2-Minute Review: Jambalaya Junction

This tasty lunch spot has a good-sized menu, but you'll want to stick to the po' boys.

Jambalaya Junction is a quaint spot to eat on the south east side of town. I took two friends with me to give this place a shot. The guy at the counter was helpful in letting us know that Jambalaya (1360 E. Republic Rd., 417-887-0211) was, in fact, a po’ boy sandwich shop. So I took the clue and ordered the full-sized fried shrimp po’ boy with chips and a drink for a frightening $11. In my head I was thinking: “This sandwich better deliver on taste because the $11 I just dropped is usually what I spend on food for the entire day, not just one meal.”

Thankfully, not only did it deliver on taste, but I only got to eat half my sandwich because everybody kept wanting a bite. One of my friends went for the cup of jambalaya that is served with three small slices of French bread. It was fairly priced at $7, but came out a little cold, so she had them re-heat it. My other buddy went for the half-size sausage po’ boy and a small cup of seafood gumbo, chips and a drink for $11.50. The gumbo had good flavor but we could not find any chunks of seafood or meat in either the jambalaya or the gumbo.

The jambalaya and gumbo really fell short of satisfying any of our taste buds; but luckily, between the three of us, we were able to share each other’s po’ boys (even though I didn’t want to share), which were all fantastic. The bread was so crispy, light and flaky that it just crumbled in your mouth. I also loved that my po’ boy came with finely diced red onion, tomato and rémoulade. I really want to go back and try the catfish po’ boy. I will definitely go back but I am going to suggest to everybody to stick to the po’ boys, just in case the guy at the counter forgets to remind you.