A la Nouvelle Orléans Cochon offers a very good experience of Cajun cuisine, simple and affordable, in a lively and friendly setting.
For this second dinner, I picked from the list of restaurants that I had selected before my trip, as my friends were tied up with work commitments for most of the day and had delegated some of the logistics to me.
The specifications? Local, friendly and affordable.
While the day before Compère Lapin was more of a Creole restaurant, for a change I chose a Cajun restaurant to take a tour of the city’s influences.
You will find a summary of the articles on this trip to Boston, New York and New Orleans at the bottom of the page.
The concept
Cochon is a Cajun restaurant.
In the context of this trip to New Orleans, it therefore seems useful to explain the difference between Creole and Cajun cuisine, the two pillars of local cuisine.
Creole cuisine is more urban and refined, influenced by European cuisine (French, Spanish), with rich sauces and the frequent use of tomatoes.
Cajun cuisine, more rustic and spicy, comes from the Acadians who settled in Louisiana. It favors local products, smoking and stews without tomatoes.
For example, Creole gumbo often contains tomatoes, while Cajun gumbo is thicker and spicier. Creole jambalaya, on the other hand, resembles paella, while Cajun jambalaya is drier and spicier.
The menu
The setting
It is a very large room with brick walls, in fact a former warehouse, with an open kitchen and large tables because it is obviously a restaurant designed to accommodate groups of friends.
The meal
We are quickly seated at our table and are brought bread and butter of really very good quality.
To start, we will share a plate of fried alligator with spicy garlic mayonnaise.
Just the right amount of spice, tender and tasty meat.
To start, I’ll have the jumbo chicken and andouille sausage.
It’s true that in terms of presentation it’s not very Instagrammable, but for this type of dish it’s difficult to do otherwise.
It reminds me a little of a spicy pot au feu.
The meat is melt-in-the-mouth but the sauce could perhaps be a little lighter.
The end result is a hearty and very tasty dish.
Then I had the Louisiana cochon, cream of grits and mustard gravy.
Very smooth and tasty, the mash is light and the whole dish goes down easily. In fact, the mash is a mixture of mashed potatoes, egg and mustard.
All in all, an excellent dinner that was both tasty and filling.
Atmosphere
Lively and noisy, but unlike Compère Lapin, I won’t hold that against it. Here, it goes with the setting and the DNA of the property, whereas in the other case it was a restaurant whose more subdued setting would have merited a more peaceful atmosphere.
Service
A very friendly waiter from Honduras who was happy to show us that he had a good command of French.
Bottom line
A very nice discovery, a very good meal and an excellent evening with friends.
The articles about this trip to Boston, New York and New Orleans
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