Old Orleans

Similar in formula to the Applebee's/Chili's//Tuesday's/Friday's chains in the States, right down to the hard glossy menus and silly drink names.

We made a reservation for 15 and the table was ready when we arrived, menus laid out. The waiter seemed happy to have a large party and he was very attentive, catching drink refill orders, bringing appetizers and when dinner arrived, accurately remember who had what without having to ask.

The food was... reasonable. Classic casual dining "American" - the sampler platter was the usual chicken wings and ribs, potato skins and chicken on a stick. Nothing to write home about, but it wasn't bad. My jambalaya main course was similarly decent, the right amount of spice, a handful of prawns ("shrimp" in American) tossed in for an extra £2. The corn bread (another £1) was burned on one side, but otherwise good.

Would I return? Probably not. It was overpriced and the food was only okay. There are so many other places in Reading that are more worthy, though they might not be as accommodating for a party of 15.

Easy to find, next door to the VUE cinema. I decided to go for lunch with my wife. We arrived at 1pm and had a few minutes outside to study the menus and for Carole to have a ciggie.
We then went in and were shown a table inside the main part of the restaurant.
We ordered Crayfish starter for me and Carole had Potato wedges with Bacon and cheese plus Cream !
Carole had a large glass of Merlot and I had Sauvignon Blanc.
Main Course.for me Gumbo and for Carole the ribs and chicken, coleslaw beans and Chips. Service was good and the staff very friendly and helpful.
We had coffees outside (Me, a Cappocino, Carole, a Latte)
It was an expensive lunch but very much worth the cost (We had another glass of wine each !).. We don't normally have a large lunch but this was really special.
The menu is extensive and most people would find the choices more than adequate.

I received a 50% off voucher via the Old Orleans club card offer. I had not been there in a while (this time last year) the Last time myself and a friend went it was freezing cold in the restaurant area, so we left sharpish.
So i thought give it a go again the 50% off was a bit of an incentive ;-)
We went on a TUE evening Around 8pm As soon as we entered we were seated ( restaurant 1/4 full) and our drinks were promptly served, (and i noticed they had fixed the heating!!!) The starters were fine,
For the main i had the mardi gras grill. the following is the description in the menu
"Tender grilled sirloin steak, grilled chicken breast skewers, pork and apple sausage, onion rings and delicious coconut shrimps. All served with your choice of fries or jacket potato."

The steak was so tough only ate half of it. the chicken breast was dry and cold, the sausage?? did not taste right and was cold and hard as stone,shrimp was OK.
I should have said something, but didn't. After the main course, i was not sure whether have desert but was still hungry after a disappointing main course, i Had the triple temptation
"mini Chocolate torte, mini baked vanilla bean cheesecake and mini citrus lemon tart, all served with a pot of vanilla ice cream."
And it was actual quite nice.
The service was good, but the food was not all that. Was lucky to have the 50% off voucher as i realy would not pay full price for the food we were served the bill came to £ 60 50% off =£30. Drinks and 3 course's for 2 people.

Got the wing and rib combo. American sized portions so you definitely don't leave hungry. A few of my wings were cold, which makes me think they just reheat them because they weren't pink. Ribs were over-cooked, thought I was eating jerky.

Server seemed disappointed we didn't have a blowout meal with appetizers, desert, etc. Must have needed a nice tip.

Positive side, liked the interior.

Save this place for some drinks and maybe some appetizers (nachos looked good).

Nice restaurant at the Riverside at the Oracle shopping centre. Part of a chain so the interior is similar to other Old Orleans in other places.


We've always found that the staff at this one were friendly and happy to deal with any potential issues.


Food is great, with a good selection even for vegetarians. Great atmosphere for parties too.

Old Orleans is a bit of a mixed bag.


The decor, desserts and cocktails are great, and good value for money.


The service, food and speed of serving are rubbish. It's basically a rustic version of TGI Fridays.


Without the embarrassing hats.

This pseudo-creole restaurant located on the riverside is a good family chain, catering better towards young children than a lot of restaurants.


The menu is reasonably cheap and varied, and the extra details such as the free popcorn are a nice touch while you're waiting.

I popped in here the other day when a film we were going to see was cancelled.
I have been wanting to try it out for a while and am pleased that I finally got around to it.
Good service, delicious cocktails.
I will definitely me going again.

Old Orleans has to be my favourite place to eat with my 5 year old son. It is a themed American Wild West restaurant that serves wonderful Americal style food.


It is quite dark inside but it all adds to the atmosphere and the seating arrangements are very good and I try and pick quite a large table to sit with my son. When you are seated the waitress will bring you over a free bowl of popcorn and a little goody bag for your child. She also places on the table a little jar with crayons in. What are the crayons for you ask? Well, the table is covered with a white paper tablecloth which you can draw on with the crayons! It's really a fab idea especially if you have children as you can keep them happily entertained whilst waiting for your meal.


They have an adults and children's menu and the prices are very good and quite often they have special offers on. You also get a loyalty card which entitles you to a free meal once it is filled.


The food if really nice and there is a very tasty choice. We usually go for the burger which is lovely. The children's menu includes a lovely choice of dessert.


It is also fully licensed and apart from the usual alcoholic drinks it also serves fantastic cocktails!

I went to Old Orleans twice.and on both times, the service was just awful. We had to wait at least 10 minutes to place our drink orders and much longer to place our food orders.


The food took 20 minutes to arrive with a 15 minute gap between the starter and the main course. We were ignored by waiters even when we were waving our arms. We didnt enjoy our meal at all and was late for the movie we were supposed to watch, because dinner took us 1 hour and 15 minutes.


I will never go back to Old Orleans.