Archive for category Acadiana restaurant

Olde Tyme Grocery po boys in Lafayette

shrimp 150x150 Olde Tyme Grocery po boys in LafayetteWe recently ordered a couple po boys from Olde Tyme Grocery in Lafayette, an institution in the “Saint’s street” area of town.  Well loved by locals and passers through alike, Olde Tyme is currently ranked number two in our poll for the fried shrimp po boy and the Olde Tyme Special (“OTS”) also deserves being up at the top of anyone’s list in its own right.

Luckily, the Wife (and much of the rest of my family) is amenable to planning out who is going to get what to make sure that we get a little taste of as many dishes as possible, so despite the fact that we both wanted the shrimp po boy, we decided to get one shrimp and one OTS.

The fried shrimp po boy is comprised of a pile of golden fried shrimp, a couple slices of ripe tomato, mayo and lettuce.ots 150x150 Olde Tyme Grocery po boys in Lafayette Stuffed into fresh Langlinais bread with a pillowy interior and crackly crust, this po boy truly could be the definitive example of what this sandwich should be.

The OTS is similar to the “special” that can be found at many other shops (ham, roast beef, turkey and cheese) with Olde Tyme using Swiss as the standard.  Their version stands above many others in that each of the meats is delicious and flavorful in zapps sweet potato 150x150 Olde Tyme Grocery po boys in Lafayettetheir own right and do not seem stuck into the sandwich just to provide a little extra protein.  Indeed, this po boy generally comes with nearly a pound of meat on each foot of delicious goodness.

Coupled with a bag of Zapp’s absolutely outstanding Sweet Potato chips or an order of Olde Tyme’s amazing fries and a couple of ice cold Cokes, this is truly the meal that Cajun daydreams are made of.

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Pizza Shack- the place for pizza in Opelousas

pizza 225x300 Pizza Shack  the place for pizza in OpelousasPizza Shack is what is: a few booths, a guy working a pizza oven like a he has four arms, the coldest beer in Acadiana and killer pizza. With a cracker thin crust that brings back childhood memories of West Main Pizza in Houma/Thibodaux, Pizza Shack takes their crunchy base and then they pile on the toppings.

A favorite of ours is the Ferdi special that comes with everything from smoked sausage to shrimp, but I’ve truly never had a bad pie here, and I’ve even been talked into going with some of the simpler, yet outstanding, selections on occasion. To increase the “man this is just like West Main” factor for your folks from down the bayou, they even serve a taco pizza: cheddar and hamburger piled on top of their signature crust.

As previously mentioned the beer here is COLD, due in no small part to the fact that a frosty mug is brought to you each time you order a beer, get towards the end of your mug, and sometimes even in between sips. Combined with an order of the nachos to kick it off, Pizza Shack is a can’t miss.

biglink Pizza Shack  the place for pizza in Opelousas

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Darrell’s in Lake Charles

Every time I pass through (and even a few times when I was just near) Lake Charles I try to stop by Darrell’s, home of the Darrell’s Special.  Calling the Darrell’s Special just a po-boy would be like calling the Grand Canyon just a drainage ditch.

The specifics seem simple enough: po-boy bread with ham, turkey, roast beef, gravy, cheddar, Swiss & provolone cheeses, mustard, lettuce, and jalapeno mayo. Nothing to write home about, right? WRONG!!!

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Ham sandwiches and pecan pie at Lea’s Lunch Room

distribute 008 150x150 Ham sandwiches and pecan pie at Leas Lunch RoomSituated along old Hwy 71, Lea’s Lunch Room is a throwback to the day when there was no such thing as highways and trains ran the show, hence their location next to the train tracks in Downtown Lecompte.  Famous for their pies and ham sandwiches, Lea’s has served generations of patrons.  Their pies are so good that the town of Lecompte has adopted the pie as its unofficial logo, symbol, motto, and any other marketing term you could come up with. Read the rest of this entry »

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In search of the mythical ponce deep in the heart of Acadiana

img 0123 150x150 In search of the mythical ponce deep in the heart of AcadianaHowever you choose to spell it, ponce (also spelled pounce/paunce and called chaudin)  is one of those items that you don’t hear much about unless you have a few too many beers with someone from Ville Platte or Eunice.  The Cajun version of haggis, ponce is essentially ground pork and usually a binder, stuffed back into the stomach of the animal that you got your meat from.  That’s right, sausage stuffed pig stomach.  For the faint of heart, this is your warning… if you don’t like to see loosely grounds bits of meat and fat recongealed in a natural intestinal casing, stop here.  For the rest of you, read on!

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Billy Rays: Part Two

 Billy Rays: Part Two

Alright, if you remember my last post about Billy Ray’s in Opelousas, you might remember that I said the story behind the place was a bit confusing.  Well, it gets even more confusing.  Billy’s in Krotz Springs, Louisiana looks like your average everyday gas station. However, they are linked to Billy Ray’s in that they supposedly serve the same Billy’s recipe boudin, as well as the same boudin balls.  I say supposedly because even the ladies that work here can’t agree on what recipe is used where anymore.

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Eat at Joe’s (Dreyfus Store Restaurant)

joes 001 150x150 Eat at Joes (Dreyfus Store Restaurant)Joe’s Dreyfus Store Restaurant, or Joe Dreyfus’ in local language, is just one of those places.  You know, THOSE places.  The places that you love to go through thick and thin, good dishes and bad, for better or for worse.  Set in Livonia, about a half-mile off of 190 between Opelousas and Baton Rouge, Joe’s has had some rough patches in the past. The restaurant has gone through changes of ownership, changing hours of operation, and tidal changes of food quality.  Joe’s is back though, and the little restaurant that could in the middle of nowhere is once again beckoning: Eat at Joe’s!

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Cajun kolaches

 Cajun kolaches

The kolache wave has arrived!  Formerly restricted to the boundaries of Texas (and claimed by Texans to have originated there of course), kolaches are moving east and replacing the donut as the breakfast food of choice.  While many people envision the quintessential Cajun breakfast as chicory coffee and beignets with lots of powdered sugar, most Cajuns actually favor savory dishes in the morning.  The kolache is just the logical extension of something we have always wished for: a quick an easy way to carry around three of our favorite foods: eggs, cheese, and pork fat.

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The most envied guy in the room at a BYOB

 The most envied guy in the room at a BYOB

I often get looks of jealousy and envy from other guys, what can I say, my wife’s gorgeous!  Unless, she’s by my immediate side though, those looks are few and far between.  The other night when we went to eat boiled crawfish, I strolled in by myself and guys were looking at me like I was the new SI cover model.  Of course, it was not me they were looking at however…it was the six pack of cold Bud Select I had in my hands.

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The many uses of Steen’s cane syrup

 The many uses of Steens cane syrup

The other day I was in Abbeville (which by the way has some fabulous and fun food joints) and I saw these massive tanks off the main road.  Now I didn’t have time to take a tour or anything, but I did pull over and marvel at the fact this is where the the molten goodness called Steen’s Cane Syrup is made.  It got me thinking of all the wonderful tasty things that you can do with cane syrup besides pouring it on pancakes.  I’ve used it in salad dressings and sweetened up baked beans but my absolute favorite thing to do with cane syrup is to mix it with some good peanut butter until it becomes goopy, spread it on fresh white Evangeline Maid bread and then put a layer of sliced bananas.

I am telling you, this combo would have made Elvis request to be buried in Abbeville!

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