Marksville Gets a Shiny New Toy: Broken Wheel Brewery Ribbon Cutting

by Blair "B-Rex" Loup

Late last year Jay, Chuck P., and I discovered the Broken Wheel Brewery in Marksville, Louisiana. Owner, Jonathan Knoll was getting his footing on a couple of brews in the back of the Marksville eatery, Fresh Catch Bistreaux.

After looking around at his brewing equipment and hopeful hop garden, we hit the road back to Baton Rouge wishing Knoll the best of luck. I was pleasantly surprised to run into Jonathan again in Lake Charles when I went home for the Louisiana Winter Beer Festival. Broken Wheel Brewery was a crowd favorite at the festival pouring their Spring Bayou Blonde Ale and a milk stout.

I had a lot of beer that day, but that milk stout kept calling my name. You can try it for yourself at the Broken Wheel Brewery’s Ribbon Cutting this Friday, March 20th at 3pm at Fresh Catch Bistreaux (109 Tunica Drive E., Marksville, LA 71351).

They’ll be pouring their Pachafa Pale Ale, Spring Bayou Blonde Ale, the milk stout, and brown ale at the event. If anyone can show you a good time in Marksville, it’s Broken Wheel.

Wonder Where the Crawfish Bread at Jazzfest Comes From?

Crawfish Bread from Panaroma Foods

For many years now, the Crawfish Bread that is found at Jazzfest in New Orleans has been one of the culinary staples of the outdoor music event.  The gooey, cheesy stuffing loaded with Louisiana crawfish tails strings out from its crusty breaded prison to gush flavor unto each connoisseur.  Even famous New Orleans food critic Tom Fitzmorris clamined that the crawfish bread is "an essential Jazzfest dish that should not be missed."  However, this delicious treat does not come from some fancy Creole restaurant or age-old New Orleans haunt.  It comes from Marksville, Louisiana in Avoyelles Parish at a little bakery called Panaroma Foods.  It is there that each loaf of crawfish bread is carefully crafted to ensure that essential combination of crawfish, cheese, and bread.  The bread is actually rolled by hand using rolling pins.  It is a true labor of love for each loaf, and it never disappoints.  

When in Marksville, you can usually buy fresh crawfish, shrimp, and sausage breads right from the bakery's counter.  You can also get the loaves pre-cooked and frozen, meaning all you have to do is thaw them out and toast them in the oven for 10-15 minutes and you'll have some amazing Panaroma breads right at home.  Fortunately I snagged a loaf of crawfish bread as well as the sausage and jalapeno bread on recent trip up LA1.  The jalapeno sausage bread, dare I say, may have even been more impressive than the crawfish bread.  The cheese oozed out and the mild pop from the jalapenos worked so well with the other incredible flavors.  We devoured both loaves just as quickly as they came out the oven and then wished we had several more.

Sausage Bread with Jalapenos from Panaroma Foods, Inc. in Marksville, LA

So while at Jazzfest, you should certainly eat the #1 rated Jazzfest food.  But don't feel like you can't enjoy that amazing crawfish bread at other times of the year!  Just head to Marksville and grab a couple loaves to take home.  I guarantee that the next time you have a dinner party and break one of these things out, your guests will be amazed!

Legend's Steakhouse at the Paragon Casino

I recently enjoyed a trip to Marksville, Louisiana where I got a chance to play a round of golf with John from Tee to Green Magazine followed by a delicious meal at the Legend's Steakhouse inside the Paragon Casino Resort.  When I got to the resort, I checked in my hotel room that had a balcony overlooking the atrium with live alligators.

After throwing down my bags I caught a tram over to the Tamahka Trails golf course where I met a group of writers and friendly Paragon marketing and staff members for lunch at the Grill Room inside the club house.

After scarfing down a burger, John and I hit the driving range to warm up before beginning our round of golf.  We had a blast playing all 18 holes on a gorgeous day and friendly course.  It had plenty of challenges for the experienced golfers with deep bunkers and doglegged holes, but also some open fairways for a novice like me.  I actually shot a lot better than I thought I would.  After returning to the hotel, I had time to take a quick shower and get back downstairs for what I had really been waiting for: dinner at the Legend's Steakhouse!

Inside the Paragon Casino Resort sits one of the nicest restaurants in Marksville.  Legend's Steakhouse features quality cuts of beef and an assortment of other Louisiana cuisine.  John and I were joined by Lara from Peter Meyer PR in NOLA, Richella, who works as a PR Specialist at the resort, and a travel writer from Florida whose name escapes me.  Our table got started with a some cocktails.  Not wanting to order like a normal person, I decided that I'd begin with the signature drink on the menu: the Legendary Dream.  While most people wouldn't dare begin their meal with this concoction, I thought it would be appropriate.  If it were in Houston it would be simply called the "Dream Shake."  It featured Kahlua, brandy, amaretto, dark creme de cacao, and ice cream.  It was a damn good $10 milk shake.  And rather potent, too.  

Legendary Dream

We also ordered a trio of appetizers to pass around and share.  We began with the Cajun Crab Cakes.  The sweet and delicious lump crab meat cakes were topped with a tangy remoulade sauce.  These were a little different than a typical Louisiana style breaded and deep or pan fried cake.  They let the crab speak for itself, and it worked fairly well.  Next up were the Southern Style Fried Green Tomatoes.  The tempura style fried tomatoes were topped with more lump crab meat, which certainly didn't bother me.  The appetizer was finished off with a Bearnaise sauce.  I wasn't blown away by them, but they were acceptable.  Our final appetizer choice brought the Shrimp Michael.  The large gulf shrimp were wrapped in bacon and then deep fried before being topped on a bed of seafood dressing.  You really can't go wrong combining bacon and shrimp, so this appetizer was a big hit around the table.

Legend's Cajun Crabcakes

Legend's Southern Style Green Tomatoes

Legend's Shrimp Michael

From there, the rest of the table ordered some salads but I couldn't pass up the lobster bisque.  Our waitress decided to get a little artistic and wrote Legend's into the bowl of soup.  Nice touch.  And with a little black pepper to top it off, the soup pleased my taste buds despite being a little bland and short on much lobster meat.  I also needed another beverage, so this time I ordered a Spanish Fly, the most masculine looking martini on the menu.  It featured vodka, triple sec, lemon juice and lime juice.  With the sugar rim, it wasn't all that manly, but it still held me over before I got a glass of wine with my steak.

Lobster Bisque at Legend's

Spanish Fly Martini

My main course is what I really wanted all along.  The VP of Operations for the entire Paragon Casino Resort told me at the golf course that I needed to order the bone-in ribeye.  Never one to turn down a nice cut of beef that is still on the bone, I ordered just that.  My medium rare steak came out cooked beautifully with charred grill marks and a wonderful pink center throughout.  The beef had a great marbling and clearly came from a high quality cow!  I also really enjoyed the charred texture on the outside.  So many high quality steaks these days are broiled with infrared ovens and it was nice to see a flame grilled quality ribeye at a nice steakhouse!

Legend's Bone-in Ribeye

A slight disappointment I had at Legend's was a lack of selection on the wine list.  All the wines by the glass were from Kendall Jackson or Woodbridge by Mondavi.  Those wines can be found everywhere are offer me little as far as exploring something new or unique.  Still, a glass of Woodbridge Cabernet did the trick with the beef.  And naturally, no meal is complete without dessert.  However, I hadn't saved any room in my stomach so I got a wedge of carrot cake to go.  I ate it later that night, and enjoyed every bite!  Overall, the meal exceeded expectations and I'd be happy to eat there again when visiting the Paragon Casino Resort.