Creative Cooking

I like Creative Cooking, it's a good restaurant with nice atmosphere, good service, and a good and reasonably priced wine list, and the food is pretty good, too. Fresh baguettes of french bread and a tangy cheese/horseradish dip start you off on a menu that includes many hearty dishes that give people a flavor of Louisiana cooking. I say "a flavor" because although Creative Cooking is good, it seems to pull  the punches on what real New Orleans cooking would deliver typically. Seafood Gumbo without okra or andouille sausage? Please. And while my Etoufee crayfish/shrimp dish on top of red beans and rice was good, it was rather thick on the rice and thin on the beans.

These are the complaints of someone who grew up with restauranteurs who had set up shop in New Orleans' Vieux Carre before I was even born, and I understand that northern tastes have to be accommodated, so please take it with a grain of salt. The cooking is creative - an andouille sausage starter with a soy sauce-based spicy dressing was an interesting take - and a nice change of pace if you're looking to get food that's tasty and off the beaten path. Worth a try for a nice night out.

Would like to give 3.5 stars but that's not possible here. Have only been here once but will definitely go back to try more of the menu and hopefully give them a higher mark. The service was very good; well-staffed and attentive.

I love all things N'awlins, especially the food, and have been there many times. I wasn't real hungry; we went to check out a friend's band and sat in the bar but I still could not pass up the Shrimp Remoulade appetizer and the oyster po'boy. The shrimp were huge and the remoulade was great...don't pass on this item.

The oyster po'boy was a great take on this classic sandwich - well stuffed with perfectly deep-fried oysters but could have used a little more french dressing. Each table should have a few bottles of hot sauce but they don't so you'll have to ask.

Being that I was getting something my wife decided to try the chicken etouffe. OMG - bring your appetite - there is no skimping on the portions here. The dish was very flavorful and tasty but something was different from my N'awlins etouffe experiences which i can't quite put my finger on. It wasn't as red as I'm used to was one thing and there wasn't as much heat as I was expecting so maybe that was it. My wife doesn't like things as spicy as I do so she enjoyed tasting all the flavors without all the heat.

I noticed a few reviewers citing the lack of heat; i don't know the Westbrook clientele so maybe it's toned down intentionally. Next time I'll ask for a little more spice and see if that doesn't bring me back to N'awlins.

I've been going here for decades whenever my Cajun cravin' takes over. I love the jambalaya and the gumbo is pretty good for these parts. The food is, by necessity, rich. That's the tradition: butter, roux, "the Holy Trinity"; (if you have to ask, you don't cook Cajun.)
The service is very friendly. The drinks uniformly good.
My only regret is that they used to have this huge collection of hot sauces, but no longer. I miss that.