“You’re not from around here are you?”

The smiling elderly lady greets us as she walks in the front door of Bobby’s Seafood. We’ve been fingered as outsiders but a parking lot beatdown does not feel imminent; she’s just being friendly to strangers.

Lunchtime at Bobby’s is hectic. The restaurant seats less than 10 people and the staff are hustling to make sure everybody gets fed and shown the door so more patrons can wedge themselves into the tiny room.

Bobby’s is a boiled seafood emporium and po boy shop that’s been serving Jefferson Parish for since 1978. We found out about the old joint the same way we always do, quizzing strangers in bars about where they go to get their po boy fix.

The main reason we frequent decrepit taverns is to gather intel on where the drunks are getting their po boys.

For under $10 you can get a sandwich that will easily feed two hungry eaters.

If you prefer to cook your seafood at the house, the little establishment is a fine fresh fish market with shrimps, crabs, tuna, catfish, crawfish, and speckled trout among a long list of south Louisiana catches.

It’s not Westwego Shrimp Lot by a long shot but all the fishes displayed were keen-eyed and smelled of the sea.

A moderate list of po boy varieties includes hamburgers, roast beef, hot sausage, barbecue beef, veal cutlets, oysters, soft shell crabs, catfish and shrimp.

“Are the onion rings hand-cut?” “Of course” comes the response.

10 minutes go by and the friendly counter-girl sets down a massive fried shrimp po boy and a small order of onion rings, all neatly packaged up and served with smoke coming out of the bag.

40+ fried shrimps are stuffed into a crusty, hot baguette that’s been smeared with mayonnaise and garnished with iceberg lettuce, and tomatoes. Pickles come on the side, as they should as they lose all appeal once they get hot.

If you’re not a po boy lover Bobby’s also has turtle soup, gumbo, stuffed artichokes, muffalettas, stuffed peppers, and crawfish pasta. Most patrons hurry outside to waiting cars or to sit at a pair of picnic tables hard up against Jefferson Highway.

If you need a cold beer Bobby’s will sell you a longneck for two bucks.

An enormous mobile crawfish boiling rig is parked outside for off-site caterings. We imagine it gets heavy use this time of year.

We don’t get out to Jefferson Parish too often, the law is thick as fleas and it’s hard to prise us out of our beloved 9th Ward. But next time we get a hankering for a hot fried shrimp po boy we know where we will be going.

(ed note) A New Orleans old timer contacted us and mentioned that this building used to house Joe’s Tavern, the home of a legendary roast beef po boy. He likes Bobby’s but yearns for that fabled sandwich)

Bobby’s Seafood

9013 Jefferson Hwy

River Ridge, Louisiana

70123

(504) 738-2104

Hours of operation

Sunday Closed

Monday 9AM–3PM

Tuesday 9AM–6PM

Wednesday 9AM–6PM

Thursday 9AM–6PM

Friday 9AM–7PM

Saturday 9AM–3PM

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