Charleston's Bourbon Street Bistro brings a taste of The Big Easy to downtown
- Steven Keith
- 1 day ago
- 4 min read
It's not exactly like what you'd enjoy in New Orleans, but it's good
More than 900 miles separate Bourbon Street Bistro in Charleston from its namesake inspiration in New Orleans, but this downtown restaurant’s food and ambiance make it feel much closer.
First things first. Is the food at 714 Lee St. JUST as good as what you’d enjoy in one of the world’s greatest culinary cities down south? No, and it’s unrealistic to expect it would be. Is it generally good, with a few items that need tweaks and others that stand out? Sure is.
I snuck in the restaurant to dine three different nights to make sure my experiences were consistent and I walked away enjoying each visit. The food is fairly good, service has been solid and the vibe really tries – as they say in The Big Easy – to let the good times roll!
I give the place bonus points for the atmosphere they’ve created inside what used to be a fairly sparse dining room for Karubee’s Jamaican Cuisine. Plain walls have been replaced with vibrant colors and New Orleans-themed décor, including French-inspired street signs, plenty of beads, even a gator. There’s also a live cam showing what’s going on in New Orleans’ famed French Quarter while you dine.
The restaurant – a shared dream of Chef Curtis Workman and his partner, Angela Booth – opened last December with a goal of bringing authentic Cajun and Creole food to West Virginia’s capital city.
Recipes were carefully researched and some ingredients are even sourced from original suppliers in Louisiana.
So as you might expect, Bourbon Street Bistro serves an array of traditional Louisiana dishes, including stuffed po-boys, gumbo, jambalaya, etouffee and chargrilled oysters, plus creative Cajun and Creole takes on classics like boudin balls, swamp poppers, smothered streetcar fries, deep-fried deviled eggs and gator bites.
As for my take, let’s start at the top. Your move here is most definitely the Redfish Pontchartrain, which (no lie) is one of the best dishes I’ve had anywhere in recent memory. The large plate of blackened Gulf redfish literally drowning in a flavor-packed shrimp and butter sauce was delicious and decadent, bite after memorable bite. It’s been months since I first tried it, and I dream of it still.
Other hits were savory deep-fried boudin balls filled with pork, rice and spice (with zesty Creole mustard for dipping) and the “Tour of the Quarter,” offering a hit-list of NOLA favorites (gumbo, crawfish etouffee and half a po’boy on authentic Gambino’s French bread) for just $30.
On the downside, my shrimp po-boy was dry and begging for a splash of sauce, while the jambalaya I tried on a subsequent visit was a little one-dimensional with a nice amount of spice but not enough other seasoning to balance it out. The Cajun-seasoned streetcar fries (piled high with slow-cooked roast beef “debris” gravy, melted cheese and scallions) tasted OK and were served hot, but it seemed they had been reheated from much earlier given the cheese’s tough consistency.
And while I’ve bypassed the Cajun “Pastalaya” each time – snobbishly surmising that it was authentic enough to try – I recently saw a mouthwatering photo that’s giving me serious FOMO. That saucy little number is a big bowl of penne tossed in a Cajun cream sauce with mushrooms, peppers and your choice of andouille sausage, blackened chicken, shrimp – or all three. Why I have repeatedly denied myself this pleasure is beyond me.
In addition to the regular menu, there are also occasional specials worth checking out, including a recent red beans-and-rice bowl, an iconic dish often served in New Orleans households on Mondays. (Why? Because that was historically laundry day, and this was a dish that could stew on the stovetop all day while tending to those chores.)
Speaking of specials, while I was dead-set on sinking my teeth into a messy, powdered-sugary plate of beignets, the dessert special on my latest visit was (cue my giddy voice) bourbon pecan pie. Don’t mind if I do!
Wow, what a showstopper. This slice of heaven was bursting with wonderfully rich, roasted and toasted flavors and wasn’t at all sickly sweet as pecan pie tends to be. The cinnamon-infused Chantilly cream dolloped on top was the perfect finishing touch.
Although the restaurant struggled with staffing and demand issues when it first opened, it seems to have settled into a more regular routine now. My service has been exceptional each time, with my bright-as-sunshine waitress Ashley remembering me each time I’ve walked in.
My final verdict?
Since most restaurant critiques inevitably involve some kind of comparison, it’s only fair that I share those thoughts here. I’ve already acknowledged the food is not going to be exactly as good as what you’d sink your teeth into down south.
And I’ll also tell you it’s not the best New Orleans you can get in West Virginia. That title goes to the amazing little Gumbo Stop Café down at Heritage Station in Huntington.
But Bourbon Street Bistro is fairly solid, y’all, and I highly recommend checking it out. Let the good times roll, indeed.
IF YOU GO: Bourbon Street Bistro at 714 Lee St. in Charleston is open from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday-Saturday. For more information, call 304-982-5003, visit www.bourbonstreetcharleston.com or check out the restaurant’s Facebook page.
Steven Keith is a food writer and restaurant critic known as “The Food Guy” who writes a weekly column for the Charleston Gazette-Mail and has appeared in several state, regional and national publications. Follow him online at www.wvfoodguy.com or on Facebook, X, Instagram and Pinterest as “WV Food Guy.” He can be reached at wvfoodguy@aol.com.