Louisiana Shabang Seafood in Hesperia serves up Cajun flavors in High Desert
Whether you are a fan of Louisiana-style seafood or are a newcomer to the cuisine, you should visit a restaurant in Hesperia whose head chef is the most experienced Cajun cook in the High Desert.
The place is Louisiana Shabang Seafood, and the head chef and manager is Roy Gonzales. He is known as the "Sauce Boss" for good reason.
Louisiana Shabang Seafood is the epitome of casual dining ─ laid back and family friendly with a fun and authentic atmosphere that goes perfectly with the food it serves.
Cuisine that ‘is what it is’
Louisiana cuisine is pretty straightforward ─ the menu is fairly simple, but the sauces absolutely transform the dish.
The main dish is often called a “seafood boil.” Customers order their seafoods of choice ─ shrimp, clams, mussels, crawfish, crab, lobster ─ and a sauce and spice level.
The seafood is boiled with andouille sausage, pieces of corn on the cob, butter, eggs and red potatoes, and served in a large bowl with lemon wedges on the side. Once your order arrives, it’s self-serve.
Starting early
Roy began cooking as a teenager. He attended culinary school but kept returning to his love of Louisiana and Cajun foods. He was inspired to develop sauces for this type of seafood. Here is where the Sauce Boss began to earn his title.
Spicing it up
How Roy and “Shabang” came to be is a happy story.
When Dan and Kay Jitmanowan came to the High Desert from Thailand a number of years ago, they became successful restaurateurs with Hesperia’s Go Bangkok and Thai Dawn in Dunia Plaza. Go Bangkok closed, and they opened Pacific Crab House near Von’s in the Victor Valley Town Center.
In 2017, the couple was looking at restaurant locations. A property manager took them the former site of a Cajun restaurant at the Stater Bros. Market center at Main and Maple. Roy had been head chef there.
Roy’s mother, Yvonne Cowan, was grocery shopping there and noticed the activity at the restaurant. She introduced herself, and soon the Jitmanowans became intrigued with the idea of owning a Louisiana seafood restaurant but were unfamiliar with the concept, menu and flavor profiles of that cuisine.
Yvonne knew just the person to talk to. She offered to put her son in touch with them.
The Sauce Boss rules
After Roy was hired, he shared his knowledge of and concepts surrounding Louisiana seafood with the Jitmanowans. They learned that the flavor profiles were distinctly different.
Thai foods are seasoned with lemongrass, limes leaves and rind, coriander and sweet Thai basil. Louisiana dishes rely on paprika, cayenne pepper, garlic and oregano, and the sauces were the key.
For six months Roy mixed sauces. He and the Jitmanowans tasted and evaluated dozens of recipes to create signature sauces to enhance their seafood. It was definitely “trial and error,” but this is how many great cuisines get their start.
Eventually Roy developed four sauces got everyone’s “thumbs up.” Traditional Cajun, Lemon Pepper and Garlic came first, followed by the final sauce ─ and the reason for the restaurant name, “Shabang.” It is a secret combination of the first three sauces that culminate in the “whole shabang” of flavors.
In a word, the sauces were transformational, and the Sauce Boss title was undisputed.
A fast favorite
The Shabang sauce flavor represents 85% of all sauce sales.
The most popular “seafood boils” are peeled shrimp and snow crab legs.
Other customer favorites include the classic Po’Boy shrimp sandwich on an 8-inch French roll. Catfish and calamari baskets are favorites with Cajun fries, and diners love the garlic bread, too.
Every order is prepared fresh, so there is a ticket or wait time of anywhere from 17 to 25 minutes depending whether you order on a weekday or the weekend.
Refreshments and more
Soft drinks, freshly brewed iced tea plus beer and wine are available.
Flat-screen television sets in the restaurant are perfect for watching a favorite game while you dine. Ask about catering options, too.
When you go
Where: Louisiana Shabang Seafood,14466 Main St., Ste. 103, Hesperia.
When: Opens daily at Noon.
Information: (760) 998-3680. Eat in, take-out. Delivery by DoorDash. Website www.ShabangSeafood.com. Facebook and Instagram. Kids menu. Call for catering information.
Dining Around
If you would like your restaurant profiled in Dining Around or want to tell readers about your favorite eatery, please contact Kathy Young by text/voicemail at 760-953-8682 or email kaynhuey@aol.com.
This article originally appeared on Visalia Times-Delta: Enjoy Cajun food at Louisiana Shabang Seafood in Hesperia
