Shoal Creek Saloon

There’s a giant football helmet with a Saints logo outside of Shoal Creek Saloon at 9th and Lamar, which should be some indication of what this spot’s all about. But if you’re sports illiterate, then maybe the Abita on draft, the smell of fried seafood, or the giant “Southern Louisiana Cooking” on the outside wall will give it away. If you want the true feel of Louisiana, head to the patio overlooking Shoal Creek—extra points if it’s the middle of summer at peak humidity. But for a taste of Louisiana, there are better places in Austin to go. Because while you can certainly come away from here with a decent meal, it’s a coin toss whether or not the po’boys will arrive on stale bread, the fried fish won’t really be that fried, or the crawfish etouffee will have little to no crawfish. Head to Shoal Creek Saloon to watch a Saints or LSU Tigers football game, because when the weather is nice, there are very few better places to hang out with other fans than on the patio by the creek, with an ice cold Abita in hand.

Food Rundown

photo credit: Holly Dirks

Crawfish Queso

The crawfish queso here is one of the more unique things we’ve had, and it’s worth trying. The tails don’t have as much flavor as we’d like, but the portion is pretty generous. Besides, where else are you going to get this in Austin (or anywhere)?

photo credit: Holly Dirks

Catfish Po'Boy

Shoal Creek can certainly make a pretty po’boy. Unfortunately, our bread has come out very stale on multiple occasions, with catfish that was pretty watery and bland.

photo credit: Holly Dirks

Fried Seafood Basket

We like the fried shrimp here, both in basket and sandwich form. The catfish has the same issues as the po’boy, but here it’s a little more apparent since it doesn’t have a bunch of pickles and hot sauce to hide behind.