Grab Lunch at Harrington's Café

Harrington's Western Wall Painted by the BR Walls Project

Harrington's Cafe in Baton Rouge

Locally owned and operated for the past 14 years, Harrington’s Café in downtown Baton Rouge is a great little lunch spot. I first wrote about Harrington's in October 2009, the very first month of Bite and Booze. He hotspot boasts quick and easy ordering at the counter and the plates are promptly brought to your table of choice. Harrington’s is perfect for anyone working in the area that wants a quick home cooked style lunch. The atmosphere may be simple, but this old school café offers a menu everyone can enjoy. Throwback interior aside, the most striking visual feature is definitely outside of Harrington’s. As home to mural number two in the BR Walls Project series of building beautification around Baton Rouge, Harrington’s has a modern exterior facelift that definitely stands out downtown.

Harrington's always keeps a pretty rocking rotation of daily specials, and on a recent trip they were no exception. Most of the specials of the day were not available by the time I got there a little after 1 PM, so make sure you show up early because items will sell out! The shrimp and corn soup was perfect for a chilly day walking around downtown. It was the right amount of creamy and balanced out the spiciness of the blackened shrimp on my salad. 

Shrimp and Corn Soup

I have to admit, the Metten Burger intrigued me for the name despite football season being over. It was cooked just right with Swiss cheese and sautéed onions on a soft, sweet sourdough bun. I truly enjoyed it enough to want to go back to Harrington's for a burger again. I usually dabble with daily specials and poboys, but the Metten Burger hit the spot.

The Metten Burger

"Month of Salads" Post VI: Chimes Covington's Caesar with Blackened Salmon

Blackened Salmon over Caesar Salad at The Chimes in Covington

While on the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain to film a teaser for a beer documentary, our crew wound up at the Chimes in Covington for an interview with our fixer and Craft Brands Manager from Champagne Beverage, Vanessa, and their beer buyer, Shane. After the shoot we settled in for lunch where keeping true to my "Month of Salads," I opted for the Caesar with blackened salmon. I've long been a fan of the Caesar salad at the original Chimes in Baton Rouge. The salad in Covington lived up to expectation with the hard boiled eggs, grape tomatoes, parmesan cheese and theirs signature creamy Caesar dressing. The blackened salmon had a great burst of flavor from the spices while being served rare on the inside just like I ordered it. If you're a big fan of the Chimes in Baton Rouge, I definitely suggest that you make the trip to Covington and see that location. It is impressive to say the least. I also had several beers while at the Chimes including a Voo Ka Ray IPA from Chafunkta and the Woot Stout from Stone. Balancing out the beers with a salad and a nice piece of fish is something I could almost get used to!

The Roux House for Lunch with some Friends

My favorite novelty about being downtown for work these days is all of the lunch hot spots that are available within a very short walking distance.  Recently I received a phone call from Justin Ulrich, a former grad school colleague, who was hoping to meet up for some grub after he did a little research for his dissertation at some of the governmental offices.  Not being one to turn down good company for feasting, I easily obliged.  At pretty much the same time that Justin contacted me, I was also propositioned for doing lunch with Eric, Kevin, and Shawn.  I saw no reason why we couldn't all five dine together, so I told them to head downtown to join up with Justin and me. 

Justin and I walked around downtown for a little bit to see what the local restaurants had to offer.  It was a beautiful day so we decided that it would be wise to find somewhere that we could sit outside and enjoy the sunshine.  While it is best known for being a bar at night, the Roux House on Third Street offers up some pretty decent lunches at fair prices with both inside and outside seating.  Our mind was made up, and we grabbed a table in the courtyard area.

The Roux House Courtyard and Wall

The special on this magnificent Monday was Shrimp Acadiana.  For those who may not know, a typical "Acadiana" dish features something smothered in crawfish etoufee.  It is much like rice and gravy with some sort of smothered meat like a pork chop, but instead of rice and gravy it has rice and crawfish etoufee.  Usually the meat in an Acadiana dish is some sort of fried seafood like catfish or, in this case, shrimp!

Shrimp Acadiana with a Honey Mustard Side Salad at the Roux House

To start with, I had a side salad with honey mustard dressing.  The rabbit food was a slightly above average side salad and certainly gave my diet a little much needed roughage.  The honey mustard itself was top notch, but surely something that came in a prepackaged bottle.  The Shrimp Acadiana had a great flavor to it.  The fried shrimp formed a ring around the outside of the plate while the crawfish etoufee sat nicely in the middle.  The shrimp themselves were spicy and flavorful, though a little smaller than I would have liked.  Although, given their size, the Roux House did make up for it with quantity.  There were enough shrimp for nearly every bite to have a fried shrimp and a fork full of Cajun goodness. 

I truly enjoyed the company for a downtown lunch as well as the food.  I've come to really be a fan of guests for lunch, experiencing new restaurants and items, and showing other people dishes at places they've never been before.  A lot of people around Baton Rouge don't even know the Roux House is open for lunch.  That, my friends, is a mistake because you really ought to give it a try!

Harrington's Cafe for a Bite to Eat

I walked around downtown Baton Rouge during my lunch break the other day to explore my options for a little grub.  I wanted to find a place downtown that I had not been to since I started my new job, and there are quite a few of those places around.  I came across Harrington's Cafe on Florida Street and saw this sign outside:

I had a meeting at work before lunch so I wasn't able to get anywhere to eat until after one o'clock.  As you can see, the specials board at Harrington's was nearly sold out.  This told me two things.  First, they must have been good!  Second, I'll have to try the two things they aren't sold out of.  I was due for a "soup and salad" day anyway, although I'm not a fan of eating like a rabbit!

Shrimp and Crabmeat Gumbo and Bread

The gumbo at Harrington's was fantastic.  The roux was perfect for my tastes.  It was rich and flavorful but not so thick that it overpowered the shrimp and crab.  The gumbo was delicious and bread was soft, buttery, and perfect for sopping up the remains.

Salad with Grilled Chicken, Bacon, Bleu Cheese Crumbles, and Honey Balsamic Vinaigrette

The salad tasted light and refreshing and despite the bacon, reasonably healthy for my standards.  I guess it is good to get a little roughage in whenever I can, even though I typically enjoy the finer foods in life.  The grilled chicken was tender, the bacon was crispy, and the bleu cheese added a nice touch.  All in all, it was a delightful salad that held me over until my next real meal!

I'm going to have to go back to Harrington's Cafe.  Their specials and regular menu items are among the favorites of the downtown lunch crowd.  I also appreciate the ease of dining at Harrington's if you are in a hurry.  Orders are placed at your counter, drinks are self serve, and food is delivered straight from the kitchen to your table very swiftly.  I recommend giving it a try if you have never been before, and I suggest you go back if it has been a while!

The Little Village

Today we had a going-away lunch for the Executive Director at work and we ordered some take out from The Little Village.  The Little Village is a Baton Rouge original Italian-style restaurant with a lot to offer to casual and business diners alike.  Their downtown location is a block off the Mississippi River and very close to the state governmental buildings and corporate office buildings that make up the city's skyline.

We ordered the food to go and I walked over to the Little Village to pick it up and bring it back to the office.  The restaurant itself has a good ambiance to it.  The atmosphere is relaxed but still retains the feel of a nicer place where upscale business lunches can take place.  One of the highlights of any trip to The Little Village is their Village Bread.  The dough is woven before baked to create a loaf of bread that is easy to pull apart.  It comes out of the oven extra soft and is then topped with parmesan cheese and enough olive oil to make Popeye blush.  It is served with even more olive oil and an olive spread that you can add to the bread after you pull it apart or just sprinkle right on top of the entire loaf.  The Village Bread is without a doubt one of the best stand-alone bread dishes I have ever found at any restaurant.

The Village Bread (the half that was leftover, anyway)

In addition to the bread, we also enjoyed a Caesar Salad, Vegetable Lasagna, and Shrimp Diavlo with Penne Pasta.  It was a quite a feast for a lunch at the office!  The whole meal was pretty excellent.  The highlight of the salad was the homemade croutons that gave just the right crunch to the bed of romaine lettuce, cheese, and dressing.  The vegetable lasagna stood tall with multiple thin layers of noodles and sliced vegetables and was then topped with a thick marinara sauce.  I was about as impressed as I've ever been with a vegetable lasagna, being the meat eater that I am.  The best part of the meal for me (other than the bread) was the Shrimp Diavlo with Penne Pasta, even though it was a little light on the shrimp.  The creamy sauce was delicious and the pasta was nicely boiled into a soft, yet firm, noodle.

Shrimp Diavlo with Penne Pasta (after we ate almost half of it)

The Little Village provided us with a nice meal for our going away lunch, although I will warn that it is a little on the pricy side for just a casual lunch.  I've never been to their Airline Highway location, but I'm sure it is just as good!  I would bet that I'll be back at some point in the future, even if it is just for the bread!