This year, November features five Wednesdays. That means locals and tourists alike have five opportunities to get their hands on the Thanksgiving po’ boy. It’s available only during November, only on Wednesdays and only at the world-famous Parkway Bakery in Mid City.
“Slow roasted turkey, that homemade cornbread dressing that rich brown turkey gravy, homemade cranberry sauce all in one. It’s not a shy sandwich,” said Parkway Bakery General Manager Justin Kennedy.
Parkway Bakery has been a fixture in the Mid City neighborhood of New Orleans for more than a century. It originally opened in 1911. Since then, the bakery went through a change of ownership after the original owners closed down the shop in 1993. Jay Nix, Justin Kennedy’s uncle, bought Parkway Bakery in the 1990’s and reopened it in 2005. Today, the family business offers more than 20 varieties of po’ boys. For a limited time, the Thanksgiving po’boy is one of them. A po’ boy this delicious would no doubt be a crowd pleaser all year round. But just like at your house, pulling off a memorable Thanksgiving meal or a Thanksgiving po’ boy takes time. The folks at Parkway have to do plenty of advance work to have the Thanksgiving po’ boy ready for the masses on Wednesdays in November.
“We cooked all the turkeys Friday. We took all the bones when we stripped all the turkeys and made the stock for the gravy with that on Saturday. We made the dressing and the cranberry sauce Sunday. We’re closed Monday and Tuesday, so we jump into it on Wednesdays during November,” Kennedy said.
Parkway Bakery has been serving the Thanksgiving po’ boy since 2007, but in recent years it’s been working alongside the Al Copeland Foundation in its mission to help fund cancer research and prevention. Restaurateur Al Copeland, who founded many New Orleans restaurants including Popeye’s Chicken, died after being diagnosed with a rare form of skin cancer in 2008. A former employee at Parkway Bakery died from the same skin cancer. It’s part of the reason why Parkway donates proceeds from a special “skip the line” ticket to the Al Copeland Foundation. A ticketholder will get the chance to bypass the long line and claim their Thanksgiving po’ boy, a side of sweet potato fries, a t-shirt and several other offerings. The seasonal po’ boy may be built around the turkey, but since Parkway began teaming up with the Al Copeland Foundation the Thanksgiving po’ boy is always fully dressed with compassion.
“Few sandwiches can help save lives, and that’s what we’re trying to do with the Thanksgiving po’ boy,” said Justin Kennedy.
Have you tried the Thanksgiving po’ boy? Listen to why there’s so much love for it here.