I have to say it was incredibly difficult to stick to the plan of trying Rocco’s meatball poboy when I found myself inside looking at all the possibilities.
I was at the counter looking at the board and the cashier asked me how I was feeling today. I had to be truthful and tell her I was torn between four different options. The meatball, the philly cheesesteak, the bbq beef, and the roast beef with gravy. They do offer a half and half fried seafood poboy, but that’s only the large and I would need help these days to down one of those. Just thinking about the bbq beef brought back memories of Hopper’s and Joe D’s and I’m pretty sure I’m going right back to Rocco’s to give that one a try, but this trip I stuck to the plan to research as many meatball poboys as I can and I’m very glad I did. This one had a really bright sauce to go with the really deep beef and pork flavors of the meatballs. It was also very attractive on the plate.
It was just as messy to eat as a roast beef with gravy, and I suspect the bbq beef will require more than one napkin as well. This is a pretty straightforward poboy shop decor-wise. LSU and Saints memorabilia and Baton Rouge and New Orleans photos and posters. I got there well before noon and the place was already three quarters full and it seemed like a lot of folks were lunchtime regulars and knew each other and the staff as well, but there wasn’t an excess of small talk or storytelling because everyone was serious about chowing down on some seriously good poboys. Here’s a decor shot. I’ll share more when I go back to try the bbq beef, and I’ll probably spring for some house made onion rings next time as well.
Okay so they had a half poboy and cup of soup special when I went back the next day for the bbq beef that I just couldn’t get off my mind. So glad I did. The gumbo was really nice, but the bbq beef did bring back so many memories. One that I’d almost forgotten was that there was a Rocco’s on Lake Street underneath the washateria that fronted on Chimes Street. There was an internal stair connecting the laundry upstairs with the poboy shop below. That was a very long time ago, but the bbq beef is just as good now as it was way back when.
