When Mama Lu’s Kitchen opens later this summer on Kabel Drive in Algiers, owner Shoney Johns will be bringing down-home, affordable comfort food to a street where she came up. Recently, she told What Now New Orleans that the area desperately needs a restaurant like the one she’s preparing to open.
“I can’t think of a sit-down, home comfort food restaurant that’s been in our area, ever,” she said. “You know, we’ve always had the corner stores with the hotlines or like chicken plates or something, but nothing with down-home comfort food.”
Available for $13, main dishes at Mama Lu’s will include smothered pork chops, chicken, turkey wings, turkey necks, and okra. There will also be baked chicken, fried chicken, and fried fish. Crawfish etouffee, shrimp stew, and gumbo will be available for an extra charge. Daily specials for $16 include red beans with rice, oxtails with gravy, and barbecue chicken or ribs.
Johns said she’s proud of New Orleans’ reputation for world-class restaurants. But, she mused that the city needs more affordable sit-down options.
“The restaurant industry in New Orleans is vibrant and thriving, but I just think there’s a need for more affordable Southern food,” she said. “Because, you know, we go to some places and it kills our pockets. The food is good, but when you look at the bill, you’re like, I think I’m gonna have to come back here next year. You know what I mean?”
