Eyes on the pies: the savoury meat pies at Alma Café, New Orleans' finest Honduran restaurant
Alma Café
review by Paul Oswell
New Orleans has among the biggest Honduran populations in the U.S., so it’s only fitting that the country is gastronomically represented. If Alma Café is among the restaurants leading the way in that regard, then both the culture and its cuisine are safe in the more-than-capable hands of Chef Melissa Araujo.
Since opening in October 2020 (what a time to open a new business), Chef Araujo hasn’t put a foot wrong, and in fact it’s been a heck of a journey since their first pop-up, back in 2015. From those humble beginnings at Central City food hub Roux Carre, they’re at a point now where they’ve announced an upcoming expansion into dinner service and a likely additional location.
Throw in the small matter of being a 2024 James Beard Award semi-finalist and the last decade looks nothing less than unswervingly impressive. Chef Araujo’s bona fides are gilt edged: Doris Metropolitan, Mondo, and Restaurant R’evolution, then six years refining those skills in Italy before returning home.
Alma (‘Soul’ in Spanish) stepped into a spot that previously housed Paloma Cafe, Cafe Henri, and Booty’s Street Food, but it feels as though it’s been there for decades. Stepping in for lunch on a nondescript Wednesday, it’s immediately buzzy, with couples lingering over late breakfasts, locals working on laptops drinking their (frankly incredible) coffee, and groups arriving for family celebrations.
There’s a cheery vitality, helped along by the easy charm of the servers, working the room with warm chattiness and consummate professionalism in equal measure. Alma is currently serving breakfast and lunch menus, with both available from 8am-3pm. It’s maybe 85% Honduran, with a few culinary tips of the hat to New Orleans thrown in for good measure. You can - and I’ll go further and say ‘should’ - mix it up. A breakfast appetizer and a lunch entree, or the other way round, just for variety.
My friend jumped on the Moros y Cristianos, red beans in jasmine rice, cooked in coconut milk with herbs. It’s a subtle but clever red beans and rice variation, seasoned to absolute perfection.
I’m physically unable to order anything else if a restaurant serves meat pies, so I went straight ahead and started with those. Three huge pies arrive with crisp, buttery pastry, and condiments. Sidebar: one of the fixings is a spicy pickled red cabbage, which is also a traditional pie extra (minus the spice) in my hometown in the north of England (also famed for its pies), so that was a lovely, random reminder.
For mains, my friend plumped for the corned beef hash from the breakfast menu. It’s a novel iteration, slightly elevated from its American cousin with the tender beef marinated and then shredded over crispy potatoes and sunny-side-up eggs. I landed on Carne Asada, which sounds unadventurous, but again, Chef Araujo really works some magic on a well-known dish. The torched cherry tomatoes are bold and flavorful, the juicy acidity complementing the ribeye steak chunks to perfection. It was a happy table.
Optimistic thoughts about ending on the Tres Leches cake were put on hold, but we’ll definitely be making good on a promise to return. I also walked out with a bag of their Extra Dark Roast Coffee beans. I mean, I paid for them first, but let me tell you, I think I’ve found my new home coffee supplier, an unexpected bonus.
It feels as though ten years of hard work and risk, backed by inarguable ability, are paying off. You can see and taste the commitment, integrity and high standards - they’re right there on the plate, and this reviewer for one is excited to see the wonderful things that Chef Araujo and the Alma Café team are achieving. If breakfast and lunch are anything to go by, then dinner is going to be something very special.
Alma Café website
review by Paul Oswell
New Orleans has among the biggest Honduran populations in the U.S., so it’s only fitting that the country is gastronomically represented. If Alma Café is among the restaurants leading the way in that regard, then both the culture and its cuisine are safe in the more-than-capable hands of Chef Melissa Araujo.
Since opening in October 2020 (what a time to open a new business), Chef Araujo hasn’t put a foot wrong, and in fact it’s been a heck of a journey since their first pop-up, back in 2015. From those humble beginnings at Central City food hub Roux Carre, they’re at a point now where they’ve announced an upcoming expansion into dinner service and a likely additional location.
Throw in the small matter of being a 2024 James Beard Award semi-finalist and the last decade looks nothing less than unswervingly impressive. Chef Araujo’s bona fides are gilt edged: Doris Metropolitan, Mondo, and Restaurant R’evolution, then six years refining those skills in Italy before returning home.
Alma (‘Soul’ in Spanish) stepped into a spot that previously housed Paloma Cafe, Cafe Henri, and Booty’s Street Food, but it feels as though it’s been there for decades. Stepping in for lunch on a nondescript Wednesday, it’s immediately buzzy, with couples lingering over late breakfasts, locals working on laptops drinking their (frankly incredible) coffee, and groups arriving for family celebrations.
There’s a cheery vitality, helped along by the easy charm of the servers, working the room with warm chattiness and consummate professionalism in equal measure. Alma is currently serving breakfast and lunch menus, with both available from 8am-3pm. It’s maybe 85% Honduran, with a few culinary tips of the hat to New Orleans thrown in for good measure. You can - and I’ll go further and say ‘should’ - mix it up. A breakfast appetizer and a lunch entree, or the other way round, just for variety.
My friend jumped on the Moros y Cristianos, red beans in jasmine rice, cooked in coconut milk with herbs. It’s a subtle but clever red beans and rice variation, seasoned to absolute perfection.
I’m physically unable to order anything else if a restaurant serves meat pies, so I went straight ahead and started with those. Three huge pies arrive with crisp, buttery pastry, and condiments. Sidebar: one of the fixings is a spicy pickled red cabbage, which is also a traditional pie extra (minus the spice) in my hometown in the north of England (also famed for its pies), so that was a lovely, random reminder.
For mains, my friend plumped for the corned beef hash from the breakfast menu. It’s a novel iteration, slightly elevated from its American cousin with the tender beef marinated and then shredded over crispy potatoes and sunny-side-up eggs. I landed on Carne Asada, which sounds unadventurous, but again, Chef Araujo really works some magic on a well-known dish. The torched cherry tomatoes are bold and flavorful, the juicy acidity complementing the ribeye steak chunks to perfection. It was a happy table.
Optimistic thoughts about ending on the Tres Leches cake were put on hold, but we’ll definitely be making good on a promise to return. I also walked out with a bag of their Extra Dark Roast Coffee beans. I mean, I paid for them first, but let me tell you, I think I’ve found my new home coffee supplier, an unexpected bonus.
It feels as though ten years of hard work and risk, backed by inarguable ability, are paying off. You can see and taste the commitment, integrity and high standards - they’re right there on the plate, and this reviewer for one is excited to see the wonderful things that Chef Araujo and the Alma Café team are achieving. If breakfast and lunch are anything to go by, then dinner is going to be something very special.
Alma Café website
