Seed to Cup to Can: New Orleans Coffee Shop Doesn’t Have a Trash Bin?

by Emily Jean McCollister

HEY Coffee Co. is a New Orleans roastery and coffee shop producing high quality coffee with an emphasis on traceability from seed to cup to trash can. With two locations, one on Magazine St. and one on the Lafitte Greenway, the folks at Hey Coffee Co. are not your average micro-roaster. They are also a living example of a business that has an extremely low landfill dependency.

Photo: Emily Jean McCollister

The discussion of “seed-to-cup” is a familiar one in the specialty coffee scene. Simply put, seed to cup is the consideration of coffee from a seed planted in a nursery, through growth, harvesting, processing, sorting, bagging, exporting and finally, roasting and brewing. Thinking intentionally about all the hands involved in those steps, and caring about their quality of life, a specialty coffee shop wants to present a cup to their customer that’s more than just coffee: it’s a story. Although many shops think critically about where their coffee and materials come from, very rarely do they think about where things go when we’re done with them.

Easily the most eco-conscious coffee shop in South Louisiana, HEY Coffee Co. strives to be more and more sustainable with every day that passes. In 2018, they were recognized by Rubicon Global as Best in Louisiana, they then advanced as national finalists alongside 14 other environmentally conscious businesses in the United States for Best Business in America. 

Photo: Emily Jean McCollister

Tommy LeBlanc, one of the shop’s owners, started zeroing in on their composting program when he had difficulty with a city garbage contract in 2009. They began composting in partnership with Schmelly’s Dirt Farms. Today, nine years later, they have no trash can in either of their stores, at all.

Composting all food and coffee grinds is a radically positive environmental practice. Even if that were all a coffee shop did, it would have a dramatic impact. Food waste is one of the largest drivers of greenhouse gas emissions, when food is disposed in a landfill it rots and becomes a significant source of methane - a potent greenhouse gas with 21 times the global warming potential of carbon dioxide.

Embodying creativity, HEY Coffee Co. not only recycles and composts but also trades with local stores and secures homes for items like burlap and pallets, sending very little to the landfill.

Although LeBlanc has always been a nature lover who enjoyed camping and the great outdoors, he was once a standard American consumer. He certainly did not set out to operate an eco-friendly coffee shop when he opened Hey! Cafe. In 2009, he realized how incredibly dependent businesses were on waste pickup, and how much they were sending to the landfill. “We didn’t think about lowering our landfill dependency until the garbage company stopped picking up my trash, even though I was paying my bill,” LeBlanc remarked.

Through trying to get out of his contract with the waste disposal company he was using, he started research other waste disposal companies. “I realized that disposal companies are crooked. In addition to them being crooked toward me, they buy land near communities and essentially poison the areas nearby,” LeBlanc asserted, “In my research, I learned about all these lawsuits against waste companies and I wanted to challenge our need for them.”

Photo: Emily Jean McCollister

Traditional to-go cups at coffee shops are not recyclable at all. Disposable coffee cups are lined with plastic polyethylene, which makes the cups waterproof and able to hold liquid. Offering an in-house option of reusable cups, plates and utensils, HEY Coffee Co. is able to cut down on the waste. If you need your coffee or food to-go, you’ll receive a compostable option.

In more recent years, the team at HEY Coffee Co. has set up their own sparkling water to run through a tap line, totally knocking out the need for bottles and the waste that accompanies that, especially because New Orleans does not recycle glass.

They receive their whole milk from Progress Milk Barn in glass containers that are picked up on delivery and reused. They provide non-dairy milk options, some of which they make themselves. 

Photo: Emily Jean McCollister

The shop offers noodle straws, and a small stash of plastic ones, should you require one. They sell their roasted coffee in brown paper bags, they sell merchandise like coffee mugs and shirts, and they sell coffee equipment and even a few reusable containers.

The baristas sort waste in buckets behind the bar as they go. Removing the ability for a customer to accidentally sort incorrectly, and removing the weight of responsibility from their customers, they simply instruct you to place all your items in the bus bin. HEY Coffee employees sort out all waste at dish pit: compost, recycling, reusables, and landfill trash. 

Photo: Emily Jean McCollister

Today, HEY Coffee Co. does it all. Their mission statement from their website reads as follows
“presenting the utmost in community, hospitality and quality while advocating for equity and environmental justice at all levels of the coffee industry through radical conservation and supporting sustainable, traceable and ethical farming practices.”

Treating every customer as a friend, LeBlanc is kind, quick to laugh, and easy to talk to. Incredibly gracious and unassuming, you would maybe never know the great strides they take to make HEY Coffee a shop with low landfill dependency. Considering every step from seed, to cup, to waste bin -- HEY Coffee Co. is a neighborhood eco-friendly hot spot in New Orleans.

A Good Day for Coffee

by Elizabeth Courville, intern

February 3, 2018 was a good day for coffee in Southern Louisiana; not just any coffee, but specialty coffee to be exact. Specialty grade coffee refers to the use of beans that are produced in special and ideal microclimates. The SCAA (Specialty Coffee Association of America) makes the standards and scores coffee beans on a 100-point scale, with anything above 80 being graded as “specialty.” The specialty coffee industry in the U.S. is growing more and more each year, but Baton Rouge has been a little behind on the game… until now.

The Cafeciteaux Cupping at Java Mama

Cafeciteaux Coffee Roasters out of Baton Rouge hosted a free/public coffee cupping and tasting at Java Momma. Steve and Chris are fairly newer to roasting, but don’t let that scare you off – they are producing some delicious coffees. Participants got to taste 3 of their coffees which included their new, outstandingly balanced and tasty Guatemala San Pedro La Lagunana single origin. Their coffee can be found in multiple local grocery stores here in Baton Rouge including Calandro’s Supermarkets, Redstick Spice Company, Oak Point Fresh Market and Alexander’s Highland Market.

In the same weekend New Orleans hosted the kick-off of Coffee Champs. This was the US Coffee Championships qualifying event hosted by the SCAA (Specialty Coffee Association of America). A $17 ticket bought you access to 2 days-worth of tasting both sponsor and competitor coffees, information sessions with some of the best roasters in the country, learning how to brew - by true professionals, barista competition viewing and tons of awesome merchandise.

Exploring the Roaster Village

In the “Roaster Village” there were two local roasting companies based out of Louisiana – Rêve Coffee Roasters (locations in both Lafayette, and one opening up in the White Star Market in mid city Baton Rouge) and also French Truck Coffee (multiple locations in New Orleans, and one in mid city Baton Rouge). Rêve Coffee Roasters is a specialty coffee company that micro-roasts every batch and ships the beans on the day they are roasted – guaranteeing some of the freshest coffee that you will ever taste. French Truck is another local roasting company that uses super fresh beans and roasts in small batches. Representatives from Light House Coffee could be found perusing around Coffee Champs as well. Light House Coffee is a specialty shop with a cause, that is looking to open its doors in March 2018. Light house will be hiring and helping refugees and displaced people coming into Baton Rouge.

The schedule for Coffee Champs looked like 10:00am-6:00pm days, followed by after parties at local New Orleans coffee shops. It was certainly a caffeine packed weekend! There are a lot of new and exciting things happening in the Baton Rouge coffee world! Give these local specialty shops some love whenever you get the chance! Your taste buds will thank you later.

Dinner Dominicana at Red Stick Spice Company

by Jay Ducote
all photos by Jordan Hefler


The Dominican Republic is a special place to me. I've been able to travel there four times now, including twice in 2017. I've seen, or at least traveled through, the majority of the country, and I've fallen in love with the people, the food and the culture. I could go back there time and time again.

On my first trip in 2013, I had one of the most memorable meals of my life. Upon my returns to the country, those expectations have only been matched... other than in Punta Cana, where all-inclusive resort food does not live up to any sort of authenticity standards.

Presidente, the ubiquitous beer of the Dominican Republic

Last year I launched Jay D's Single Origin Coffee, a project that sources coffee beans directly from Dominican coffee farmers then roasts the green coffee with Baton Rouge's Cafeciteaux Coffee Roasters. I spoke about how it all came together at TEDxLSU.

After a trip to the coffee farms in May and then another culinary media trip  in August to Santo Domingo and Puerto Plata, I felt like it would be a great time to bring some of my Dominican bite and booze experiences back to Baton Rouge.

We've been organizing a series of dinners at Red Stick Spice Company on Jefferson Highway, so putting together a Dinner Dominicana at Red Stick just made sense!

Goat empanadas with coconut habanero hot sauce

We started the meal with an appetizer while guests were able to walk around the store and browse the selection of spices, oils, vinegar, teas and local products. Our goat empanadas were formed into yucca flour dough and fried to crispy. They were served with a coconut habanero hot sauce. This dish reminded me of empanadas available from street vendors in Santo Domingo.

Anne Milneck from Red Stick Spice speaks to the crowd at Dinner Domicana

As the group of hungry diners took their seats on the classroom side of Red Stick Spice, Anne Milneck, the store's owner, welcomed everyone. She gave them each packet of Adobo seasoning, commonly used in Latin American cooking, as party favors to take home. I also greeted the guests before the second course arrived, a Dominican beef and root vegetable stew called sancocho. 

Our second course was paired with a Santo Libre made with Brugal Extra Viejo Dominican Rum and Sprite

Back when Blair and I were in the Dominican Republic we brought back a couple bottles of Brugal Extra Viejo, one of my favorite Dominican rums, so that we could use it for a dinner like this. We used the tasty sugarcane elixir in a batch of Santo Libres, a simple beverage of rum and lemon-lime soda. Used to rum and Coke? Next time try Sprite or 7up!

Jay Ducote serving up the Sancocho at Red Stick Spice Company

The Sancocho is a thick and hearty stew of beef and root vegetables like sweet potato and yucca. It could be equated to the Dominican (and Puerto Rican) version of gumbo, and sometimes even served with rice, but it uses the starches from the root vegetables instead of a roux as the thickener. I had an absolutely fantastic sancocho from Chef Martin Omar at Hodelpa Nicolas de Ovando in Santo Domingo. All I could do was try to do that stew justice.

Pollo Guisado, Rice, Beans, Avocado, Fried Plantains

The main course of the evening was my play at the most quintessential dish in all of the Dominican Republic: pollo guisado. This is also the dish in my previously aforementioned memorable meal post. Chicken, which can be found free-ranging all over the country, is stewed in a bath of tomato and garlic then served with rice, beans and fried plantains. It is a nurturing, comfort, home-cooked kind of a meal that has slight variations anywhere and everywhere you eat it. No two cooks make it the same, and you can have great versions and some very mediocre versions, but all in all, it's the lifeblood of the nation. 

Coconut Cake with Jay D's Single Origin Coffee

For dessert, we took a trip to the more tropical side of Caribbean cuisine. Our Gov't Taco Majority Whip, Therese Schneider, took the lead on making a rum-infused coconut cake that we served with a cup of Jay D's Single Origin Coffee. I wanted the opportunity to talk about my coffee and the people in the Dominican Republic who grow the beans. The coffee, as well as all of my products, can be found at jayducote.com/shop.

Now I just need to figure out when I'll be able to make a return trip to the Dominican Republic. I'm sure it won't be long!

Give Me Coffee, or Give Me Death

by Hannah Wilson, intern

Local is always best. Luckily, in Baton Rouge there are more than several options for local coffee. In the past, we have posted about the best local coffee places in Baton Rouge, but those times they are a changin’, so we figured we’d update the list to showcase the new places, both opened and coming soon to Baton Rouge!

Magpie Downtown

333 Laurel Street

A honey latte and mini spinach quiche at Magpie Cafe Downtown

This calming atmosphere is the perfect blend of hip and soothing. You feel right at home with the pillows, natural lighting and the hardwood floors. Their menu offers offers not only muffins and other pastries but also sandwiches, soups, salads and pizzas that make it more than a coffee shop.

While this is nothing new for the fans of their Perkins Road location, the downtown location features a full bar and a walk up window. We tried their mini spinach quiches with our morning lattes and we couldn’t get enough!

Simple Joe

3057 Government Street

A cup of River Road Coffee and a side of bacon at Simple Joe

Simple Joe makes it simple. They stick to what they know and make it easy to order and enjoy. Their incorporation of local art and photography gives it the Ogden Park neighborhood feel that locals love. We decided to enjoy a side of bacon with our piping hot cup of joe!

La Divina Italian Cafe

3535 Perkins Road

An Affogato with Creme Brûlée Gelato at La Divina

Located right at the intersection of Perkins and Acadian, La Divina is an easy way to perk up your day. They have the go-to favorites, but they also have innovative drinks that are a little off the beaten path. Here, we tried an Affogato, an espresso with a scoop of La Divina’s amazing gelato in it. We picked the Creme Brûlée flavor and together it was magnifique! The decor of La Divina gives it a funky, eclectic vibe and whatever they’re cooking in that kitchen smells amazing.

Small Coffee Big Taste

on wheels

Good morning #BatonRouge ! At 1500 Main Street Baton Rouge, LA Today - Come on by! #SmallCoffeeBigTaste

A post shared by Small Coffee | Big Taste (@smallcoffeebigtaste) on Mar 3, 2017 at 5:43am PST

On a quest for better espresso in their travels two years ago, the owners of Small Coffee Big Taste decided to open up a coffee shop on wheels!

Coffee Bean Cafe

12177 Coursey Blvd

A Vanilla Cafe Latte at the Coffee Bean on Coursey

This was one of my favorite spots! The Coffee Bean had a wide variety of menu options, they even sell Girl Scout cookies! We got a Cafe Latte with a shot of vanilla, and it was the perfect amount of sweet. We enjoyed it on their lovely patio on a lovely Spring day!

Tredici Bakery

5078 Capitol Heights Ave

A simple cup of coffee, delicious macaron and patio vibes at Tredici Bakery
in the Capital Heights neighborhood of Baton Rouge

Celebrating its one year anniversary last November, Tredici Bakery is definitely a place to put on your radar! Nestled in the heart of Capital Heights, they have a plethora of baked goodies, we chose to try one of their many Macaroons. The Salted Caramel Macaron was a perfect pairing for their coffee!

Coming soon to Baton Rouge...

District Donuts

Towne Center

Progress Pose

A post shared by District Donuts.Sliders.Brew. (@districtdonuts) on Jan 28, 2017 at 3:21pm PST

This gourmet New Orleans favorite is expanding to the Red Stick! Their numerous donuts and coffees are great pairs no matter how you order it.

Rêve Coffee Roasters - White Star Market

4624 Government Street

A rendering of the Square 46 development that will house the White Star Market on White Star Market

This Lafayette legend is known for roasting their own phenomenal coffee. We’re so excited to have them to be neighbors with Gov’t Taco in White Star Market!

French Truck Coffee

2978 Government Street 

Woke up feeling blessed #frenchtruckcoffee #neworleans

A post shared by French Truck Coffee (@frenchtruck) on Mar 10, 2017 at 6:15am PST

The compact cafe is making it’s way to Baton Rouge! Opening in New Orleans in November of 2014, French Truck Coffee’s vision for cultivating a sense of community is evident in their close quarters. We cannot wait to see these guys set up shop in Baton Rouge!

Light House Coffee

set to open near LSU

Light House Coffee // Coming soon to Baton Rouge, La! . . . Follow us to hear about our vision, our story, and our journey to our grand opening. More to come! . . . #lighthousecoffeebr #comingsoon #specialtycoffee #thirdwavecoffee #batonrouge #batonrougesmallbusiness

A post shared by Light House Coffee (@lighthousecoffeebr) on Feb 28, 2017 at 6:41pm PST

With a mission to employ and help those in Baton Rouge who are refugees or displaced people, Amber and Steve Elworth are currently trying to raise money through to open Light House Coffee. Visit their Indiegogo page to learn more about the concept!

Duck, Duck, Whisk: A Coffee Cake Recipe to Quack About

by Sarah Grimball, intern

I hosted Christmas at my house for the first time this year. My uncle came bearing an unexpected gift: duck eggs. I did some research; and it turns out that duck eggs are awesome not only for eating, but for baking. You can use them the exact same way that you use chicken eggs: scrambled, fried, poached or for baking. They have twice the nutritional value of a chicken egg and stay fresh longer due to their thicker shell. They’re also more rich, with higher levels of Albumen – also known as egg white -- which makes cakes and pastries fluffier and rich in flavor. Not wanting to waste my opportunity, I had to make a delicious coffee cake.

Fresh Duck Eggs

As previously stated, this was the first time that I had ever looked at a duck egg, much less cooked with one. The eggs have a different look than a regular ‘ole chicken egg. Off-white and sometimes speckled with brown spots, they are a lot larger than your typical egg. I noticed that the egg was a lot harder to crack because of its thick shell, and the yolk was an orange color that was totally unlike any chicken egg I’d ever seen. I’ve made plenty of cakes before, but the colors and textures here were so new and unlike anything else. 

A slice of Duck Egg and Brown Butter Coffee Cake with a cup of Jay D's Single Origin Coffee

If you are new to baking, it is important to note that you want to make sure that your ingredients are at room temperature. Using room temperature eggs means that the eggs will disperse more evenly into the batter and allow for even cooking and a lighter texture. To quickly bring your eggs to room temperature, soak them in a bowl of warm water for 10- 15 minutes.

Duck Egg and Brown Butter Coffee Cake

Yield: 12 Servings Time: 1 hour

For the Cake: 

½ cup unsalted butter at room temperature
1 ¼ cups sugar
2 large duck eggs at room temperature
1 ½ cups flour
1 ½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
1 ¼ cups sour cream
1 tsp vanilla

For the topping:

3/4 cup sugar
1 Tbs all-purpose flour
1 3/4 Tbs cinnamon
2/3 cups chopped walnuts

For the icing:

½ cup Powder sugar
2 Tbs milk
1/4 tsp vanilla

Preheat the oven to 350ºF and butter and flour a 9" circular baking pan. Cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well with each addition.

In a separate bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Then, in another separate bowl, mix together the sour cream and vanilla. Turn the mixer on low and alternate between adding the flour mixture and sour cream mixture. Pour half of the batter into the prepared baking pan.

To make the topping you will need to simply combine the sugar, flour, cinnamon, and walnuts in a bowl and stir to mix well. Sprinkle half of the mixture on the batter and then pour in the rest of the batter into the pan. Finish by sprinkling the rest of the topping mixture onto the cake.

Bake for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. While the cake is cooling mix together the powder sugar, milk, and vanilla. Drizzle the icing onto the cake and enjoy.


These types of cakes are typically accompanied by some type of beverage such as tea or coffee. We of course are biased towards Jay D’s Single Origin Coffee; so when it came down to tasting it, we paired it with that. Let us know if you are going to try out this recipe or try to get your hands on some duck eggs at your local farmer’s market. We’d love to see your creations on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram!

TX takes LA: Chicory

by Rachel Hamburger, intern


It’s time for the second installment of TX takes LA! Today I’ll be telling y’all about chicory. It’s in lots of the coffee here in Louisiana, and I have set out to figure out what chicory actually is. I had never heard of chicory before living in Louisiana, and when I first heard about it was thoroughly confused. What is it? Why is it mixed in with the coffee here? How does it taste? Well, I found an answer for all these questions.

Chicory

What is it?

Chicory used in coffee comes from the root of the blue-flowered plant cichorium intybus, an herbaceous plant of the dandelion family. It is roasted and ground, then mixed with coffee. It doesn’t have caffeine, but has a similar taste to coffee. Its main claim to fame here in Louisiana is in café au laits, but is also served black. When ground, it looks much like your typical ground coffee as well, but is a little bit darker.

Why is it mixed in with the coffee?

The use of chicory in coffee became popularized in France during Napoleon’s Continental Blockade in 1808, which resulted in a major coffee shortage. The French began mixing it with their coffee to stretch their coffee supply. Once the blockade lifted, the use of chicory in coffee came to a halt, but the practice of using chicory in coffee made it over to the French colonies in North America. The Acadians brought it down with them to Louisiana from Canada, just like they did with beignets.

The use of chicory in coffee became wildly popular in Louisiana during the American Civil War. Union naval blockades cut off the port of New Orleans, and coffee shipments could not get through. Similar to the French during Napoleon’s Continental Blockade, the people of New Orleans began mixing chicory with their coffee to make their coffee supply last. After this, the use of chicory in coffee became a tradition in New Orleans, hence why it is often in our coffee today.

How does it taste?

It is somewhat difficult to put how chicory tastes into words, as it does taste very similar to regular coffee. Chicory has an almost chocolate and slight anise flavor, and many believe it offsets the bitter taste of coffee.

The takeaway:

Coffee with chicory is a tradition in Louisiana that is loved by people all over. It adds just a lil’ somethin’ somethin’ to the flavor of your coffee without making it taste completely different. In my opinion, the best way to drink coffee with chicory is a café au lait with a side of beignets (and by side, I mean a mountain of beignets).

If you want to try some for yourself, grab a bag of coffee chicory from Baton Rouge coffee roasters, Cafeciteaux.

Beers with Chuck: Urban South Summerfest

by Chuck P

Urban South Brewery in New Orleans is new to the ever-growing Louisiana craft beer family, but they’re quickly making an impression with their delicious brews. A few weeks ago, I drove down to the brewery to meet Jay for some tunes and beers at their first annual Summerfest.

Despite the torrential downpour, when we arrived Summerfest was off to a great start. Event goers formed long lines at their three service stations ready to consume their flagship beers and one-off brews.

Having already had their flagship beers, the Charming Wit White Ale and the Holy Roller IPA, I decided to try one of the specialty brews on the menu, a double dry-hopped version of the Holy Roller.

Double Dry-hopped Holy Roller at Urban South Brewery in New Orleans.

The hop notes shine through on this beer in both aroma and taste. A nice dry finish leaves you wanting that next sip immediately. Needless to say I had another pint right after I was finished. You know, for science…

Dat Dog's Guiness brat with bacon, perfect for absorbing alcohol.

After making my way out to the Dat Dog Food Truck for one of their incredible gourmet dogs, I headed back in to soak up the sweet tunes of singer-songwriter Kristin Myers and to try out my next two beers, the coffee Porter and grapefruit IPA.

The unnamed grapefruit IPA and coffee porter.

My love for coffee stouts and porters is no secret, and this one was exactly what I expected. The coffee notes were balanced just right where they never overtake the beer itself. Hints of chocolate creeped in and had me wishing this was something they were canning soon. And although I’m not a big grapefruit fan, I was surprised at how much I liked this beer. The grapefruit was just enough to compliment the citrusy hop notes and had me ordering another one when I was done.

Summerfest at Urban South is sure to be an awesome annual event filled with great music and great beers. Check them out online for tour times and upcoming events.

Get Caffeinated with Cafeciteaux Coffee Roasters

by Sydney Blanchard

Stevie Guillory, left, and Chris Peneguy, right, are the co-founders and roasters at Cafeciteaux in Baton Rouge

If there's anything you can learn from the roasters at Cafeciteaux, it's to never doubt the power of a hairbrained idea. 

Stevie Guillory and Chris Peneguy, the co-founders of Cafeciteaux Coffee Roasters based in Baton Rouge, met when they lived across the street from each other. The two became friends, and it was inevitable that after a couple of beers they'd dream up all sorts of potential business ventures.

Cafeciteaux is the one that stuck.

The Louisiana natives found themselves searching Baton Rouge for the best cup of coffee around and coming up empty-handed. Commercial coffee companies and national chains dominate the area, and only a few locally-owned coffee shops exist. 

When "cupping" or tasting coffee, a chart can be used to pick out certain flavors in each roast

In July 2014, the pair decided to start responsibly sourcing coffee beans and roasting them at home. With eight pounds of beans and a whirly pop, Guillory, a PA, and Peneguy, a CPA, taught themselves everything they now know about roasting coffee.

A coffee bean's flavor depends on a number of factors including how it's roasted, where it's from, what the planting conditions were like, etc. 

When they started, they were only able to produce and sell 40 one-pound bags of coffee that year. But by 2015, they had jumped to selling thousands of pounds of their responsibly sourced, locally roasted beans from places like El Salvador, Rwanda, Ethiopia, and Sumatra, to name a few.

Now, their online sales are picking up, and you can find Cafeciteaux's single origin, blend, and espresso roasts in both Calandro's locations, at Alexander's Highland Market, and at other specialty shops across the state.

Cafeciteaux prides itself on responsibly sourcing beans from around the world to ensure quality

Guillory and Peneguy plan to eventually transition into roasting full-time and expand their reach to coffee shops and restaurants across the state whose passion for that perfect cup of coffee matches their own.

Check them out on Facebook and Instagram to keep up with the latest Cafeciteaux news, and listen to the podcast we recorded on site at Cafeciteaux!

Lake Charles is the Perfect Weekend Getaway for Food Lovers, and Here's Why

by Sydney Blanchard

Admittedly, Lake Charles isn't always the first place that comes to mind when I dream up day trips or weekend excursions, but after a recent stay in the Boudin Capital of Louisiana, it's safe to say I've converted.

Below, you'll find a list of a few of my favorite things to do while in Lake Charles. You'll see how easy it is to fall in love with Southwest Louisiana food, culture, and fun!

Brunch at Jack Daniel's Bar & Grill at L'Auberge 

Fried grit cake topped with steak topped with an egg at Jack Daniel's Bar & Grill

You'd be doing yourself a disservice by staying anywhere other than L'Auberge Lake Charles. The resort is not only the epitome of luxury, but it's also home to some great restaurants. Noted Chef Lyle Broussard heads the kitchen at the Jack Daniel's Bar & Grill on the property, and their brunch items alone are worth the trip to Lake Charles. This is one of the great examples of the great food coming out of the younger culinary scene in Lake Charles. Pro-tip: Order the Whiskey Milk Punch. You won't regret it.

Try Acadian Coffee Roasters

Not-yet-roasted coffee beans at Acadian Coffee Roasters

Your post-brunch plans should definitely include coffee, especially if you brunched properly with the Milk Punch! Acadian Coffee Roasters in Lake Charles is a relatively new operation. The proprietors, both named Nancy, pride themselves on their single origin, organic coffee beans and delicious flavored coffees. It's all about supporting locals! P.S. I highly recommend their Amaretto flavored coffee. It's amazing!

Explore the Creole Nature Trail

Perfect day for exploring the Creole Nature Trail

The Creole Nature Trail is the best way to walk off that ridiculously delicious brunch. It's the picture perfect place to explore the beaches, wildlife, marshes, and fishing of Southwest Louisiana. A guided tour is also an option. Watch out for alligators (seriously)!

Snack Along the Boudin Trail

Smoked boudin from Rabideaux's Sausage Kitchen

Southwest Louisiana is the boudin capital of the world, so even if you've had boudin before, you'd be remiss to skip out on exploring the boudin trail! I'd recommend stopping by Rabideaux's Sausage Kitchen or anywhere on this list. Smoked by the link or fried up in a ball, boudin is a must-try in Lake Charles.

Tour Bayou Rum Distillery

Bayou Rum's Satsuma Rum Liqueur at their distillery in Lake Charles

In 2013, Bayou Rum sought to continue the long-lost tradition of Louisiana rum. It makes sense, right? Sugar plantations in South Louisiana before the Civil War often built distilleries adjacent to the main house. Learn more about the history and process of rum making on one of their distillery tours (and don't pass up the rum tasting bar). Bayou Rum has one of the coolest distillery tours around, and you can grab their rum and some branded swag in their immense gift shop afterward.

Cocktails & Small Plates at Restaurant Calla

Blue crab beignets at Restaurant Calla

One of the newer restaurants on the Lake Charles food scene, Restaurant Calla offers "creative, seasonal, and sustainable" dishes in the budding Southwest Louisiana culinary scene. Chef David Sorrells has a unique vision for modern Louisiana cuisine, and he carries it out well at Calla. The restaurant is gorgeous, but don't let that fool you: the menu is straight-forward and lacks pretension. Grab a drink off of their list of fun cocktails and split a couple of small plates with the table. But save room for dinner!

Dine at La Truffe Sauvage

Life-altering saffron risotto topped with fish at La Truffe Sauvage

Since 1998, Chefs Mohamed Chettouh and Arthur Durham's La Truffe Sauvage has been putting Lake Charles on the culinary map. Their take on fine French dining is something special that shouldn't be missed. Here you can read my detailed write-up of the meal I had there. I'll just say that their selection of wines is noteworthy, and the saffron risotto I had there was life-altering.

Where are your go-to spots in Lake Charles?

Monday Morning Wakeup Call featuring Cafeciteaux (again)

by Sydney "Brown Nose" Blanchard

The Éthiopiques Blend beans. They were very aromatic. 

Perfect Monday morning perk-up.

For those of you keeping tabs, last week Blair and I decided we weren't hyper enough, apparently. We somehow thought it might be a good idea (productivity!) to sample coffees weekly and write about our findings. 

Last week we tried local roaster Cafeciteaux's Guatemala Patzun and wrote up a little blog about it. When we posted it to Facebook, the guys as Cafeciteaux insisted we try the Éthiopiques Blend next, and who are we to ignore an expert recommendation?

Blair and I both preferred this blend to last week's. The Éthiopiques Blend was significantly darker than the Guatemala Patzun, and the taste was darker as well. We picked up notes of dark berries and fruit, but we didn't notice much of the jasmine or lemon rind the packaging suggested. 

Any suggestions of what we should try for next week? Leave us a comment!

Cafeciteaux gets it right: the best roasts we've had in a while

by Sydney "Brown Nose" Blanchard

Cafeciteaux's Guatemala Patzen roast beans

If you're anything like us at Team Bite and Booze, you need coffee. It isn't an optional thing. It's a necessity. 

That's why we get deliveries monthly from Cafeciteaux. It's no longer a thing they do, but a while back they offered what they call "le pari," or the gamble in French. 

For a certain fee, they sent us different coffee beans each month to try. 

As a result, we've got bags and bags of coffee hanging out in the office, waiting to be drank.

Freshly brewed Cafeciteaux Guatemala Patzun.

Cafeciteaux is a great company for a number of reasons. First, they're local – their roastery is located on Airline Highway and you can buy some for yourself at Calandro's Supermarket. Secondly, these Baton Rouge-based roasters sell coffee beans that are directly traceable to the farm and mills where they were produced. 

I don't know about you guys, but I like to know where my coffee comes from. 

Blair and I decided to try the Guatemala Patzun first. We ground the aromatic beans and boiled some water to make the pour over coffee. 

The result was very cool. The coffee was very cloudy and a bit more viscous than other brands. The color of this roast was a dark amber, and we picked up hints of toasted sugar cane and dark dried fruits. 

We can't wait to try out our next bag of Cafeciteaux coffee beans. And thanks to our caffeine addiction, the next taste test might happen sooner than we anticipate.

The Story of One of the Best Meals I've Ever Eaten: Jay's Adventure in the Dominican Republic Part Quatro

This is the story about one of the best meals I've ever eaten my life. It happened a little over a year ago, but I haven't forgotten the warmth, the flavor, the hospitality, or the way the food truly replenished and rejuvenated my exhausted body and soul. This is the way everyone should experience food when they travel. Well, some of the time, kinda. Seeking out authentic culinary culture can take us out of the hustle and bustle of restaurants, steer us away from seeking out award-winning chefs, and guide us into a pot of beans from a home cook, and that's alright with me.

First, for a quick recap, make sure to check out parts Uno, Dos, and Tres of my trip to the Dominican Republic.

Santo Domingo Coffee and Panderia Dick

The morning started for us at day break and I still felt the aches as a result of the previous day's activities climbing hillsides and carabining down zip lines at the Monkey Jungle. The #Mancation crew departed our accommodations in Cabarete and convened at Panderia Dick, a small cafe on the main drag through town. We pulled tables together on the patio and watched locals on mopeds whiz by. Dick's Cafe features authentic cuisine, but this breakfast would only be the beginning of my adventure. I scarfed down Desayuno Domincano (Dominican Breakfast) complete with three scrambled eggs with salami and cheese, bread, and butter. Naturally I had a cup of Santo Domingo coffee as well. Then I started to get nervous. Our plans were to go canyoning in the depths of the Dominican Republic. Iguana Mama Tours had the whole trip lined up for us to do the Magic Mushroom Canyoning, but I wanted to back out. I'm not the most athletic fella, and the thought of donning a wet suit while climbing over slippery rocks and repelling down waterfalls didn't seem quite like the adventure I had signed up for, which instead included lounging on more Dominican beaches with non-stop Presidente cerveza attached to my palm.

Jay repels down a waterfall in the Dominican Republic

My body ached already, but our guide assured me that this experience should not be missed. He also made it seem like the physical exertion would not be too excessive.

He lied.

The tour is rated for beginners, but perhaps there needs to be a fat ass clause. We first enjoyed a scenic drive through the jungles and over mountain ranges on the north coast of the Dominican Republic. Starting from Cabarete on the beach we headed inland on a paved road. At some point atop a peak overlooking a pristine valley we stopped by a shack on the side of the road. Mama Iguana's base camp is where we were fitted for wet suits, life preservers, harnesses, and helmets. At this point my gut started turning upside down. If I needed a helmet then at some point I might be in danger of hitting my head, which likely would mean that I'm no longer on my feet. I didn't like this plan anymore. However, it seemed like there would be no way to turn back now. Our entire crew traveled in one van, and that one van, already 45 minutes of drive time up a mountain, continued onward until the paved road turned into dirt. The van stopped when the road became muddy at which point we got out and walked down the side of the hill to a house that perched alongside a flowing stream. We got a few lessons about how to avoid rolling our ankles on the slippery rocks. Immediately thereafter Rob and I had a conversation about turning around, walking back to wherever we could walk, hitchhiking back to the base camp, or really anything we could do to avoid rolling head-first down this mountain current. But we couldn't. We couldn't turn back. So I tried as hard as I could to survive.

Most of the canyoning actually proved to be quite enjoyable. There were stretches where we floated downstream and I thought I could use a cold beer in my hand. There were times when we hiked beside the creek in the gorgeous jungle scenery. But the hiking and swimming, the climbing and slipping, took its toll on me. An hour or so in and I was already starting to feel like I had had enough. We approached a fantastic waterfall thundering down into a pool of cold spring water. The stream flowed over a mushroom shaped rock and then plunged several stories to the calm below. The Magic Mushroom. We took turns, one at a time repelling down the side of the mushroom cap until no more footing existed, then pushed off and enjoyed the ride to the splashdown. My turn came and I nailed it. "That was fun," I thought. "And we must be almost done."

I could not have been more wrong.

Jay with the Mama Iguana guide who just may have saved his life

That waterfall constituted what felt like the first third of our canyoning adventure. We climbed over many more boulders and carabined down another even higher waterfall where some of the more thrill-seeking members of our group just jumped. Physically exhausted, I grabbed the ropes, leaned back, and tried to let gravity do more work than my tired arms and legs. At one point I slipped on an extremely slick rock and couldn't catch my balance. Flailing, I fell to the rocky creek bed beneath me and slammed my head on the wet earth. Good thing I had my helmet on. We continued on for what seemed like miles through the canyon. For the sake of balance and continuing on at an acceptable pace, I held on to the arm of one of our guides. Sadly I didn't write down his name and don't remember it now, but this man saved my life. We delicately trudged through the creek bed. My legs banged up and bloody from slamming them into underwater rocks, we continued on, stopping to rest when I couldn't take another slippery step. Finally, as I started thinking they might have to helicopter me out of there if I broke my leg or blew out my knee, our guides led us to the path back up to the road. One problem though: the path led straight up the side of a rocky cliff.

One step at a time I followed behind my hero. He showed me where to place my foot and then I took that step, each one as difficult as the hardest setting on any Stair Master complete with insecure foot holds and while toting a 300+ pound soaking wet and worn out frame. Clutching his shoulder, arm, or hand to help pull me up the mountain, I pushed myself to get there knowing that my salvation rested with the van atop the hill. The ground under my foot gave way and I fell, slamming my arm into the side of the rock, but he caught me and kept me from tumbling down to disaster. Blood poured down the side of my right forearm, so he took a first aid kit out of his bag and bandaged me up while the others continued on. Finally, after what seemed like an hour after everyone else had reached the top, my friend and I climbed over the last ridge to freedom. As I ducked through the barbed wire fence and onto the dirt road where the van waited I felt relieved, accomplished, fatigued, grateful, and, of course, hungry.

Lunch awaited our crew at the Mama Iguana Outpost

Bloodied and bruised, I changed out of my wet suit and waterlogged shoes and into clothes that didn't constrain every fiber of my beat down being. I could smell the home cooked meal, and finally managed to smile and laugh again. A motherly figure appeared with her daughter and they seemed ready to feed us... to take care of us in a way that they must have known we desperately needed. Our hosts opened the lids on the pots of real Dominican fare as my taste buds began salivating in anticipation of the end to my stomach growls. We lined up for the feast, famished, and ready to tear into a meal like a bunch of middle school boys after a football practice. Rice and beans, pollo guisado (stewed chicken), and simmered vegetables filled our plates. I had to stop myself in order to take a picture with Rob's phone before I scarfed down my first heaping. Rice and beans have never tasted so good. Comfort overwhelmed me as I shoveled the vegetables into my mouth. There was nothing fancy on the plate, just authentic, rustic cuisine cooked by somebody who cares. And the chicken. Oh, the chicken. Stewed down in tomato, garlic, and who knows what else, the chicken heightened my sense of what non-fried chicken can be. Rich and deep, the chicken filled my heart with warmth. I went back for another round. I still remember the flavors. I remember the satisfaction. I felt alive again, nourished and ready for a nap. I may have almost died earlier that day, and I would have been pissed if I had missed that meal. Everything became worth it. The entire adventure just a means to be so wiped out and starving that a simple plate of rice, beans, and chicken could move me, feed my soul, and remind me what it is that's truly special about food and people.

My Dominican Feast