The Top Five Cajun Restaurants in Orlando, Florida

If you find yourself in Orlando, Florida without a pierogue or a bayou, but your southern taste buds still want to laissez les bon ton roulette (let the good times roll) , you're in luck. Orlando, Florida is home to a good many restaurants that offer authentic Louisiana Cajun and Creole cuisine. Here's a preview of the top five places you'll want to try.

5. Crooked Bayou - 50 E. Central Blvd. • Orlando, Florida 32801 • 407.839.5852
M-F: 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. • Sat: Noon to 2 a.m.

If the bar/grill/club scene is your thing, Crooked Bayou is the place for you. Said to be Downtown Orlando's oldest restaurant, Crooked Bayou's menu features Cajun cuisine staples like red beans and rice, jambalaya, and chicken and sausage gumbo. Along with the traditional bar and grill fried fare such as hot wings and cheese sticks, Crooked Bayou offers dishes with a twist on Cajun cuisine such as crawfish po'boys and a Rajin' Cajun sandwich featuring andouille sausage and creole mustard. To wash it all down, the menu comes complete with Louisiana beers from the Abita Spring Brewery and Dixie Brewing company. After ten, the club scene picks up and Crooked Bayou starts hoppin'.

Recommendations: Try the jalapeno cornbread

www.crookedbayou.com

4. Emeril's Orlando - 6000 Universal Blvd. #702
Orlando, FL 32819
(407) 224-2424
Lunch Hours: Daily 11:30a-2:00p
Dinner Hours: Sun-Thu, 5:30p-10:00p, Fri-Sat, 5:30p-11:00p

If the high end of the cost spectrum is what you're looking for, Emeril's Orlando is the place for you. With an average cost of $40 per dish, this is not a venue for
the budget conscious. Emeril Lagasse has compiled a mouth-watering menu of gourmet cuisine with a Cajun flare. Here is a sampling of some of the menu items:

Fried Green Tomatoes With Jumbo Lump Crabmeat, Remoulade Sauce,
Creole Tomato Glaze and Farm Greens

Homemade Andouille Sausage Bourbon Whipped Sweet Potatoes,
Vol Au Vent, Braised Vidalia Onions and Emeril's Own Worcestershire Sauce

Emeril's Orlando does adhere to a business casual dress code and men in sleeveless shirts are not allowed. Valet parking offered at patron's expense. Reservations months in advance are recommended.

www.emerils.com

3. Chao Cajun - (407) 770-1890
8001 S Orange Blossom Trl, Orlando, FL 32809

Cajun food served mall food court style! This concept first introduced in 1996 at the Oxford Valley Mall in Langhorne, Pennsylvania - not in the deep south. However, that doesn't limit Chao Cajun's menu selection at all. A sampling of Chao Cajun's Cajun fare
includes:
Dirty Rice
Shrimp Etouffee
Chicken Etouffee
Chicken Gumbo
Jambalaya

2. The House of Blues - 1490 E. Buena Vista Dr.
Lake Buena Vista, FL 32830
(407) 934-BLUE

The House of Blues is sort of like a grunge band practice garage meets high-priced semi-gourmet food. While it's true you can get an authentic Cajun meal from The House of Blues' menu, the place is more about the atmosphere than it is the food. Several local, national, and sometimes famous bands play on The House of Blues' various stages every day of the week. Some of the events are free while most of them have a menial cover charge. On Sunday, The House of Blues hosts a Gospel Brunch. Headlining gospel music bands and performers entertain patrons while they enjoy a buffet-style brunch with everything you can imagine - even turnip greens. The brunch is pricey, though. Tickets for adults aged ten (yes, 10) years and older are $33.50. Tickets for children aged 3 years through 9 years are $17.25 while children two and under are free. Aside from this event, The House of Blues doesn't appear to be a very kid-friendly place. Reservations are recommended and can be made online at www.hob.com/venues/clubvenues/orlando .

1. Jockamo's New Orleans Kitchen - 3042 W. Sand Lake Road
Orlando, FL 32819
(407) 226-2848
Mon-Sat 11:00AM to 9:00PM Sunday 11:00AM to 4:00PM

Jockamo's New Orleans Kitchen is the place where everybody on a Cajun cuisine mission can have fun. Jockamo's offers a fun, family atmosphere and authentic Cajun food. Jockamo's New Orleans Kitchen even hosts traditional Cajun crawfish boils! You'd better hurry if you want to catch the last batch of the season. Jockamo's final crawfish boil for 2008 will be held on July 19th. They won't have any more until January of 2009. If you can't get there in time, don't worry. You can still enjoy Jockamo's famous po'boys and side dishes. Choose between the crawfish, gator (yes, real alligator), or crawgator (a combo of crawfish and alligator) if you're looking for true Cajun flare. If you're not quite up to eating anything remotely gator related, Jockamo's offers the traditional Cajun staples of jambalaya, gumbo, and red beans and rice. They even have rice and butter! Round off your meal with an authentic New Orleans beignet for dessert.

For more information, including pictures of the establishment, reviews, and the history of the po'boy and jockamo - visit www.jockamos.com