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.

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!

Beers with Chuck: Southern Craft Brewery, New Kid on the Block

by Chuck P

For the past five years, Tin Roof Brewing Company has enjoyed being the only craft brewery based out of Baton Rouge. But now, the capital city welcomes a new addition, Southern Craft Brewing Company.

I always found it odd Baton Rouge didn’t have more craft breweries popping up after the success of Tin Roof. The Lafayette area has Parish, Bayou Teche and the upcoming Cajun Brewing Company. New Orleans has NOLA, Courtyard, Second Line and the recently opened Urban South. 

Hopefully this is the beginning of a long-awaited trend in Baton Rouge.

This week Southern Craft did a massive rollout at the usual craft beer spots in town, but I decided new beers called for a new atmosphere, and I wound up trying their flagship beers at the newly opened Overpass Merchant.

Southern Craft Brewing's Red Stick Rye IPA

I started with the Red Stick Rye, a 5.4 percent ABV IPA. This is the one that started it all for 

Southern Craft brewers Joe Picou and Wes Hedges. The original recipe placed second at the National Homebrew Competition in San Diego in 2011. This brew has a nice dark amber color, an approachable dry finish and a really strong malty backbone. The overall hoppiness is very subtle, with the IBU (International Bitterness Units) coming in at 24.

Pompous Pelican Double IPA

Their other release, the Pompous Pelican, is an ambitious 8.4 percent ABV Double IPA. The hoppiness definitely shines through on this one, with 80 IBU that dance on the tongue. Southern Craft uses local raw cane sugar in this brew, and the Cascade hops give the beer a great balance of citrus and floral notes with a great spicy aroma.

I had to admit, both beers impressed me, and I’m very eager to see what Southern Craft comes out with next. Visit them online and grab a pint of each on your next visit to your favorite craft beer spot.

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!

Fullness Farm, Uprooted

by Sydney Blanchard

Each month, our Uprooted series will highlight local chefs, restaurants, organizations, and farmers who are spearheading the farm-to-table and local foodways movements in South Louisiana.

An often unmentioned but important catalyst of the farm-to-table movement is what you might call a Walden-esque fantasy of escapism. Thoreau’s famous escape to Walden Pond at the end of the 19th century represents the fear and anxiety of a world reacting to the growing pains of the Industrial Revolution.

More than a century and a half has passed since the original publishing of Walden, and now more than ever before, technology sprints ahead of us at breakneck speeds. And, in theory, it breeds in us all the desire to return to our roots to escape it all. It’s sort of a romanticism of nature, a romanticism of the primal.

For most of us, this Walden Pond fantasy will never be more than that, just a fleeting daydream while stuck in traffic or on hold with the internet service provider.

For others, like Allison and Grant Guidroz, they made their dreams a reality.

These Baton Rouge natives started Fullness Organic Farm within the last year, and they’ve been able to turn their little half-acre of greens into a lucrative income stream. 

Look at these gorgeous leafy greens out at Fullness Farm off of Nicholson Drive in Baton Rouge

Both Allison and Grant graduated from LSU in 2011 with degrees in psychology and agricultural business, respectively. After college, the couple began working with Slow Food Baton Rouge and Americorps, through which they were able to to live and work on Inglewood Farms in Alexandria, Louisiana, and another farm in Arkansas, learning what it takes to run an organic farm.

Allison and Grant Guidroz, owners of Fullness Farm, are proud of their carrot babies

“We looked at it kind of like getting our graduate degree [in organic farming],” Allison said.

Before finding his calling in organic farming, Grant had briefly majored in finance in college.

“I figured I wanted to make a lot of money and not work hard, and I thought that would make me happy,” he said. “But it turns out, maybe working really hard and not making a lot of money but doing something that I love is what will make me happy.”

Allison and Grant are the picture of happiness. They live in what used to be a caretaker’s house on their land. The house, built in the 1940s, had been abandoned and was covered in mold, but the couple remodeled it, and their cozy little cottage acts as Fullness Farm headquarters for the Guidrozes and their dog, Tippy Toes.

Allison and Grant’s half-acre of land bears gorgeous greens. They mainly focus on growing baby greens, but they also grow spinach, three kinds of kale, mustard greens, radishes, turnips, arugula, French sorrel, broccoli, carrots and more.

Generally, they harvest and deliver to local restaurants on Fridays and sell the rest of their product at the Red Stick Farmer’s Market on Saturday mornings.

The only organic growers at the market, the Guidrozes decided to do make Fullness Farm their full-time gig after their first go at the farmer’s market.

For Grant, it’s not about producing huge volumes of produce. A huge motivator is producing the best tasting, most nutrient rich foods possible. 

According to research conducted over the last 15 years, certain plant species have been found to contain more phytonutrients than others. Phytonutrients are compounds linked to reduced risk of cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and dementia.

For example, a Peruvian purple potato has 28 times the cancer-fighting benefits than russet potatoes. One species of apple has 100 times more phytonutrients than the Golden Delicious variety found at most grocery stores.

“I want to grow seriously good food,” he said.

Tri-color carrots at Fullness Farm

For Allison, it’s the same.

“We like to eat good stuff,” she said. “That was a big thing for me.”

Their return to Baton Rouge was no accident. The Guidrozes wanted to come home to utilize their resources, and say that the little strip of land off of Nicholson they dubbed Fullness Farm wouldn’t have been possible without their local connections.

“We really knew we wanted to be back home, doing it here, growing it for our friends and family,” Allison said. “I grew up with my parents cooking. I like to cook, and I really like good food. And man, this food tastes awesome.”

To try some of the awesome-tasting food coming out of Fullness Farm, look for them at the Red Stick Farmer’s Market on Saturday mornings or grab some of their green goodies from Indie Plate.

Read more Uprooted here:

Nino's Italian, Uprooted

Indie Plate, Uprooted

Red Stick Farmers Market, Uprooted

Iverstine Family Farms, Uprooted

Murder Point Oysters, Uprooted

Southern Foodways Alliance, Uprooted

Red Stick Farmers Market, Uprooted

by Sydney "Brown Nose" Blanchard

Each month, our Uprooted series will highlight local chefs, restaurants, organizations, and farmers who are spearheading the farm-to-table and local foodways movements in South Louisiana.

Copper Alvarez is the Executive Director at BREADA. Photo courtesy of Copper Alvarez.

When you're the Executive Director at a local non-profit organization, your role often extends beyond the boardroom.

Just ask Copper Alvarez, Executive Director at BREADA, the Big River Economic & Agricultural Development Alliance. Alvarez finds the formality of her title at the Baton Rouge-based non-profit somewhat amusing. 

“It’s pretty official, but as far as executive directors go, I empty trash on Saturdays," Alvarez laughs. "I do things maybe all executive directors don’t do. We’re a small staff.”

When she's not manning garbage cans, Alvarez said her days are spent maintaining facilities, looking for new site partners, doing administrative grant work, coordinating markets, visiting farms, and working with chefs, farmers, and national groups.

“Every day is a different day, which is why I like it," she said.

The Mississippi native has been with BREADA since the non-profit formed 14 years ago, and in her years at the helm of the organization, she's seen the community come to embrace BREADA's programs including the Red Stick Farmer's Market and Main Street Market in downtown Baton Rouge.

The Red Stick Farmers Market began in 1996 when a group of farmers was recruited for the city's first farmer's market by graduate student Chris Campany as part of his Master's thesis in LSU's Landscape Architecture program.

That November, the first market was held, and six years later, BREADA opened Main Street Market downtown, which serves as a small local business incubator.

In the years since its inception, the Red Stick Farmers Market has become a weekend destination and community gathering place for many in Baton Rouge. Beyond purchasing fresh locally grown produce and quality cuts of meat from area farmers, the Red Stick Farmers Market offers cooking demos, educational opportunities for kids through their Red Stick Sprouts program, and an arts market each month.

But according to Alvarez, some people are still hesitant to take part in the weekly market due to concerns about affordability and accessibility.

"I don't know where the myth started that it is more expensive," she said. "People see the farmer’s market as being for upper class, trendy foodies, but it’s not."

In 2010 BREADA received a grant from the USDA to implement a token program that would match SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) recipients' money up to $10. The grant meant people with Louisiana Purchase cards would have more of an incentive to shop at the market, and it allowed BREADA to better serve the whole community. 

"It expanded what people thought about us," Alvarez said.

It also made a difference in the number of people shopping at the Red Stick Farmer's market.

Alvarez said that when she first started at BREADA, only three to five percent of people nationally shopped at farmer's markets. Now, that number has increased to 10 percent nationally. 

“The trend has finally hit the South," she said. "Hopefully we are just at the precipice of making it grow here. It’s a trend that doesn’t go away."

The farm-to-table scene in Baton Rouge is still shadowed by that of New Orleans, Alvarez said, where tourists are more willing to pay a higher price for cuisine prepared using farm fresh ingredients. 

Though she has seen an increase in Baton Rouge-based chefs' demand for local produce, she admits that most consumers are not demanding local, seasonal produce. 

"Here, the restaurants are up against a lot of chain restaurants," Alvarez said. "Generally, the restaurants who are local have to make a bottom line."

Part of BREADA's mission, and part of Alvarez's role as Executive Director, is to implement programs to people in the city about the seasonality of produce and the importance of choosing "real foods.

"Once you start choosing to eat locally, the freshness, the difference, the nutritional value is so much higher than most people realize," Avarez said. "It’s almost addictive."

Read more Uprooted here:

Nino's Italian, Uprooted
Indie Plate, Uprooted

Month of Salads: Nino's Italian

by Blair "B-Rex" Loup

Unlike my two counterparts, I embrace the Month of Salads with open arms. I am a long-time lover of vegetables, and I can go to town on a salad.

The Grilled Heart salad at Nino's Italian in Baton Rouge, LA

Maybe I just haven't lived enough life, but this is the only time someone's brought a steak knife to the table for my salad.

Nino's Italian is known for its fresh, in-house pastas and Chef/Owner Elton Hyndman's dedication to the local slow food movement, but when I think of Nino's, their Grilled Heart salad is the first thing on my mind.

Grilling the heart of Romaine gives it that grill taste: not charred, but charred-esque. Drizzled with a local honey and goat cheese dressing, salted with the hearty Pancetta, and topped with sharp Parmesan cheese, the warm Grilled Heart salad is worthy of love, even for the salad skeptic who considers greens to be rabbit food (looking at you Jay Ducote).

Taking a Tour of Louisiana's Craft Beers at Zapp's International Beer Festival

– Sydney "Brown Nose" Blanchard

Needless to say, it was a pretty exciting day. Two thumbs up.

I don't claim to know too much about beer. As someone who turned 21 only a couple of years ago, the world of booze is still pretty new to me. My drink of choice tends to be whatever can get me intoxicated the fastest for the least amount of money.

Don't judge; I'm a college student.

But since I've been interning with Team Bite and Booze, I've learned that my Mic Ultra just isn't cutting it.

In order to further my education, Jay and Blair brought me to Zapp's International Beer Festival on Saturday to literally get a taste of the local craft brew scene.

My goals were simple: drink as much delicious beer as humanly possible in three short hours while staying sober enough to be able to recall and write about the experience later.

Despite the rain, the mud, and getting separated from the group for an hour, I managed to accomplish my goal.

Without further fanfare, here is my (amateur) list of stand-out beers at this weekend's Zapp's Beer Fest:

Blair and I were smart enough to wear sensible shoes...but we still got muddy.

Seven Sisters IPA by Old Rail Brewing Co

Out of Mandeville comes the Seven Sisters IPA. Caramel colored and served ice cold, this was my first beer of the event and one of the most memorable. Seven Sisters is pretty hoppy, which isn't usually my jam, but the sweet and malt flavors sold me.

Berry-ly Legal by LA Homebrew

Based in Baton Rouge, this home brew supply shop can set you up with your own at-home brewing system stat. Luckily for us Beer Fest attendees, they served up some creative home brews. The Berry-ly Legal is a raspberry honey wheat beer. Light in color and slightly syrupy, this brew is best in small doses. I'd take this over Abita Strawberry any day.

The Saison of Saint 14 by Bicycle Brew Club

This Baton Rouge club's brews were going fast. Before they ran out, I was able to sample their festival darling, the Saison of Saint 14. I wasn't a huge fan of this dark brew, but everyone else couldn't get enough. I'd give some tasting notes, but it was that unmemorable.

Stout Chocula by Redstick Brewmasters

This chocolate stout, brewed by Brad Bendily of Redstick Brewmasters, was one of my favorites. I'm a huge fan of chocolate beers, both to drink and to cook with. Stout Chocula was rich, creamy, and not overwhelmingly chocolatey.

Blonde Sugar Sex Magik by Tin Roof Brewing Company

It's no secret that we're pretty big fans of Tin Roof. Turnrow with a burger is as close to food heaven as I can get. But I wanted to try something different at the Tin Roof tent, so I opted for the Blonde Sugar Sex Magik. I'll admit I only picked it for its name, but I wasn't disappointed. Cool and crisp, this was a pretty standard blonde but with a hell of a kick at the end (re: chili pepper). It was more spicy than sexy or magical, but it was an interesting brew.

The Blue tasted like my childhood. 

Blue by SweetWater Brewing Company

I never thought I'd be writing this sentence, but Blue would make an amazing breakfast beer. This blueberry ale tasted exactly like the frozen Leggo blueberry pancakes of my childhood in the best way possible. It was more refreshing than sweet, which was a nice break from all the dessert beers I'd been drinking.

Revenge of the Quakers by LA Homebrew

I heard a group of beer aficionados singing the praises of this brew, so I trekked back through the mud to the LA Homebrew tent to see what all the fuss was about. The sign described this brew as a "chocolate vanilla coffee infused Bourbon oatmeal stout." That's a mouthful, but it perfectly described the layered flavors of the beer. The chocolate, coffee and oatmeal flavors stuck out the most to me.

Larry's Famous had some interesting concoctions. 

Vietnamese Iced Coffee Stout by Larry's Famous

At this point I was fairly intoxicated, rain-soaked, and caked in mud up to my knees. But I wasn't going to let a little rain keep me from trying this Vietnamese Iced Coffee Stout. I love Vietnamese iced coffee, so I knew I'd be into this stout. It tasted exactly as I imagined it would: a boozier version of my favorite caffeine fix.

Black IPA by Larry's Famous

IPA's really aren't my jam, but I'm learning I like the darker ones, and this Black IPA was no exception. One of the pourers at the tent recommended this one to me, and I had low expectations. It just sounded kind of boring. But the flavor was dark and rich, and I caught some hints of berry at the finish.