Tangoing with Twine

by Hannah Wilson, intern

The welcoming entrance at Twine stocked with some local pantry items.

Twine’s quality is evident the moment you step in the door. This local eatery is a hybrid of sorts, blending a restaurant and a butcher shop. Steve Diehl, born and raised in Twin Falls, Idaho, grew up on a farm. He and his wife Krisitin had a desire to make local farms more accessible to the people of mid city Baton Rouge.

On a beautiful spring day, the Bite & Booze team ventured over there to check out their seasonal menu and boy did look tasty! The staff is so friendly and knowledgable about what they have to offer. We started off with some samples of their seasonal sides:

We tried the Tuna Poké Salad. A blend of avocado, mango, tobigo and scallion, this salad is made in house and only when there’s enough Tuna and Yellowfin, so it can be a rare commodity at times but so worth the try. 

Up next, we gave the Tangy Blackened Shrimp Salad a taste. It’s a staff favorite and Jay would even venture to say that it’s “righteous”. This salad was a perfect blend of tangy, savory and sweet.

We decided for our lunch we wanted to try three of the crowd favorites and also see what Steve suggested. We tried the Filet Burger, the Blackened Chicken Sandwich and their Reuben On Rye. 

The Filet Burger might be the best burger I’ve ever had. It’s served on a toasted brioche bun with melted provolone cheese, spring mix greens and bourbon maple bacon jam. The bacon jam was the perfect accent to top off and pull together all these amazingly fresh ingredients. 

The Filet Burger

The Blackened Chicken Sandwich is served on a croissant with tomato, bacon, provolone and spring mix greens. This was another great sandwich that left us feeling a bit lighter, so for a lunch on the lighter side, this is a great option.

The Blackened Chicken Sandwich

The Reuben on Rye was a perfectly layered classic staple for any menu. The classic elements of a Reuben; sauerkraut, Swiss cheese and thousand island dressing are all piled high but balance equally on the Twine’s version of this sandwich. Yet another thing not to pass up on their menu. 

The Reuben

Twine may be tucked away amongst the bustling busyness of Government Street, but the quality that you stumble upon inside this eatery is amazing. Along with their seasonal menu that we tasted, they have high quality meat sourced from local farms and a fun wine selection. They also have many pre-prepared meals that are easy to grab and go. Next time that you are in mid city, be sure to stop in to Twine.

Atmosphere Makes for a Memorable Meal at Houmas House

by Sydney Blanchard

What makes for a great meal?

I'm sure anyone you ask will answer this question differently,  but I'd argue many favorite food memories have less to do with what was served and more to do with the people sharing the meal. 

It might be the Southerner in me speaking, but few things beat a meal blanketed by the warm shroud of friendly conversation and banter.

Back in September, the Bite and Booze team (with the delightful addition of Rue Rusike) had the opportunity to dine at one of the finest restaurants in the area with Houmas House owner Kevin Kelly.

Latil's Landing is situated on the Houmas House Plantation grounds, both a tourism hotspot and highly coveted wedding and event venue. 

Executive chef Andrew Foster, Jr.'s menu is ambitious, flavorful, and it tastes like home. They're doing something that feels really special at Houmas House.

We started off the evening with appetizers. I had the crispy pork belly covered in Houmas House honey. The crispy, salty pork was complimented by the honey with perfect subtlety. 

Crispy pork belly with Houmas House Beehive honey

Next came the scallop and foie gras "sandwich." Seared foie gras nested between two rosemary seasoned scallops. Generally scallops are not my favorite, but the corn coulis made all the difference. 

Scallop and foie gras sandwich

For the soup course, we had the famous crawfish, corn, and curried pumpkin bisque. This, to me, was the highlight of the meal. The pumpkin worked well with the spicy, salty crawfish tails. This is something I would love to try to recreate at home. 

Curried pumpkin bisque with crawfish and corn

Onto the beets, Blair's favorite root vegetable (and one of mine). The salad was composed of jumbo lump crab meat tossed with a lemon basil dressing with sweet roasted beets and organic greens. I found the crab and beet combination a bit weird, but in a delicious way.

Roasted beet and crab salad

If there's anything Latil's Landing is great at, it's pretty plating. All of the entrees and event the desserts featured a pop of color courtesy of an orchid flower. I opted for the grilled, butter basted filet mignon with parmesan potatoes, Burgundy mushrooms, and Abita root beer demi-glace. It was as tasty as it was gorgeous.

Filet mignon at Latil's Landing

Last, though thoroughly stuffed, we indulged in dessert. For me, that meant chocolate bourbon cake with coffee bourbon syrup. How could I say no?

Chocolate bourbon cake

Sure, the Latin's Landing dinner we shared was a culinary delight, but taking the time to enjoy a meal with friends is the real pleasure. If you haven't toured the neatly manicured grounds at Houmas House, sipped cocktails at The Carriage House, or dined at Latil's Landing, you're missing out!