The Perfect Delta Restaurant

NOLA in Indianola. See where the stairs used to be?

“Worth the Drive” is an understatement when it comes to NOLA. And no, I’m not talking about New Orleans. The drive from Jackson to this NOLA is pretty easy, plus you get to see some pretty delta scenery along the way.  I’ve been to this place twice and have been blown away both times. NOLA, located in Indianola, MS is a cool, eclectic, casual old theatre that was converted into a restaurant several years back. When you walk in, if you look to your left you’ll see evidence of theatre stairs that once ran along that wall. The whole place is comfortably decorated, but with the history of the building preserved. Since NOLA is an old theatre, the décor pays homage to old cinema with John Wayne, Marilyn Monroe, and the like in frames and in collages in the booths. I instantly feel at home each time we come here– It’s the perfect combination of good food, good people, and that good ol’ delta feelin’.

How good does that catfish look...

But enough about what this place looks like… Let’s talk about some food! Mr. Jackson and I went for a fun evening on the town with his folks, who live in the delta not too far from Indianola. We came with them several months back and loved it, so we had high expectations for this go-round. The four of us walked in, grabbed a booth and were greeted by our waiter who took our drink orders. He came back several minutes later with our drinks and was ready for our appetizer order. We’d tried the queso last time and remembered it being good, so we went with an order of that. As I was eating that queso and sipping on the stellar margarita that I ordered, I all the sudden started feeling muy Mexican! (This place is NOT a Mexican restaurant by the way, but they do hit the ball out of the park with their queso and margs!) Since I was kind of in the Mexican vibe, I decided I’d get the appetizer Nachos as my meal. I had these last time and they were so good (and fresh and BIG) that I knew they’d work for a meal. Plus, I knew my generous family members would let me pick at their plates!

That is one glorious filet...

Mr. Jackson went with the CatfishLafitte: a paneed (farm raised) catfish filet topped with the house Cajun cream sauce over linguini. Yum! His mama ended up getting the filet and his dad, who’s been on a health kick these days, got the Chef Salad. All of our food was delivered at once and it all looked outstanding! I tried a bite of the Catfish Lafitte and it was as wonderful as I expected. I particularly liked that Cajun cream sauce! The filet was looking mighty fine across the table over there… I did not try it personally, but it was described as quote “glorious” so I’ll take her word on that! It looked glorious, I do know that… Mmm mmm!

As for my nachos… They were outstanding! These are the freshest nachos I’ve ever had. The fresh bed of chips was topped with some chicken, fresh lettuce, fresh chopped tomato, fresh green onion, sliced black olives, jalapenos, cheese, and sour cream. I know this sounds fairly standard for nachos, but I’m telling you… These are the best nachos EVER! They are just so fresh and different. You have to try them for yourself because I am incapable of describing how good they are.

Nachos, NOLA style.

At the end of all this delicious food, we were too stuffed to try dessert. We did linger around for a while and chat with Chuck, the owner, and his lovely wife. These are some great people and this is a great restaurant. I can’t wait to go back next time we’re in the area!

If you want to make a weekend out of a visit to Indianola, they really do have some great food, good entertainment, a neat place to stay, and a pretty cool museum that you may have heard of… We talk about all that in our post about Getting Blue in Indianola, right here!

NOLA
112 Court Avenue
Indianola, MS 38751
(662) 887-2990
Price: $$$