Food trends come and go. So how can you tell which tastes are trending today?
We took a data-driven look at the question, using Yelp to uncover which eateries have been in the spotlight this month.
To find out who made the list, we looked at New Orleans businesses on Yelp by category and counted how many reviews each received. Rather than compare them based on number of reviews alone, we calculated a percentage increase in reviews over the past month, and tracked businesses that consistently increased their volume of reviews to identify statistically significant outliers compared to past performance.
Read on to see which spots are extra hot this winter.
Streetcar Poboys & Seafood
Open since November, this spot to score seafood, burgers and sandwiches is trending compared to other businesses categorized as "Seafood" on Yelp.
Citywide, seafood spots saw a median 1.5% increase in new reviews over the past month. Streetcar Poboys & Seafood only recently appeared on Yelp, but while many new businesses struggle to gain reviews, it has seen strong initial popularity.
Want to know more about this business? We found this in its Yelp history section: "We are a new restaurant in the Garden District that offers a good taste of New Orleans"
It's not the only trending outlier in the seafood category: BOIL Seafood House has seen a 6.1% increase in reviews.
Located at 1610 St. Charles Ave. in Central City, Streetcar Poboys & Seafood offers gumbo, po'boys, dixie tacos and hand-tossed pizza, with sides like alligator hash and coleslaw.
Streetcar Poboys & Seafood is open from 11 a.m.–10 p.m. daily.
Nola Caye
Whether or not you've been hearing buzz about Central Business District's Nola Caye, the Caribbean and traditional American spot, which offers tacos and more, is a hot topic according to Yelp review data.
While businesses categorized as "American (Traditional)" on Yelp saw a median 1.9% increase in new reviews over the past month, Nola Caye appeared on Yelp relatively recently. Many new businesses struggle to gain reviews, but it has seen a surge of interest.
What does this business focus on? "NOLA Caye combines New Orleans' charm, culture and its genuine sense of hospitality with bold, fresh Caribbean flavors. The word 'caye' eludes to a small island, giving the restaurant's name a literal translation of 'New Orleans Island'. Our menu offers crispy shrimp tacos, steak and enchilada, tuna ceviche, freshly shucked oysters, red curry shrimp, chicken tortilla soup, baby back ribs and grilled mahi with black bean-mango salsa. Save room for dessert so you don't miss out on our banana crème pie, iron skillet cookie, key lime pie or tres Leches." — that's courtesy of its page on Yelp.
Open at 898 Baronne St. since December, Nola Caye offers starters like coconut shrimp and oysters ceviche, along with entrees like ginger salmon, jerk chicken and the caribbean pork tacos. (Find the entire menu here.)
Nola Caye is open from 11 a.m.–10 p.m. on Monday-Thursday, 11 a.m.–11 p.m. on Friday, 9 a.m.–11 p.m. on Saturday and 9 a.m.–10 p.m. on Sunday.
Mahony's Po-Boys & Seafood
The French Quarter's Mahony's Po-Boys & Seafood is also making waves. Open since 2018 at 901 Iberville St., the well-established Cajun/Creole spot, which offers seafood and more, has seen a 6.5% bump in new reviews over the last month, compared to a median review increase of 1.3% for all businesses tagged "Cajun/Creole" on Yelp.
Want more about the business's specialties in the words of the people behind it? "From brunch or lunch to dinner and happy hour, we're your landing spot for a meal made authentically or a laid-back break to slow things down." — that's according to its Yelp page.
There's more than one hot spot trending in New Orleans' Cajun/Creole category: Gris-Gris has seen a 5.3% increase in reviews.
Mahony's Po-Boys & Seafood offers fried seafood plates, po'boys and New Orleans classics like gumbo, crawfish etouffee and redfish almondine. Over the past month, it's maintained a convincing four-star rating among Yelpers. Find the full menu here.
Mahony's Po-Boys & Seafood is open from 11 a.m.–10 p.m. on Monday-Thursday, 11 a.m.–11 p.m. on Friday, 10 a.m.–11 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m.–10 p.m. on Sunday.
Daisy Mae's Southern Fried Chicken & Breakfast
Central Business District's Daisy Mae's Southern Fried Chicken & Breakfast is the city's buzziest breakfast and brunch spot by the numbers.
The well-established breakfast and brunch spot, which opened at 920 Poydras St. in 2018, increased its new review count by 6.7% over the past month, an outlier when compared to the median new review count of 1.5% for the Yelp category "Breakfast & Brunch."
It's not the only trending outlier in the breakfast and brunch category: Ruby Slipper Cafe has seen a 6.7% increase in reviews.
Daisy Mae's Southern Fried Chicken & Breakfast has seven locations in Louisiana. The menu offers breakfast items all day, such as biscuits & sausage, pancakes, waffles, omelettes and Benedicts. Lunch options include Southern-fried chicken, wings and po'boys. (Here's the entire menu.)
Daisy Mae's Southern Fried Chicken & Breakfast is open from 6 a.m.–10 p.m. on Monday-Wednesday, 6 a.m.–3:59 a.m. on Thursday and 24 hours on Friday-Sunday.
This story was created automatically using local business data, then reviewed and augmented by an editor. Click here for more about what we're doing. Got thoughts? Go here to share your feedback.
