Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen, Birmingham, AL Report #649

I’ve often wondered about this place. It’s a chain with restaurants in numerous states, but none in Louisiana. I’ve heard good things about them but never had the chance to stop in and try one. Just so happens this one’s in walking distance of the hotel I’m staying in, so it was finally time I give them a try.

This restaurant chain has a really interesting story, going all the way back to 1897. Here’s a link if you’re interested in reading about it. Be sure to check out the “Fun Facts”: https://pappadeaux.com/our-story/

This place is enormous! Haven’t seen a lobster tank in awhile. When I was reading about the places history and other facts, they do say they pride themselves on fresh and high quality ingredients. Here’s a link to their menu: https://files.pappadeaux.com/images/dyn/menus/menu_2885.pdf

We decided on:

%%% THE FOOD %%%

“Louisiana” Gumbo

Uhh, yeah. “Gumbo”

Fried Calamari & Octopus

Pasta Mardi Gras

Crawfish Platter

Again, this place doesn’t have any restaurants in Louisiana, so when I saw “Louisiana” Gumbo on the menu, I just HAD to try it! The way they put Louisiana in quotes kind of made me think they were unsure of themselves and asking a question. I ordered the andouille sausage and seafood version.

I can say without hesitation, this is NOT Louisiana gumbo! But, I can’t really speak for northern Louisiana. For all I know the Louisiana yankees up around Shreveport and Monroe may put big chunks of celery and tomatoes in their gumbo. And maybe they use something to make a light brown colored broth instead of using a nice, thick dark roux. So let me say this is definitely not SOUTHERN Louisiana gumbo!

With all the being said, it was pretty good! I liked the sausage, and it was full of great tasting seafood. The light broth was very flavorful. Call it a good seafood and veggie soup, but NOT gumbo!

I never saw fried calamari combined with octopus, so this was another dish I had to try. It was great! The chunks of fried octopus legs were unbelievably tender. And that lemon aioli dipping sauce was so yummy I didn’t even get to the marinara.

My dining partner ran into a quandary. She wanted to get the Pasta Mardi Gras, but didn’t want the marinara cream sauce. Another pasta on the menu came with a white wine cream sauce that she wanted. We asked if we could get that sauce with it instead, and our waiter said no problem.

She LOVED this pasta dish! It was loaded with seafood. Eight huge shrimp, too many crawfish tails to count, and several big slices of sausage. The cream sauce wasn’t too heavy and very flavorful.

Finally, my crawfish platter. We have a law in Louisiana stating if a place serves imported crawfish they have to advertise that on the menu. I won’t eat foreign crawfish. I recently made a pot of etouffee for some out of town guest. Louisiana crawfish was $16.99/pound, and imported Chinese crawfish was $6.99/pound. I didn’t hesitate to buy the local product. The taste and texture is far superior to the imported ones, and of course I want to support our local seafood industry.

Well, Alabama has no such law so I had no idea where these crawfish came from. But they were delicious! Tasty and tender like Louisiana crawfish. The etouffee was seasoned very well as were the fried crawfish tails. And I should mention the portions here are huge! Neither one of us could finish our entrées.

One more thing. Crawfish etouffee is traditionally served with white rice. Not dirty rice. But I was interested in trying their dirty rice so I was happy to see it show up on my plate. It was pretty good! It reminded me of the one Popeye’s Fried Chicken serves, but better.

Outstanding dinner here tonight. I recommend the place!

3500 Grandview Pkwy., Birmingham, AL 35243 Ph: (205) 582-5083

Blaine 12-9-2023