Everything I said previously, plus: Very attentive service: the server was friendly and gave pointed recommendations. Tip: ask for the paella to come well-done, which maximizes the crispy bits of rice on the base of the dish. read more

See all

We had reservations that I made two months in advance (jazz fest weekend). We tried repeatedly calling the restaurant to let them know that we were going to be a few minutes late. No one answered the phone. We arrived two minutes past the 15 minutes grace period and found that our table for 6 was given away. When we expressed our great disappointment the host then claimed that we were lying, we never called and declared that we were not welcomed. He also made it clear that there were no available tables. He was rude and nasty. Our local friend who recommended the restaurant was shocked. Very disappointing experience. The food might be great (I'll never know) but the restaurant to me is absolutely awful. read more

I'm kind of smitten with Lola's. I have hazy, beautiful memories of my time spent in Spain. Lots of wine. Lots of paella, olives and tiny plates of marinated vegetables. Lots of friendly, lovely people. Lots of staying up until dawn or later. Lola's brought back all the memories into focus. The food. Wow. WOW. My fingers are paralyzed with ecstasy as I tried to recapture the experience. Easily one of the best meals I've had in New Orleans. Of course if you're a fan of Spanish food and flavors, you know what to expect, and maybe it's been a while since I've had it, but I was pretty blown away. You can see in the other reviews mentions of garlic. I'm a garlic lover, it's true and if you don't like it... well, I fear we may have nothing in common (though I do realize that there are times when you wish to avoid it, say on a first, second, or third date, even). Luckily I was with two good friends and a boy I've been getting to know and like... and it might have been date #10 by now. SO BRING ON THE GARLIC, BITCHES!!!!!!! And they brought it. With the on-special Brussels Sprouts tapas. With the salty butter on the table. And with the paella. But first, let's go back to those Brussels sprouts. I make them often. I love the B-sprouts so much that I order them whenever they are not presented with bacon. I like 'em raw and slawed, roasted and herbed, sauteed in brown butter. LOVE. But these might have been the best I have ever EVER had. They are served sizzling in a tiny skillet, swimming in hot oil with chili peppers and, of course, tons of garlic. I prefer to avoid bread before a meal, but was hard pressed to not gorge on that warm roll dipped into spicy garlic oil. Our waitress was a hauntingly gorgeous and saintly woman straight out of a del Toro movie. Being taken care of by such a person (who, for example, asked us with great concern if we needed bread... and also immediately let us in on the fact that there was only one serving of Brussels sprouts left)... was as priceless and precious as saffron. Ok, so the gushing really needs to stop. Pro tip: Please remember to ask for hot sauce with your food. I don't know what it is (appears to be a raging hot aioli), but it's fucking incredible. And will make an already tasty and gorgeous vegetarian paella into rocket science. I've decided that I need to go back to Spain STAT. In the meantime, we have a good representation here in NOLA via Lola's! read more

Lola's - Vegetarian Paella - Spanish Near Me - New Orleans, Louisiana

See all

Found this place from Michael Murphy's book All Dat. Lola's defines a New Orleans neighborhood restaurant. Small, quaint, full of character, not pretending to be anything else. Reservations are not accepted. Because of limited seating, I'd arrive early. It's casual and loud but worth it. We had Paella and Fidueles plates of meat, seafood and vegetarian to share. Portions are more than generous with everything prepared fresh, served steaming hot. If you don't want to fill up on an entree, I would suggest small plate tapas appetizers with soup. So authentic Spanish, I felt like we were in Barcelona again. Be sure to try their homemade Sangria, red or white. Save room for desert, the Flan was wonderful. read more

Lola's - Spanish Near Me - New Orleans, Louisiana

See all

Lola's is a cute spot in the Bayou St. John area. They have indoor seating, patio seating, and additional outside seating on the side of the restaurant with a beautiful accent green wall. When I went, I sat on the side of the restaurant, and the weather was perfect so I enjoyed my spot. I ordered the combination Paella which consisted of chicken, pork, sausage, fresh vegetables, shrimp, scallops, and mussels. The paella was AMAZING. It was my first time trying it, so I wasn't sure what to expect but I was not disappointed! For appetizers I ordered the garlic shrimp. Tip: ask for extra bread when you order the garlic shrimp so you can dip it in the sauce I also ordered the antipasto, which consists of different cheeses, meats, olives, and bread. All of the dishes are shareable. read more

See all

All I can say is that I'm glad that I live in Mid-City because I'm near Lola's! There are many fond memories here with friends, bottles of sangria (I know I normally don't drink but hey, Lola's sangria is too good to pass up). The paella here are so good it makes me want to take the next direct flight to Espana! I will have to practice my Spanish! hehe... My friends also indulge in the mushroom appetizer...so good it almost hurts. The only downside is that it's a small restaurant and the wait can be a while if it's the weekend. But hey, it's worth the wait. There is also outdoor seating with wrought iron chairs. The waitstaff are really nice and the smells of food in here are exquisite! You can order tapas and eat family style which I always recommend! Hey, I'm Asian, that's how we do! Happy paella! read more

Sometimes you want to take an international venture without paying for such trip. THIS IS YOUR PLACE. Once you step foot off the busy, bustling, and baking-hot streets of NOLA, you transport into a warm and cozy restaurant in Spain. The food is as authentic as authentic can get! Seafood paella was LITTTT! Wine was phenomenal as well (but when is it not?) Defo recommend , especially if you're looking for something different to eat in NOLA. read more

Lola's is great! Their server claire is wonderful and a joy to be around. She made us feel very special. The food was fantastic with beautiful presentation. Be careful eating the peppers they are very spicy!! The place is very quaint and cozy, will be returning. read more

Absolutely delicious! It was piping hot, seasoned wetland fresh. I especially loved the bit of crunch from the veggies and rice. read more

Lola's - Combination Paella - Spanish Near Me - New Orleans, Louisiana

We came to Lola's for a double date. I made a reservation ahead of time and said we preferred outdoor seating. We were seated early on their beautiful patio with a. View of Esplanade ave. We had two bottles of sangria and shared some tapas, paella, and dessert. I loved the sangria! I thought it had a great balance of wine and brandy. The tapas were delicious! We had the charcuterie, ceviche, and garlic shrimp. The garlic shrimp was my favorite - I couldn't stop dipping my bread in that sauce! We ordered the seafood paella which was tasty. The 3 tapas and a medium paella was the perfect amount for the 4 of us. For dessert, we ordered the flourless chocolate cake and some almond nougat ice cream. The chocolate cake was amazing!! We really enjoyed sitting on the patio and the service was wonderful. We'd definitely come back! read more

See all

Brunch at Lolas was just spectacular- from the service as well as the food! The Belgium waffles was my absolute fav with plenty of powdered sugar and fruits. The Lola Burger was pretty darn delish as well. The meat was juicy and fresh. The pelatos de pescado sauce was also well made. Ending brunch with bottomless mimosas made it the perfect mid-afternoon. read more

See all

There were no hostess when we arrived so we waited for a good two or three minutes untill someone stopped to acknowledge us and got us a table. When Alli our waitress came with the menu we felt like we were rush to decide on what to order. Our mistake when we asked for a minute to look through the menu because our waitress, Alli took longer then we expected to come back to take our order and much longer for our food to come out. We found out that they were understaffed was the reason. I placed an order for the Lola's Burger, Lamb and Beef blend top with Manchego cheese, eggplant spread and fries. I asked for medium well and it came out perfectly. The eggplant spread was different but in a good way. My fries was not crispy, more like soggy fries. My sister's got the Meat omelettes, the Breakfast Platter and another got the Shrimps N Grits. I had a taste of the Shrimps N Grits and it was really good. The grits was so cheesy and tasty. Over all our food was good but service was lacking even with being understaffed. It was a nice touch that they have a hand sanitizer at each table. #supportlocal read more

See all

Awful service. Sat for 20+ min. No one came to table. Waited, waited And waited. Very disappointed. read more

What an excellent little gem of a restaurant. Service and food are always on point. Vibes are immaculate. I once dined here during a rainstorm, the restaurant lost power for about 20 minutes but service was hardly interrupted!! Our food came out of the kitchen and our server remained attentive as if nothing happened. It was a really cool experience. read more

Service expectations have always been low for me at Lola's. In the past, I have overlooked this since there are few places in New Orleans that make paella. But last night I placed an online order only to find out the online system doesn't work. The staff was unsurprised by this and unapologetic. I was not amused. Please remove the online ordering from your website. If you want take-out, call your order in or do what I will do from now on and get your paella from Paella Nola. read more

I had not stepped into a Spanish restaurant in years and Lola's quaint space and the fact that it was packed on a Tuesday night had me at first sight. We sat by the kitchen and started with a glass of sangria, it was perfect! We could taste the wine and brandy along with the fruits soaked in it. We opened with the ceviche and crabmeat tropical. The ceviche was fresh, citrusy and perfectly balance. The crabmeat was a beautiful surprise creamy and fresh, it just melted away. These two were the big winners of the night. We followed that with the Ajoblanco which is a traditional Andalusia almond soup and for us a calculated risk. While it's packed with flavor it was just a weird dish to us since it fell right on the sweet/savory line and really confused us as to wether it was a savory dish or desert. Since it's a cold soup I can see how it fits into the summer soup realm like gazpacho. Up next was the calamari and for us the most underwhelming dish of the night. It just lacked flavor and the side sauce was overpowering. To close out the night we had the garlic mushroom and special tapa of the night garlic Brussels Sprouts. Both dishes were full of flavor but the Brussels sprouts stood up better to the garlic while the mushrooms were lost in it. We will definitely be back since we are curious to try the paella and desserts which we didn't get to this time since we were sooooo full. read more

See all

Stopped back into Lola's after a near 5 year hiatus. The same problems I had the the paella showed its ugly head again as the seafood paella was definitely overcooked which unfortunately was a trend. The seafood paella on the other hand was perfectly cooked with excellent flavor. The stars of the show here are the brussels sprouts, they may not be mentioned on the menu but they are a must appetizer especially if you like garlic. read more

What has happened to Lola's!? Not sure. One thing that has happened is a doubling in seating capacity with NO corresponding attention paid towards the very small cramped kitchen/prep area nor apparently the skill of the people who staff it. Angel, the original owner/chef, would have never sacrificed the quality of his kitchen's product in this way. We have dined here often over the last 25 years. Often dining 1-2 times a month. We would literally sit sweating our asses off in Angel's originally under air-conditioned space to eat his kitchen's excellent food. Luckily, I have not been for the last 3-4 months. This once "perfect" neighborhood gem, a labor of love begun by Angel over 25 years ago, is barely recognizable anymore. If not for the portraits of Angel and Lola hanging over the bar I would have thought I was eating in a different restaurant entirely. I was warned by a friend, who dined here a few weeks ago, that Lola's had completely deteriorated. Yet, after dining here for over 25 years I simply couldn't believe it, as it was always a great food experience. Wait times and service have always been an issue ever since Sonya left for Spain, yet the food was always excellent. Unfortunately, my friend was correct. The menu is the same, but the execution and ingredient quality could not be more different, and not in a good way. The wine and cocktails remain moderately priced. The bread and aioli was as good as I remember, and the garlic shrimp appetizer is still very good. The entrees took over an hour to arrive, and ranged from disappointingly bad to out right inedible. My wife's vegetable paella contained over cooked rice, and vegetables that were undercooked containing crunchy carrots, green beans containing hard beans within their cooked shells, and squash/zucchini pieces with an undercooked bite. My pork loin, in the past arguably the best pork loin in the city, had morphed into a grizzled, fatty streaked piece of mystery meat that I would not feed to my dog. I had ordered my pork loin to be cooked to a medium temperature. This "loin" imposter arrived well done to a dark grey at one pole, and an uncuttable raw red, think Trichinosis, at the opposite pole. The whole "loin" was copiously covered in a brown gravy in a not so subtle attempt to hide the disaster lurking beneath. It is impossible to adequately describe how this current offering of "pork loin" has absolutely no resemblance to the perfectly cooked piece of high quality pork with it's little ramekin of gravy that used to be one of the menu's stars that was previously put out by this kitchen. I actually sent the entire fiasco back to the kitchen (first time I have ever done this). BTW, this is a very different kitchen, it is a kitchen that displayed no embarrassment, and offered no apology for this piece of offal they served (no offense meant for well prepared offal). Although the server was apologetic, and had apparently had "similar" experiences with other "longtime local customers". Overall one of the worse meals I have ever had in NOLA, or anywhere for that matter. Truly a shame, and never something I thought I would write about Angel's beloved Lola's. This place used to be a great food driven restaurant, occupying a special place in a food driven city. Unless something changes quickly, it is gonna take a lot more than the free glass of Sangria offered on YELP to lure dinners to this once wonderful restaurant. read more

Man. I don't know where to start. I used to eat here a lot when I lived here. I haven't been here since Angel died. The food used to be amazing!!! I never liked mussels and this place made me fall in love with mussels. The paella was amazing and flavorful. Today.....highly disappointed. At least the aioli was still good. The caprese salad was tasty, but the responsibility there lies more on the produce than the chef. Anyways....service was great, staff great....food???? Not so much, makes me question wether I even like seafood. Sad:(is read more

This was my first time at Lola's to try out the brunch menu. I was greeted by a waitress as soon as I walked up and was seated outside within a minute. My dining partner and I selected the pan con tomate appetizer had two mimosas. The appetizer was amazing! We both loved that the tomato was finely diced and seasoned and the bread wasn't soggy nor too hard. Very flavorful. The mimosas were standard so we had no complaints. Our waitress was very attentive and we loved that there was hand sanitizer on each table for guests (although it wasn't labeled so we had to ask). We ordered the shrimp and grits and Lola's burger for our entrees and they didn't disappoint. The shrimp and grits was definitely better than the burger though. It wasn't the most extensive brunch menu but it was good enough for me to want to return and try their dinner menu. read more

See all

My wife and I celebrated a birthday and had a wonderful time. The outdoor seating was fun and the atmosphere was romantic. The cool evening was helped by firepits that added to the atmosphere. We especially loved the paella and the chuflan. We will return. read more

Lola's - Spanish Near Me - New Orleans, Louisiana

See all

We were greeted as we walked in. We came for my girl friends birthday. They offer bread rolls with this mild spicy butter. It was delicious. Our drinks were always refilled. Also, we ordered a Paella Medium meat bowl. Was so good! I was stuffed affront. Definitely recommend eating at this hidden gem off esplanade in bayou St. John if your in Nola! read more

Lola's - Medium Paella, so good! Only 35 with tax! - Spanish Near Me - New Orleans, Louisiana

Ya'll the paella from this place is something you need in your life. It is always packed for a reason. Yes, we waited over an hour plus some to be seated. I didn't even care though and if you know me you know that says something. They are BYOB and they don't charge a corking fee. So the perfect scenario for me was going to the free wine tasting across the street at Swirl on a Friday afternoon. Getting a few bottles after taste testing and drinking on the front of Lola's while we waited to be seated. Then finishing the remaining bottle with our food once it was served. That's not a requirement just highly recommended. Good food and good drinks guaranteed. read more

See all

Delicious food and great service! We ordered the seafood paella and Caldereta stew and both were amazing. Great atmosphere and our waitress was so kind. read more

Excellent Little Restaurant Lola's is a great little place on Esplanade Ave. just a short drive from the French Quarter. It is mostly a locals place which is nice break from eating in the French Quarter which can get pretty touristy if you don't get off the beaten path. The paella is wonderful as is pretty much everything else we tried. We sat outside which was quite pleasant, so I can't comment about the atmosphere inside, but it look nice as well. read more

A place to enjoy the atmosphere, service, & the convenience if you live close by. Not a place of incredible food. Great Spanish wine saves the day! The small plates are actually pretty good, the paella not so much; it's never been right. It's either totally bland or wayyyyy wayyyy too salty. Cumin, paprika, & saffron are non-existing in their version of the classic Spanish dish. It's too bad; the spot is fantastic & servers are always so nice. I guess go to enjoy the area but don't expect good Spanish paella here--you'll be utterly disappointed. read more

Loved the place great people and the paella was fantastic we had the mixed paella. And three appetizers that we shared Brussel sprouts , clams and ceviche (mahi mahi and shrimp) great food. Tony read more

Lalalalove lola's! We got the XL seafood paella and shared it amongst 5 people, and had the ceviche and the calamari as appetizers. I would have liked if the seafood in the ceviche were a bit more acidic and sharp, like the original ceviche is like in Peru. The calamari was interesting, as it was served as a block, and cut criss cross. Loved the flavor and texture, super on point! The seafood paella was just mouthwatering. Loved every bit of it! These three dishes were the perfect amount to share for us, definitely will be going back. read more

See all

The ambiance, the service and the drinks were absolutely amazing! My sisters and I brunched at Lola's last Sunday and everything was great. The appetizer was divine, I'd never had anything like it. And who doesn't love bottomless Mimosas?! I ordered the shrimp and grits as my entree, one of my sisters had the steak dish and the other an omelet. Upon receiving my dish I noticed that it looked a bit different than the shrimp and grits I'm accustomed to as a Native New Orleanian. However, I thought maybe that's how they do it in Spain. The taste was different, but still enjoyable. My sister complained that her steak was a bit overcooked, but the meal was still satisfying. My other sister said her omelette was "the best omelette [she'd] ever had at a restaurant, so give them 5 stars for it". Overall, it was a great experience....until it wasn't. An hour after I'd returned home from Lola's I took sick. From 2pm to 12am Id thrown up EVERYTHING that was on my stomach. I tried to nurse myself back to health with some soup and a kombucha, but I couldn't hold any fluids down. After vomiting 9 times I decided it was time to see a doctor. My partner rushed me to the emergency room where we discovered that I'd had a bad case of the stomach flu. I felt terrible, I called my sisters to see if they were okay and to my surprise they were still out painting the city red. Then it hit me, it was the shrimp and grits. I love seafood, so this was surprising. In my 22 years I'd never had a bad experience with seafood, so this made me very sad. I called my mom to tell her about my experience and she informed me that my dad, who also loves seafood, gets sick whenever he eats imported seafood. I said that to say, maybe the shrimp was imported and that's why I was sick. I don't know, but what I do know is I felt HORRIBLE for hours after brunching at Lola's. I gave them 4 stars because like I said the experience was great. Aside from getting sick, I truly enjoyed brunch with my sisters at Lola's and I'll definitely return. I'll just stick with the waffles next time because the looked delectable. read more

See all

Food was delicious and service was a oooo perfect, even though they were a bit understaffed (which most businesses are right now!).

Had dinner for 1 tonight at Lola's and it was amazing! Staff was super friendly and knowledgeable. Sat at the bar Cody the manager was great company. I had him order me his favorites and they did not disappoint! I had brussel sprouts and garlic shrimp to start and then duck for my entree. Wine selection was great. If you are looking for a cute date night or night out with friends Lola's can fit it all! If you haven't been I'd put it on your list! read more

Lola's - Spanish Near Me - New Orleans, Louisiana

I finally got the chance to try Lolas delicious paella! My friend and I split the smallest combination paella paired with garlic shrimp and garlic mushrooms. Everything was delicious! Service was a little slow as they were busy and I would order a paella as soon as you sit as it takes at least 20-30mins for it to be ready. read more

I enjoyed eating at Lola's, the venue is small and cozy and food is made to order, which means there's at least at least a 15-20min wait but it has been worth it. To date, each time I've visited, the food has been consistent and good. read more

Lola's - Spanish Near Me - New Orleans, Louisiana

See all

My family and I were visiting the city and came across this restaurant. We loved every bit of it, attention was perfect and food was excellent! We enjoyed every bite and if we visit NOLA again this would a required stop for sure. read more

Lola's - Seafood Paella - Spanish Near Me - New Orleans, Louisiana

Let me start out by prefacing this was a Saturday night at 7pm. We had reservations for 4 at 7pm. I get it, it's busy, we went in expecting that much. No excuse could be made for what happened. We were seated, drinks and paella order placed at 720. Paella they said takes around 45 minutes. In the mean time we placed an order for two soups( lentil and a cold one) which were forgettable and an order of the calamari. Calamari came out looking like tofu pieces, chewy, warm, 2/5. Would not recommend. About 30 minutes later we all ordered a refill on our drinks and ordered our entrees, a rack of lamb and we decided on ordering the garlic shrimp and ceviche and sharing the paella. Ceviche comes out another 30 minutes later, followed by another 30 minute lul until the garlic shrimp comes and the waiter was nice enough to give us two for the price of one because we were very cordial in the wait time. When the ceviche comes out at 9, the waiter informs us the restaurant is out of rack of lamb, thought we ordered that 30 minutes ago.... Ceviche is also a pass, nothing to write home to mom about. By this point it's 930. I inquire about the progress of our paella and the waiter seems a bit stressed and says he'll go check up on that. It's 10pm and our group has been there for 3 hours and my friend goes to use the restroom and tells our waiter to forget our paella. The waiter admits it was busy and that someone else must've eaten ours.... First let me say the garlic shrimp is great. The Malbec is a fine choice in wine. The ambience is second to none with a guitarist. The issues Lola's has seems like they're biting off more than they can chew. The poor waiter seemed like he has the best intentions and truly looked like he was trying his best. Too many tables, no order, no consistency, no communication We ended up leaving at 10pm, more disappointed than anything. I absolutely want to try the paella, and tbh, I'm down to wait 3 hours for a well made one. I just am not about waiting 3 hours to be forgotten about and have a rushed one made. I'll definitely want to try and give this place another try, hopeful for a better experience In short, I don't got to raising canes and truly review their coleslaw so I'll say some of lola's sides may be a toss up but I still want to try their chicken fingers.... hopefully next time they get organized won't give it to someone else or some other excuse read more

Came here for brunch and Lola's was one of the highlights of our New Orleans trip whIch is A LOT to say because NOLA is pure magic. The staff was extremely friendly and accommodated my 1 yr old son beyond expectation. Their outdoor setting is beautiful which pairs perfectly with their service and food quality. Had the bottomless mimosas and our service kept topping us up VERY often. The steak was tender and omg their brava sauce is so amazing. read more

Lola's - Steak for brunch - Spanish Near Me - New Orleans, Louisiana

See all

We had a great experience at Lola's. The server was attentive and knowledgeable. We all got appetizers and split the large combination paella which was plenty of food for 3 of us and we still had a good amount left. The fabada soup was perfect before the paella and the sangrias were delicious. It's definitely a small place with few tables so get there as soon as they open for immediate seating. read more

See all

Lola's has great food, but every time I come here the service gets worse. I made a reservation and then when I showed up there was no hostess around for about 10 minutes. When one showed up she told us our reservation wasn't in the system. I dont see the point of making a reservation if they're not going to be honored. Disappointing for sure. Good food can mean very little if the experience of dining there is unpleasant from the start. read more

Wife and I walked here with our friends from the NOMA. The drinks we had were fantastic: Lavender 75, Lotus Margarita, Caipirinha, and a good selection of Spanish white wines. All the food we had was amazing, too: charcuterie, ceviche, lentil soup, white bean soup, and of course the seafood paella. Delicious paella. Service was on point, too. We'll definitely be back! read more

The food was fabulous! We had garlic mushrooms, seafood paella, and flourless chocolate cake. Everything was delicious! The service was wonderful. The food took a while to get, and we were given warm bread and garlic butter while we waited. Sit back, relax, and enjoy this lovely restaurant! Reservations are a must! read more