There is one place that you really should visit if you are going to be on the DelMarVa Penninsula and you’re a foodie. No, it’s not the Rehoboth Beach Boardwalk, the OC inlet, or any other place you’ve likely heard of. It’s Po Boys Creole, the best cajun cooking this side of Louisiana. And it’s located in the most unexpected location, a tiny little strip mall outside of the town of Milton, DE.
When you pull into Po Boys, don’t be scared off by the Dollar Store next door. And when you open the door, don’t be alarmed that the place sort of looks like a cafeteria dressed up for Mardi Gras. Sit down, order up a beer (there’s always different types from Abita and Dogfish Head) and try to decide on one excellent creole dish. It’s a tough decision, so I recommend going with friends and ordering lots of things and sharing!
Over our many visits to Po Boys, we’ve definitely developed some favorites. Since this post is a compilation of many, many trips to Po Boys, I want to talk about a few of our favorites and some of the ordering tips we’ve learned. But here’s the biggest thing–I’m not sure we’ve ever ordered a truly bad menu item and Po Boys, just some thing that we like better than others!!
To start, we love the Blackened Scallops. If you like scallops, you really should order these–they are perfectly blackened, with a lemon caper butter. Okay I’m drooling. We always fight over who gets the last one, so if you have a large group, plan accordingly. Po Boys also typically has at least one appetizer special and a soup of the day. We’ve tried many of their soups and they’re generally fantastic! The calamari is also really good.
For mains, Po Boys offers sandwiches, salads, and entrees. And although their menu isn’t huge–just one sheet printed front and back–all of the creole favorites are there. In the po boy family, we’re basically fans of all of them–from blackened catfish to shrimp to zydeco, they’re all good. And although it’s a sandwich, this is a lot of food–there’s a huge side of fries which are fantastic, especially with the house made remoulade.
A new found favorite of mine is ordering the excellent Po Boys house salad with a fried topping–my favorite is the crawfish, which taste like lightly battered lobster.
Noel is typically a big fan of the entrees, with Jambalaya and Shrimp and Andouille Pasta featuring as two of his favorites.
I’ll admit, there’s never room for dessert. But one day I will go in for that bread pudding! Please check out this favorite on the Eastern Shore!
This post also launches my Life is Sweet at the Beach, Beaches! page. A list of some of our favorite places on the DelMarVa, all in one place!
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I love scallops, so I’ll have to try to get to this place in the summer. I’m so excited too that you’ll have a list of recommendations for great beach eats. I can’t wait to get some new ideas!
Jen, Po Boys is 110% worth the drive from Ocean City. Make it up there! Hopefully the baby likes seafood!
Okay – so here’s the confession. I really like Po’ Boys. When I’m down there alone and working from home, I ALWAYS have lunch there, with a nice, ice-cold Abita.
BUT the reason I always seem to gravitate towards their entrees is … the bread sucks. If you order a po’ boy, be assured of this – the filling will be excellent; the bread will taste and feel like a giant marshmallow of undercooked dough that just sort of overwhelms the perfectly prepared seafood. At some point you WILL drag the filling out of the soft doughy expanse of roll and consume the filling on its own. Because it’s a shame to let that catfish or those succulent shrimp or oysters go to waste, but you just can’t DO that bread any more.
Po’ Boys has won all sorts of awards, and deservedly so, but to get to the next level they have to source their po’ boy rolls from some place else. I have a strong suspicion it is currently from the Food Lion around the corner. I know there has to be good bread in the Milton area because the Friday farmer’s market features at least two bakers that would make a better hoagie roll. I would seriously be willing to pay more for better bread. I see they now have a muffaletta, but as half of the muffaletta is the ciabatta bread sopping up the oil in the olive spread, I have some reservations.
I literally sometimes dream at night that I’m at Po’ Boys with an Abita and a big old oyster po’ boy with a crusty hunk of perfect Italian bread that gently enfolds the mollusks with a lightly crunchy exterior and velvety smooth, yeasty, slightly chewy interior that doesn’t absorb the oil from the oysters so much as provide reservoirs for it to pool….. I desperately want that dream to become a reality.
DO NOT let this dissuade you from going there. A trip to Broadkill just isn’t the same without a stop at Po’ Boys; it is seriously good food. But when you get the eponymous sandwich, understand it’s all for the filling, because the bread just doesn’t cut it. THAT is why I tend to stick to the jamabalaya, etouffe, shrimp and andouille pasta, and the really excellent gumbo. (THAT, by the way, is my favorite lunch when there – a bowl of gumbo and a beer.)
And Po’ Boys – if you read this – PLEASE get better bread.
The bread situation doesn’t upset me as much as it does Noel, because less bread is just an excuse to eat more french fries.
Even though I feel strongly, very strongly, about the bread on a sandwich, and excellent bread is the strength of Atlantic City subs as opposed to other pretenders, I could make the sacrifice and go with an entree. Yes, I could…
Have to make note of this for a summer roadtrip!
Some of the best food come from little “hole in the wall’ restaurants like this.
YUM YUM YUM!
Ha – love Noel’s comment! Everything looks delicious, including the bread! :D