The Woodlands’ New Orleans Restaurant Keeps It Fresh — Schilleci’s Adapts and Keeps the Food In the Family

You don’t have to travel all the way to New Orleans for authentic Cajun food. The Woodlands’ Market Street mixed-use land is home to family-owned and run Schilleci’s New Orleans Kitchen. It’s a prime spot to satisfy all your French Quarter cravings in Mardi Gras season or any other time.

What started as a casual po’boy shop in the Spring area has grown into more of a fine dining experience. Schilleci’s opened its doors in The Woodlands in 2010 as an intimate New Orleans hotspot.

One of the restaurant’s original owners and the patriarch of the family-owned establishment Wayne Schilleci was born and raised in New Orleans, moving to the Houston area in the 1960s. In January, 2020, Wayne passed full ownership to his son Zach Schilleci, a part owner since the beginning, who is now running the restaurant with his wife Hannah.

For Zach Schilleci, the restaurant business has been a passion of his since he “fell in love with food” as a youngster. He grew up steeped in New Orleans lore, especially the authentic food of the French Quarter, and it eventually drew him to culinary school.

“I love seeing what food does for people,” Zach Schilleci tells PaperCity  The Woodlands. “Over a good meal, you can be friends with anybody. It really brings people together and I’ve always really enjoyed that.”

In addition to menu options such as smoked crawfish dip, lobster ravioli, plus New Orleans classics like étouffée, creole and jambalaya, Schilleci’s also has a vast wine collection. Beginning with just six red and white wine options when Schilleci’s New Orleans Kitchen first opened in 2010, the restaurant now boasts a wine list with more than 600 labels.

“We focus on offering quality meals, as well as an experience that’s really unique, which I think is really an embodiment of old school New Orleans,” Zach Schilleci says.

A Family Impact

Just a few months before taking full ownership of Schilleci’s New Orleans Kitchen, Zach and Hannah Schilleci had their personal lives turned upside down when their daughter Sophie was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes.

“I’ve always cared about nutrition and what we’re putting in our bodies,” Hannah Schilleci says.

After Sophie’s diagnosis, being thoughtful about food became even more important, as they needed to track carbs and glucose spikes from various foods for Sophie.

Because of their personal experience with diabetes, when this couple took the reins of the restaurant, they made it a priority to increase the quality of ingredients in the Schilleci recipes and turn to local suppliers whenever possible. They get their honey from a local beekeeper in Conroe and found a local micro-green producer that delivers greens to them several times a week.

“Our focus has always been the freshest foods and the highest quality ingredients,” Zach Schilleci says. “And almost everything is made to order from scratch.”

Their experience with having to track Sophie’s food also gives them a better understanding of diners with food allergies and preferences. They strive to accommodate eaters with special dietary needs.

“We use such high-quality ingredients that even if we need to strip some of the dishes down to accommodate food preferences or allergies, they still taste delicious,” Zach Schilleci says.

Having to learn more about how ingredients work together nutritionally and affect their daughter’s diabetes meant they also learned more about how ingredients can work together in their restaurant dishes to create more balanced meals.

“We’re just continuing to work toward that vision of increasingly changing out products for healthier and cleaner versions,” Zach Schilleci notes.

Mardi Gras At Schilleci’s

This year, Mardi Gras falls on March 4 and Schilleci’s New Orleans Kitchen is predictably all in.

The restaurant will feature the Gambino’s Bakery King Cake, a historic New Orleans staple. You can order the King Cake to take home, now through Mardi Gras for $30.

For dine-in customers, King Cake is available by the slice. Find the plastic Lucky Baby figurine in your slice and it’s on the house.

Schilleci’s can be found in Market Street in The Woodlands at 9595 Six Pines Drive. The restaurant is open 11 am to 9 pm Mondays through Thursdays, 11 am to 10 Fridays and Saturdays, and 11 am to 6 pm on Sundays.