Moe Joe’s

Decided to go have a couple drinks on a Saturday afternoon with my boyfriend. He had a Martini, he liked it. I had a cosmopolitan, and let me tell you it was the worse cosmopolitan I have ever had. Just straight cranberry juice. We then ordered some patron shots. That shot was so watered down. I didn’t taste the patron and did not need a lime with it. After that that, I was done and asked for the check. Service was ok. Bill was $ 40. Thats expensive for watered down drinks. Will not go back.

Delicious! Brings me back to NOLA. Great atmosphere, food is delicious, and it definitely made me feel nostalgic!!! Service was quick and our waitress was sweet and prompt! We had a chicken poboy, and I had the blackened shrimp po boy, we had the gumbo mashed potatoes (OMG MY FAVORITE), and we had a beignet. The beignet was nowhere near Café De Munde lol but it did the deed ;)

New Orleans themed restaurant! French Quarter décor and daily drink specials. $ 1 bottles on Mondays. Very fun and friendly staff. Complimentary cornbread and honey butter is awesome

Moe Joe’s Cajun and Caribbean Cuisine definitely ranks as one of my favorite places to eat. The atmosphere was great and the staff was very good. First, I will warn you that parking is rough but that is because of downtown Plainfield (limited parking on the main strip). Moe Joe’s has the restaurant, bar and a speak easy (downstairs). I went there on a Saturday night and the place was packed. They have a great selection of craft/​micro beers (especially if you like Abita) and wine. They also had on tap «3 Floyds Zombie Dust», which I love! Now this place is very busy, so if you are not a patient person I would not recommend you go here. Their menu even tells you that some meals could take up to 45 mins to cook. Their menu has a very nice selection of Cajun but also has burgers and steaks. I had the «Red Beans and Rice with Shrimp». It was excellent! And our appetizer was Corn Crusted Alligator Tail which was really good too. Just a heads up on something; they don’t spilt checks. I was shocked about this but the waitress offered to help figure out the totals for each party. That is my only bad thing I have to say. I would definitely recommend coming here. Just remember, this is a Cajun place. Sometimes things need to be done a little slower to be good. I can’t wait to go back!

Quite possibly the worst service ever. Far overpriced. We will never return. The place was empty when we entered, with 2 bartenders and a server in the bar. No one greeted us or offered a drink or menu. We were hoping to enjoy bloody marys but after our server brought our food we never saw her again. I actually had to bring my card to her in order to pay our bill and get out of there.

Ive eaten here 7 times now.
I think people on Unilocal don’t get out much — -and are really quick to pull out the word AMAZING.
Its not Amazing. Its pretty darn good and sticks to your ribs, though!!!
The food is authentic in its flavors.
Its not over the top WOW,— but the cooking styles are very home-​cooked in their essence. Like a good file gumbo.
Iive eaten at a few places down in NOLA and also the other cajun places around here like Heaven on 7, pappadeaux, etc. So I think I have the cajun style and flavors kind of figured out.
However, «good food» doesn’t automatically mean «good restaraunt»
The prices are a little high for what you’re getting.
21 bucks for a plate of jambalaya is a little steep considering its mostly a rice dish with slices of sausage.
The service is consistently ssssllllllloooooowwwww. Every time. Whether or not the place is busy. I’ve been one of 5 people in the place during lunchtime and still wind up taking almost an hour.
If you’re in a rush to eat call ahead and get it as a carry out item.
the cocktails are packed to the brim with ice and I felt like mine was gone in a few slurps.
It can be a fun place at night with a group, since the bar is kinda lively and they have live bands playing next door sometimes.

The atmosphere here was great. Drinks were excellent, as was the good. I had the pirogue and loved it! Our server was also friendly and very attentive. Can’t wait to go back!

New Orleans themed and what one would expect for Cajun style food. Had to wait an hour to be seated and while we waited, we could have gone over to the bar to wait (but had my daughter with so that would be awkward) but was just as awkward sitting on the little bench in front of a full table of diners. Maybe a little half wall to separate the diners from those waiting so I don’t have to drool at the food I’m not yet enjoying. Once we were seated, our waitress came to take our order, (she got the appetizer wrong, maybe because of the noise level) and was so busy that I felt we were bothering her every time she tended to our table.
However, all of my first impressions went out the window once the food arrived.
It was so heavenly, I would elevate this chef way above the one over at Heaven on Seven. For Cajun food, this is my new FAVORITE GO TO PLACE.
Lesson here is don’t be so quick to judge, the Food is well worth it!

Best place for Cajun this side of, uh, the mason Dixie line.

Food is always amazing here. You definitely pay for quality and they deliver quality every time! I recommend their gator burger. Truly delicious! And their beignets are heavenly!

The décor is very cool and puts you in the mood for a nice New Orleans experience. If you’ve never been to New Orleans and have no prior experience with this style of cooking, then you will very likely rate Moe Joe’s much higher than those who have. I’ve visited this restaurant about once per year since they’ve opened. My experiences have ranged from the food being ok to being pretty bad. When it was bad, it was because the food, such as the gumbo, was old and simply shouldn’t have been served. When it was ok, the food was fresher. I’ve heard people rave about the muffaletta, which is an ok sandwich, though nothing like an actual muffaletta. The service has typically been pretty good from my experiences and again, the décor is nice.
If I really wanted quality New Orleans style food, Maple Tree Inn in Blue Island is the place to go anywhere outside of Louisiana. Additionally, Pappadeaux and Heaven on Seven are much better options (though Heaven on Seven is nothing like it used to be 10 years ago). If I wasn’t up for the drive to either of these, I’d consider going here knowing that it will probably be ok, though not particularly awesome, with a chance of being pretty bad.
The bar is different than the restaurant. The last time I was in the bar, I ordered a craft beer that they had on tap. As a very experienced craft beer drinker, I could tell immediately that the beer was bad due to the tap lines not being clean. I discretely brought this to the attention of the bartender who:.
1. Stated that nobody else mentioned it, which doesn’t surprise me because there are many people who don’t know what specific beers should taste like
2. Mentioned it to the manager a few moments later, though must have forgotten that I was the one who told her, because she did so in front of me and said it with a really crappy tone and insinuated strongly that nothing was actually wrong.
I’m sure the Miller Lite is awesome

I wish I could go to moe joes more. But the staff weighs it down. I arrived and stood by the door for 5 minutes, was not acknowledge, so I decided to grab a seat. I sat for 15 minutes before someone came up to me with menus. The food was great! No complaints there. Server was a bit off. What was worse was that I saw my server later that night in her moe joes shirt at a bar just down the street. She was drunk, she told a server at the bar to «fuck off» and was cut off for being obnoxious and drunk. Classy. I love the food at moe joes, but the servers need some work. Way to keep it classy on the street you work on!

What a hidden gem. Went to a birthday party for 21/​over crowd in the bar, had a great time.
Took my kids for lunch on a Sunday, they loved the laid back environment and great food choices. We’re fans.

Went to this establishment for the 1^st time tonite and will NEVER be back. The service was horrible. We had to go the bar to get drinks. After sitting down for 45mins and receiving glasses of water, one round of drinks and a food order put in 10 minutes prior, we looked like the idiots. Then we tried ordering from the bar and it was the same. Finally, before deciding to leave, we addressed the server and instead of trying to help the situation, it was all attitude and she turned her back and walked away claiming she was a manager. Nice service.
And for the record I have been in the high paced restaurant and bar industry for ten years. I understand the difference between being busy and being ignored.

DJ on weekends is good. Food is good but WAY overpriced! And the alcohol pricing is not like any bar… It’s not quarter intervals for drink pricing… It’ll be like 4.63 for a drink!!! It’s so weird. But anyways, its a very loud bar with bands and a DJ, a lot of dancing and drinks pouring but watch out at the end of the night when u close out the tab…

AMAZING FOOD AND ATMOSPHERE!
New Orleans themed restaurant! French Quarter décor, live entertainment a lot in summer, they also have a downstairs. They usually have daily drink specials. $ 1 bottles on Mondays. Sitting outside on the patio on the main road is fun to enjoy. Very fun and friendly staff. Complimentary cornbread and honey butter is awesome.
Good Eats: Resurrection Burger, Wild Boar Burger, Blackened chicken salad, Frog legs on top of mashed potatoes with creole cream sauce, arracnid balls, crawfish tails.
If you get the crawfish boil, you must ask for extra seasoning and spices in your boil. If you don’t your food will come out tasting so bland you won’t like it. This coming from someone who lives in the south where crawfish season is popular and I know how it should be prepared.

A phenomenal restaurant!!!
Over the past 10 plus years I have drooled over their menu. Their drinks are the BEST!
Having suggested work meetings there because I fell in love with everything at MoeJoes, I have the pleasure of saying I tried just about everything on the menu (yes, even the alligator)
You will never be disappointed as long as you understand these dishes are NOT fast food so have a seat, relax, have a gummy bear martini and Be Patient. It is obviously worth the wait and i will continue to go for the wonderful shrimp starter, their glorious crawfish étouffée, and the best ham steak and cheesy mashed potatoes.
The portions are crazy generous and you will have to take home unless you come hungry. Don’t like that much food? Split it with your hunny that’s what I HAD to do with their amazing «resurrection burger» it’s just too much for little olé me but some strapping hungry guy will leave with a smile on his face and a super full belly. Tell ‘em Cyn sent you

I’ve been back a few times and the food is just great. It can get crazy busy and they always appear to give it their best.
I decided to treat the family this year to their deep dish sweet potato pecan pie for Thanksgiving. I think there’s enough to freeze half for Christmas too.
I swear I’ll get in soon for the alligator burger, I almost went for it last night at the #bigblackwednesday party. Great comedy shows in the basement and cruise nights in the summer are fun too. Follow them on
or sign up for the «party list» emails at
.

I’ve enjoyed Moe Joe’s gumbo, fried catfish, fried okra and very good waitstaff.
One caution, DO NOT order boiled crawfish out of season. Frozen, mushy, fishy smelling, couldn’t eat them!

Hadn’t been here in a couple of years so it was time for an update! On a week-​end it was very lively in late afternoon with the loud bar music spilling out into the restaurant area.
We started with the Kabrit Fromaj appetizer: bruleed goat cheese atop cajun cream sauce, with garlic bread. Wish there was more of that toasty surface area because it really offset the goat cheese tang. And that cajun cream: whoo, you better like it hot, because it be spicy, cher!
For entrees, I went straight up Southern rather than Creole and ordered fried chicken. This was literally half a chicken’s worth (breast, wing, leg and thigh), perfectly crispy and not too greasy. It came with two sides: I got the caesar side salad (which was the size of a regular salad! With a nice homemade dressing and crunchy croutons) and sweet potato fries (regrettably I forgot that these came dusted with cinnamon sugar– it’s just more like dessert to me! Fail). My companion got the shrimp po boy, which came with HUGE fried shrimp (none of tiny babies that usually turn up in these sandwiches), enough for two meals.
So all the food was excellent; it was service where things kind of fell apart. We were seated and everyone was friendly at first, but then maybe it was because we had a meal that took a long time coming (menu says 45 minutes on the fried chicken) that we eventually got forgotten. Finally we were looking to wrap up and get boxes and the bill; our waitress kept blowing by and ignoring us, til finally I grabbed someone else. (We could also see six or seven waitresses crowding near the kitchen entry taking pictures every so often… a little less socializing and a little more attentiveness, please.) Finally our waitress came back, claiming that she didn’t think we were done because there was still food on our plates. Um… well, we were hoping to wrap it up to go… ten minutes ago.
Anyway, overall it was a good meal, and definitely still a place worth coming back to, but the servers just need to pay attention. Then Moe Joes will really have its mojo working!

My better half is from New Orleans, and I lived in the New Orleans area for eight years. First impressions: this is the second worse sweet tea I have had in the Chicago area, and they serve it in a mason jar. Not good. The tea quality itself is good. However, you’re passing yourself off as a New Orleans style restaurant and you don’t have «Southern sweet tea»? Heaven on Seven has good Southern sweet tea.
It was «all good» from there on out. My side was a Caesar salad which was surprisingly excellent. Why excellent? You’re getting a Caesar side… what do you expect? Larger than a dinner salad and really good Caesar dressing.
My lady had a shrimp po boy while I had the oyster version of the same. Oysters were fresh, fried to perfection. Crystal hot sauce on the table.
The music had Virginia dancing in her seat. The wait staff was friendly and efficient. Definitely going back… and there’s a dessert and apéritif visit in there somewhere.
Le Bön Temps Roule!

I had higher expectations for this place based on the reviews. The drinks were really good although the beers were not cold enough to my friend’s liking. I got the gator burger which is good but nothing exceptional. They forgot my side of hush puppies until I reminded them, when they brought over the bill, that they have not brought out my hush puppies. As for the hush puppies themselves I was disappointed. Oh well.

OMG GUYS, THE GUMBO. OMG. The gumbo is worth of 5 stars alone, but I have to contain myself until another visit before I award the coveted 5-​star review.
Okay so rewind: we walked in on a beautiful summer Saturday night, prepared to wait. We did, but only for a few minutes. We asked the hostess if there was a wait for seating outdoors and her response was, «Well there’s a waitlist, so you’d have to… wait.» It was more comical than anything, but clearly all the staff was very busy and had too many things on their minds! Regardless, we were sat quickly.
Half of my family is from the heart of Cajun country, so I get extremely excited — albeit anxious — every time I frequent a «Cajun» restaurant outside of Louisiana. In fact I can’t say I’ve ever had gumbo or a poboy at an establishment north of Louisiana that was worth going back to. This… now this, takes the cake.
We splurged, based on previous Unilocal reviews, on the fried alligator ($ 15 app). I’ve had it similar to an arancini previously, but never literally as pieces of gator. It did not taste like chicken and I loved it. Great texture, light fry, awesome dipping sauce. Also a huge portion, great for sharing probably with as many as four people!
Then…THE GUMBO. DROOL. I am now marking Moe Joe’s as the best gumbo in all states minus Louisiana (okay well… from what I’ve tasted thus far). Though a very thick roux, it was dark and smokey and spicy and overall amazing-​ness. The «cup» was huge, and enough to share a few spoonfuls (though I didn’t want to). It also came with cornbread, which was a nice surprise.
When I first looked at the menu, I thought, how could someone come to a restaurant just eat a giant bowl ($ 12.95 entrée) for dinner? Well, I figured it out. Had I not already ordered my poboy, I would have scooped up another bowl (not because I needed it, but because I wanted it). It had okra and Andouille as the front runners, and the flavor was amazing.
Next up was my poboy. Also delicious. I had the petite shrimp, and it was the perfect amount of fillings, but not difficult to bite into. Remoulade was spicy but creamy, but I do wish there was a bit more on there. Chips are on-​point, but who has room for those?
Also as good as the gumbo: corn fritters! I had never had them before, and they’re similar to a beignet, in that they’re delicious and powdered sugar-​y but they make you feel like maybe a bit healthier since they have corn in them? Ha! We saved the fritters as a dessert, and I ordered a coffee cocktail — this is the only menu item in which they did me wrong. Shortly after sipping, the cream curdled — or something happened that was gross — but our server took care of it and we didn’t pay a penny of it. Apparently their coffee cocktails come from a Starbucks machine, so who knows what happened there. Blame technology.
Hubby had a burger. He was all set for the poboy, but the Wild Board Burger caught his eye — so at least he still ventured out! It had a great flavor to it but forewarning: there’s a heavy crisp to the outside that may scare away anyone who loves their medium burgers.
Overall, service was a bit flighty, but they were packed. For all of the food — app, soup, side, two entrees, plus a bloody mary for me and a cocktail and beer for hubby, we paid $ 76 plus tip, and I was pleasantly surprised, it seemed like a good deal to us considering we got two meals out of the deal due to leftovers!

Came to Moe Joe’s to celebrate my husband’s birthday. He grew up on the eastern shore, so seafood is right up his ally and their menu did not disappoint. With that being said, there were a couple upsets, but the food alone will definitely have us coming back for more. Here’s my rundown…
PROS
— Food, food, and food! The menu is a dream. We honestly had such a hard time deciding what to get. It’s not often we’re at a Cajun restaurant, so we were like kids in a candy store.
— The gumbo is amazing! I’m still dreaming about it. My husband and I each got a cup of it and it was super filling and delicious. So much so that we ended up only having 2 drinks each, the calamari app and the cup of gumbo. We so wanted to order more food and really dive into the menu, but we were honestly too full!
— They have a skinny cocktail menu! I had the cranberry lemonade drink and it was good. I didn’t taste any alcohol though, and it was a little sweet for my taste, but overall a good option (and only 106 cals).
— Staff is really friendly. Not necessarily the quickest service, but very nice people to talk to.
— On Tuesdays they have comedy night in the downstairs part of the restaurant!
— Cool vibe at Moe Joe’s! I like the bar/​restaurant combo and the New Orleans theme is great. They also have an outdoor patio which is nice.
CONS
— Unorganized service. When we were finally sat at a table, the air conditioner was leaking on my head… Yeah. Not great. The hostess cleaned off another table for us and we were able to switch, but the bar was unfortunately packed, and that’s where we wanted to sit.
— It took forever for someone to greet us. We eventually had to flag down a waitress and she just took our table since nobody had yet.
— They were out of Gumball head! Everyone on Unilocal raved about how they carry Gumball head and they were out of the beer when we were there of course… such a bummer.
— The calamari is just okay. We’ve had better. It took a while for it to get to our table and when it did, we realized we still weren’t given any silverware.
— The draft beers we ordered were lukewarm.
— Hefty bill when we left (but the gumbo was worth it). For 2 cocktails, 2 beers, an app, and 2 cups of gumbo it cost us about $ 65 (plus tip).
I really had higher hopes for Moe Joe’s, but maybe it was the B squad working since it was a Monday night. Who knows. Regardless, we plan to come back and give it another shot. Their menu is too good to be true and those frog legs are calling my name!

MoeJoe’s was a bit disappointing, to say the least. If the food and experience matched the price tag of their menu items perhaps I’d be a bit more forgiving. But I just can’t bring myself to give four stars on our initial experience.
We arrived and stood in the doorway until the hostess showed up about two minutes later. After asking how many in our party, she told us it would be a moment as she had to go clean a table for us. Don’t they have buss boys to handle that? She came back a few moments later to seat us– at the table right by the kitchen/​restroom hallway. Ugh.
We browsed the menu for a few moments until our waitress showed up. She was a super sweet, friendly girl. She asked us what we wanted to drink but then noticed we weren’t given a drink menu. She snatched one off of an adjacent table and gave us a moment to look it over.
I went with my standard beer as I wasn’t here to have my dinner in liquid form. Husband decide to try the do-​it-​yourself Bloody Mary bar. He was pretty disappointed, as they only garnishes available were olives and pickles. Maybe other options were available earlier in the day and were put away as the dinner crowd arrived.
We chose the Corn Crusted Alligator Tail as our appetizer, which did not disappoint. The jalapeño honey sauce served for dipping was so flavorful and had just the right amount of spice.
I was torn on making a decision for my entrée, so I settled on the Muffaletta and my husband picked the Pirogue. The flavors of the muffaletta are good but I wasn’t crazy about the bread (they use a tomato focaccia). Don’t get me wrong, I love that kind of bread but not for a muffaletta. I subbed fried okra for my side and was a bit disappointed with it; many of the pieces must have been harvested too late as they were woody, tough, and stringy. After literally choking down a few pieces and attempting to discretely removing the strings from between my teeth I gave up on them entirely.
M wasn’t too crazy about the Pirogue and didn’t really touch his ribbon fries.
The drinks and food were brought out in an acceptable amount of time. It may have been a bit slow but it was late Sunday afternoon so where the hell were we rushing off to, anyway? I can certainly see why it would be frustrating during peak hours, though.
The positives? Again, the waitress– she was wonderful and didn’t go MIA for extended periods of time. I enjoyed the décor; yes it’s kitschy but I didn’t feel that it was over the top. The atmosphere was enjoyable except for the occasional bumping and jarring from patrons and waitstaff try to access the back of the restaurant.
I’d consider going back to try a few other items but in the alternative I’ll stick to Heaven on Seven, Pappadeaux, or New Orleans proper if trip #3 is in the cards.

I was pleasantly surprised on this place. The drink I had was great ‘New Old Fashion” great drink for summer. We were also pleased that the kids menu was the real deal, meaning it was cooked fresh and it was delicious. The kids mac and cheese was one of the best I had.
The jambalaya and turkey sandwich (pronounced Pee-​row) was awesome. The turkey sandwish was better then the jambalaya. However I asked for it Super spicy, and it was, but that may have made the rice a little soggy.