Continuing my French Quarter adventure, we walked a few blocks northeast of Cafe Du Monde to the famous French Market. Mom shared that the French Market looked vastly different from what it was 30-some years ago. She remembered it as having more local vendors that didn't all sell touristy items. So did it get more touristy over the years? Maybe someone can let me know if the French Market indeed changed from that long ago, as I have no personal memory of it back then.
Anyway, Loretta's was on my list not for their famous Praline Beignets, but for a unique, savory option. I had never heard of a Crab Beignet before watching YouTube videos on it, and since Mom doesn't like crab, I got to partake in this one alone for science.
It's just one beignet, opened up and a scoop of crab meat mixture inside. It's served with a remoulade with more local spices. First, this beignet was lighter and had a crispier exterior than Cafe Du Monde. Their crab mixture had a lovely blend of cajun-creole spices, while still letting the sweet crab meat shine. Remoulade paired well with this one. Delicious and I'd get it again.
I also obviously had to try one of their original pralines. It's a soft confection that I can best describe as having the consistency of a "sandy" fudge (from all the brown sugar) and a wonderful caramel flavor. Pralines also usually include pecans to give a texture contrast and added crunch. It's personally a bit sweet for me, but it was still warm, fresh, and to me, the best way to have a praline. One can get pralines at many places in New Orleans, and also from online, but it's best eaten fresh and right away. Loretta's does a great job with theirs.
I've never heard of a Praline Shoe Sole before. A large version of a praline?
Continuing with our sweet tea experience, we got Loretta's version here. This one was off-the-charts sweet, which probably goes to show how much Mom and I personally dilute our teas. We had to add a bunch of water to dilute this one down. Good and refreshing, just very concentrated sweet for us.
Overall, a great experience at Loretta's. I'll try to make room for their traditional and praline beignets in the future. 8/10
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