Nov 6, 2023 - Food and Drink

Saffron NOLA makes a great New Orleans gumbo

Chelsea Brasted

The gumbo at Saffron NOLA features curry and other Indian spices. Photo: Chelsea Brasted/Axios

The story of Saffron NOLA starts with Arvinder Vilkhu and Pardeep Vilkhu, who immigrated to New Orleans from India and launched a catering business.

That business turned into a pop-up restaurant, which turned into this chic Uptown restaurant. In 2018, it earned a James Beard nomination for Best New Restaurant.

My order: Curried seafood gumbo ($15) and an order of naan ($3) to drag across the bottom of the bowl.

The gumbo is rich with spices like coriander and curry, and filled with crab claws, shrimp and okra. Each spoonful offers a lingering heat, too. The menu here focuses on Indian cuisine made with Louisiana ingredients, but the gumbo is, of course, a creative inverse of that.

Worth noting: The restaurant recently launched a tasting menu, which offers multiple courses at the chef's choice for $110 per person, with an optional wine pairing.

Add Axios on Google

Saffron NOLA makes a great New Orleans gumbo

More New Orleans stories