RFK Rankings · New Orleans
Best Restaurants for Family-Friendly in New Orleans (2026)
Family dining · New Orleans · 7 rooms ranked · Updated June 2026
Compiled by the Restaurants for Kings editorial team · Published April 5, 2026 · Updated May 19, 2026 · Reviewed by Fredrik Filipsson, Editor-in-Chief · How we rank · Corrections
Beignets at Cafe du Monde have ended more New Orleans family days than any restaurant in the city, and that is the template: open-air, no reservations, no dress code, and a dish a child remembers. The good news is that this is a town of institutions built exactly for that, po-boy shops on neutral grounds, a diner where cooks juggle on the flat-top, a French Market deli that invented the muffuletta. These are rooms where a restless kid is nobody's problem and the cooking is the real thing. Here is who each one suits, what to order, and what to know before you go. Seven, ranked on the cooking, the room and the welcome.
1.Cafe du Monde
The open-air French Quarter beignet stand running since 1862, no reservations, no dress code. Go for the powdered-sugar order of three.
Cafe du Monde has anchored the French Market on Decatur Street since 1862, and no New Orleans family meal is more foolproof: open-air, no reservations, open from early morning to late at night, and an order of three beignets at roughly $3.40 buried under powdered sugar that every child wants to watch arrive. The chicory cafe au lait is the grown-up half of the ritual.
This is the come-as-you-are booking that needs no booking, where a stroller fits, a mess is expected and a restless toddler can watch the Quarter go by. Run by the Fernandez family, it is a tradition rather than a restaurant, which is exactly why it works with children. Walk up expecting a queue at peak and a server who has done this a thousand times. Go off-peak if you can, share a couple of orders of beignets, and let the kids do the powdered-sugar damage.
Walk up to Cafe du Monde any time; an order of three beignets and a cafe au lait does it.
2.Parkway Bakery & Tavern
A 1911 po-boy shop by Bayou St. John with patio seating and a famous roast beef. Book nothing, just go for lunch.
Parkway Bakery & Tavern has fed Mid-City since 1911, the shop Jay Nix restored in 2003 into the city's roast beef po-boy benchmark, slow-cooked beef in gravy on Leidenheimer bread for around $13. It sits right by Bayou St. John with outdoor and patio seating, which makes it the easy casual lunch when a family needs space and no dress code.
This is the neighbourhood institution where a messy po-boy is the whole point and nobody minds gravy on a kid's shirt. Walk in expecting a line at lunch that moves fast and a relaxed, all-ages crowd spilling onto the patio. Order the roast beef po-boy dressed, grab a table outside near the bayou, and bring napkins, because the city's best gravy po-boy is not a tidy meal.
Walk in to Parkway for lunch; the roast beef po-boy is the order, gravy and all.
3.Mother’s Restaurant
A 1938 cafeteria-style Creole institution serving breakfast all day, no reservations. Try it for the Ferdi Special po-boy.
Mother's Restaurant has run on Poydras Street since 1938, the Landry family's cafeteria-style Creole room where you order at the counter, breakfast is served all day and the signature Ferdi Special po-boy, baked ham and roast beef debris, runs around $15. The order-at-the-counter format is a gift with children, who pick what they want and sit down fast.
This is the no-reservation institution where a family rolls in, eats well and leaves without ceremony, open from morning to night daily. Walk in expecting a queue that moves, paper menus and a famous baked ham that justifies the wait. Get in line, order the Ferdi Special and a plate of the ham for the table, and let younger children choose a simple plate from the counter rather than committing in advance.
Line up at Mother's; order the Ferdi Special and let the kids pick from the counter.
4.Central Grocery & Deli
The 1906 deli that invented the muffuletta, reopened in 2024 with seating. Go for one whole sandwich to feed the table.
Central Grocery & Deli on Decatur Street invented the muffuletta in 1906, and after more than three years closed by Hurricane Ida damage it reopened in December 2024 with proper indoor seating, which it never really had before. The Tusa family's original is the dish, a round of sesame loaf layered with cured meats, cheese and olive salad, with a whole at about $25 feeding three or four.
This is the French Quarter institution where one sandwich becomes a family meal, now far easier with somewhere to sit. Walk in expecting a deli counter, a short line and a sandwich that travels well if you would rather eat it on a bench by the river. Order one whole muffuletta to share rather than one each, ask them to cut it into quarters for the children, and pick up a couple of Italian sodas at the counter.
Stop in at Central Grocery; one whole muffuletta feeds three or four, so share it.
5.Camellia Grill
A 1946 counter-stool diner where cooks put on a show on the flat-top. Book nothing and go for the chili-cheese omelet.
Camellia Grill has spun stools on South Carrollton Avenue in the Riverbend since 1946, an old-fashioned American diner where the cooks work the flat-top like a performance and the chef special omelet, blanketed in chili, runs around $14. Children sit at the counter and watch the show, which turns waiting for food into the entertainment.
This is the all-ages diner where a kid is part of the fun rather than a problem, open from morning to late at night daily with no reservations. Walk in expecting a line of stools, bow-tied servers and a famous pecan pie to finish. Take counter seats so the children can watch the grill, order the chili-cheese omelet and a burger to split, and save room for a slice of the pecan pie at the end.
Grab a counter stool at Camellia Grill; the chef special omelet is the order to watch.
6.Domilise’s Po-Boy & Bar
A tiny fourth-generation Uptown po-boy shop since 1918, all welcome and no pretense. Go for the fried shrimp po-boy.
Domilise's Po-Boy & Bar has run on Annunciation Street Uptown since 1918, a tiny fourth-generation family shop where the fried shrimp po-boy on Leidenheimer bread, around $14, is one of the city's best. It is casual to the bone, cash-friendly and entirely without pretense, which is exactly why a family with children fits right in.
This is the beloved neighbourhood corner where the welcome is real and the sandwich is the reason to make the trip. Walk in expecting a small, busy room, a short menu and a line at lunch. Note it closes Sundays and keeps limited weekday hours, so check before you go, then order the shrimp po-boy dressed and a roast beef to share, and eat it while it is hot.
Walk in to Domilise's at lunch; the fried shrimp po-boy on Leidenheimer is the one.
7.Joey K’s Restaurant & Bar
A Magazine Street corner diner with daily blue-plate specials and a kids-welcome vibe. Pencil it in for Trout Tchoupitoulas.
Joey K's Restaurant & Bar is the Garden District's everyday corner diner on Magazine Street, a long-running Irish Channel mainstay where daily blue-plate specials and the signature Trout Tchoupitoulas, around $20, anchor a menu of Creole home cooking. The casual, kids-welcome room makes it a reliable family lunch or early dinner in a walkable neighbourhood.
This is the booking for a relaxed meal of red beans and rice and fried seafood when you want home cooking rather than an occasion, open Monday to Saturday from late morning. Walk in expecting a friendly, unfussy room and specials chalked up by the day. Reserve or just turn up off-peak, order the Trout Tchoupitoulas and a plate of red beans and rice, and let the children pick from the simpler Creole plates.
Book or walk in to Joey K's; the Trout Tchoupitoulas is the plate to order.
Not for the kids
A jacket-required occasion room
Commander's Palace. The Brennan family's Garden District landmark has won seven James Beard Awards and is one of the great Creole rooms, but it enforces a dress code, jackets preferred, no shorts or flip-flops, and runs as a special-occasion, reservations-driven meal. Save it for an adults-only night and bring the family to one of the seven above.
A historic room not yet back
Willie Mae's Scotch House. The iconic Treme location famed for its fried chicken has been closed since an April 2023 fire; a separate Downtown location is operating, but it is not the historic family room. Skip the original until it reopens rather than send a family to a closed address.
How to dine out with kids in New Orleans
Lean on the no-reservation institutions and go off-peak. Cafe du Monde, Parkway, Mother's and Camellia Grill all take walk-ins and move fast, so an early lunch or a mid-afternoon stop means shorter lines and calmer rooms with children in tow. Several of these are counter-service or counter-seating, which is a gift with kids: they pick what they want, sit down quickly and, at Camellia Grill, get a flat-top show while they wait.
Check the hours before you build a day around a place. Domilise's closes Sundays and keeps limited weekday hours, the original Willie Mae's is still closed after its 2023 fire, and Central Grocery only regained proper seating when it reopened in December 2024. Order to share rather than one plate each, a whole muffuletta or a couple of po-boys feeds a family, and build the meal into a walk through the Quarter, Magazine Street or the Riverbend so restless children have somewhere to go.
Frequently asked
What is the best family-friendly restaurant in New Orleans?
Cafe du Monde in the French Quarter is the most foolproof family pick, an open-air beignet stand running since 1862 with no reservations, no dress code and an order of three powdered-sugar beignets every child wants to watch arrive. For a proper meal, Parkway Bakery in Mid-City is the casual lunch, with patio seating by Bayou St. John and the city's benchmark roast beef po-boy. Both take walk-ins and welcome a messy table.
Did Central Grocery reopen after Hurricane Ida?
Yes. Central Grocery & Deli on Decatur Street, which invented the muffuletta in 1906, reopened in December 2024 after more than three years closed by Hurricane Ida damage, and it now has proper indoor seating it never really had before. One whole muffuletta at about $25 feeds three or four, so order one to share and ask them to quarter it for the children rather than buying one each.
Where can families eat po-boys in New Orleans?
Parkway Bakery in Mid-City and Domilise's Uptown are the two classic family po-boy shops. Parkway, open since 1911, is famous for its gravy-soaked roast beef and has patio seating by Bayou St. John; Domilise's, a fourth-generation shop running since 1918, makes one of the city's best fried shrimp po-boys. Both are casual and all-ages, though Domilise's closes Sundays and keeps limited weekday hours, so check before you go.
Are there fun, only-in-New-Orleans spots kids will remember?
Camellia Grill in the Riverbend is the standout for that, a counter-stool diner running since 1946 where the cooks work the flat-top like a performance and children watch the chili-cheese omelet come together from their stool. Cafe du Monde's powdered-sugar beignets are the other classic kid memory. Both are no-reservation, all-ages rooms where waiting for the food is part of the experience rather than a test of patience.
Which New Orleans restaurants should families avoid?
Skip the jacket-required occasion rooms with young children. Commander's Palace in the Garden District is a seven-time James Beard winner and one of the great Creole restaurants, but it enforces a dress code and runs as a special-occasion meal, not a relaxed family lunch. The original Willie Mae's Scotch House in Treme is also still closed after a 2023 fire, so save Commander's for an adults-only night and bring the family to the casual institutions above.
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