Pepper jack-stuffed boudin balls from BRQ
These boudin balls pack a punch.
Stuffed with pepper jack cheese, the boudin balls are crispy and crunchy to bite into and soft and savory in the center. The dish is served with a rich ravigote sauce, lettuce, homemade pickles, radish slices, chives and tomatoes.
The appetizer, which comes with four boudin balls, is the perfect little something to have before your meal at BRQ.
BRQ Seafood and Barbecue, 10423 Jefferson Highway, Baton Rouge (Lauren Cheramie, features writer)
Green papaya salad at Pho 97 in Baton Rouge, taken on Aug. 9, 2024.
Green papaya salad at Pho 97
Stop what you’re doing and go eat the green papaya salad at Pho 97. Truth be told, I’m always hesitant to order the green papaya salad even on the rare occasions when I find it on the menu. I have high green papaya salad standards. Years ago, I spent a chunk of the summer in Thailand and quickly realized that green papaya salad was one of the best things I’ve ever eaten. Since that summer, I’ve looked high and low for that deliciousness of what I remember.
All too often when I’ve ordered it, the dish has come back way too tart — too acidic. It almost hurt my mouth. Not so with the green papaya salad I enjoyed at Pho 97. At Pho 97, the julienned unripened mango is served with fresh basil, shrimp and red chili. Granted, I’ve only had it there once and, perhaps, the stars aligned just right and the papaya was perfect on this particular day. Even so, I hope against hope that it will be equally good the next time I go, which will be soon!
Pho 97 is located at 15540 George Oneal Road, Baton Rouge. (Jan Risher, features editor)
The grits and grillades plate lunch, with a side of fried green beans, at La Cuisine de Maman, Vermilionville, Lafayette, La.
Grits and grillades at La Cuisine de Maman
Situated along the banks of the Bayou Vermilion in Lafayette, Vermilionville is a treasure of a living history museum showing visitors what life was like for Acadians, Creoles, native Louisianans and the other people of southwest Louisiana in the 19th century. And inside the museum, a small restaurant serves up traditional plate lunches with options like fried pork chops, catfish courtbouillon and jambalaya — just the way your mawmaw makes it.
This week I tried the grits and grillades, with chunks of slow-cooked beef in a savory gravy, served over tender grits. The meal was flavorful and filling, with a side of fried green beans that somehow still had that fresh-from-the-field snap. Don’t miss out on a cup of their gumbo, made with the deep, dark roux that Acadiana natives prefer.
La Cuisine de Maman, Vermilionville, 300 Fisher Road, Lafayette (Joanna Brown, staff writer)
