killer poboys

loved everything about it. the cramped dining area was filled with character, and my first try of theporkbelly with the slightly sweet rum sauce was something totally new and different. i'll be back to hang out at erin rose and try the rest of killer's menu.

such a cool little tucked away hidey hole! best poboy i've ever had. we did the coriander shrimp and the dark and stormy. theporkbelly was like butter. also got a side of red skin potato salad- freaking off the chain. makes you feel like a local, like you know something the tourists don't

to doubly make sure, i ordered two. bourbon braisedporkbelly with lime slaw and a gulf shrimp, pickled veggie one. omg. these are worthy of deconstruction and served degustation at a posh nosh place. amazing flavours.

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 glazedporkbelly poboy. 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 glazedporkbelly. my date could not stop raving over this interesting concoction. comprised ofporkbelly glazed in both rum and ginger cane syrup, lime slaw, and garlic aioli, this poorboy is moist, juicy, and absolutely delicious. the richness of theporkfat 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

good place to go with your vegetarian friend. don't have much to add to the other reviews here except that if you are hanging out in the quarter with a friend who is vegetarian, this is a good place to go. they seem to always have one meatless poboy. when i went it was sweet potato and kale and some other healthy stuff that really tasted good when you put it all together. hell, it might have even been vegan. theporkbelly poboy was delicious too (see my pretty pictures above). this place sure lives up to its reputation. seems like only a matter of time until it breaks out into its own larger space.

this place was small, but they definitely had their own unique twist that made our visit worthwhile. these po'boys reminded me of vietnamese banh mi sandwiches. i tried theporkbelly (amazing) and the shrimp...theporkbelly had a great flavor, but the shrimp was not as good as at domalise's. they were sauteed instead of fried, so they already had a disadvantage. my co-blogger pointed out that they were completely different genres so couldn't really be compared, but i did it anyway, and domalise's won!

had theporkbelly. it was delicious! the shrimp was different but great. the restaurant is definitely a hole in the wall-- it's about 10'x10' square.

dark and stormy!!!. i ate hear a month ago and was really impressed. the dark and stormy poboy blew my mind; it was delicious! theporkbelly and sauce was just awesome... be ready to spend $10-12 per poboy and also know that the menu is extremely limited to 6-7 sandwiches. and if you're having trouble finding it, it's nestled in the back of erin rose bar.

we went here on the recommendation of our favourite bartender and we're glad we did. it was one of the best meals of our 6 trip. we split theporkbelly and the grilled shrimp po boys, and both were awesome!

quite often, i find myself genuinely frustrated that i cannot offer choice food porn from wonderful restaurants due to bad lighting, a mediocre camera or simply a lack of photographic skill. this is one of those times. a little while back, john and i were in the french quarter and decided to hit killer poboys , a hot new pop-up inside the  erin rose bar on conti. it was just past 5 p.m. and the tiny bar was already full of devoted patrons, drinking and enjoying a football game on tv. we squished our way through to the back and placed our order at a small counter in a room eclectically decorated (like any great bar), replete with a colorful mural. sitting down at the only available bar stools, we sipped on abita ambers and waited for our food to appear.  before long, our poboys were ready and they were most definitely "killer" dude. john ordered the dark & stormy poboy withporkbraised in old new orleans rum, lime slaw and garlic aioli. i must acknowledge its sloppy, wonderful tastines

the dark and stormyporkis outstanding regardless of what the gambit says. ive had it 3x w/in a week. erin rose is cool, but they need a bigger spot and will get one due to their success.