New Vietnamese bakery Dough Nguyener's now open in Gretna

After serving up king cakes to the Gretna community for the past two Carnival seasons, Dough Nguyener's got its own digs this spring, celebrating its grand opening April 13.

Our visit: On a windy Friday in late March, we made an excuse to spend a long lunch in Gretna, chatting about all things Axios New Orleans.

• Service was quick and friendly, and we weren't the only colleagues grabbing lunch.
• Families dropped in and out, too, picking up sweet treats for later.

Catch up quick: The restaurant is the next culinary project from matriarch Betty Archote, whose family name is Nguyen.

• Archote's family is also behind a now-defunct seafood market, Thanh Thanh, Huey P’s Pizza and Daiquiris, Em Trai Sandwich Co. and a meal prep company called Healthy Course.

The menu: Dough Nguyener's serves up a cultural smorgasbord of indulgences — think breakfast pastries, sua da (sweetened coffee), and fried chicken — and that's just to start.

• Vietnamese staples make up the backbone of flavors here, including Vietnamese baguettes, banh mi sandwiches, boba tea and sticky rice.

What we ordered: We opted for a crispy chicken thigh banh mi, xoi (sticky rice), an order of shrimp toast and fries to split.

• 🍩 Chelsea's thought bubble: Though my banh mi had me wishing I'd grabbed a bottle of hot sauce en route to our table, the chicken was cooked perfectly. And the chocolate iced donut with sprinkles I also snagged gave me a good reason to return for seconds with my husband the next morning.

• 🍤 Carlie's thought bubble: The shrimp toast was the star: Crispy, cheesy and full of shrimp. Worth the drive across the bridge.

5 (or) 4 word review: New West Bank options FTW.

Editor's note: This story was been updated to show that Dough Nguyener's is now open.