.
24:19Gabrielle.
24:20What'd you think of Gabrielle's?
24:21I loved Gabrielle.
24:22Really liked the kind of vibe in there,
24:24like that French bistro style,
24:25but very European.
24:27Slightly more modern,
24:27but still well within that kind of New Orleans scene.
24:29Absolutely.
24:30Gumbo there was fantastic.
24:31Probably the darkest gumbo that we've had today
24:34in terms of the roux.
24:35Dense, rich, like gloopy.
24:37Flavor was just packed in there.
24:39And then number three, here we are.
24:41Here we are.
24:42Little Dizzy's.
24:43Little Dizzy's.
24:43Unbelievably flavorful.
24:45Just packed with sausage,
24:46packed with meats,
24:47packed with seafood.
24:49Just incredible, incredible flavor.
24:50So impressed by everything,
24:51but the gumbo, as you just heard,
24:53we've been talking about it for the past five minutes,
24:55just completely wowed by how delicious it is.
24:58Yeah, super popular spot.
24:59You can tell how important this spot is
25:00to the Treme neighborhood.
25:02Getting that food to go,
25:03getting that food to sit in,
25:05sit around with your friends.
25:06Everything's been delicious.
25:08I do love the neighborhood feel to this place.
25:10Absolutely.
25:11Well, we have to pick one.
25:12We're contractually obligated to do so.
25:15Which was your favorite gumbo?
25:16So hard.
25:17This is probably the hardest decision
25:19we've made in New Orleans.
25:21And also one of the hardest decisions in food tours
25:24from the start that I've had to make.
25:26If it was based purely on the gumbo,
25:29it might've been that bowl of guinea hen at Gabrielle's.
25:33Wow, okay.
25:34But I do think I'm gonna have to factor more things
25:37into the decision.
25:38And I think for that,
25:39it's kind of hard to look past Dookie Chase.
25:41Yeah, Dookie Chase was my favorite.
25:43The food was incredible.
25:44Not far off of the other ones we've tried,
25:47like hairs breadth in it.
25:49But again, I think if you look at the cultural significance,
25:51the historical significance,
25:53the tradition going on at Dookie Chase's,
25:55it's the spot.
25:56Like if you come into New Orleans
25:57and you want the gumbo,
25:58you kind of have to go there.
26:00I 100% agree.
26:01Although everything we've had
26:02has been absolutely incredible.
26:03The whole thing was,
26:04when you were there,
26:05you just felt that communal,
26:06historic presence that the place has.
26:07And also the food was just unbelievable.
26:10Yeah, it was absolutely incredible.
26:11So yeah, all the other ones I really enjoyed,
26:12but Dookie Chase is a little bit better.
26:15I think I agree.
26:16So you had never had gumbo before, huh?
26:18No, first time trying it on this trip.
26:20I feel like I've now had a sort of baptism in gumbo.
26:23I've been dunked in the gumbo river
26:25and come out a new man.
26:27It's fantastic.
26:28It's such a delicious food.
26:30And also one that I really do think
26:31kind of encapsulates New Orleans,
26:33pre-old Cajun cuisines in a bowl.
26:35Whenever you taste gumbo
26:36or any of the gumbo's that we've tasted on this trip,
26:38you do feel the love that's gone into it.
26:40And yeah, for a second,
26:41you're like,
26:42this is kind of the only thing that matters right now.
26:43What's that in front of me?
26:44Well said.
26:45It's nice to go back to the UK
26:47and have all that bland, flavorless food.
26:50It's like you've seen color,
26:50you can't go back to black and white.
26:52Yeah, I have.
26:53It's going to be sad.
26:54It's going to be tough.
26:55I just have to come back again.
26:55Yeah, yeah, that's true, yeah.
26:58I don't think so.
26:59Maybe, I'm not sure.
27:00He must've been here.
27:01Maybe.
27:02It doesn't strike me as the place
27:03that would display his.