TAKE ONE
Two Creole contenders
By Jessica Keltz; photos by kc kratt

Lagniappes highlights include the catfish sandwich and gumbo.
The mystique of New Orleans predates Hurricane Katrina, Trent Reznor, and Anne Rice, as well as our own Ani DiFranco, who makes the city her part-time home. It may even predate Louis Armstrong, Fats Domino, the Neville brothers, and the Marsalis family. Most Americans can call an image to mind when they hear the city’s name: blues and zydeco music, the French Quarter, late nights full of mystery, and crowded cafes.

It’s no surprise, then, that New Orleans-themed restaurants can be found all over the country, much like New York-style pizza counters and baskets of what the rest of America calls “Buffalo wings.”

In Buffalo, two NOLA-themed eateries have sprung up in the past few years: Shango, in the University Heights neighborhood; and Lagniappes, in Allentown, on the same block as neighborhood standards Allen Street Hardware Cafe, Nietzche’s, and the old Pink.

Having never been to New Orleans, I can only guess at the authenticity of either restaurant, and, as a vegetarian, I don’t plan to find out which has the better gumbo. So I enlisted my boyfriend, who comes from a Houston-based Creole family, to tell me what was what.

Our first stop was at Shango, a white-tablecloth outfit that takes reservations—and I recommend making them. When we arrived there on a Saturday night, tables were booked straight through to 9 p.m., but they were able to get us seats in the “lounge” area along the bar within fifteen or twenty minutes. In addition to a New Orleans-inspired dinner menu with selections such as Creole meatloaf, fried oyster po boys, and seafood-heavy pasta dishes, Shango is known for its Sunday brunch, which features steak and eggs with red beans, andouille sausage and grits, stuffed French toast with a brie filling, and pesto scrambled eggs.

When the server at Shango brought Ken’s first course to the table, he said, “I’ve never eaten gumbo in a public place before.” Back in Texas, gumbo is home-cooked food, like a Sunday pot roast or cauldron of meatballs.

At home, Ken’s used to an emphasis on okra, shrimp, and sausage in a tomato broth with some chicken, served over rice. Shango serves “more of a meat stew,” he said, noting the richer broth and smaller amount of rice. The difference, he explained after a consultation with the folks back in Houston, is that Shango appeared to be serving “filé” gumbo, a variation of the dish that’s darker, smokier, and seasoned with a spice called filé powder made from dried sassafras leaves and that originated in Native American cooking.

Shango’s gumbo and catfish po boy.
“It just varies family by family, what they prefer to have more of,” Ken notes. At his mother’s table, the gumbo is heavy on shrimp and sausage, but another family might add crawfish, or more chicken. Ultimately, Laginappes produced something a bit more familiar, because it was served over rice, although still very light on the okra. It also served up its gumbo with a side of French bread, whereas Shango offered what was dismissed as “sugary northern cornbread.”

Ken also tried a catfish po boy at both restaurants.

“I’ve had catfish all over the south,” he said after a bite or two of Shango’s sandwich. “They got the spices right.” He thought the fish was a bit undercooked, based on its texture, but gave the sandwich an overall good review.

At Lagniappes the fish was cooked more and featured larger portions. Even the lettuce, tomato, and onion were dished out with a more generous hand.

Lagniappes is a tiny bar-district hole-in-the-wall, while Shango is more of a date-night experience, so it’s probably no surprise that prices are lower at the first. Four dollars buys you a lot more gumbo at Lagniappes, but you eat it with a can of pop purchased out of a cooler, wedged into a tiny booth watching Allen Street go by. At Shango, you can enjoy draft beers, one of Buffalo’s best wine lists, and some unexpected bottled beers—including several selections from the Abita brewery in New Orleans.

If enjoying cramped quarters, loud music, off-beat décor, and colorful characters—an ambiance perhaps more reminiscent of New Orleans—isn’t your speed, try Lagniappes for takout. They cook until 2 a.m. Tuesday through Saturday. The menu includes two kinds of gumbo, red beans and rice, salads, entrees, no less than nineteen sandwiches, and sides like black-eyed peas and baked mac and cheese for $2.

Shango
3260 Main St., Buffalo,
837-2326, www.shangobistro.com

Lagniappes
244 Allen St., Buffalo,
883-3663, www.lagniappescafe.com

Jessica Keltz is an attorney and freelance writer. She lives, works, plays, and eats in the City of Buffalo.


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