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If there’s one criminally underrated cuisine in London, it’s Creole. Even Louie, the only place we’ve seen which serves Creole classics like gumbo and crab cakes, has to reassure potential patrons that it serves a “French menu with a New Orleans twist”, rather than full-throatedly proclaiming its allegiance to onions, peppers, celery and okra.

Luckily this reticence hasn’t taken root in the menu, which is garlanded with pecan rice, collard greens, and more seafood than a Louisiana bayou. The Maryland corn and white crab cake is a hefty starter, fried to give it a satisfying crunch and arriving resting on a deceptively spicy sauce. For anyone looking for something a bit lighter, Louie’s impressive raw bar includes a sea bream ceviche dressed with samphire and yuzu. It’s a delicate, fresh dish which nonetheless comes in a generous enough portion that you don’t feel short-changed. 

Mains are a selection of the big flavours and hearty stews you’d expect from New Orleans cooking, with the pig cheeks and langoustines coming in a deep cast iron pot. The pork melts in your mouth and the sauce is so thick and delicious you’ll want to spoon it into your mouth like a soup. The real star of the show, though, is the gumbo. Huge prawns and meaty scallops come paired with spicy andouille sausage and that most important aspect of a gumbo – a rich roux which is just crying out to be mopped up with a big hunk of bread. This being a restaurant in Central London, it’s likely not the kind of gumbo you’d make at home, but the balance is struck between that fancy restaurant flair and ensuring that the rustic nature of the dish isn’t compromised.

Onto dessert, and it’s a knockout. We love a restaurant that takes dessert seriously and Louie have spent as much time curating the tail end of their menu as they have the main courses. The pecan pie not only fits the New Orleans theme, but it has a great texture to it and is topped with a decadent, silky dollop of cream. The banana cheesecake is paired with a boozy caramel sauce and just a hint of salt – it’s more banoffee pie than cheesecake in flavour, but whatever it is, it’s incredible.

Louie is located between Soho and Covent Garden, and the offer of a pre-theatre menu alongside the a la carte gives a good idea of the clientele. This means that they could easily chuck out the same French classics as a lot of other higher-end restaurants in the area, with maybe a gesture toward New Orleans. Instead, the menu, the furnishings, and even the hand-drawn alligator logo, all point towards Creole cooking. It’s a bold move carried off perfectly, and we’re still dreaming about that gumbo now. Oh, and a special shout-out to Nana’s “Good Soup”, a cocktail so nice we’d happily go back just to drink six or seven of them in Louie’s vibey, live music-enhanced bar.

For more information on Louie, see here. 

13-15 West St, London WC2H 9NE