A restaurant where you can have brunch every single day of the week PLUS delicious, authentic New Orleans-style food where you can byob it, too? Uh, yes please!
As you know, I never leave for a destination without digging deeply into some research to find the best and most interesting experiences that a location has to offer. That’s exactly how, while accompanying Mr. Bubbleista on a work trip to San Antonio at the end of last summer {check out my review of Hotel Havana here}, I discovered the adorably charming NOLA Brunch & Beignets restaurant.
Open for not quite 2 years, NOLA Brunch & Beignets is helmed by chef-owner Pieter Sypesteyn, who also owns another creole-cuisine inspired restaurant in San Antonio that’s right around the corner called The Cookhouse. NOLA Brunch offers the kind of quintessential New Orleans dishes that can make the most homesick New Orleanian feel at home.
Housed in an adorable Creole cottage that looks like it was plucked right out of Treme, the restaurant is full of New Orleans character and I was delighted by it from the moment I stepped inside.
Since I knew that I was going to order a few different dishes across both the sweet and savory spectrum {since I wanted to get a good feel for what the food was like overall} so I took advantage of the BYOB option and brought long some Pierre Gimonnet et Fils champagne since champagne is so versatile for pairing with all kinds of dishes.
Okay, who am I kidding–The Bubbleista is always gon’ bring champagne with her wherever she goes, byob or not. But I digress…back to the food at NOLA.
Here’s what I ordered: Bananas Foster Buttermilk Pancakes with bruleed bananas, chai rum caramel, powdered sugar, and vanilla chantilly; Uptown Eggs Bennie with poached egg and shrimp Creole (I swapped out the biscuit for some Gambino’s po-boy bread-REAL New Orleans French bread!); and, of course, beignets and a cafe au lait.
I loved the thoughtful textural play that was highlighted by my two main entrees. The crunchy sugar crust on the bananas and the creamy caramel were a wonderful contrasts to the the tender banana infused pancakes. And I loved the texture of the crisp, lightly dressed, spicy arugula greens on top of the Eggs Bennie together with the soft egg yolk and tender chunks of fresh shrimp. SO. GOOD!
The beignets, while not quite 100% on par with those in New Orleans, were still delicious, pillowy, powdery, warm bites of sweet goodness that make you not feel so bad that you aren’t actually in New Orleans.
With their delightful design, delicious New Orleans style fare, and the warm hospitality and service, NOLA Brunch & Beignets is definitely on my “must-do” list for future trips to San Antonio, and it should be on yours too! Keep scrolling to check out more photos of the charming and colorful decor and the delectable food!
