OMG Darrell’s Is Life, Y’all

I’ve lived in Lake Charles for a little over a year now, and pretty much since the first day I got here, people have been telling me that I absolutely must try a Darrell’s po’ boy. However, being kind of an idiot, I just ignored them because I’ve had a po’ boy before, and wasn't very impressed. It’s just a sandwich, after all. What’s so special about that?

I mean, sure, Darrell's took 3rd place in USA Today's 10 Best list of the best po' boys in Louisiana and it has 4.5 stars on Yelp, so you'd think that would've been enough to convince me to try it a long time ago, right? Welll, no. Because idiot.

All that changed this past Saturday though, when I finally broke down and yielded to my wife’s incessant pleas begging me to finally try the place. I went in not expecting very much, because I’d just had Subway the other day and that’s basically the same thing as a Darrell’s po’ boy, right?

Wrong.

I ordered a roast beef, but since, as I said, I’m kind of an idiot and also because I’m totally a child, I ordered it plain. Just meat and cheese and gravy, the latter of which I almost skipped because I’m not used to gravy on my roast beef sandwiches and the idea of it frightened me. But I was already special ordering and didn’t want to push my luck on whether or not it would come out right, so I went with it. (If I had a nickel for every time I’ve specifically ordered a plain cheeseburger at a fast food joint only for it to come out with extra special sauce or whatever, I’d buy Bill Gates and retire on my own private island somewhere.)

When the food arrived, it didn’t look like anything special. It just looked like any other sandwich, although a whole lot messier. That gravy I was scared of was dribbling out the sides, staining the paper wrapper and terrifying me. I just knew I would hate it.

Then, I took a bite. And I’ve never been more wrong about anything in my entire life.

I feel like now is a good time to point out that this is not a paid endorsement or anything. Darrell’s isn’t sponsoring this post, and they’re not even advertising with us. Actually, I don’t think they’re advertising with anybody because they don’t have to. The place is always packed, and they’re not even on Waitr because they’re too consistently busy to handle even more business. I know because I asked. Because now that I’ve finally tried one of their sandwiches, I want another one every day. Every. Single. Day.

The bread was light and flaky, with just the right amount of buttery goodness, the meat was cooked to perfection, and you know that gravy I wasn’t so sure about? By the hammer of Thor, that stuff was delicious. It was as if Odin himself had summoned it forth straight from the sacred waters of Asgard or something, because I’ve never in my life tasted anything quite so savory. It changed everything.

I ordered the 6” sandwich because, in addition to being kind of an idiot and totally a child, I’m also pretty much a lightweight when it comes to eating a lot of food in one sitting. Still, I figured the smaller sandwich wouldn’t really fill me up, but I was wrong about that, too. By the end of it, I found myself completely sated and slipping into the mellow euphoria of a happy, happy food coma.

You know, like with Thanksgiving. But with roast beef. AND GRAVY.

I think I’m in love with that gravy. Seriously. I’m craving it even now, as I write this.

Unfortunately, Darrell’s isn’t open on Sundays, so I had to wait a whole day before we could go back again. Which we did, right after I got off work Monday evening.

I ordered the same sandwich again, while my wife had the Special this time. She said it was even better than the roast beef, but I didn’t care. I stick with what I know - and what I know is this: Darrell’s is life, y’all.

Now I just need visitors to come in from out of town, because I have a new place to take them for lunch. And then again for dinner, if they stay that long. And maybe breakfast the next day, if they sleep in late enough.

It’s my new favorite thing.