Ina Mae Tavern & Packaged Goods

Came for dinner and there was no wait for outside seating. The portions are huge and the food is actually delicious. I’m got the Nashville chicken po boy and it was thigh meat with a cornmeal breading and Nashville style hot sauce. The sauce was a bit sweet and not spicy so this is for anyone. The sandwich was topped with lettuce, tomato, Mayo, pickles, and avocado. Also, the sandwich comes with fries! We split the Mac and cheese and collards, both of which were very good. The indoor seating had a cool stage for music above the dining areas. Cool place.

Alex was great I love his energy and sense of humor. The food was great the drinks were good and for some one that loves New Orleans this place was New Orleans in Chicago.. definitely worth it.

Great food! Not at all fancy but clean, hospitable and welcoming. My husband ordered the gumbo, red beans and rice with an order of buttermilk drop biscuits. LOVED IT!! The gumbo was thick and packed with stuff - chicken, sausage, seafood etc. The biscuits were awesome as well. Great for sopping up the last of the gumbo. :-) I ordered the shrimp and grits. At firat glance, I wondered if it would be enough. It was. The grits were creamy and cheesy. The perfect compliment to the shrimp. I made a mistake and ordered a Hurricane. The drink was just fine but I was just shy of drunk after drinking one. Not sure why I ordered a second one. Yes I do - it was so darn tasty! Great music was there as well. We were there for a Saturday Brunch and they had a band called GREASY GRAVY playing. Sounded like we were on the Bayou. Authentic. Great service. Very courteous, knowledgeable about the menu and friendly. Not just our server but almost every employee that walked past us checked on us without being intrusive. Eye contact and smiling eyes mean a lot. We will definitely return and bring our children.

Went here for a Scotch Educational seminar and learned a lot about Scotch, but discovered Ina Mae Tavern! We had the Arugula salad with pickled melon and char grilled oysters. The salad was very good and refreshing. The oysters were topped with a cheesy sauce and were very tasty. This is the perfect place to enjoy a drink and New Orleans style food. We want to come back here for the Po' Man's Seafood Tower (Shrimp, oysters, catfish, hush puppies, and crispy potatoes sounds like like a bargain at $36 for 2 or 3 people.

Cool little place, and the food was great. It's a place I would return to. Good service, nice neighborhood, tucked away in a quiet little pocket with plenty to do nearby. Very close to The Den theater, so it's a good place to stop .

This place resurrected me from one of the worst hangovers of my life, and for that I am forever grateful. I came back today sober and found the same order (greens and red beans & rice) to be a bit too salty. Otherwise though, very flavorful and I still appreciate the meal. The coffee is delicious too.

My friends and I dined here after brunch for a couple drinks. Our server Lucas was amazing. Great service, very attentive. We ended up staying for hours because it was so great. Truly, we had Lucas and then another server and it just showed how good Lucas was. Very impressed with his service.

All I have to say is - WOW the food was so delicious. Vibe was super cool and cozy with the Christmas pop-up. Also, I don’t think I’ve ever had a better pancake in my life. Will definitely be back!

Great place, not too expensive (for wicker) and the staff are generally very friendly. Frequent entertainment, good food, off of Milwaukee avenue so it's usually a little less nuts. Would recommend.

Incredible po-boys with the best fried shrimp and bread. I grew up in NOLA and this is hands down the best po-boy I have ever had outside of my home town. The red beans and rice are also delicious and can’t wait to go back and try some of the other menu items.

My friend and I went on a Fri night. The place is small so I expected it to be a little crowded. When we got there we were told they were only accepting reservations at the time because they were fully booked. Which is understandable. The host offered us outside sitting which was a no for me because there were no heaters. So, eventually we got seats at the bar. I would like to point out we were there for about 1.5 hrs and at least 3 high tops and 1 table in the back by the band stayed empty for a hr. So much for those reservations. It's Halloween time so they have themed drinks, live music, and specials. My friend had the hurricane and witches brew and she said they did not skip on the alcohol, both are recommended. The fried catfish Po boy was seasoned well. The gumbo had great flavor. The crab cakes actually taste fresh without the fishy taste. The mac and cheese was ok. It was missing something. Red beans and rice were surprisingly flavorful. Highly recommend the crab and artichoke dip. Just in case you have to use the restroom, unfortunately you do have to walk down a flight of stairs to get to it.

Great atmosphere. We came for a burlesque show and it was high energy and super fun. I've been before for live music. The food is fine. The biscuits are very good. The chicken tenders are very dry - need sauce desperately. The mac & cheese is super rich but tasty. Come for the atmosphere and the food is okay.

First and foremost, don't expect this to be your typical brunch spot. As for the food, I can't give full marks just because of the fried chicken breading. I'll dive into each item that my party ordered. Appetizers: Nola Hot Sausage Sliders were good, a bit heavy on mustard but otherwise, I'd order it again. The Cheddar Crab Dip wasn't good or bad, it was just okay. It felt like it was missing something, it didn't have an impactful flavor profile. The Char Grilled Oysters were alright. I wouldn't order them again though. I prefer raw over cooked/baked. Entrees: Fried Chicken & Pancakes was good. You get four wings with your two, very sizeable, portions of pancakes. They only provide a small portion of syrup and any additional will be a charge. I'm not sure how I feel about the extra charge for more but it is what it is. The Grand Slam felt like an elementary school lunch, since it was served in a tray. The Mixed Chicken Dinner was pretty plain. The breading on the chicken was crunchy but didn't adhere to the chicken too well. It might have been over fried or undercoated. Since it was mixed with white and dark meat pieces, the white meat piece was quite dry. You get a biscuit and a side of syrup on the side, to try to balance it out. The Catfish Po Boy was probably the second most bang for your buck item on the menu. It's served with a hefty side of fries. The Po Boy itself was good, but overcrowded with lettuce. Each bite, although there was protein, was hidden behind a mouthful of lettuce. Overall, great brunch spot. They also had live music, so that was definitely a plus to the overall experience/ambiance/atmosphere.

Love the New Orleans theme and ambiance! Food tasted good and fresh although little pricey and smaller portions. Drinks was great!Service was fast. Difficult to find parking, paid parking on the streets. Recommended.

I've been here twice now, and I enjoyed myself again. I went for my birthday....our food was great and the service was even better! I will be back! Parking is definitely a problem. Make reservations and get there at least 30 min early to find a park. I hope business continues to grow so they can get a bigger location.

This place is absolutely adorable and I’ll definitely be back! Did restaurant week and had the oysters, steak tips, collard greens w smoked turkey, mac and cheese, and the dulce de leche bread pudding / beignets (my friend gracious let me try hers). The oysters were to die for, flavor was there for sure. Mac and cheese was pretty mid, and was more of a grainy than creamy texture. Dessert was great. Not many people there, but food took pretty long to come out, and my server didn’t fire thing right, since dessert came out a minute after our main. Server was super sweet, but definitely in over his head and seemed to be running around like crazy. I had the banana junior mocktail and it was way too tart, wouldn’t recommend. The manager was very attentive to all tables, and the vibes are great. I’ll definitely be back here to try out some other things and have an actual drink!

Went for dinner. Started with the rum punch which has rotating juices. I liked the juices but couldn’t taste any alcohol. I wasn’t looking to get drunk but for $12 I wouldn’t liked to taste some alcohol. Shared the crab/cheese fondue as an appetizer. It was loaded with crab and very tasty! Had the chicken tenders and buttermilk biscuit for dinner. That biscuit is full of butter and I love it! The chicken was very juicy but didn’t have a lot of flavor. Asked for more of the hot honey and got a small amount which I was charged $1 for. I don’t mind being charged, but please give me more. We shared the side of Mac and cheese. It is dense, almost like a casserole/custard, which is fine by me. Overall, I like this place and the decor. Next time I’d try some different entree options.

NO happy hour for October! Food was delicious. Service was great. The place was decorated for Halloween - so cute! Live music! BUT what isn’t advertised online… unless I missed it… HAPPY HOUR NOT OFFERED MONTH OF OCTOBER. Halloween themed drinks were delicious, cup decorations on point! Chicken strips were tasty and not dry! The potato salad side, yum! The hushpuppies, yum! Fried pickles… i probably wouldn’t get them again. Breading fell off and were soggy. Everything else, we loved! Definitely would come back for dinner. Would like to try other things on the menu.

We tried Ina Mae’s based on the recommendation from their sister restaurant, Frontier. First, let me say parking is difficult. It’s in the neighborhood so a lot of parking is reserved for residents. With that being said, I really like the spot and definitely will return. Let’s face it, nothing outside of NOLA is going to match the taste of NOLA but let me tell you Ina Mae’s red beans and rice comes very, very close. The fried cauliflower was also very good as well. The catfish dinner was good, I just wish the portion was larger. I will be back, using Lyft next time though.

My boyfriend and I went here on Thurs. OK parking sucks as everywhere around there you had to have a sticker for permit parking. So we parked on diversy. About a 10 min walk. The ambiance and atmosphere of this place e is incredible. Almost felt like we were in New Orleans. And they had a magician there as well. We started with the oysters with parm and bread crumbs. For $18 they were very tiny and very little toppings. Had to scrape to get anything- so not impressed what so ever. I get them everywhere i go and this place, has been the worst. Our server seemed like he didn't want to be there. He asks us if we've ever been here before, i was assuming so he could give us some food or drink suggestions, but no, none of that. Then I was asking him about drinks and he couldn't answer any of it. We proceeded to order the crab cakes with the side of mac n cheese and the rice and beans. That was all very good but for 28 bucks the crab cakes were a little on the small side. I had wanted to try thr collard greens and asked the server if he could bring me a spoonful before I would order it and he said no. I've been to plenty of restaurants and with things like that, they've always let me try. My boyfriend got the fried chicken sandwhich with fries. The breading was very thin and different, but very good. The kid didn't bring any ketchup or anything g for the fries and they do not have Mayo for the chicken sandwhich. It was hard to get my server for the second round of drinks. And after I ordered the drinks it took 20 min to get it. I flagged hum again and was like, wheres my drink. He's like we only have one bartender. Maybe this place should consider having 2 or 3 because it was a full house and who wants to wait 20 min for a drink. For dessert, we got the beneigs and those were in a bag super hot and super good. All in all the place was worth going to but if they had better service- it would make this place top notch.

Went there on a Sunday afternoon, service was great and the live music gave a good vibe. The pancakes stole the show on the pancakes and chicken. The custard and the crispy edges on the pancakes is what I liked. I’m not a huge fan of the chicken being fried in cornmeal. It didn’t have the strongest flavor so hot sauce was needed for the chicken. The crab dip was good. A little soupy than I’m used to, but I’m also used to having crab dip from the Maryland/Baltimore area

This is my second visit . Overall the menu selection is GREAT . I especially love the surf & turf oysters ( how unique ) . My ribs were over cooked / overheated on the oysters my first visit but I gave a pass because the flavor was there and this is the best oyster combo I’ve had to date . Each time the seafood tower was as expected . The red beans & rice were flavorful and the texture of rice and beans were perfect . I had the beef yakamein which was a beautiful dish . The beef was surprisingly very tender . The hurricane was tasty but not that “ effective “ . Last time I sat outside because weather permitted . This time around I sat inside and it’s smaller than what I thought . Vibe is just ok . Tables and chairs are very small and not too comfortable. Most disappointing is that they basically only have two dessert items and the one I came for ( bread pudding ) was somehow not available which left my only option as beignets or beignets with ice cream. Aside from that the food is good and I would recommend.

Great place for brunch with love music and bloody mary station. We had an amazing time here with delicious food: - beignets (pillowy, addictive, highly recommended) - chargrilled oysters (delicious, perfectly grilled, great to share) - fried chicken (big portion w plenty of food, a drizzle of maple syrup, well seasoned, great crisp) Great food and great service! We definitely feel sluggish and were craving for salad and fresh fruit afterwards.

Cool NOLA vibes. Strong hurricanes (drink) served in Pat O'Briens style glass. Food was very good. Casual. Fried Chicken, Blackened shrimp. The corn Maque Choux was amazingly flavorful. Our res was at 8:30 and the place cleared out while there. Our waitress was nice but rushed us out.

The food here was EXCELLENT!!! If you're looking for a taste of New Orleans, this is it!! The poboy was fabulous. I had the fried catfish and my friend had the fried oyster. The fried chicken wings came out hot and fresh. I could smell the greens cooking outside so, of course I had to have them. Great choice. The red beans and rice were accompanied by a charred hot sausage link. Mmmmmm. The hurricane drink is a must. Service was quick and friendly. The only drawback was since it's a neighborhood restaurant, parking was scarce. Don't let that stop you. Find parking on North Ave and walk off what you ate. Definitely returning for more.

Update - the Director reached out and resolved this and was very apologetic. Again, not bad vibes but maybe a bad night. Man I cant even express my disappointment. But let me start with the positives.. vibe was nice. We came in for my friends bday and they had bingo going so that was cool. Our server was decent as well. Their margaritas was good and I enjoyed their fried pickles. Between us we got the fried chicken dinner (greens/ rice and beans) fried shrimp dinner (mac n cheese/rice n beans) chicken tenders with rice n beans/ mac n cheese. We got the crab dip and some biscuits.. yawl.. 😭😭😩 first of all the crab dip was fishy, and the tortillas were stale. When my friend finished her mac n cheese their was like a pool of oil at the bottom of the cup.. when i asked thr server about it she called it "cheese grease".. 🤢 my greens were under cooked.. 🤦🏽‍♀️ The fried chicken could definitely see Popeyes in the street though and the rice n beans were flavorful. The biscuits were ok. I just.. felt mislead by the reviews. I'd come back for the vibes and drinks but the food not so much. Check my photos.. I cant make this up. We couldn't even finish the food we were so disappointed.

Starting of course the service was great , all staff were nice and helpful. Atmosphere is nice depends on the music and or the band. Now let’s get to the food. I am a fried chicken enthusiast and maybe I had a lot of expectations since it’s a southern restaurant. The chicken in my fried chicken was unseasoned just literally raw cooked chicken that haven’t been marinated or anything , and then breaded lightly and the breading is not great. The chicken tenders are a bit better but same remark that the seasoning is not great, Deviled eggs were just fine and the fried thing whatever in the pic was good , but overall the drinks were great the food unfortunately not, I hope to return and have a better experience, good luck I would say

The person seating people was a little rude, he tried to kick a guy off the bar because he wanted to save a seat at the bar for the person he was waiting for. I get it is a policy or something but I was surprised he would treat a guest like that. Not in my party but still. I got a “Santa Hurricane” and when I ordered it the lady was like do you know it’s just a hurricane in a Santa boot.. not sure that needed to be said. The food was okay, I got the Nashville hot chicken. It was wet with a sauce sprinkled on it and it was not spicy it was average. It was sauce. And I wish I had gotten hot sauce. I had a biscuit and fries as sides. They were mid. My partner got the blackened catfish and a gumbo. He liked it. He said it tasted traditionally Louisianan. The vibe was cool, lots of decor and fun tchotchkes

The atmosphere and drinks would bring me back. The food was disappointing. If I were to return, I would try other items from the menu. The collard greens was mostly stems. The fried catfish was mostly breading with very little to no fish. The sausage sliders were good but needed a bit more of the creole mustard which I didn't see or taste on the sliders.

I’ve done both brunch and dinner here. The atmosphere is great, I want to love the food but there’s definitely better options in the city. Hushpuppies and beignets are consistently really good, so are biscuits but if they’re cooked right- definitely had them a bit overcooked once. One time I got shrimp and grits and they were drowning in butter and not in a good way, I could barely eat them, and I know what I’m getting into at restaurants. Drink-wise they have absinthe which is really cool, loved the absinthe sour.

This hidden gem severing up some delicious Cajun food is worth a try! The pancakes were really good. I’m a thin not fluffy pancake person fan. The shrimp po-boy was also really good. The gumbo and Beignets were okay. We also had the Oysters and they were good too. The drinks were amazing! And live music is always a plus. I felt like I was back in New Orleans. UPDATE: after leaving a cash tip they added their own gratuity to the bill. Not cool! However, one of the managers (Kyle) was very helpful when we called to dispute the matter. I did have them at a 4-star but due to that I will give them 3.

Disappointed. The service, The meal. I was excited to check this place out but immediately ended up being let down. We tried almost everything but we came on a day they were out of almost everything. Not only that but the waitress did not want to wait on us. I had to keep flagging her down for her to check on the table. Not attentive at all. Mac 7/10 - cheesy Red beans 9/10 - great flavor Fried chicken 7.8/10 - lacked flavor but nice crunch (the sauces paired well with the honey hot and hot chicken . We had two orders) Tenders 8/10 - packed with most flavor paired with honey hot drizzle. Ranch - 10/10 - they charge you for sauces. Biscuits 9/10 - flaky warm however they charge you for butter. No jam. Deviled eggs - 6/10 - it was ok nothing exciting about them Overall experience 7/10 . A lot of things could have been better especially the service. It was disappointed because we came a long way not to feel welcomed.

Food: I really wanted to like it and was hoping it gave me a true NOLA experience and it didn’t. For the first visit, I went for lunch and had Catfish and Grits. The Grits were ok and the Catfish was cool. The Deviled eggs were good. I recommend them. For the second visit, I went for dinner and took advantage of a special event. It was a dinner for 2 that included Catfish, a Crabcake, Shrimp, Fries, Hush puppies, and salad. The Catfish was the best thing. The crabcake was too fishy/I wasn’t a fan, the shrimp was good, I’m not a huge fan of hush puppies but I tried them and they were alright. The salad was cool. Drinks: First visit: I had Ina Mae’s Tropic Punch. It tasted like a glass of Kool Aid. I tasted no alcohol at all. Second visit: A Double Bubble shot and a Highway Main shot.The shots were good. I liked The Double Bubble one more. Service: 1st visit: The service was just barely ok. The server seemed to be in a zone/clueless. 2nd visit: The service was better than the first visit. Atmosphere: 1st visit: It was LOUD due to a band playing. It was so hard to hear anyone. I had to practically yell to talk. 2nd visit: There was no band so the noise level was normal/moderate noise. Final thoughts: Nothing wowed me. Good effort. I don’t necessarily have to return. I always encourage folks to try things for themselves soooooo…...good luck!

I was really excited to visit this restaurant with my family but left quite disappointed. Let me start by saying that it is such a cute place. It's so beautifully decorated and very cozy. We went for Sunday brunch, and they had a live band playing, which was absolutely wonderful. The food, on the other hand, was a different story. I had the chicken and pancakes. The pancakes were burnt at the bottom, and the chicken tasted like it was fried in old grease. It just wasn't a pleasant taste. I also had a Pina Colada that was served in a short glass, which I've never experienced before, and it wasn't too great either. My family ordered quite a few items, and everything was just blah. It was like everything needed a bit more seasoning. The service is in need of improvement as well. Overall, I'm pretty disappointed because the atmosphere is so enjoyable but we came to eat!

Came here after the wait at Kasama was too long. The offerings seemed good. Louisiana cuisine is always a personal draw. However this place started losing stars after a couple of items were no longer available despite being listed on the menu. They don’t serve the absinthe Frappe and were out of the gator sausage. There was a live jazz band playing. Would’ve been great but we were in a group and would’ve liked to converse more. Was really loud so keep that in mind if you want to hold a conversation. When the band wasn’t playing the speakers were blaring. The food was ok. Fries are bland def a skip for me. The beignets are too doughy and heavy. Chicken was good but one of our friends didn’t get their entree even though it was ordered. All in all I do not recommend.

Unfortunately very bad. All the entrees came out cold. They “reheated” the mac n cheese and it somehow was STILL cold. The last straw was raw, literally bleeding chicken breast. They stated they had a bad morning, a chef was fired. Understandable but it wasn’t busy and there’s no excuse for raw chicken. They refunded the meals and the manager was apologetic but they really need an overhaul. Also they’re randomly serving pizza now? That was our first sign the “authentic NOLA food” probably wouldn’t be good but we decided to take a gamble. A gamble it was. Appreciate them attending to the issues but I recommend avoiding this place until they make some serious changes.

My husband is out of state for business and stopped here for dinner last night. Immediately after eating, he experienced extreme vomiting and nausea. I had to call his hotel and ask them to call the ambulance to assist him because he could not leave the bathroom. The paramedics confirmed he had food poisoning. It was a very scary experience, since we have never in our life been through something like that. Completely unacceptable.

This review is coming from a true New Orleanian. I was born and raised in New Orleans and have been living in Chicago for just over 2 years. This place was recommended to me by a few people who said I could find “true New Orleans food” here. I really shouldn’t have listened to them, because every place here that claims to be “creole” or “New Orleans style” is no where near it, including this place. First, we ordered the gumbo. There is potato salad at the bottom (with a strong mustard taste) and it lacked seasoning. Not everyone in New Orleans eats gumbo with potato salad…Next, we ordered the chargrilled oysters. These were horrible…they lacked seasoning and were not shucked very well. On my first bite, I realize it was nothing but cheese and there were pieces of the shell in it. I spit it out immediately. Then, we ordered the catfish and grits and pancakes and chicken wings for our entrees. The pancakes were undercooked and had batter at the bottom, the fried chicken tasted like it was fried in old grease, the catfish lacked seasoning, the grits was terrible, and I’m still trying to understand why the dish was smothered in hot sauce. Finally, we decided to try a snowball. We thought we would at least enjoy those…wrong. If you’re from New Orleans you know that it’s all about the ice. The ice was rock hard. The flavors were also not good and obviously a cheaper-grade. They charged an extra $1 for condensed milk, which is criminal, and it dried up on the hard ice. At the end, we left most of the food and the snowballs on the table. We definitely wasted money at this place. My best advice is stop trying to replicate something without investing in the proper training, products, seasonings, etc. Upgrade your menu and do more research. There was nothing creole about this place. Maybe hire a chef from New Orleans or who has specialized in creole-style cooking. I was so excited to tell my family that I found a taste of home here, but I think I’ve given up trying to find that after today. **Addendum to my previous review** The general manager, Kyle, reached out to me personally and was very apologetic about my experience. He assured me that this wasn’t the norm, and informed me that the kitchen staff is going through a lot of changes, so this may have definitely negatively impacted my experience. I appreciate Kyle, as he did everything he could to rectify my experience. I will give them another chance, as anyone should who hasn’t had their normal/a good experience in the past month or so. With their strong and determined leadership, I highly anticipate that this place should be back up to par in no time!

Didn't know I would need reservations. A little notice of such would have sufficed. The food, however, was very displeasing! This restaurant is supposed to be "New Orleans " style, but apparently the cooks don't know nor never been to New Orleans to know what the food tastes like. We ordered the crab dip for starters and this platter that feeds 3-4 ppl. The crab dip was by far the worst dip I've had in my life. It tasted like shredded card board and cheddar cheese. The ONLY thing that was DECENT was the fried shrimp. I won't be back to dine ever!

Wouldn’t recommend as a patron or creative. I didn’t see any extraordinary service. They appeared disorganized and disinterested in hosting an enjoyable evening. Also? Any venue that switches the goalpost AFTER confirming terms of an agreement is shady and shouldn’t last. Sound system is laughable and looking at the other comments, I’m glad I didn’t eat. Would hate to have hurt pockets and a hurt belly messing with ina Mae.