Mother's in New Orleans is the 1938 CBD cafeteria-line lunch counter at Poydras and Tchoupitoulas, with $12 red beans and rice plates and the Ferdi Special po-boy from the menu.
Tip: Lines run long; arrive 11:00 or after 14:00 for the shortest wait, the cafeteria runs fast at the counter.
Address: 401 Poydras St, New Orleans, LA 70130
Liuzza's by the Track in New Orleans is the Bayou St John lunch counter near the Fair Grounds that invented the BBQ shrimp po-boy, $15 with butter-pepper sauce on Leidenheimer bread.
Try: BBQ shrimp po-boy
Tip: Cash only at peak; check the Jazz Fest schedule, the room turns into a circus on festival weekends.
Hansen's Sno-Bliz in New Orleans is the 1939 Tchoupitoulas Street snowball stand at Bordeaux, the country's oldest sno-ball stand at $5 to $8 a cup with house-made syrups.
Try: Sno-ball with cream-of-nectar syrup
Tip: Open March to October only; cash only, the cream-of-nectar with condensed milk is the canonical order.
Killer Poboys in New Orleans is the Conti Street po-boy counter at the back of Erin Rose, with chef-driven $13 po-boys including the rum-glazed pork-belly and the seared shrimp builds.
Try: Glazed pork-belly po-boy
Tip: Pork-belly with rum ginger glaze is the cult order; the bar in front serves drinks while you wait.
Verti Marte in New Orleans is the 24-hour Royal Street deli at Governor Nicholls in the French Quarter, with the $12 All That Jazz po-boy as the cult late-night and budget lunch order.
Try: All That Jazz po-boy
Tip: Phone the deli for delivery to a French Quarter hotel; it runs 24 hours a day on the Royal Street counter.
Central Grocery in New Orleans is the 1906 Decatur Street Sicilian deli that invented the muffuletta, with $13 half muffulettas built on the round seeded loaf with house olive salad.
Try: Muffuletta (half)
Tip: A half feeds one; a whole feeds two to three. Order to walk and eat in Jackson Square across the street.
Coop's Place in New Orleans is the Decatur Street Cajun dive open since 1983, with $13 rabbit and sausage jambalaya and the Chicken Tchoupitoulas plate on the budget menu.
Try: Rabbit and sausage jambalaya
Tip: Dive bar atmosphere, late kitchen, cash-friendly. Pairs with Abita Amber on tap from the bar.
