Ma Harper's Creole Kitchen — Restaurant in San Antonio

I'll be nice and go with 3 stars today. My wife and I stopped by after going down Hwy 35 and googling restaurants nearby. Ma Harper's popped up and we went on by. Nice little environment with limited parking....kinda hole in the wall just like we like it. I took a look around and saw nobody had food....that was the first indication we were in trouble. The waitress came by and took our drink orders and told us food was going to be 15-20 min to come out once we ordered so we ordered immediately. She told us that half of the already limited menu was unavailable today....it happens. We adjusted and proceeded to wait for my bowl of gumbo and her shrimp po'boy to come out. Forty minutes later we tried to pay for our drinks and leave to go somewhere we would actually GET our food. Thats when Ma Harper came out and explained/scolded us. She's 87, her cook called out so she had to cook herself, she makes things from scratch, she's not a fast food place. All understood, but thats not my fault. Its not easy to run a restaurant because you have to deal with hungry, impatient, and non-understanding people but how much fault falls on the consumer for wanting to leave? We decided to wait a little longer after the "explanation" because the elderly man working told us our food was on the way. So about 50 min after ordering our food, I honestly enjoyed my bowl of gumbo that took me about 4 min to consume. My wife's po'boy was poorly made, but thankfully the elderly man took it off our bill. Great act of faith but probably not enough for us to revisit.

I cant help but thinking "why didnt the waitress tell us a realistic wait time?" and "why is this 87 yr old lady doing all...

I'm originally from central Louisiana & have cooked Cajun, creole, & soul food the majority of my life. Finding authentic LA food is difficult. Many people start off cooking these foods the right way, then put their personal twists on it. This completely changes the authenticity. Ma Harper is from New Orleans, so I expected the best! I was not disappointed. While I've completely changed my diet & don't eat my home dishes anymore, I thoroughly enjoyed my meal. I realized how much I loved red beans & rice. I think my rice is better, but I don't have to cook for crowds, so I understand having to use different types for this purpose. My fried catfish recipe, was to pour yellow cornmeal in a brown paper bag, add salt, pepper & Tony's, then put catfish fillets in. Once fillets are covered well, they were deep fried until they become a beautiful golden brown. No flour or batter is ever used. Ma Harper's catfish is very lightly battered, so more of the actual catfish flavor is tasted. My friend ordered the pork chop. A lot of places boast about having large portions because their meat is heavily battered. This was not the case. Again, lightly battered & delicious. Then comes the cornbread. My cornbread was made from local, gristmill ground yellow cornmeal. Ma Harper's cornbread tasted exactly like that. I bought boudin for tomorrow!! I know it will be scrumptious! And the bread pudding....well try it for yourself! The wait staff was friendly & I'll definitely be back. Thanks to everyone for preserving the Louisiana heritage...

Wanted a quick bite for something different, so we stumbled across this southside joint. Parking was fine, though the lot could use some refurbishment. Inside the restaurant was quite warm. AC is definitely something every eatery should invest properly in when in TX. Hostess was nice and seated us. Menu was pretty simple with about a dozen items or so listed. My wife and I tried the gumbo and fried fish with shrimp. The gumbo was quite delicious and had a fair amount of meats inside such as chicken, sausage and shrimp. Main complaint was the portion size. Not everything in TX has to be as big as my forehead, but 10.99 is a bit steep for what we ordered. Next was the fried fish and shrimp, again very small portion sizes. Only one piece of fish and 4 shrimp. The breading was great and was coated with flavor. We would've appreciated one more piece of fish though.. Every peice of silverware is plastic, down to the bowls, plates, and utensils, not a fan. Plus it seems more costly to do so and unfortunately doesn't help the planet. But to each it's own. In the end, I could see us returning but not sure if it will be anytime soon. I do encourage you to stop by if you get the chance. The food is tasty, I assure...