We absolutely love Nora Lee's. The food is always fantastic, especially the Cajun cheese steak. Sometimes the service can be a little slow but it's understandable due to COVID. We will continue to frequent Nora Lee's. Thank you! read more

The service is very hit or miss, some nights the place is packed and dinner for 2 takes 2 hours, other times it's very reasonable. The food is fresh. The hazelnut crusted crab cakes on the dinner menu are delicious. The jalapeno poppers are hand made and deliciously spicy. The gumbo is also very good. They usually have a groupon available, so well only go when we have one to use, as prices are a bit high. read more

Well this review will be brief.....NOT!!! let me start from the beginning, (fog scene) Mother's Day My son and I took my wife somewhere different this year ( our first choice was Fugo de Chao ) but we went to Nora lees. I was digging the whole historic New Castle vibe so we walked in a was seated all the way in the back where I had to use my flashlight on my phone to see my hands let alone the menu. So we order the crab dip and coconut shrimp please read the captions on the photos. our server was not attentive and pretty non existent half way in our meal. when I asked for more bread for the dip she looked at me like I was crazy, by this time my wife was getting HOT. So our main dish came out and man it turned from bad to worse, my wife didn't like her food so she didn't even eat it, and my son's food looked very watery and my son had to tell the server that suddenly reappeared to take the dirty dishes off the table, but wait here come the Crescendo... when we got the bill it total $118.56 they had the nerve to charge my son $4.00 for some damn shrimp. I should've took the drive to Philly. This place SUCKS!!!! If you was REAL New Orleans style food go to New Orleans instead. There is no point system for this CRAP!!!!! read more

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If you like New Orleans, Cajun food...this is the place to go! Been here a couple of times and each time has been fabulous. The Cajun Popcorn (fried crawfish) will linger and create explosions of taste in your mouth. It's a great appetizer. The Crawfish Jambalaya is very tasty, too - as was the fried catfish. They moved from PA a few years ago and are situated in this quaint little town of New Castle. Highly recommended!! read more

I've eaten a lot of crab cakes in my life but never had one prepared like this at Nora Lee's! Fabulous! All the meals were delicious! No complaints. Our server Ashley was very attentive to everything we needed, was kind and professional. The restaurant was very creative with the outside seating. All private tables with your own tent, heaters and little gardens planted all down the walkway. We will be back! read more

Really great service. Great food. Not cheap but reasonable Considering the taste and freshness of the food. Love the bread and Cajun butter. Fried oysters were mediocre. Fried captain crunch chicken was very tasty and fried well. The dipping sauce was too sweet for me though. Love their lobster ravioli with scallops and shrimp. The scallops were one of the best i have ever had. Their crab cake was good but full of fillers. Their pistachio crusted tilapia was perfect with their mashed potatoes, but I could have done without their corn that reminded me too much of beans. Skipped dessert because was too full but will Definitely try next visit. read more

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What a great way to celebrate Valentine's day! I tried the lobster ravioli and it was one of the best dishes I've ever had. My husband had the meatloaf and we loved it. It tasted like an old family recipe without too much of the extras stuff. You could taste the meat and the barbeque sauce was amazing. The service was outstanding too. What a great quaint little place in historic New Castle. We will definitely be going back soon! read more

I wanted to give this place a second chance before I wrote a review, since friends had good such good things to say about it! This place gives you a dive meets diner vibe, set to be a creole Louisiana atmosphere. The service here is hit or miss for me at this point. My first time dinning here I had to wait several minutes before I was greeted by the server at the bar. I was dinning on a Sunday because I was told that had drink and burger specials, and I never pass up the opportunity of a good burger!!! The service this day was very slow for a not so busy evening. Food and drinks seemed like it took an hour to come out. Good thing I wasn't that hungry! The burger I ordered was suppose to be on special for $6 but since I ordered it w/ mayo, lettuce, tomato, cheese, and bacon which never made it on the burger, my total for the burger was $10. Trust me this burger was not worth Hamilton I paid for it. My second dinning experience I tried their "crayfish bisque soup"--- never having crayfish before, I was a bit skeptical. But, it was actually very tasteful. Very smooth consistency with a nice kick of spice. I also tried the "Captn' Crunch chicken fingers w/ vanilla dipping sauce" these we're also good. Overall my experience here is not good or bad, but rather in between. This place is a friends' favorite so I'm sure I will be returning. read more

Nora Lee's - Hurricane - Cajun/Creole Near Me - New Castle, Delaware

This was not my first time here and I would visit again just not on. Saturday night. We waited 35 minutes for our appetizer only to return it because the scallops were not cooked all the way. The lady next to our table returned her catfish because it was cooked throughly. I would recommend this place but in a Saturday night. read more

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It was sort of late on a Friday night as my wife and I were passing through the area. For dinner, there were only two restaurants open and we chose this place because it had a slightly smaller bunch of people waiting outside. This place was absolutely packed. The wait for a party of four was an hour and soon they had to start turning people away. Thankfully, we were able to grab to seats at the bar. Even though the service was insanely slow, we didn't care because it gave us an excuse to linger at the bar and watch the Dodger game on the TV. For dinner we ordered the blackened Salmon dinner and it was good - it was a bit too salty and the portion was small for the price. Our server was nice, but it was obvious she and the rest of the staff were overwhelmed. read more

FOOD POISONING!!!!!!! Night was great drinks were ok but the food no not ok at all. After munching on some cold burnt bread that took forever to come out we enjoyed our appetizers... everything was still ok. The main corse was where everything went down hill. Multiple people ended up getting sick from this and did not have the same dishes nor share any food. PLEASE DO NOT GO HERE FOR YOUR STOMACHS SAKE. read more

Have been here before and the food is generally good, although $15 for 3 scollops is too much. I went today at 3:35 pm and waited for 10 minutes for the hostess to get off the phone and seat us. 2 waitresses said she would be with us in a minute, which didn't happen. As soon as she got off the phone, she said, I will be right with you as she saw us the entire time she was talking on the phone, but left to get to the bartender for a bit, before we finally got seated. After another 5 minutes of waiting at the table, I asked the hostess if we could see a waitress, as we had been ready to order for several minutes at that point. FYI the tables next to us were waiting too. She said that she would send our waitress right over. 5 minutes later, still no waitress, as I watched her chat it up with 4 other waitresses standing around. We decided to go to one of favorites down the street instead, Jessop's Tavern, where we got seated quickly, and served a great meal with outstanding service! I told the hostess at Nora Lees that be letting her manager know how bad the service was there and that I was leaving (after waiting another 3 minutes for her to return to her station). She said, "oh, some was just about to come over!" I said, after 20 minutes of waiting to be seated and still no waitress, when there was 4 of them standing around, that I would go where they actually appreciated our business. Jessop's got $120 that they lost out on and unlikely any repeat business in the future. Service was slow in the past, but not this bad and this blatant! If you have all day and want to overspend on food, enjoy! read more

I was hoping for a great experience at Nora Lees, but unfortunately it was just so-so. The atmosphere is very inviting, and the room(s) were dimly lit and nicely decorated. I really enjoyed the environment. The service was average+, and our server was polite and helped us decide on a few things. I got the coconut shrimp appetizer, which was good in ever respect other than it was slightly undercooked. The shrimp they used was a very good size, but needed just 60 more seconds in the fryer. We both got jambalaya, and it wasn't very good. Overly season, way too much paprika and concentrated tomato flavor. I'm not very familiar with Cajun/Creole food, but my DP was, having spent time in Louisiana. She was not very happy with the jambalaya, either. Disappointing, as I really wanted to like this place! read more

Waited an hour for bad food. The jambalaya was sweet like barbecue sauce was added. There was no broth. The crawfish were so small you'd miss them if you didn't try to find them. The hush puppies had uncooked cornmeal in the middle. The mashed potatoes were cold and dense. And the blackened crab cake was mushy and may have had ketchup on top. Not a good experience considering the entrees are over $20 each. read more

This was the best place my sweetie could have brought me to...love her to pieces. I'm from NOLA and I always skeptical when restaurant say they are Cajun/Creole restaurant...we're 1100 miles from NOLA and they're some ingredients u can only find down the bayou. This place get 5 stars from me....great place read more

Nora Lee's - Blackended crab cakes plus puppies and garlic potatoes - Cajun/Creole Near Me - New Castle, Delaware

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What a great find in Historic New Castle, DE! We were a party of 5, celebrating Mother's Day and birthday...from the Chicken Jambalaya to the Crawfish Po Boy, the food & our waitress was wonderful! They even offer the mustard & specialty condiments to take home in a mason jar. We're sure to return...maybe Father's Day Weekend? read more

Well this hidden jem deserves five stars! It soo nice and intimate, and feels so much like NOLA. The food was very good, although the Vodoo Chicken wings tasted like they were frost bitten. But everything else was fantastic! The Cajun Chicken Nachos were Delicious and very firey. Paired with an ice cold Cosmo, was just enough to keep me wanting more. For my meal i had the Crawfish Jambalaya was really really good though to me it was missing something. The staff was friendly. I will be comming back! I have another Groupon voucher to use read more

Nora Lee's - Voodoo Chicken Wings and Cajun Chicken Nachos - Cajun/Creole Near Me - New Castle, Delaware

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It started off wrong when I asked for a skinny martini and the waitress said they don't make them. If you have a bartender you make them. I ordered a different cocktail, which was the only thing that I enjoyed-the Keylime pie martini. And then the bar ran out of limes so the drink that the other couple in our party wanted, they couldn't get. Very slow service. Our appetizer came out right with the meal. We weren't offered dessert. When first seated, we had asked the waitress to give us two separate checks and at the end of the meal, she brought one, She made the excuse that they were busy and she accidentally forgot. Just wow. And then we weren't impressed with the food at all-my coconut shrimp was left in the fryer too long. So, for the high prices, it was very below par. read more

Amazing decor! Great food and friendly service!! I caught the lunch time special. I started with a Hurricane (off the drink menu). It was great, it'll definitely put some hair on your chest. I started with the Crawfish Jambalaya cup portion ($2.99). Get it! Get it! Then take some to go! Then I followed it up with the lunch portion crab cake platter. It was one of the best cra cakes I ever had. It was one, but it was a very big crab cake (I had leftovers). The crab cakes were accompanied with Mashed Potatoes. read more

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HUSH PUPPIES! I may be biased, but I love this place. Not once have I been disappointed by the food. Generally, we start with the crab cake stuffed mushroom. It's not what you picture, at all. It's a crab cake on top of a mushroom cap. Nothing stuffed about it, BUT utterly delicious. Since I'm a creature of habit, my go to entree is the blackened Cajun chicken that comes with mashed potatoes and hush puppies. Hard not to devour it all but I force myself to only eat half so I have leftovers. This spot is great to gather with friends over good food, glass of wine, laugh, end just enjoy! read more

Waited an hour and a half for our food. We were told it would be another half hour. When our med rare steaks came, they were well done and not edible. We sent them back. Asst Mgr still charged us $30 for the soup and salad. Very disappointed. read more

Nora Lee's is in a section of what I call "Old City" Wilmington. The restaurant reminds me so much of NOLA, we cross the bridge a couple times a month to dine. I love their perogies and my boyfriend always orders their jambalaya, both dishes loaded with spices. I've also had several other dishes, including their tomato bisque, so good! Their servers are cordial, attentive (but not too attentive), I love this place! read more

If I could rate this no stars I would. Me and my family had a terrible experience here. Tonight February 25th we had a reservation for 6 people at 5pm. They took us at 5, we ordered appetizers which was fine. They took forever to bring out our entrees. The catfishes we ordered, we did not like. They were fried with no season and very oily. We advise them we would like to order something else. After we place our order, again they took a very long time to bring out our new orders which actually never came out. It's going on 7:30 at this point to 8pm. Which means we been here for about 3 hours now. They kept saying it would be out in a sec, but never came. We decided we didn't want to wait any longer and to just cancel the new order and we will just pay for what we did eat. They brought the bill out and the bill had the new order of food on there. We advised we will not be paying for our new food since we didn't receive and did not want anymore since it took so long. The manager (general manager) came out with a nasty attitude and said we already made the food you can either sit here and eat it or take it to go but you have to pay for it. We advised it took very long and we are willing to pay for what we did eat but not food we did not receive. We told her it took way too longer and people after us was getting their food before us. Manager stated we can't just bump you up to the top of the list because you don't like the food. She threatens to call the cops on us, we advise we will call the cops too. She stated the cops are going to be on her side anyway which was terrible to say. The cops get here we told the cops we are willing to pay for what we ate but not what we did not receive. Both the owner and managers still had nasty attitudes saying they are busy and short staffed. The cops agreed that the customers should not have to pay for something they did not get. She snatched the receipt out of the cops hand and said forget it just don't come back. This was truly unacceptable and a big mistake on their part. We are African American and I truly feel there was some racism in this. We have never been handled this way before and been at this restaurant before and never had an issue with the food or service. The managers name was Whitney. If they would have just told us from the jump they were super busy or even apologized then this could have ended differently. Even the cops appreciated the fact we were willing to pay for what we did at least get instead of walking out. But because of their poor service, they will no longer have our business and I will be letting everyone know. Even the waitress who we actually didn't have an issue with, said this manager is always like this! As customers we can not just accept any type of service especially if we are paying. Absolutely unacceptable. And will not be coming back. read more

jambalaya is nasty...tastes like they putt bbq sauce in it and the food is very expensive for the quality. Service was slow, took 90 minutes to get in and out and thank god we had cash for the bill because the food server kept disappearing. read more

Always a great meal! I've been here several times and the atmosphere is excellent, as well as the service. We had crawfish bisque and plantains as appetizers and hazelnut crusted crab cakes and chicken and shrimp jambalaya for dinner. Thumbs up all the way around... And don't forget the bread and butter! read more

Nora Lee's - Chicken and shrimp jambalaya - Cajun/Creole Near Me - New Castle, Delaware

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Let's start with the pro's they greet you upon entering which is always nice, the dessert rating by itself will be a 4.5 stars but im voting overall. I order a banana foster bread pudding which was so flavorful i felt like a took a bite of heaven. But when I bit into the banana it was hard as a rock as if it was a green unripe banana. I was soo disappointed. The dessert pros outweighed the cons therefore I will return just for that. Food was just average. We ordered the wings and i will never order that again because they had several feathers still attached. If you're going to serve chicken take a little extra time and get rid of as much feathers and hair as possible. I enjoyed the Jambalaya. read more

Nora Lee's - Fish and Jambalaya - Cajun/Creole Near Me - New Castle, Delaware

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TRAVEL NOTICE:Learn more about COVID-19 See all restaurants in New Castle Nora Lee's Cafe 245 reviews$$ - $$$AmericanBarSeafood Opens in 37 min: See all hours Photos Details Reviews  All photos (39) Call Map Menu Website Ratings and reviews 4.0 246 reviews #5 of 26 American in New Castle #3 of 77 Restaurants in New Castle RATINGS Food Service Value Atmosphere Mentioned in Historic New Castle, Delaware By VisitWilmingtonDE Discover a new amazing restaurant in Delaware By Visit Delaware Food and ambience American, Bar, Seafood, Vegetarian Friendly ... whether at the bar or at a table an... Location and contact 124 Delaware St, New Castle, DE 19720-4859 Website Email Call Improve this listing Does this restaurant offer free wifi?Yes No Unsure Details Unclaimed CUISINES American, Bar, Seafood SPECIAL DIETS Vegetarian Friendly MEALS Lunch, Dinner, Late Night, Drinks View all details Meals, Features Reviews (246) Write a review Traveler rating Excellent93 Very good75 Average39 Poor15 Terrible23 Show reviews that mention All reviews jambalaya hush puppies coconut shrimp garden salad nachos filet bread mashed potatoes chilli new orleans french quarter death by chocolate blues music mardi gras cajun cuisine sweet and spicy great cajun Selected filters FilterEnglish amyw641 Reviewed yesterday Obnoxious patrons My husband and I really love the ambience and food at Nora Lees-. Tonight however, we did not enjoy the ambience. This place is small and intimate. The back room for larger parties had obnoxiously LOUD people. They left and then another group of obnoxiously LOUD people took their place. I couldn't hear my husband speaking to me. Lets just say these two groups are a part of a culture that has no regard for anything or anyone but themselves. I stopped count of how many times we heard cuss words in the hour and 15 minutes we were there. A door needs to be put on that back room. It was a very unenjoyable dinner for us. Show less Date of visit: October 2020 This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC. mroehsler Wilmington, Delaware Reviewed November 8, 2019 via mobile We want to like this place... We want to like this place, but every visit is a disappointment. Came here with my family a few nights ago. It took the server 15 minutes to come to the table, to ask if we want something to drink. Another 15 to come back to get our orders. I observed this poor girl serving almost the entire restaurant, she sighs heavily at each table she goes to. I felt like my family was a bother. She must have been overworked. The food here is not at all cheap and for me to pay a lot for dinner, I deserve good service. Finally, the male server came who seemed to know what he is doing. The jambalaya is a much smaller serving now than a few months ago. Don't get me wrong the food is good, but the service has been consistently bad except for this male server with stylish hair. Will we go back again and again? I think we finally gave up on this place. Show less Date of visit: November 2019 1  Thank mroehsler This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Beth T Reviewed November 1, 2019 Great Cajun food and music! We always enjoy our times at Nora Lee's. It is a great place for Cajun food, Blues music and sharing the experience with friends. The atmosphere is intimate, whether at the bar or at a table and the service is friendly. Date of visit: October 2019 Helpful? View more reviews Best Moderately Priced Restaurants See all Jessop's Tavern 460 Reviews $$ - $$$, American, Bar, Pub Casablanca Moraccan Restaurant 46 Reviews $$ - $$$, Moroccan, Middle Eastern Cafe New Castle 24 Reviews $$ - $$$, American, Cafe The Legend 21 Reviews $$ - $$$ Augusta Grille 19 Reviews $$ - $$$, Bar, Pub, American Chaiyo Sushi & Thai restaurant 10 Reviews $$ - $$$, Sushi read more

Excellent food, excellent service! Not your Normal everyday food.. Recommend App- Captain Crunch Chicken Tenders (OMG) Recommend Soup - Gumbo (OMG) Recommend Meal - jambalaya (OMG) read more

This rating relates to the service/experience. The food was good, at least the plates we received. Three of us went Sunday at 12 when NL's just opened. We were the only group on the patio, only saw two others inside. Drinks came at a reasonable time. The gumbo came out early (like an app for one of us) even though we did not ask for it early, but that was not a big deal except the mains did not come for quite a while and its a little awkward for only one person to be eating. One main plate came first, then another app, then a second plate but not not the third. A little while later the server admitted the third plate went to the wrong table. The three of us shared some of the 2.5 plates as we continued to wait. After another long period of time the server came back and asked if we still wanted the third plate or wanted it to-go, or taken off the bill. We said yes we still wanted it assuming it was coming soon. But it did not. We finished the food on the table and the server returned with the same question. At this point we said take it off the bill; we were done. The experience could've been better. There was not explanation for such slow service and no compensation for not getting an ordered meal. Too bad they could make it better even though they were not that busy. Even when we left there were about half the tables empty. read more

I've never had a bad meal here. Staff is always friendly. Desserts are exceptional. I also love the location in old New Castle and the atmosphere of the bar overall. Don't let the Cajun, New Orleans theme fool you if you're a picky eater. You will find something you like. Some of my favorites-- crawfish bisque, Captain Crunch coated chicken fingers, peanut butter tandy cake, and blackened Cajun tuna. Yum! read more

This is a 5 star restaurant, hands down, one that others should aspire to. I cannot fathom any lesser rating - anything less is not a problem with the establishment. Everything on my plate was delicious [and to me, exotic], and there was a lot, and the service was attentive. read more

Nora Lee's - Cajun/Creole Near Me - New Castle, Delaware

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A very nice down home New Orleans style restaurant. My girlfriend and I went twice in one week and were able to catch the house band on a Thursday night. The food drinks and desserts were outstanding. The staff was excellent especially since they remembered what we ordered in our previous visit (Including our desserts). A must do if your anywhere near the area. read more

I'm not one to normally leave a Yelp review unless I'm extremely frustrated. I used to love Nora Lees food! Service has never been good but I continued to go for my favorite menu items. Today I ordered a to go blackened shrimp Caesar salad for a cost of $17.98. Yes! 17.98 for a freakin shrimp Caesar salad that looks like shit. Picture attached. But I paid it thinking it was going to be as yummy as it used to be, but nope! I only got 5 shrimp and it just looks unappealing. It truly seems like it was a pre-made salad, like maybe a mistake or something, made way before I called in my order because the croutons are soggy and lettuce is warm. Unless it's on a hot sandwich the lettuce shouldn't be warm! The shrimp aren't even "blackened". It looks they haphazardly threw some seasoning on last minute on only two of the shrimp. Very disappointed. For what I paid for a salad at lunch, it should have been MUCH better quality. I won't be dining there for some time. Hopefully if I try it again eventually they will have corrected the kitchen and the service issues. read more

Nora Lee's - Blackened shrimp Caesar salad - Cajun/Creole Near Me - New Castle, Delaware

I still love this place. The staff is awesome and I love the vibe of this place. If you want authentic creole cuisine, buy a ticket to New Orleans. This place is fun and the food is good. Don't complain that the food is too spicy. If your tum tums can't take spicy food, order a salad. read more

OMG!!!! My new favorite meal in Delaware. The Andouille Meatloaf is so good. My husband would have licked his Jambalaya bowl if he could. The Crawfish Bisque could be a meal. We will definitely be back!!!! read more

Nice spot for dates! I recommend the blackened chicken entree-everything was cooked perfectly! read more

Nora Lee's - Blackened chicken entree - Cajun/Creole Near Me - New Castle, Delaware

Pros: great ambience with wonderful New Orleans decor that definitely sets the mood. The menu looked amazing with lots of variety and a great drink menu. Cons: I say the menu "looked" amazing because we were seated by the hostess for a 630p reservation and walked out without even being addressed by a server at 705. We waited 35 minutes without even being offered water or a "I'll be right with you". I've never walked out of a restaurant before and am truly sad we had to because we had such high hopes for this place! They may just have been understaffed for the night but it was unacceptable no matter the reason. We plan to give it another shot. read more

Was all giddy to go for my birthday dinner, which was short-lived to then have a very disappointing experience. Service was good... but food was... well.. pains me to say.. nearly awful. The voodoo crawfish appetizer was expected to be XXX spicy and when tried was everything but. Tasted nothing more than just a sweet BBQ. The rice it was served over was literally drowned in the sauce, wherein the fat was visibly starting to separate as you began to eat it. Even as a shared app... Could not bring ourselves to finish it. After keeping the hope alive... as the entrees that we ordered from the specials list sounded wonderful... all came out drowned in sauce as well. Firecracker crawfish cream sauce served over a steak was eerily similar to the app... no heat to it and fat began to separate while on the plate. Came with a mountain of rice and mashed sweet potatoes, which while generous were unexpected, and not a veggie in site other than the onions in the overwhelming amount of sauce. Another diner at the table, had the same bath going on their plate but with 3 different sauces where they couldn't eat it.. after about 5-6 bites of mine... It just got too disappointing to finish... Decided to forgo dessert.... And as I was trying to at least enjoy the draft beer I ordered, something must have been in the glass as there was very large white 'floaties' observed after the frost on the glass dissipated... Ugh. I had tried Nora Lee's for lunch 2 years ago and it was wonderful... But not anymore. I left my birthday dinner very sad, disappointed, and apologizing to my dinner guest for even suggesting it. read more

One of Old New Castle's best kept secrets! I have been to this place many times and never have been disappointed. The food is AMAZING! Most things are spicy or have a kick (which I LOVE) because it is creole food. The atmosphere is awesome- it is an old house turned into a restaurant. The decor fits the place perfectly, and they usually have jazz or blues playing which sets the mood. It is just a block from Battery Park which is nice to take a walk around either before or after your meal. I'll be back again soon :) read more

Nora Lee's - Cajun/Creole Near Me - New Castle, Delaware

Very good decor inside the gumbo is awesome the girls are nice good service i will definitely comeback here i hade captin crunch chicken fingers with vanilla sauce read more