Tibby's New Orleans Kitchen — Restaurant in Winter Park

Tibby's New Orleans Kitchen is a colorful, popular restaurant with an energetic vibe and authentic New Orleans style that fills the senses with excitement and pleasure. Delightful aromas waft into the dining area from Tibby's bustling kitchen as patrons drink and fill the air with laughter and conversation. Being a native of south Louisiana and former New Orleans resident, I looked forward to sampling a variety of dishes, including the spring boudin rolls, creole jambalaya, chicken & andouille filé gumbo, crawfish etouffee, and traditional New Orleans style beignets with brandy dipping sauce. The boudin rolls were not as seasoned or spicy as those found in south Louisiana, but the accompanying creole dijonnaise dip more than made up for any lack I might have perceived. Beautifully wrapped in thin rice paper, the boudin rolls were fried to perfection and were perfectly complimented by either Tibby's flavorful hot sauce or the dijonnaise dip. The creole jambalaya was truly authentically New Orleans 'creole' - as opposed to Cajun style jambalaya. The only drawback was the bay flavor (probably crushed bay leaves or bay powder) was a bit overwhelming. It clashed with my taste sensibilities, although that may not be true for others. The gumbo likewise suffered a bit from too much bay and filé seasoning. But again, that's a personal taste. Nonetheless, the chicken & andouille sausage was authentic and spiced well. The crawfish etouffee used a butter base and sported a very blond color, unlike some etouffee recipes, which are a bit darker. Still, the etouffee had good flavor. The final piece included two small beignets (New Orleans/French doughnuts) covered with powdered sugar, accompanied by a Brandy dipping sauce. Oh my! Not only were these beignets authentic, but absolutely delicious as well. So, everything from start to finish was authentic and tasty. As for personnel, the staff at Tibby's were outstanding from the front hostess, to A.J. my waiter, to Jake the manager. Everyone was amazing! Oh, and I didn't mention the authentic French Quarter style bar and drink options! Tibby's New Orleans Kitchen is as authentic as they come and a delightful place to enjoy good food, great company and an awesome New Orleans style atmosphere. Highly...

Ok, just stop already! On a scale from 1 to 10, I give this place an "I can't even!"

This place is just incredible. I'm talking stupid good! I've been to NOLA several times, and this place is better than 90% of the restaurants in the French Quarter! I've eaten here twice now, and each time the food has been "slap yo momma" good! The first time, I ended up getting pretty much one of everything because I couldn't decide. Jambalaya, seafood gumbo, crawfish etouffee, red beans & rice, and a half muffuletta! Sounds like a lot, right?? Well luckily there is a secret option to do sampler sizes of everything! My favorite literally kept changing with every bite. I still can't decide which is best.

My second trip, I decided to try out the po-boy. Now you must know, I'm VERY picky when it comes to my po-boys! The bread has to be JUST right, packed with shrimp/crawfish/oysters/whatever I'm feeling that day. Well that crawfish po-boy smacked me better than my grandma's shoe! Hooooey! That baby was good! That can rival Johnny's or Mother's any day of the week! Same goes for pretty much everything I've eaten here.

OK, now I've gotta address the service - and truth be told, the first time I went, I went to the location in Altamonte Springs. The second time was this location in Winter Park. My service in AS was phenomenal! Couldn't get better service. My service in WP?? Well...did I mention how good the food was???

Haha! So yes, sadly, my service was very subpar here. Normally I would give a much lower rating for bad service, but the food here is so good, they could probably smack me across the face with the menu and I'd still come back. Hopefully they can iron that piece out, because I know it's influencing several other reviewers; which is a shame (not to the reviewers, but to restaurant - fully agree with other reviewers criticism), because it may deter folks from giving the place a shot.

I guess if you are really concerned with service, make the trip out to AS. Otherwise, just think of it like the Soup Nazi on Seinfeld - rude service, but you are lucky to have such amazing, authentic NOLA food option in your area, so you do what...

We'd heard about Tibby's from some friends and decided to make the short trek from Daytona to Winter Park to check it out. Man, are we glad we did! From the time you enter this whimsical space, you're surrounded by all things New Orleans, and particularly Mardi Gras. The walls are covered in beads, colorful paintings and masks, as well as some reminders of the struggles the city endured during and after Hurricane Katrina. The vibe is festive, and that vibe extends to the cocktail menu, which includes a Hurricane and one of the most proper Sazeracs I've ever had outside of the city. We started with Fried Green Tomatoes and Crawfish... perfectly seasoned and breaded with corn meal and spices, and fried to a golden brown. This excellent starter paired well with my cocktail with its delightful tartness. For entrees, the kid and i had Po-Boy sandwiches (mine was oysters and crawfish, his was catfish and crawfish) and the lady had the Chicken Ponchatrain. Her dish consisted of two perfectly sauteed chicken breasts with a rich cajun sauce served on top and she had dirty rice for a side. The chicken was full of flavor and the rice was well prepared and very tasty. Unlike many restaurants that scrimp on the main ingredients, Tibby's Po-Boys were stuffed and messy and absolutely delicious!! I ordered a side of "cheddar grits", and as cheese grits go, they were very good, with a ton of flavor and perfectly cooked. For dessert, of course we had to try their beignets and folks, if you've ever wondered if anyone makes a beignet as good as Cafe Du Mond, the answer is yes! It's Tibby's!! We tried their bread pudding, which was also a terrific bite of sweet surrender. Paired with a cup of chicory coffee, our meal's ending left us feeling as though we'd just made a quick trip to The Big Easy for the afternoon. To top it off, the service staff was awesome and the manager was extremely friendly. If you find yourself craving some exceptional cajun faire, do yourself a favor and head to Tibby's. You'll be...