Boateng’s Cajun Creation

This place is incredible. This is the 2^nd time I have eaten here and it was great. I had a gator po boy and seafood gumbo. The gumbo was out of this world good. If you are in Bessemer you have to try and eat here. The staff is also very friendly and helpful.

This place embodies Mom and Pop /​hole in the wall in the best possible way. The dining room is super small with extremely limited seating and was packed around 11:45, fortunately 2 of our party members arrived earlier than we did so we were seated promptly. By 12:00 there were no open tables with several people waiting to be seated. It appears they have a significant number of patrons call in orders for take-​out. The servers were very nice and polite. The food was excellent. I had lunch with 2 native Louisianans who also gave this place a resounding thumbs up for flavor and authenticity in the dishes we had. Additionally, the prices were far lower than you would expect for the quality received. I had the sautéed shrimp dinner with jambalaya and the ultimate gumbo for $ 8.99. The other members of my party had varied versions of the po-​boy served on authentic New Orleans style French bread served with one side for $ 6.99. I have paid far more for far less food of inferior quality in a few more recognizable «cajun/​creole» restaurants in the Birmingham area. The gumbo and jambalaya were tied for the best item on my plate, not to diminish the perfectly sautéed shrimp which I garnished with a few liberal splashes of their delicious house made hot sauce, but everything we ordered was great. Honorable mention goes out to the trio of house made sauces served with the meals.
The only criticism I can see is that the server/​kitchen connection appears a bit disorganized. Of the 4 members of my party we each received our meal at separate times… All within an approximate 5 – 10 minute window which is bothersome to some. I personally did not mind as the cooked to order/​fresh preparation of each of our meal was apparent. My perception is they stagger the serving of each meal based on when it is prepared which is perfectly acceptable to me. I’m working in the area this week and I will be returning for lunch tomorrow. One of my co-​workers had lunch here 4 times in 4 days last week and I now understand why.

This place kept popping up in Unilocal with many great reviews. It is close to my work so I decided to go. Extremely disappointed is an understatement.
This is a little hole in the wall place in Bessemer. I usually love these mom and pops places. Had a decent wait when we got there. This is understandable as it isn’t a very big place. From the waiting area I could hear the TV blaring. It was unbelievable loud. I am hard of hearing and I thought it was too loud. I can only image what others thought. It looks like they tried to decorate it with a home feel. A bit run down. I’ll let that pass if the food and service are great.
Our waitress seemed nice enough. She was friendly and got us drinks and menus. I overheard a waitress at the next table over explain the daily specials and the difference between the main menu and the random laminated one we also got. That would have been nice.
I ordered the Tilapia Po’Boy with a Shrimp Bisque side. My friend got a Crawfish Po’Boy with mashed potato side. After 15−20min she came back to tell us they had no more buns and we would have to use hamburger buns. At this point I was starving so we said whatever. She immediately brought my friends food. I waited a good 10min more for mine. The Tilapia itself was good but the hamburger bun was a joke. How does a Po’Boy shop not have Po’Boy buns? They gave me lettuce, tomato, and onion on the side. Tomatoes are now out of season and that makes them hard. Don’t give me one for a sandwich that is almost half an inch thick. My shrimp bisque was the worst I have ever had. It tasted and smelled fishy. I know it is seafood but this wasn’t normal. My buddy wasn’t impressed. His comment was. It was cheap and I guess we got what we paid for. Just before we got done eating our waitress returned and put 3 sauces on our table. Not sure what they where since she didn’t stick around.
I’ve seen so many great reviews and I’m hoping I caught them on an off day but with all the other options around I don’t see myself going back ever.

Had the blackened Tilapia pasta and my spouse had a po’ boy. It was all great! Employees were friendly, served us quickly, and were efficient.
This is my new favorite restaurant. Highly recommend!

I can’t say this enough. Boateng’s was one of the best dining experiences I’ve ever had. A friend of mine and myself were driving through town on our way from Ohio to Houston. I found this little gem on Unilocal and we couldn’t have been more lucky.
First off the service was amazing. Our waitress was extremely friendly, attentive and knowledgeable of the menu. Secondly, the food was just as amazing. My buddy had the blackened grouper with the regular gumbo, hush puppies and mashed potatoes. Everything he had was wonderful with the grouper and hush puppies taking the cake. I ordered the blackened gator and seared scallops with the ultimate gumbo, shrimp and grits and the bisque. Everything I had was delicious with the gator and shrimp and grits really standing out.
I highly recommend this restaurant. If you are driving through or live close, I would definitely give this place a try.

It is delicious. The best prices anywhere. Spicy, a little too spicy for some of our family. The gumbo is quality to a T. The fried fish and seafood delicious. The blackened grilled seafood a
bit hot for MY taste buds, but I am a wimp. I only had hush puppies once and they were really overcooked. But, we really enjoy the place. I guess since there were 9 of us on a Saturday made a difference. Hubby and I usually go alone. They have amazing fried okra and fried green tomatoes. None better anywhere. 9 people ate plus a bottle of Jubilee sauce for $ 95.00.