i never thought i would live to see the day where i would claim that one of the best poorboys i have tasted was devoid of shrimp, oyster, catfish, or roast beef. yes, you read that correctly. i am here to tell you that one of the city’s best kept culinary secrets, but with growing praise each passing day, is in the heart of one of the most popular tourist destinations in the country: vieux carré, otherwise known as the french quarter.
in the rear section of a business i have already praised, the locally-adored erin rose irish bar, lies an underground operation churning out five of the most bizarre poorboy offerings you will ever see. simply put, they are killer poboys.
operated by culinary artisans cam boudreaux and april bellow, killer poboys has been working feverishly for the past several years in attempt to bring new school poorboys to the people of new orleans. after passing up the opportunity to try one of these bad boys during my first visit to erin rose, i decided that i would dedicate my saturday dinner to indulging in these one of a kind sandwiches.
my date and i selected the roasted sweet potato poboy, which seemed particularly appealing to this self-professed sweet potato lover, and the immensely appealing glazed porkbellypoboy. the price advertised for the poorboys is what you pay (i.e. tax included). there are no hidden costs after you place your order. for some reason, i always love businesses that don’t throw in additional costs other than the one that is advertised. this alone is worthy of applause.
plus, my wallet was still relatively plump after the price amounted to only $19. that might still seem like a lot to some, but when you realize that most poorboy shops charged around $12 per sandwich, you will soon be thankful for killer poboys’ affordable menu.
after a few minutes off sipping on our adult beverages at the bar, our poorboys were brought to us fresh out the kitchen.
i started off the meal with the roasted sweet potato which consisted of a black-eyed pea and pecan spread, pickled shallots, greens (including kale), and what i would best describe as filets of roasted sweet potato. the sandwich was unlike any i have had before. the black-eyed peas, pickled shallots, and greens, provided a salty contrast to the subtle sweetness of the pecans and sweet potatoes. it is relatively light yet filling at the same time. the bread was also delicious and a bit different from the garden-variety french loaves offered with most poorboys.
next came the glazed pork belly. my date could not stop raving over this interesting concoction. comprised of porkbellyglazed in both rum and ginger cane syrup, lime slaw, and garlic aioli, this poorboy is moist, juicy, and absolutely delicious. the richness of the pork fat paired with the sweetness of the cane syrup and the savory flavor of the slaw and aioli works as a prefect tandem. there wasn’t a crumb left by the end of our meal.
because we were sitting in erin rose, the service and environment were of course fantastic. obviously the food was delicious and the prices are more than reasonable given the sort of ingredients employed in the construction of each poorboy.
with a new location on the way and supposedly an expanded menu including breakfast in the works, i’m sure to return soon to check out what will likely be a bigger and badder version of this already superb hole in the wall eatery.
glazed porkbelly poboy taste: 9.5/10 sweetpotato poboy taste: 8.5/10
cost: 8.5/10
dining area/décor: 8.5/10
customer service: 9/10
location: 8/10