(rock music)
- We are Sorted, a combination of foodies and chefs who have been mates for years, looking for game-changing
food and travel experiences. Today we're in New Orleans to
discover fantastic local food and research what makes a Po'boy so good. At the end of the trip,
Barry, Mike and Jamie will go head-to-head in
an ultimate Po'boy battle. (rhythmic music) - First Po'boy of the day, we've come to the French Quarter of New
Orleans to Killer Poboys, one of the most highly
recommended places for Po'boys. And in true Sorted style, we've gone for the
opposite of traditional. - I mean, I probably
don't need to tell you that that is quite sweet and sticky, you can see from the shine in the glaze. But the warmth of the
ginger is really nice to offset the chew of the pork, the crunch of the bread. - I'm just gonna remake
this for my battle. - But I still don't know what
makes it officially a Po'boy. So we need to go and
find tradition, classic and more Po'boys, essentially. (upbeat music) - [Barry] And that's exactly
what Jamie and Ben did. - ♪ Po'boys, Po'boys, Po'boys. ♪ ♪ Po'boys, Po'boys, horse, horse! ♪ It's already incredibly different to the first one that we had. No soggy bottoms, no tons of sauce. - [Ben] So loads of crispy fried oyster, but on the inside it is melted butter. - It's delicious and I
love the simplicity of it. - [Mike] So Baz and I
have come to the uptown, specifically Magazine Street, which is just an amazing street with cool bars, boutique shops. We've got a ton of restaurants here, so we're just gonna see
what we can get through. - [Barry] The first being
Turkey And The Wolf. - You guys tell us to go for
the fried bologna sandwich, and it's just turned up. And well, look at it. Fried bologna is not on my
list, so I'm gonna try it before I tell you what it is. It's got bologna, it's
got some American cheese, it's got, like any great
sandwich, it's got crisps or chips inside of it.
(loud crunching) - [Mike] Really recognizable flavors, it all comes together really well. It is just really satisfying to eat. - I really liked that place. - We came to New Orleans a few years ago and I think it's fair to say it's held a special place
in our hearts ever since. - All that time ago we said
"Yes", when we had an invitation from Jordan and her family
to spend some time with them and to get their local recommendations. And we've realized,
playing by these rules, it is the best way to travel. - It really opens up everything, to be able to create
game changing moments. - [Ben] So we compiled a list
of local New Orleans dishes you on social media said we should eat. We split into teams and tried to cover off as many as possible. (musical instruments)
- It's not every city you can walk down the street and just have live music
playing out of a bar with a bar on the street as well. I think I love this place. - So, first off J and Ben's list, jambalaya and crawfish etouffee. - So etouffee is a literal
translation for "smothered" or "smothering" and it's
kind of a cooking technique where here, the crawfish is
smothered in all those classic Creole Cajun flavors. - I love the crunch of the spring onion that you get in there as well. - The red beans and rice, so
I've read, it's a Monday thing. - I don't know why.
- We're doing it on a Sunday too. You can not go wrong with jambalaya, can not go wrong with it. That's the chicken jambalaya
but they forget to mention, there's also, shrimp
in there, there's also sausage in there, it's tomato, it's spicy. It's absolutely delicious. (upbeat music) - Gumbo (knocking)
Tick one off the list. - Get in.
- Perfect - Ladies and Gentlemen,
this is Gumbo number 1. - The Gumbo is like a really
dark, deep, rich stew, and I know that includes
all the words that we're not allowed to say here on
Sorted, but it's true. - All you get straight
away, it's rich and earthy. It give you the (mumbles) straight away and then it starts to mellow out. - It's absolutely delicious, just is a bit of a shock straight
away for someone like me. - Oyster and Cajun Caviar Po'Boy. - I know I've only had
like a few Po'Boy so far, but already the bread, I think, might be the most important thing. Crunchy French roll, it's
buttered and toasted on the inside so crispy on the out. The oysters are beautifully
fresh and fragrant, but with a greasy, crispy outside to them. It just, it melts in your
mouth, but with a crunch. (cheery music) (clapping)
(tap dancing) - I wish I could
individually control my limbs in such a fantastic way. I thought Jamie was distracted by the art work of the musical instruments. It was just the still lives. - Trumpets, something about trumpets. - Art.
- Art. (upbeat music) - We come to the French Market
which is a really famous part of New Orleans because it has loads of really great fresh produce
and artisan producers, and also we've been told
that we might be able to get some alligator. - And anything else we
can tick off the list. I'm all about the points today. - Turns out that's an alligator sausage on a stick.
(chuckling) - The guy has been doing it
for like 12 years, and he smokes them overnight for 12 hours and then reheats them on the grill. It's got a much softer texture. I don't know if that's
'cause it's been smoked and heated slower, but
it's a less firm sausage than some of the others. - It's more like a
traditional pork sausage. - It's such a nice little road, isn't it. - It's nice.
- It's a proper hidden gem. - I'm really confused, we're like just outside of
(traffic) the main bit of New Orleans, there's very little else around, yet there's a massive que for Sno-Bliz. - Were at Hansen's Sno-Bliz,
and Hansen was the first person who painted it "The Shaved
Ice Machine", but he made snowballs which is shaved
ice flavored with syrup which is famous to New Orleans. (upbeat music) - So this was a crawfish beignet. Crawfish is on our list and
beignets are on our list so surely, we get twice
as many points or wins. - Two points and as far as I'm
concerned, the rules say yes. (laughing) A beignet batter, which
is like a dough kind of, almost choux pastry base with crawfish and all the etouffee spices in it, then fried and then served
with a roasted corn sauce. Incredible.
(upbeat music) - I'm actually getting a bit worried about our challenges, mate. - We've lost. We've been to like four
places, we've stood an hour. - No, this is our third. We've just been three places. - I think one thing I've
learned is if your in a city it is worth just finding some
time without plans to wander, because here we are at
the end of Bourbon Street, which is one of the more
famous streets in New Orleans. And you come to the end of
it, and one street over you're in a residential area, it's quiet, it's tranquil and it's beautiful. So many different forms
of architecture again, and every house looks
interesting and cool. (upbeat music) - It's amazing, we've got a James one. - And I've got an Evans one! - [Barry] About gonna
say you've looked better. - One hour, in 34 degree
heat, you better be good. (laughing) - [Barry] This is called a creamy rainbow. That's not as sweet as I
thought it was gonna be. That's actually got
some real flavor to it, cream of nectar tastes delicious. (shouting) (laughing) It's in my eye. That was the worse brain
freeze I've ever had. - And here we have
watermelon, mint and rosemary. Bit more sophisticated
than yours, wasn't it? - [Mike] Rosemary? - Yeah, rosemary, like the herb. - What?
- Yeah, I know. It's sweet, it's refreshing. It's a cross between a
granita and a slush puppy. - [Mike] It's so refreshing
and so cool and just delicious. Yeah, the tables have
turned now, look at it. - Time for another Po'Boy! We've come out of French Quarter, we've driven a couple of
miles, we've got to Mid City, bottom of the bayou, and
we've come to Parkway Tavern, which loads of people have recommended as having the most traditional
and classic Po'Boys in the whole of New Orleans. - A hundred years in the making. (upbeat music) - What we've been told is
the roast beef and gravy is the most traditional type of Po'Boy you can get, back from 1929. But it's missing something. - [Ben] This is going to get messy. - Cheers. That is one of the best beef stews I've had in a very, very long time. And some genius decided to
put that into a sandwich. - On top of all of that beef, which is just melt in the mouth, there are still the pickles,
still the tomatoes, still the lettuce, still the mayo and still that classic French-style bread. - It looks good, I might try it.
- It's good! - Now we're giving local recommendations. So the question is, how many stretch marks on your Po'Boy tomorrow? - I saw a sign in the Parkway Tavern that really, got me thinking. There was a Po'boy that
they made last year that won the best Po'Boy
of the Po'Boy Fest in 2018. And I wonder whether that's
the right way forward. - [Mike] It was the last
stop of the day for Baz and I as we desperately tried to
cram in some precious points. (watch ticking) - I have nailed it. - Here you are.
- Thank you very much. So not only is this an
alligator sausage Po'boy, it's also covered in etouffee, which is I think a bit like gumbo, but it's using a light
roux and it's thicker. Let's eat it 'cause I don't
really know what it tastes like. So that alligator tastes spicy. It's a bit like chorizo but not as oily and still tastes really sausage-y. Right, that's really nice. The texture of it is a bit like chicken but it falls apart a bit like fish. - Alligator sausage is amazing. That's really tasty. It's also not a Po'boy.
- Still not a Po'boy. (jazz music) - Baz has just received a text from Jaime. Him and Ben have found a place for dinner. (upbeat music) - So earlier today we met
this guy called Lewis. He was here with his wife, it was their 60th wedding anniversary. They've been coming here every
year for the last 40 years. So we had to ask him,
"If you could recommend "only one restaurant in the
whole city of New Orleans, "what would it be?" And he said we have to come
to the Commander's Palace and ask for a table in the garden room. (upbeat music) - [Ben] Commander's Palace is a high end New Orleans favorite serving up fine dining
takes on local cuisine. - Jaime's not really sure how to act here. - I don't want to spill
anything down this shirt. - We had incredible Boudin stuffed quail, barbecued Gulf shrimp with
a crisp romaine salad. - I know. - A salad?
- Salad. It's my first one ever, and it's actually (laughing) - [Mike] Then the restaurant's
famous banana fosters. - Banana Fosters is a classic
dish that originated here, literally just next door. Proper theater at the table. Brown sugar and butter melt into a pan with some banana liqueur,
then the bananas go in. They soften, they cook,
the sugars caramelize, then rum, flambeau, and
then over the ice cream. And it's just such a
classic to New Orleans. (soft music) Let's be honest, we knew
that was gonna work, but you don't realize how well it works until you actually taste it. - [Man] That's a good option too. - It has the most ridiculous
super banana flavor, like a really concentrated banana. - And the secret little touch, which is what we're all smelling now, is once it's flambeing, ground cinnamon. And it kind of sparkles and flairs up and it's an amazing smell in the room. And then every other diner turns around and says, "We want banana fosters too." (jazz music)
- And to top off an unreal day, we headed
to Frenchman Street for street music, live jazz
and an unforgettable night. (jazz music) ♪ Shout out to the nobles from New York, ♪ ♪ You know you do ♪ ♪ Right there, gotta feel it ♪ ♪ My homie getting a video ♪ ♪ This is off of the top
you the the series closed ♪ ♪ Jack over with the
lumberjack, way in the back ♪ ♪ He got his hands up in the air ♪ (screaming)
♪ Yo, this is where we be ♪ ♪ We rockin' on Frenchman Street ♪ - And our night was made complete by a reunion with an old friend. - [Mike] There she is, there she is! (cheers) ♪ You guys are feelin' it,
but we comin' on through ♪ (upbeat music) (beep) (big band music)
