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Mulate's |
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Chris' |
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The Original Don's Seafood and Steakhouse |
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Prejean's Restaurant |
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Commander's Palace |
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A NOTE TO OUR READERS:
"Our Favorite Regional Restaurants" is from the Favorites 2005 issue of Southern Living.
ABBEVILLEBlack's Seafood Restaurant & Oyster Bar (Cajun/Creole): 319 Pere Megret Street; (337) 893-4266. A must on any seafood lover's trip through Cajun country. The shrimp po'boy is
made with local French bread and stuffed with plump, juicy fried morsels. In season, you can't beat the shrimp and crawfish, boiled with a hint of clove and other seasonings. Lunch,
dinner (closed Sunday-Monday).
BREAUX BRIDGECafé des Amis (Cajun/Creole): 140 East Bridge Street; (337) 332-5273 or www.cafedesamis.com. Good any time of the day, but the Zydeco Brunch on Saturday rocks. In addition to
great omelets, look for Couche-Couche (Cajun "cereal" of cornmeal batter cooked in a hot iron skillet) and Oreille de Cochon (which means "ear of the pig"), which is stuffed fried dough
stuffed with boudin. Breakfast, lunch, dinner.
Mulate's (Cajun/Creole): 325 Mills Avenue; (337) 332-4648 or 1-800-422-2586. Fried shrimp, oysters, and catfish are served up with live Cajun music that will set your toes
tapping. Don't miss this stop just outside Lafayette. Lunch, dinner.
HENDERSONRobin's Restaurant (Cajun/Creole): 1409 Henderson Highway; (337) 228-7594. Call ahead and ask for the Frog Legs Étouffée. It's smothered in onions and cooked until the meat is
fork tender. Add a cup of gumbo, and don't pass up the homemade ice creams, especially the unusual Tabasco-flavored treat. Lunch, dinner (closed Sunday night and Monday).
GRAND COTEAUThe Tea Room at the Kitchen Shop (Regional Specialty): 296 Martin Luther King Drive (State 93); (337) 662-3500. Make your way through the shop, past the hard-to-find gumbo
spoons, to the back room. Here owner Nancy Brewer serves delicious homemade spinach quiche Lorraine pies and her famous Gateau Na-Na, a Breton-style pastry with pecan-praline
filling. Lunch (closed Monday).
HOUMAA-Bear's Café (Cajun/Creole): 809 Bayou Black Drive; (985) 872-6306. This home-style restaurant is located in a traditional house. Try the local specialty of gumbo with a side of
potato salad. Lunch, dinner (served only on Friday).
LAFAYETTE
Antlers Restaurant and Bar (Cajun/Creole): 555 Jefferson Street; (337) 234-8877. Their red beans and sausage will knock your socks off, and look for great daily specials as well.
There's also a children's menu of simpler choices. Lunch (Monday-Friday), dinner (second Saturday of each month).
Chris' (Cajun/Creole): 631 Jefferson Street, (337) 234-1696. The po'boys are fabulous, and not even the plastic bowls can detract from the delectable gumbo. Lunch, dinner (closed
Saturday-Sunday).
Dwyer's Cafe (Traditional Southern): 323 Jefferson Street; (337) 235-9364. The daily plate lunches offer everything from pork chops to catfish, and include rice and vegetables.
Gumbo is offered daily in winter and on Fridays the rest of the year. Breakfast, lunch, dinner (closed Sunday-Monday).
Edie's Restaurant (Traditional Southern): 1895 West Pinhook Road; (337) 234-2485. No matter which yummy plate lunch you have, it will pale in comparison to the exquisite, yeasty biscuits
served hot with butter and honey. The crowd of locals that fill the restaurant at lunchtime is a testament to the popularity of the daily menu. Lunch (closed Saturday).
The Original Don's Seafood and Steakhouse (Seafood): 301 East Vermilion Street; (337) 235-3551 or www.donsdowntown.com. Whatever you order, start with gumbo. The seafood
gumbo brims with oysters, shrimp, and crab fingers. Rice and filé powder are served on the side, and fresh, hot hushpuppies add just the right touch. Lunch, dinner.
Poor Boy's Riverside Inn (Seafood): 240 Tubing Road; (337) 235-8559 or www.poorboysriversideinn.com. Locals dive into platters of oysters and hot, fried seafood as well as bowls of
gumbos and bisques. Our favorites include the fresh jumbo lump crabmeat sautéed in butter, and the whole, grilled stuffed flounder. Lunch, dinner (closed Sunday).
Prejean's Restaurant (Cajun/Creole): 3480 I-49 North; (337) 896-3247. Live Cajun music every night adds to the Cajun-cabin atmosphere. Don't miss the smoky-tasting
duck-and-andouille gumbo. Breakfast, lunch, dinner.
T-Coon's (Cajun/Creole): 740 Jefferson Street; (337) 232-3803 or www.tcoons.com. Enjoy a superlative lunch plate of Catfish Courtbouillon, Shrimp-and-Okra Stew, or Smothered
Rabbit. The specials change daily, but many favorites are available every day. Breakfast, lunch, dinner (dinner is only served Friday-Saturday).
MANCHACMiddendorf's (Catfish): 30160 Old Highway 51(from I-55, take Exit 15); (985) 386-6666. This is quite possibly the best fried catfish in the world--yes, the world. Another specialty
is boiled Manchac crabs in season from the Manchac Swamp. Lunch, dinner (closed Monday).
METAIRIEDrago's Restaurant (Cajun/Creole): 3232 North Arnoult Road; (504) 888-9254. It's an easy exit from I-10 for Creole classics and seafood, especially the charbroiled oysters, served
on the half shell with butter and garlic sauce. Lunch, dinner (closed Sunday).
NATCHITOCHESThe Landing Restaurant (Regional Specialty): 530 Front Street; (318) 352-1579 or www.thelandingrestaurantandbar.com. Plenty of seafood and steaks fill the menu, but one dish
stands out. Lunch, dinner, Sunday brunch (closed Monday).
NEW ORLEANS
Brennan's Restaurant (Contemporary Southern): 417 Royal Street; (504) 525-9711 or www.brennansneworleans.com. One of the city's old-line restaurants, Brennan's is famed for its
rich-as-sin breakfasts. Bananas Foster originated here, and you won't find a better version. Eggs Hussarde trumps Eggs Benedict, by adding marchands de vin sauce, and Shrimp Sardou features an
artichoke bottom, creamed spinach, and--you guessed it--Hollandaise Sauce. Brunch, dinner.
Central Grocery Company (Regional Specialty): 923 Decatur Street; (504) 523-1620. Classic muffulettas draw the faithful to this little Italian grocery that claims to have created
them in the 1930s. Lunch.
Commander's Palace (Cajun/Creole): 1403 Washington Avenue, New Orleans; (504) 899-8221 or www.commanderspalace.com. Legendary service and fabulous Creole-style food make
this Ella and Dottie Brennan property a must-visit spot. It's hard to go wrong here, but the Turtle Soup au Sherry is a classic, and the Pecan-Crusted Gulf Fish is wonderful. Don't overlook dessert
either. Creole Bread Pudding Soufflé is fabulous, as are the house-made ice creams and sorbets. Lunch, dinner, Saturday-Sunday brunch.
Domilise's Po-Boys (Seafood): 5240 Annunciation Street; (504) 899-9126. Go for the fried shrimp po'boy, dressed with mayo, ketchup, lettuce, pickles, and hot sauce. But take cash
because credit cards are not accepted. Lunch, dinner (closed Sunday).
Dunbar's Creole Cooking (Traditional Southern): 4927 Freret Street; (504) 899-0734. What will really get your attention, along with the fried chicken, are the pork chop plate and a
bowl of seafood gumbo with potato salad. To round out the all-star cast, try the mustard greens, lima beans, and candied yams. Breakfast, lunch, dinner (closed Sunday).
Gumbo Shop (Cajun/Creole): 630 St. Peter Street; (504) 525-1486 or www.gumboshop.com. Walk half a block from Jackson Square and you're in Creole heaven. Just reading the menu
makes us hungry--Red Beans and Rice With Smoked Sausage, Jambalaya, Chicken Andouille Gumbo, Crawfish Etouffée. Lunch, dinner.
K-Paul's Louisiana Kitchen (Cajun/Creole): 416 Chartres Street, New Orleans; (504) 524-7394 or www.kpauls.com. Paul Prudhomme, the chef who made Cajun food a household name,
still serves it up in style. Enjoy the original Blackened Louisiana Drum, Chicken and Andouille Gumbo, or the melt-in-your mouth Blackened Twin Beef Tenders with Debris (day-BREE) Sauce.
Lunch (Thursday-Saturday), dinner (closed Sunday).
Napoleon House (Cajun/Creole): 500 Chartres Street, New Orleans; (504) 524-9752 or www.napoleonhouse.com. Walls that haven't been painted in many decades, concrete floors, and
great old photos set the scene for affordable fare. Try the jambalaya or muffuletta (served warm here). Enjoy the signature beverage, the Pimm's Cup, as you watch the French Quarter bustle by.
Lunch (daily), dinner (Tuesday-Saturday only).
The Praline Connection (Traditional Southern): 542 Frenchmen's Street; (504) 943-3934 or www.pralineconnection.com. We don't usually think of soul food in New Orleans, but the
Praline Connection does it and does it right. Along with Creole favorites, it serves fried chicken livers, meatloaf, macaroni and cheese, crowder peas and okra with rice, and mustard greens to
remind us that the Crescent City is, indeed, part of the South. Lunch, dinner.
SHREVEPORTAnthony's Steak & Seafood (Traditional Southern): 7504 Mansfield Road; (318) 688-6830 or www.anthonyssteakandseafood.com. The decor, wood-paneled walls and dark carpeting,
suggests that food comes before beauty here. You'll find well-prepared comfort food and Louisiana classics, including fried catfish, fried chicken, black-eyed peas, lima beans, cornbread, and a
stick-to-your-bones satisfying shrimp Étouffée. Lunch (Monday-Friday), dinner (closed Sunday).
The Blind Tiger Restaurant (Cajun/Creole): 120 Texas Street; (318) 226-8747 or www.blindtigerrestaurant.com. Enjoy a taste of regional fare in a Cheers-like atmosphere. Try the
Cajun Sampler ($14.95), with blackened catfish, fried crawfish, gumbo, shrimp étouffée, miniature meat pies, fried corn, and jambalaya or dirty rice. Lunch, dinner.
Herby K's Restaurant (Seafood): 1833 Pierre Avenue; (318) 424-2724. Order the Shrimp Buster, a local legend with four fried shrimp (pounded flat and fried to a golden brown) and
secret red sauce served atop French bread. In-the-know folks ask for extra shrimp, $2 each. Seafood classics include gumbo and crawfish étouffée. Lunch, dinner (closed Sunday).
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