Good times on Boston

New Orleans couple brings authentic Louisiana fare to downtown Tulsa

A tall, wiry man swooped into the door of Lassalle’s New Orleans Deli on 6th Street and Boston Avenue. He eyed the owner of the establishment incredulously. “Do you make real po’ boys?” he demanded.

Turns out, the inquisitive man was born-and-raised Louisianan. He and Chris West, owner at Lassalle’s, begin swapping stories about the best places to get boudin, and how far north on I-30 is considered “Yankee territory.”

This isn’t the first time this has happened to West, who opened Lassalle’s with his wife, Amanda, in February. “I used to bump into people from Louisiana here and there. Now that we’ve opened, it’s incredible how many people I’ve met from the area,” he said.

Chris played in a metal band, Face, at clubs in downtown New Orleans for years. One would not glean this information by looking at the clean-shaven restaurant proprietor, except a scar where a lip piercing once resided.

“He used to have all kinds of piercings,” chirped Amanda from behind the counter. “He had dreadlocks, too.”

The band’s success was cut short, along with the Wests’ time in New Orleans, when Hurricane Katrina shredded through the region in 2005. The couple moved to Oklahoma with family after losing their home and car. After bouncing back and forth, they finally settled permanently in Oklahoma in 2007.

“Most New Orleanians’ lives are separated into pre and post-Katrina,” said Chris. “When we got here permanently in 2007, opening a restaurant was something we had always wanted to do.”

Chris spent all his life in the restaurant biz, and in New Orleans, food is religion. “They say that people in New Orleans come out of the womb cooking,” he said.

“And you always are cooking for a lot of people,” Amanda added. “So it’s not much more work to make six gallons of gumbo instead of two.”

Blues and Zydeco music play blithely in the background in the quaint corner shop on Boston Avenue, where there are just a handful of tables. The menu features New Orleans staples, like po’ boys, muffuletta, jambalaya and gumbo. The bread for the po’ boys is unlike anything in town. That’s because it comes from Leidenheimer Baking Co. in New Orleans, the gold standard in French bread for over a century. 

“A lot of people don’t consider it a po’ boy if it’s not on Leidenheimer’s,” said Chris.

The bread is known for its crispy, golden outer layer and a pillowy-soft center, the perfect combination for holding the rag-tag ingredients of a po' boy sandwich intact. Lassalle’s classic shrimp po’ boy is a champ, with fried shrimp oh-so-lightly dusted with a cornbread-based coating and just enough seasoning. Shredded lettuce and a healthy squirt of Lassalle’s “WOW sauce” come together for a parade of flavor.

Lassalle’s muffuletta boasts a perfect bread, this one hailing from the famous Gambino’s Bakery in downtown New Orleans, known best for their king cakes. This Sicilian sandwich was created in New Orleans and wouldn’t be a true muffuletta without the zesty addition of olive salad. Lassalle’s uses Boscoli, a fan favorite used by many New Orleans restaurants.

Red beans and rice, jambalaya, and gumbo – the holy trinity of New Orleans cuisine – are available by the plate or cup. The burgundy-brown hue of the gumbo is the sign of a well-done roux, with vibrant dots of okra throughout. The hearty red beans and rice gets a smoky kick from choice pieces of smoked sausage.

One of the big stars of the menu may be lost on most Okies. The roast beef po’ boy may not get as much play as shrimp or catfish in our neck of the woods, but in New Orleans, po’ boy shops stake their reputations on the beef.

“Every po’ boy shop does its own style of roast beef. People even vote online for their favorites,” said Chris.

A slice of that famous French bread is filled with “roast beef debris” – freshly roasted beef chopped into little pieces on the griddle and drizzled with brown gravy.

“We use local Black Angus beef, breaking it down ourselves and roasting it in house,” said Chris. “We are happy to teach Tulsa about the roast beef po’ boy.”