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We were going out to lunch Friday and my wife decided she wanted J Gumbo's, assuming they were open. They don't warrant much discussion anymore, it seems, but I will say the gumbo rivals anything I've had in New Orleans.
I get the impression that the Hurstbourne location suffers from ongoing staffing problems; seems like we went by once and they were closed due to lack of staff. I've seen this in a couple of restaurants in recent months. Starbucks, KFC and Taco Bell, to name a few.
I haven't been in months, but when the craving hits I gotta have a mixed bowl of drunken chicken and bumble bee stew. I have always gone to the original on Frankfort Ave. Last time I was there I met the new owners, a young couple...sure hope they can make it work. How many units does J. Gumbo's have, and are they individually owned nowadays?
I use to go all the time when they were in Lyndon. When they kicked expansion into overdrive the quality dropped and it was hit and miss when they were open. I haven't been back since they went full on chain. I might have to check them out again. Voodoo Chicken was my jam.
Love the Voodoo chicken. The Stony Brook / Hurstbourne location is one of my regular lunch stops. My only gripe is they switched the side of French bread to Texas toast.
I went to the Stony Brook location today. Just had to after getting it on my brain!
Mixed bowl - 75% bumblebee stew; 25% drunken chicken. It was spot on! Makes no sense to up charge for mixing items!
French bread was served...no texas toast in sight. Owner seemed to be the only one there...said he opened that location 10 years ago...it is much closer for me than Clifton, and I will be back every 2 weeks.
David, on second thought maybe it was texas toast that was served. I just remember that is was soft and buttery. But thinking about the actual bread now, it very well may have been texas toast. Whatever it was, it got no complaints from me...but french bread would have been a nice touch.
I know the sign said all bowls were served with "rice and french bread"...maybe you could call him on it.
They seem confused about their food allergens. According to the chart, crawfish etouffee contains fish but not shellfish? Oy vey! And drunken chicken, voodoo chicken, and red hot chicken allegedly contain fish, but it's not mentioned as an ingredient on the menu. As someone with a shellfish allergy, this concerns me.
That's a very serious concern, Nathaniel. Is this limited to one J. Gumbo in particular, or is the menu notice the same at all the branches you've seen?
Robin, I linked to the menu and food allergen list on their corporate website, which implies it applies to all of the franchised locations. Seems like a pretty big oversight.
Inspired by this thread and my sinus infection, I picked up some Voodoo Chicken and white bean chili on the way home. Even with extra sausage for both and a side of delicious bread pudding, it was still a really good value. Though it appears they no longer sell beer at this particular location, probably because they didn't have a ton of eat-in business.
"I like rice. Rice is great if you're hungry and want 2000 of something." - Mitch Hedberg