Jazz, a Louisiana Kitchen

1421 Farnam St

402.342.3662

Sun-Thurs: 11 am - 12 am

Fri-Sat: 11 am - 1 am

http://omaha.jazzkitchens.com/

Based on some recommendations from some friends of mine, I decided I was due for some Creole cooking and made a couple trips to Jazz, a small chain that is, I think, based out of Kansas City.

Outdoor seating was available, but it was still kinda chilly out, especially in all that downtown shade.

Walking in, you are first greeted with the classic wrought iron fence and gate that surrounds many yards in New Orleans. I love that touch. Inside, the walls are adorned various New Orleans ephemera, including an authentic-looking, gigantic cape that a waiter said came from the '88 or '89 Mardi Gras parade. Very, very cool stuff even if it's a replica.

Despite the name, both times I went in I heard no jazz. The first day I heard classic rock, and the second I heard blues. No complaints from me, though. Maybe the employees would go nuts if all they heard was one style of music everyday.

Ugly and worn? Yeah. Full of character? Absolutely.

The first day I visited was at about 5:30 on a Wednesday, and as I expected, even at a downtown restaurant, it was pretty quiet inside. I was seated at a table that was all kinds of scratched and graffiti-ed, befitting a down-home jazz bar. I ordered the Voodoo Wings and the Chicken ala Mer.

Hmm, baguette? Not really crusty enough, but close.

After ordering I was presented with a basket of baguettes and butter. The butter was whipped, making it very creamy, and they added garlic and herbs to it, so there was a lot going on with each bite. Very good, but, you know, its bread and butter. Moving on.

I very much dislike breaded wings. These are breaded wings. I loved these wings.

I'll admit I was slightly disappointed when I saw the wings were breaded. I've always thought the breading on wings just added an unnecessary barrier between you and the delicious fried goodness that you ordered. But these were just very slightly breaded, and doused with their Voodoo sauce. I should mention, you don't get to choose sauces here, as the Voodoo is the only choice. Yes it is spicy (though certainly not overly so), so if you can't handle heat, you may want to stay away. If you can, however, you'll need to order a plate of these. If "the sauce is the boss", then this is le patron. I was told they take their hot sauce, which is available in a bottle on every table, and add brown sugar and black pepper. Slightly sweet, but with the classic Louisiana hot sauce still present. I can't get enough of it. Get the wings.

Not the best picture I've ever taken, but certainly not the worst. I need to work on my staging.

Here's how the menu reads on the Chicken ala Mer: 

Here it is: our most popular item and the one that’ll keep y’all comin’ back. This chicken is topped with a shrimp & krab parmesan (sic) cream sauce over a bed of rice with your choice of veggie. Ooo, baby!

I'm not sure I had a choice after reading that. Fried chicken breast covered in a creamy seafood sauce, dirty rice, and sautéed veggies? Can't go wrong! And it was very good. The dirty rice gave that late Cajun kick that it should, the chicken was moist and tender, and the sauce was very creamy and full of flavor. The veggies needed a little bit of help with the house seasoning that is helpfully put on every table, but otherwise was well done, as well.

Because the wings were still on Happy Hour pricing, I got out of there with tip, tax, and everything for less than $20.

Two weeks later I visited again, this time on a Thursday, again at about 5:30 pm. I ordered the stuffed mushrooms and the shrimp po'boy.

Fried or stuffed, I love me some mushrooms.

I'm kinda sorry to report I didn't care for the mushrooms. They've got a seafood stuffing that was baked with Parmesan and white wine. But all I tasted was bread. Like, I know there was probably shrimp and fake crab and all that, but it was so loaded with bread crumbs, that's all I could taste. So much potential, so little reward.

Again, I need to work on my photography. I hate being that guy in the restaurant, but you gotta see what I'm eating!

The po'boy was one of the things I was specifically told to order here by my friends, and it didn't disappoint. Po'boys are essentially simple sandwiches made with one of about 3-4 meats, lettuce, tomato, and mayo. Some of the seafood ones and the beef one has a special sauce, but they're all on baguettes. This one has what is essentially popcorn shrimp, and there was an orange sauce that I wasn't able to identify but was delicious. The shrimp was perfectly fried and wasn't too rubbery, and the batter held enough flavor to compliment the sandwich and not take it over. The cole slaw was decent, nothing to write home about. The hush puppies, though. I was taken aback.

I'm not too proud to admit the only hush puppies I've ever had was from Long John Silver. I know that they are certainly not the be-all-end-all, but I also thought I had a good idea on what hush puppies can be. I was very wrong. These held all kinds of flavor that I never expected, with visible herbs and spices. And slightly sweet which surprised me the most. It's just a hush puppy, but boy, what a hush puppy.

With tax, tip, and everything, I walked out at just under $25.

The menu is rather large, and I want to try a few other meals (I'm looking at you, stuffed catfish and muffuletta). I don't know when I'll go back, but it certainly is on the list of places to visit again.