I’m planning the Los Angeles ——> New Orleans road trip and I need your help!
I think you know exactly where I should eat pizza, where I will find the best road trip snacks, and where I should drink coffee. ย I’m also open early morning diners options, and odd roadside attractions. ย I’ve got 1909 miles to go over 30 hours (3 days really…). ย I’m going to need to supplement my diet of gummy bears and flammin’ hot cheetos with something reasonable and caffeinated.
If you have any suggestions between Los Angeles ——> Phoenix/Tucson please leave a comment below with the name of hotspot and why it’s so great!
If you have any suggestions between Tucson/Ciudad Juarez ——> San Antonio please leave a comment below with the name of the hotspot and why it’s so dang cool!
If you have any suggestions between San Antonio ——> New Orleans please leave a comment below with the name of the hotspot and why it’s rad.
I’ll update this post as your comments and quotes come in so we can all share in the good.
I appreciate you in advance. ย I can only eat so many gummy bears… (cry for help).
(Your suggestions after the click-through)
The road to beignets is paved with tacos, barbecue, and good intentions.
Your Phoenix/Tucson/New Mexico recommendations:
+ ย “Lunch at little Cafe Poca Cosa, or dinner at Cafe Poca Cosa– this is not the “Mexican” food you’ll be expecting, but it’s amazing. ย Get the plato and try three things!” -Gina
+ “You must stop at Irmaโs Mexican Restaurant, it is true New Mexican food in a great place with great owners. Everything is good but the Chile Colorado and Sopapillas are amazing. My mom grew up in Silver City, NM and on all my many visits to NM, this is my favorite place. I know everyone raves about NM green chiles, but my mom and her family grew up on New Mexican Red Chiles and Irmaโs is perfect place for it!” -Michele
+ “Cup Cafe in the Hotel Congress, opens at 7 am. Everythingโs good. The bar is great at night too.” -Alex M.
+ “When you pass through Tucson hit up Time Market for great sandwiches on homemade bread, pizza, coffee, etc. Added bonus: itโs not too far off the I-10!” -Elizabeth
+ “Tucson and San Antonio both have Grimaldiโs Pizzeria, which is the BEST pizza. Itโs my favorite place to eat in NYC (the original one was under the Brooklyn Bridge!) and theyโve branched out to other places. The down side is that they donโt sell by the slice. You have to get an entire pizza. The up side is that youโll WANT the entire pizza, because it is THAT good!” -Lindsay
+ “Pizzeria Bianco for pizza. Their sister Pane Bianco has lovely sandwiches, and lux next door for coffee is delightful. Also good for pizzaโPomo, the Parlor.” -Meleyna
+ “For the best specialty coffee in Phoenix, come to Cartel Coffee Lab at 1st st and Washington. Iโll be working Wednesday and Thursday if you want to come say hi. If itโs too far out of your way, the other locations of Cartel are delicious as well.” -Amanda
+ “In Tucson: the best croissant Iโve ever had was at this little market next to the Amtrak station.” -Eva
Your Texas/San Antonio recommendations: ย
+ ย “While in SA, I would suggest doing breakfast at Mad Hatter’s, a quirky little tea shop in the King William District.” -Katie M.
+ “Check out Goode Company Seafood just off the I-10 and Gressner in Houston. ย They have wonderful Fresh Gulf Coast seafood. ย Don’t miss the Campechana – it may change your life.” -Pam
+ “Youโd be making a huge mistake if you didnโt stop at Chris Madridโs in San Antonio. Itโs a dive-ish place that serves some of the best, cheesiest burgers ever.” -Elisa
+ “Do yourself a culinary favor and stop at Dough in San Antonio. Their Neapolitan pizza is Delicious. Everything my husband & I ordered was a sea of wonderful favorsโฆ A Must on your road trip!” -Alissa, Molly, and Pam
+ “I would highly recommend that you go to The Granary at the Pearl Brewery. The food is AMAZING. Depending on the day, you may get good ole Texas BBQ that you order by the pound. Other days the menu is more upscale with a nod to TX BBQ. Itโs also close to the famed Riverwalk area of San Antonio, but itโs a less cheesy, more lovely landscaped area. You can ride on a river taxi to the touristy part of the Riverwalk and the Alamo. Just bring cash ($20-30) for the boat! I donโt think itโs that expensive for one ticket, but I canโt remember.” -Kim
+ “If you stop in Houston, pay Kenny and Ziggyโs near the Galleria a visit. Itโs an authentic New York deli with a huge menu and the best chicken salad sandwich and chicken matzo ball soup in the world. Check it out! Besides, you may need a break from tacos and BBQ.” -Shannon L.
+ “Lockhart is a just a brief jaunt out of your way on highway 10 between San Antonio and Houston. Itโs famous for itโs bbq. Even less out of your way is City Market in Luling. Check out tEXAS Monthlyโs review of the 50 best bbq joints, and hit them all on your way through our great state.” -Anne
+ “Definitely stop at Buc-eeโs in Luling, TX on I-10! They have a huge variety of canned jellies, salsas, butters, etc, as well as tons of jerky and kolaches. While you are driving through TX you MUST get some kolaches (itโs a Texas thing, and so delicious!). Buc-eeโs is also very proud of their nice restrooms.” -Shannon L., Emily Jean, and Heidi
+ “In San Antonio I highly recommend El Mirador for really authentic and delicious Tex Mex. Iโve eaten Tex Mex all over Texas and I think it is by far the best spot!” -Olivia
+ “Taco taco or rolandos super taco for breakfast tacos in san Antonio. The missions a bit outside the city are also pretty cool.” -Maddie
+ “Billyโs Boudin and Cracklins and Best Stop Supermarket, both in Scott, are probably my favorite places to stop but Donโs Specialty Meats works too. You can put it off until youโre settled in but once you want to go see gators I always use Cajun Pride in La Place, La. Real Cajun captains. See if you can get on a boat with Captain Tom.” -Matt
Thank you all for offering us such delicious road trip suggestions! I’ve added several of your suggestions above, but for a complete list please dive into the comment section below!
177 Responses
If you go slightly off I-10 near San Antonio, you can head over to Fredericksburg in the Texas hill country. It’s a little German village town specializing in wine. They have several vineyards, farms, and orchards where you can taste the local foods.
i’ve wanted to go to fredericksburg for so long because of Rather Sweet Bakery!
I guess the Rather Sweet Bakery has since closed, but I hope you found something you liked around the hill country.
hey joy we just did a 1 month road trip from LA to NYC, stopping at grand canyon, austin, nola and then nyc. wonderful trip of a lifetime and i am sure you will enjoy it as well.
from la to phoenix, we travelled along route 66 and found 2 of the most charming cafes!
1. You can stop at Cafe Bagdad – really strange kind of cafe but you must see it to believe it. a little diner in the middle of nowhere but really crowded.
2. We also stopped for a snack and coffee at Kingman at Mr D’z Cafe – totally kitschy place with very great decor and staff.
We had great memories of these 2 places along the way to the Grand Canyon and I look forward to your road trip posts!
When you get into New Orleans try Atchafalaya for brunch on Louisiana and Laurel! Best brunch in the city and they have a live band on weekends. Also, if you like bloody mary’s, they have an unlimited self serve bloody mary bar.
For a good coffee stop in Houston, you should go to Catalina. It’s not far from I-10 and one of the top spots in Houston. If you stop during breakfast, their bran muffins are my favorite. Revival Market also has coffee, and a great lunch menu made from all local ingredients. It’s one of my favorite places to sit outside on a beautiful day (if you are looking to be out of the car for awhile!) It’s a farmer’s market-butcher-deli-coffee stop all in one. Chuy’s is a classic for Tex-Mex, and the best tacos are from Torchy’s.
If you’re in El Paso, L&J’s Cafe has some amazing Mexican food. It’s a dingy little hole in the wall that’s right beside a cemetery, but it’s always packed and delicious. They make a mean chile con queso.
I am possibly a bit too late, and this involves neither pizza nor coffee, but it’s very, very awesome for a culinary-hearted person. When you go through Phoenix, please, please, stop at Baiz Market. It’s the most thorough Middle Eastern grocery store I’ve ever encountered, where you can get ingredients you never knew existed, plus ones you may have been searching for for a while. Pomegranate molasses and date syrup come with high thumbs up. Also, their fresh bakery is ah-mazing. They make the best fresh sesame halvah I’ve ever tried (and I’ve tried A LOT), and their walnut ma’amoul cookies (semolina and orange blossom dough stuffed with sweet walnut mix) is off the chain. Please go. That is all.
Yo, flamin’ hot cheetos are always appropriate
Las Cruces, NM: great little coffee place in the old barrio district called Beck’s, next to La Nueva Casita restaurant: both are great, but Nellie’s (lunch only) has the best green chile in town, and portions so big you won’t miss dinner. Stop at just about any local grocery store to stock up on blue cornmeal, lots of chiles (you want them either dried or frozen, skip the canned crap) and local salsas. Zeffiro’s if you need pizza, The Popular if you need to sit down while you’re eating it. Great ice cream at Caliche’s, worth the calories. Get a Mango Dango with salted pecans (or swap them out for pistachios). If you can, go for a quick hike at Dripping Springs: our town’s not too scenic but the mountains are spectacular. Buen viaje!
In San Antonio, I would recommend Mi Tierra. They have been around since 1941, they are 24 hours, they have an attached bakery, the decor is overstimulating, and they have the best chicken mole enchiladas I have ever eaten. https://www.mitierracafe.com/home.php
Also, I second everything that everyone above has said about Rudy’s. Do yourself a favor–wash your hands, order the moist brisket, and eat some banana pudding. Best brisket ever. https://www.rudysbbq.com/page/home
You should stop someplace in New Mexico- too bad you won’t be further north, or I’d suggest Santa Fe because you’d love it there. However, Ciudad Juarez is not too far from Las Cruces and Carlsbad Caverns—absolutely breathtaking and nothing like any caverns I’ve ever seen in my life!
If you pass through Artesia in southeastern New Mexico, check out the Wellhead, great food and drinks!
I second all of the Pizzeria Bianco comments. It’s the best pizza (by far) in Phoenix, and it is probably the best pizza on the west coast!
I’m not gonna scroll through all the comments so if this has been mentioned forgive me. BIRD BAKERY! They have such yummy desserts!
Little late leaving you a reply….but my husband’s family is from the Las Cruces, NM/El Paso, TX area. I conclude that the area has some of the the best Mexican food in the country. I suggest you take the “Old Road” between Las Cruces and the border of Texas, it’ scenic and takes you through a lovely pecan orchard and past old adobe homes. In La Mesa, NM there is a little divey place with lots of character and great food. It’s called Chope’s…family owned for generations. You should stop and have the chile rellenos. You won’t regret it!
IN DOWNTOWN PHX, I think you’ll love:
-Definitely Pizzeria Bianco… usually no wait or at least not much of a wait between lunch & dinner hours (2-5ish)- try the Bianco Verde ADD pistachios!
-Matt’s Big Breakfast for their “scratch cooking & friendly service”! I recommend the Western Sage sausage patties with the Hog and Chick, or the Reuben stacked tall on their fresh marble rye bread…
-Giant Coffee (same owners as Matt’s)… for their Honey Vanilla Latte or cappuccino, house-made croissants and fluffy quiche.
If you happen to pass through the tiny town of Clinton, Louisiana, there’s a cute little red restaurant called the Red Boot Deli. It serves po-boys and wraps, sometimes green or pasta salads or soups for their daily specials… the food is amazing (especially the Tomato Basil Soup if it’s the right day!), the atmosphere relaxing, and the service friendly. Truly worth going to!!!