Ah, another trip to Biloxi, another series of encounters with the best sandwich in the world, the shrimp po-boy. The first stop on my culinary adventure was the Old Biloxi Schooner, a.k.a., Schooner’s. Once again, they didn’t disappoint. The shrimp was masterfully fried, with a delicious peppered batter. Of course, I had my po-boy dressed, i.e., with shredded lettuce, tomato, and mayo. The soft French roll was stuffed with shrimp. Although it’s more traditional to use a crusty roll, the soft roll employed by Schooner’s also works great. My only complaint was that they didn’t put quite enough lettuce on the po-boy. The accouterments should always be background players, but this was a little too subtle.
Next up, just like on my last trip, was Li’l Ray’s. The quality and quantity of shrimp were also great, and there was a little bit better balance between the lettuce and the shrimp. Li’l Ray’s uses a roll with a much crispier crust.
Finally, on the flight out of Louis Armstrong International Airport in New Orleans my eagle-eyed wife spotted shrimp po-boys on the menu at the Praline Connection, tucked in the back left of a group of eateries on concourse B near gate B5. You gotta like a place that serves a breakfast meal that includes smothered livers and lunch entrees that include fried chicken livers and alligator sausage. At an airport, no less.
The Praline Connection did not disappoint. The po-boy was literally overflowing with shrimp (I almost broke down in tears when two of the shrimp slipped out the end and tumbled to the floor). The lettuce was roughly chopped rather than shredded, but it still worked okay. The bread was a long crusty roll. The only downside is that they put pickles on the po-boy. That’s a sin in my book, but fortunately the pickle slices poisoned only a couple pieces of lettuce that I easily flicked away. $8.95 is a very fair price for a shrimp po-boy. At an airport, $8.95 is a steal for food that good.