Making it Reign: King Cake Takes around Baton Rouge

by Hannah Wilson, intern

When I moved to Louisiana, there was a certain degree of culture shock. There were all of these new celebrations and everything was something to toast to. Something I learned early on was one of the delicacies that Mardi Gras season is best known for is King Cake. King Cake can be eaten for any meal, at any time without judgment and for that, King Cake will always hold a special place in my heart.

If there’s one thing Louisianan’s know, it’s how to celebrate. Over the years, different restaurants and companies throughout Louisiana have found different ways to incorporate King Cake into their menu to celebrate Carnival in new and creative ways. Here are some of the most tasty ways I’ve seen to enjoy King Cake.

Fat Cow King Cake Milkshake

This is something people crave all year. Fat Cow’s milkshakes are already amazing, but the festive flavor pairs well with their Parmesan and Duck Fat Fries or any burger.

It's finally here. Ring in the New Year the Louisiana way with the King Cake shake! Available beginning January 1st. #Fatcow #kingcakeshake #mardigras #geauxbr #eatproper #eatlocal

A post shared by Fat Cow Burgers And Salads (@fatcowburgers) on Dec 31, 2015 at 1:07pm PST

Cupcake Allie King Cake Bites

This bite size way to enjoy King Cake is easy to pop in, grab, and savor on the go!

Happy Friday!! Come pick up a cupcake, kingcake, cakebite cake, or some chocolate dipped strawberries!!

A post shared by Cupcake Allie (@cupcake_allie) on Jan 20, 2017 at 6:49am PST

Rösch Bakehaus King Cake

These artisanal cakes are few and tasty. With flavors like Dark Chocolate & Lavender, Ginger & Walnut and Raspberry Frangipane, they’re a uniquely delicious, hand-crafted way to celebrate Carnival.

It's #kingcake season! @bloup3 grabbed this candied ginger and walnut creation from @rosch.bakehaus. Where do you find your favorite king cakes? #carnivalseason #mardigras #tastelouisiana #gobr #eatbr

A post shared by Bite & Booze (@biteandbooze) on Jan 24, 2017 at 9:58am PST

City Pork King Cake Brulee

A unique take on a classic, crowd favorite. This festive treat pairs well with any of their special cocktails, especially the Hummingbird.

Bistro Byronz King Cake Bread Pudding

These two very tasty things merged into one is what dreams are made of. Trust me.

Get it before it's Gone. Real Gone. #kingcakebreadpudding #midcity #willowgrove #shreveport

A post shared by Good. Real Good. (@bistrobyronz) on Feb 19, 2015 at 10:57am PST

Tiger Deaux-nuts Maple Bacon King Cake 

Salty and sweet, what more could you want? This King Cake gets decadent with crumbled bacon, making all of your tastebuds happy!

What are you waiting for? {reference: pictured is our SMALL size} #repost from our buddy @chuckp23: can't go wrong with a maple bacon king cake from @tigerdeauxnuts!

A post shared by Tiger Deaux-nuts (@tigerdeauxnuts) on Jan 11, 2017 at 5:57am PST

Everyone has their own traditions and different ways they celebrate Carnival and Mardi Gras. Over the years, I’ve realized that no matter how you celebrate it’s always a memorable experience. These are tasty, local ways to mix it up this season.

Savoring the Sweetness: Bite and Booze Radio Show presented by Calandro's Supermarket

Peggy Sweeney McDonald and Jay Ducote at the Taste Awards

Over Mardi Gras, Peggy Sweeney McDonald came to town to put on a Meanwhile, Back at Cafe du Monde... show at White Oak Plantation which I had the privilege to emcee. Later in the week she joined me as a guest on the Bite and Booze Radio Show. We talked about all sorts of things from the Meanwhile show to my trip to Los Angeles for the Taste Awards and of course our favorite eats along the way so that we could savor the sweetness, as Peggy likes to say. Give it a listen!






The Bite and Booze Radio Show presented by Calandro's Supermarket airs on Saturdays at 5 PM and replays Sundays at 8 PM on Talk 107.3 FM in Baton Rouge. The show is hosted by Jay Ducote and won a Taste Award in January 2014 as the best food or drink based radio broadcast in the country. The producer of the show is Chris Courtney at Guaranty Broadcasting and the field producer is Charles Pierce from the Me and My Big Mouth Show. It is also available on iTunes. The show's sponsors include Calandro's Supermarket, Visit Baton Rouge, Le Creole Restaurant, Slap Ya Mama Cajun Seasoning, Mama Della's N.Y. City Pizzeria, Restaurant IPO, Mason's Grill, Donner-Peltier Distillers (Rougaroux Rums and Oryza Vodka and Gin), Louisiana Cookin' Magazine, Juban's Restaurant, the Tin Roof Brewing Company, the Louisiana Culinary Institute and Triumph Kitchen.

Touring Lake Charles by Sight and by Stomach

The Southwest Louisiana city of Lake Charles is underrated. Living in Baton Rouge, I spend a lot of time touting the capital city as a worthwhile stop between Lafayette and New Orleans, and better yet as a true destination of its own. But in all my talk about Baton Rouge, Lafayette, and the Big Easy, often forgotten are other parts of Louisiana which possess plenty of culture of their own. On  recent press trip to Lake Charles I got to experience the city through culinary lenses. On the night of our arrival we had dinner at Ember Grille and Wine Bar at the L'Auberge Casino. The following day we got a tour of the city complete with food stops, a horse-drawn carriage historical tour, more food, and some wildlife refuges. Here's a recap of the gastronomic adventure!

Our first stop was for boudin and cracklins at Guillory's Famous Foods. The boudin pictured below is the smoked version which I very much enjoyed. They also have a regular (steamed or boiled instead of smoked) boudin. Boudin is a pork and rice mixture that typically contains liver as well. It is seasoned with all sorts of spices then stuffed into sausage casing. If you are an unfortunate soul who has never had boudin before, it is worth a trip to Louisiana on its own.

Boudin at Guillory's Famous Foods in Lake Charles

In many ways tough, I prefer the cracklin over the boudin, if ever I were in the unfortunate predicament of having to choose. The cracklin is a perfect mixture of pork skin, fat, and muscle tissue that is fried once to soften it up and cook it through then fried a second time to make it extra crispy and crunch and, well, cracklin-y. Guillory's had regular and spicy cracklins for the eating enjoyment of our group. I also learned something at Guillory's Famous Foods that I'll never forget. Especially at breakfast time, one of the best combinations in the world is to dip your cracklin in Louisiana cane syrup. Seriously... do it.

Cracklin at Guillory's Famous Foods in Lake Charles

After a breakfast of champions, our group arrived in historic downtown Lake Charles for a historical tour of the city. Aboard a horse-drawn carriage we learned about Lake Charles architecture, lumber barons, haunted houses, and people who mess up historic properties. I hope I'm never one of those guys! Our tour ended at an old schoolhouse building that now serves as office space for a lot of different companies and public officials. Inside the building is the Lake Charles Mardi Gras Museum. I took a seat on the throne for good measure. The museum shows off a plethora of elaborate Mardi Gras costumes and includes its history outside of New Orleans. We also got to decorate our own King Cakes. While this was nothing new to me, I did enjoy having a taste of King Cake in the fall!

Lunch brought us to the unassuming but blissfully local Seafood Palace. There we were treated to a smorgasbord of seafood delights that filled our bellies and warmed our souls. The boiled crabs looked amazing as they adorned our table upon arrival. I do love a good boiled crab!

Boiled Crabs at Seafood Palace

There were several people at the table who had never eaten alligator before so I took the liberty of ordering an appetizer of fried alligator bites for the group. They were as good as any fried alligator I've had before, which is definitely saying something. Some say alligator tastes like chicken. I say it tastes more like frog legs. Though, most people say frog legs taste like chicken, so I guess it all does to a degree!

Fried Alligator at Seafood Palace in Lake Charles

I ordered the shrimp and oyster combo platter which comes with fries. Why not just fry everything, right? They were all delicious. I couldn't quite finish it all after everything else I ate, and knowing what would be in store for dinner, but it was too good to not try my hardest! 

Fried Shrimp and Oyster Combo at Seafood Palace

After lunch we took off in the bus to several National Wildlife Refuges including Cameron Prairie where we spotted quite a few alligators getting some sun like this guy featured below. I would have liked him more had be been in my belly! After the sight-seeing we were back to L'Auberge to rest and get cleaned up for dinner at La Truffe Sauvage... a dinner so amazing that it'll have to wait for its own blog post in the upcoming week!

An alligator in the sun at the Cameron Prairie National Wildlife Refuge

A Lovely Day to Visit the Capitol Grocery

On a lovely Fall day in Baton Rouge there are few spots better and with more character than Capitol Grocery on Spanish Town Road.  On a recent glorious day I took a stroll around downtown and paused as I passed the magnificent State Capitol building, which happens to be the tallest Capitol building in the nation.

Louisiana State Capitol, Downtown Baton Rouge

From the intersection with a view of the capitol, I hooked a right onto historic Spanish Town Road.  This old neighborhood offers some of the best architecture in town and also plays host to Baton Rouge's largest Mardi Gras parade!

A Look Through the Tree Tunnels on Spanish Town Road

Situated on Spanish Town Road between 7th Street and Costello Lane, Capitol Grocery is the longest operating grocery store in Baton Rouge, dating back to the 1890s. 

Capitol Grocery on Spanish Town Road

Capitol Grocery offers a basic supply of food and household products as well as hot food to please the Spanish Town residents and visitors.  My lunch break on this day came a little later than usual, but fortunately I was able to grab the final box of the daily lunch special: smothered pork chop with good brown gravy!

Smothered Pork Chop with Brown Gravy, Corn, Rice and Gravy, and a Dinner Roll

There is nothing like good Southern comfort food, and Capitol Grocery knows how to do it right.  This bone-in pork chop came smothered in a rich, flavorful brown gravy.  The meat was tender and seasoned magnificently as each bite melted in my mouth and mixed with the gravy as it settled comfortably in my belly.  The chop tasted so good that I had no choice but to clean the bone with my teeth because it would have been a food sin to leave any bit of pork uneaten.  The corn at Capitol Grocery could use a little help.  It tasted fine but had no flair like a good cajun corn should.  It could be replicated with ease by any novice and a can of whole kernal corn.  The rice came with different gravy which I also enjoyed.  Instead of rich brown gravy like the pork chop was topped with, the rice featured a lighter gravy with some stewed veggies that perfectly complemented the flavors of the meat.

I'm sure I'll be back to this place several more times in the coming months and I highly suggest that you give it try if you've never been! 

"Bon Appetit!  That's French for good meal." - The Reverend