Copelands of New Orleans

it was dark and seating arrangement of tables and booths seemed awkward. It was supposed to be a Champ’s but that was scrapped so they used the footprint of that. restroom was just to the side of where the tables are which is gross. Food was ok but my sister did not like hers at all. She ordered something that was supposed to be spicy but it was bland. Overall it was overpriced and not so good. It is now closed permanently. What a shame because we need more dining options!

Well, I only like the service, the food definitely was not good.
I order veal copeland and it was a tiny slice of veal and a full bowl of linguini, greasy and not a good choice.
My nephew order a leclub croissant my only comment is the bacon look and taste like the morning bacon.
I am not going back, 100% sure

Atmosphere: I’ve only been to this location once, but it was pretty loud. To the point where you had to raise your voice to be heard, which is kind of a boo. To be fair the place was pretty busy and we were sat in one of the busiest sections of the restaurant. It has a pseudo posh atmosphere, kinda trendy hipster douchebag-​ish.
Service: The server was REALLY busy but managed to still be incredibly attentive to our table. He was in and out within seconds, which is fine by me. He was on top of refills and on top of clearing our plates and bringing out the next round of food each time. 5 stars for service definitely.
Food: The food was damn good! It felt a ~little~ pricey for what it was… but the taste made up for it. I got the Shrimp Ducky with fettuccine instead of rice and it was damn good. I even had some left over for lunch today. Also got the crawfish bread appetizer which was fantastic and we ended the meal with Banana’s Foster which was quite a large dessert, honestly rich and large enough for 4 people.
My only complaint was that they didn’t bring it out and set it aflame like they used to, which for me is a large part of the experience of ordering Banana’s Foster. Maybe they didn’t know I would know what they were supposed to do. I chalk it up to him being incredibly busy with all of the tables in his section being full parties of 4.
Overall: I was very pleased with this place. I used to go to the one they had in Minneapolis, Minnesota YEARS ago, which was a lot more posh and upscale than this one, but the food was as good as I remembered it being in Minneapolis, so I left both happy and with left overs.

I’m between Meh and OK on this one. From the outside I was expecting to be greeted with a more eclectic vibe a la Brennans in NOLA. The place is pretty dark on the inside and doesn’t give off that character I was hoping for. The menu has tons of different options, and the lunch menu is priced reasonably compared to dinner ($ 10.99 for most choices). I had the catfish ricochete and while breaded and fried perfectly, it just didn’t have the flavor explosion that I associate with Cajun fare. There is a banquet room that has views of 281 facing south, which would be nice for an event. I would visit again if in the area, but don’t know if I would make an effort outside of that.

Setting aside getting to Copeland’s (seriously, 281N, you’re slowly killing me with the traffic) being the worst part of the experience…
I was shocked to learn that Copelands is owned by the same company that operates Popeyes. Could two businesses be any different? Not the largest of places and the bar area has some strange seating requirement.
You will wait unless you go during off-​peak dining hours. I didn’t partake in an adult beverage but my uncle allowed me a taste of his hurricane. Def had a kick to it. Worth the cost? Can’t say until I have one myself.
If you can, sit in a booth. While anyone with a waist size larger than 34″ will be tits on table in the booth, it beats the middle dining area. I don’t like sitting so close to others when eating… call me Contagion Joe.
I ordered a cup of gumbo to start with. I really don’t know why I have yet to find a great gumbo. If you are intent on an appetizer, instead get a salad to share with a buddy. Those things were huge. I also tried the red beans and rice. But, here is where I could tell they are related to Popeye’s. This was essentially the same RB&R I get there. Not impressed.
For the main meal, I ordered the jambalaya pasta. Different spin but I really enjoyed it. Had a hotness to it but nothing unbearable. Mix of meats jumbled in with bowtie pasta. It was like the neverending bowl and I was forced to ask for a takehome box. And, I ALWAYS eat my meal at the restaurant. :) I enjoyed the dish enough to ignore my no leftover rule at home. You absolutely get your money’s worth for this plate.
If it weren’t a pain in the caboose (for me) to get to, I’d check out Copelands more. I do agree with another reviewer about being pickey about Cajun food. I would only classify Copelands as Cajun on a technicality. I am still in search of great Cajun in San Antonio. It may be a bigger feat than I imagine.

Nothing we had here was good except for the Stella Artois on tap.
We ordered the pasta with crawfish and jambalaya. All of the crawfish smelled like that frozen crawfish at cheap Chinese buffets… you know, crawfish that’s imported from the nuclear waters of China.
The rest of the food was pretty bland for «Cajun» food. This place attempts to make upscale Cajun food… the idea doesn’t really make sense considering Cajun food was founded as a «po’ man’s food» (a.k.a. really good street food).
This place reminds me of a fancy Chili’s with a fake NOLA façade. (Am I too harsh?)

lunch today with my Grandson. He had the Copeland’s Burger, on a regular bun, not a croissant. He said it was delicious with the Bacon, Cheese and special mayo… lettuce, tomato and onion too, of course. He ate all of his fries and most of mine… not because they were small portions… he is a teenager!
I had the Shrimp Po Boy… the shrimp were good (Grandson ate some of those too). Problem, the roll was hard as a rock. I only ate about ¹⁄₃ of it. Now, the waitress asked if I needed a box, and I said yes, and then added, I really hated to complain and told her about the roll. I asked her if I could just get a regular bun, and I would take the leftovers home with me and use the fresh bun for my leftovers. She apologized and said, yes, of course. She didn’t say, I’ll check, she just said yes. I told her I was happy. And I was.
The waitress/​bartender, gave great service, my ice tea was never empty and I drank 4 or 5 glasses of tea. My grandson drank a lot of diet coke too. We will be back again… of course. I eat there sometimes every week. My favorite is the Catfish Ricochet, with extra sauce, on the side.
Three and 4/5’s stars due to hard roll, but 5 STARTS for today’s service.

SUCH a better experience this time around at Copelands, I had to write an update!
From the moment we walked through the door the staff was beyond friendly and accommodating. I was truly impressed. They have an awesome Unilocal check-​in deal posted so I’m going to assume that maybe they read some of the reviews here, and made some changes and boy does it show.
And the food was delicious. Every thing w had from appetizers to dessert were top notch. Really, I’m so so impressed by all the changes and now I can’t wait for the next occasion to try them again!

The husband & I have been wanting to try Copelands of New Orleans for some time. I went online to their website and signed up under the «join our mailing list» and received an instant coupon for $ 10 off a purchase of $ 25 or more. We made a lunch date with a friend so there were three of us for lunch.
I was surprised that at noon the restaurant wasn’t jam packed. Perhaps because it was one of San Antonio’s cold, wet days. We were seated immediately by their friendly hostess.
After I arrived at the restaurant I checked in to Foursquare and immediately received a $ 5 off coupon towards an appetizer!
The General Manager, Justin came to our table and introduced himself and congratulated me on the Foursquare check in. Our server was incredibly helpful, attentive and polite.
We started with the appetizer of the crawfish bread; artichoke & spinach, sauteed crawfish, alfredo sauce and monterey jack cheese. It was delicious and definitely a large enough serving to satisfy three.
My luncheon entrée was the crawfish etouffe. The husband ordered the richochet catfish and our girlfriend the jambalaya pasta.
All three meals were tasty, hot and sufficient portions.
We were very impressed with the food quality, the service and ambiance. We’re looking forward to returning for an evening meal AND for trying one of their desserts.

I usually would go to Copelands in Louisiana and get the overstuffed shrimp poboy. But today at the fairly new location in stone oak I ordered the crabmeat ravioli/​sampler plate. It was fantastic even though it was just three raviolis it was just enough and I had room for dessert — bread pudding — very good. My husband had the chicken parmesean. He liked it very much even though there was not that much chicken and it was very thin. He had the bannanas foster — the best.
There was a wait. The restaraumt was a bit noisy and very warm inside.

Meh. The perfect word to describe Copelands. It’s not the worst place, not the best… just meh.
I had the chicken and basil tomato pasta (something or other), and it was good. However, I received a tiny chicken breast atop about a half a pound of pasta (not exactly worth the $ 15 price tag).
I am VERY picky about my Cajun food having eaten at some excellent places in Louisiana, however.

One of my friends had been raving about Copelands since moving back to San Antonio from Baton Rouge. Finally, we were able to make it out to the San Antonio location for lunch. The Unilocal star rating description I gave it is incredibly accurate: «Meh.»
The atmosphere for a late lunch on Sunday afternoon was nice enough. The dining area is nice, and there’s a cool waterfall made with wine bottles in the foyer. There was a small jazz band playing music (from 12 – 3, they said) that was pretty pleasant to listen to. I was also happy (and slightly shocked) to find out that the $ 9.99 lunch specials on the back page of the menu were available on weekends, too. Win!
Incidentally, $ 9.99 was still a little pricey for what I got. Though my plate of Eggplant Pirogue was pretty sizable, with 2 big slices of fried eggplant and some shrimp and a few little crab claws on top of angel hair pasta with a cream sauce, it was generally under-​seasoned and a little bland. I mean, I ate it, mostly the whole thing, but only after squeezing about 12 lemons on it. I also tried the mac n cheese (yes, I ate part of two different pasta dishes, SO?!), which the waitress said was really good. I love mac n cheese, so I just had to find out if this was my new go-​to location for the stuff. Well, again — meh. The pasta had some cheese mixed in and baked on top, with bacon and chives tossed on top as well… and that’s exactly what it tasted like. Not delicious, but edible. Incidentally, I only had a few bites.
Service was slow, but our server was friendly and on top of our refills. She was also pretty knowledgeable of the menu and was able to answer any questions we asked her… though I’m not sure I’d trust her opinion anymore since she said everything we ordered was one of the favorites and delicious, when it was, at best, «meh.»

I really wanted to like this restaurant, especially since it is nearby my place! I studied the menu and read reviews before deciding to check it out myself, but unfortunately this place disappointed my expectations. And, to echo Ruth’s review below, super slow and less than helpful waitstaff.
Food was tasteless and not as described by our waiter. I feel really let down. Sadly, I’m not willing to give this place a second chance and I will not be back. Thank God there are a ton of excellent restaurants nearby.
And, just a tip for the waitstaff: If a child is screaming at the top of their lungs for longer than five minutes, it isn’t unreasonable to request the parent take them outside for a few moments unitl he/​she calms down. There are other patrons in the restaurant trying to enjoy a night out, too.

I lived in the New Orleans area for about 20 years so I know what good cajun food is. Copelands is not the best cajun restaurant, but it’s definitely better than anything I’ve tried in San Antonio. Relative to other New Orleans restaurants, I’d give them 3 stars for ok. Relative to what we have here in SA, they get 4 stars.
Service — I went on a Thursday night and service was fine. Food came out in a timely manner.
Food:
cup of gumbo — It was ok. Flavors were there but added some Tabasco for extra kick.
catfish acadiana — nice crispy catfish topped with a tasty, rich sauce. I’d get this again
biscuit — covered in butter means delicous
red beans and rice — pretty bland. same red beans you can get from popeyes which is owned by the same company.
Overall, it was nice to get some semi-​cajun food here in SA. I’ll definitely be back.

Make sure you are not starving and willing to wait because you will! Considering this new hot spot has only been open for a few weeks, the hype has not died down. Hint: there is a parking lot behind the restaurant, try not to take the shopping/​bank parking.
We definitely got a try a little bit of everything and there were some high points and low points.
Appetizers: We ordered the fried pickles and the sampler platter. The fried pickles were good, and the highlight of the sampler platter was Bayou Broccoli. Next time I’ll probably skip the Cajun Popcorn and Artichoke Spinach dip and just go for the Bayou Broccoli.
I ordered the Eggplant Pirogue and everything was pretty tasty. I even enjoyed the biscuit that came with the meal. My husband ordered the fresh fish of the day with crawfish etoufee. He devoured his meal, but I thought the best part was the side of Mac and Cheese.
Although everything tasted good, there was nothing that made this restaurant really stand out. Not sure how often they have it, but the Friday night we went, there was a live jazz band.

My wife and I decided to try a «new» place. Copelands of New Orleans was our choice for last night (8÷13÷2011).
I ordered the Seafood Platter and my wife the Shrimp Plate. Both were very good. I had a bowl of the Seafood Gumbo and we shared the Crawfish Bread. Both were very good.
The service was excellent. When we first arrived about 5:00 PM the background music (jazz) was softly playing. At one point someone decided to turn the music very loud. I complained at once and very soon the music was back to conversation level.
The price was a bit on the high side for a causal dinner. However, it is in line with «special event» pricing. I would recommend Coplelands for anniversary dinners, upscale birthday gatherings and business dinners.
We will be back.

Nice change to the standard San Antonio fare. Loved it!
Now don’t misunderstand. I’ve been to New Orleans many times and understand the concept of «tacky NO fare (previous reviews).» And I get it. But the only tacky thing here was the gentleman who was visiting each table and adorning the customers with Mardi Gras beads. I have to say that even that thrilled our 11 year old.
I had the redfish brioche — I was raised on seafood and this was probably the best fish dinner I have ever had. My husband had the shrimp creole and our 15 year old had the crawfish étouffée. Simply wonderful. Our server, Jackie, was knowledgeable, gracious, and quick to respond to all of our requests.
No, it’s not New Orleans. And no, it’s not Pawley’s Island/​Myrtle Beach/​low country South Carolina — but it should not be passed by.

This place used to be open in Mobile, Alabama, but closed years ago (’06 maybe?). When they were in mobile, they weren’t that good. Their prices were high and they didn’t give you much food (a little seafood on a bed of french fries.) They have made great strides since then and have definitely improved with this location.
The service was great, the waiter seemed to stay on top of thing, refilling the drinks when necessary, staying on top of his customers needs. They food was the freshest in seafood in San Antonio, Rivalng that of Acadiana Café on the other side of town. The portion were enough that you didn’t feel hungry nor to full.
Overall I’d definitely return.

So, they’ve only been open a couple weeks — I can totally forgive slow ticket times, untrained service, etc.
I can’t excuse terrible recipes. At all. Ever.
First of all, the menu online doesn’t match this location’s menu at all: there are items on both not to be found on the other, and the prices are much higher offline than on.
I ordered blackened mahi-​mahi and étouffée, with sides of macaroni and cheese and red beans & rice. (You might say this was an odd combination of foods — and I would agree… but I was here to sample some variety.)
The first piece of fish they brought me, wasn’t mahi mahi, and wasn’t blackened. It was just a small piece of unseasoned charcoal. I have no idea what kind of fish it once was. The second piece of fish they brought me still wasn’t blackened, but at least it was cooked and seasoned, and was definitely Mahi Mahi.
«Étouffée»: I don’t know where they got this recipe for «étouffée» from but, but it was not étouffée. I can only liken it to black pepper water with popcorn shrimp thrown in for good measure. I was also shocked at the portion size (it was supposed to be half a $ 17 entrée)… they put it in a dipping cup, like you’d serve ketchup in! Holy crap.
Red beans and rice: … bland pureed bean gravy mush. Ugh.
Loaded Macaroni & cheese: Clean presentation, baked with ham, two kinds of cheese, and topped with scallions and bacon crumbles. Unfortunately one of those cheeses was crap, and the ham had a *very* odd flavor to it, which three people failed to identify. Two macaroni & cheese connoisseurs turned their nose up at my untouched portion.
Ambiance: very tacky French Quarter feel. Think Outback Steakhouse’s impression of Australia, or Olive Garden’s impression of Italy.
Props to the manager on duty, who was clearly taking a beating from every other table in the restaurant. I’d find a new employer, if I were you.
In summary, Copeland’s strikes me as a Chili’s style please-​all, that fails at nearly everything, and hopes you’ll pay $ 9 for a slice of mediocre cheesecake before you leave. (which seemed to make everyone feel ill)

I tried Copelands of New Orleans during the first week of its grand opening in its San Antonio location. For that reason, I think the chefs and the staff are still trying to get accustomed to preparing these dishes. The service was great but the flavors of the dishes were below average. After visiting New Orleans, LA twice in less than a month and spending, in total, a week there — I was expecting to taste those same great flavors here in San Antonio. Unfortunately, Copelands of «New Orleans» fell short on delivering the explosive flavors of NOLA cuisine.
Crab Stuffed Eggplant: ²⁄₅ — Sounds very appetizing, especially if you enjoy eggplant, but this dish was absolutely bland. Cooking 101 — always S&P with each layer of ingredients you add. The pasta was over cooked, the sauce was heavy on the cream and lacked seasoning, and the stuffed deep fried eggplant was too thick and bland. The lack of crab inside made it seem more like a spread rather than a stuffing. On the positive side, the crab filling itself was actually tasty and the butter biscuits were a nice treat! The biscuits were moist, flavorful, and covered in melted butter.
Eggplant Pirogue: ³⁄₅ — Similar to the dish mentioned above, but the dish was executed more properly. Same ingredients (deep fried eggplant, au gratin sauce, angel hair pasta) but crab claws were used rather than crab stuffing. With that said, the inconsistency with the two dishes boggles my mind!
Jambalaya: 3.5÷5 — Finally, thank you for giving me some flavor! Not the best I’ve tried but regardless, it was appetizing. Although it was actually a little too thick and used too much tomato sauce, I was satisfied with this dish and enjoyed it much better than the previously mentioned dishes.
I do plan on visiting this place again and hopefully doing a review update. But for now, I’ll wait a few months and let the chefs settle in so they can be more familiar with the environment and recipes.