On the Road: Lake Charles, Lafayette, New Orleans, & Baton Rouge

A few weeks ago all about Louisiana. Focusing on work (& w/ crappy weather) I didn't focus much on food. Naturally, the foodie in me always prevails & I managed to enjoy a couple of good meals (on top of my travel regulars like Cracker Barrel & Waffle House).

The big take away from this week was definitely Restaurant IPO in Baton Rouge. A Southern Tapas bar, this is hands down the most unique menu I've ever seen.

My dinner consisted of Bon Temp Shrimp (think Bang Bang shrimp at Bonefish), the most delectable duck poppers I've ever eaten, & Pequeno tacos. As an avid duck hunter, I found myself taking pictures of the entire menu to send to my buddies back home in West TN. I would say that easily 95% of the menu consisted of duck. So in a way...this was research.
Now, my mom and sister came to NC to visit me a few weeks ago and I took them to Mateo bar de Tapas, naturally my mom kept thinking I was taking her to a topless bar. Bold move, my friends.

Tapas means small plates (as you can see from the pictures). Know of a great tapas bar? Grab a group of friends and check it out. These plates are meant to be shared (which explains why it can be hard to get a table sometimes) over a glass of sangria or a bottle of local craft brews. You may even find yourself ordering everything off the menu!


Trying out a tapas bar solo means you can still order 4-5 plates to try but can turn into a pretty pricey meal for just one person. Many of these unique establishments offer an entree menu to choose from...check out this burger that Restaurant IPO offers. I must admit, I seriously considered it (it does come with a bottle of wine).

 The next day I was conducting some interviews on campus at LSU. After a week of crappy weather, it was a beautiful day in Baton Rouge. Clear skies and 70 degrees. WOW!

After working a half day, I packed up and headed to Acme Oyster House. Did you know that there was more than one? THERE'S SEVEN! The last time I ate at Acme was back in 2010 when I was in NOLA for a marketing conference...and that's easily the only thing I remember about the trip.

I secured a seat at the bar so I could watch the dozens and dozens of oysters being shucked in record time. I order the New Orleans Medley...a sampling of gumbo, jambalaya, red beans and rice, and grilled smoked sausage.

I passed on a drink, drove to BTR, returned the rental car and started making moves back to RDU for the wekend. This was the week of the second big snow storm (not the one that hit ATL, but the one that hit the northeast). The journey home consisted of a 2 hour delay at the Baton Rouge Regional Airport (lucky me), a flight on a prop plane to CLT, standing on the tarmac in short sleeves waiting for the gate crew to let us into the terminal, SPRINTING across 4 terminals (haven't run like that since my cross country days back in high school), getting to my connection as they were closing the door, almost requesting medical assistance (I was weezing for 3 days...I need to work out more), landing at RDU at 11:30...didn't get my luggaged until close to 1:00...finally got home around 2:00.

JEEZ! I spent the remainder of Valentines weekend watching House of Cards and then hopping another flight first thing Sunday morning for another 3 week trip.

So go out there. Explore new places. Try new things. I'm no longer strictly a meat and potatoes kind of guy. Neither should you.

Now Playing: "Oh, Katrina" by Voice of the Wetlands

Bull CIty

So I recently I was talking to my friend, Kaleigh, about our career goals. Kaleigh and I are both in sales and used to work for the same company. We reconnected when Kaleigh came to town and we started talking about our favorite magazine, Garden & Gun.

Now most people who have never heard of the magazine laugh when you recite the title. GUNS?

Calm down.

Kaleigh shared that she would love to work for Garden & Gun, explore and travel while taking in all the foods that come across her table. Who wouldn't? This leads our daily conversations to be a comparison of the foodie finds and drinks consumed.

I'm from Memphis, TN. As a foodie and musician, it doesn't get much better than the 901. The birthplace of rock-n-roll, BBQ, and the home of the blues...the Bluff City has a lot going for it. I recently moved to Durham, NC. I was aware that there are a number of breweries in the area (something Memphis didn't have a lot of when I left). I spend a lot of my time on Franklin Street at The Crunkleton, He's Not Here, and Top of the Hill. All fantastic places.

However, a couple of weeks ago on a Friday night when I got home from work and checked my mail, I found an envelope from my momma. She had sent me an article from Southern Living of the Tastiest Towns in America that named Memphis as #2 and Durham as #1. OH HAPPY DAY! So much for sitting around that weekend, I had exploring to do.

Now something you should know...I love exploring alone. Friends are welcome anytime BUT they must be able to keep up. I rarely meet a stranger and so I have never viewed it as eating or drinking alone. Additionally, several in my office would tell you that I'm the go-to person for food and drink suggestions in Durham/Chapel Hill in our department (all outside sales managers that relocated here for work).

So that Saturday morning I woke up and headed out to explore Durham. My first stop was lunch as Geer Street Garden. Some co-workers had recommended this place a week prior to take some new hires in the office. Fantastic little place. I perused the menu and ordered a Sweet Josie (brown ale by Raleigh-based Lonerider) and asked the bartender to scrounge me up something to eat...surprise me.

He brought me a plate of fried fish tacos. A bit overfried, but the slaw, salsa verde, pico de gallo, crema, & lime made up for it. Perfection. I looked up and saw some friends enter, grabbed a Bloody Mary and joined them in the covered outdoor patio area.

My next stop would be some sights around downtown Durham such as "Major", a bronze bull statue, Brightleaf Square for some shopping, American Tobacco Historic District for drinks at Tobacco Road Sports Cafe and Tyler's Restaurant &Taproom. 

Being the craft beer enthusiast that I am (just bottled a new batch of IPA on Saturday...FYI), I wanted to take a brewery tour. I settled on Bull City Burger and Brewery. The $5 brewery tour lasted about 2.5 hours and the tasting equaled just over 3 beers (I won't complain about a heavy hand). Not a bad deal. I learned so much and thoroughly enjoyed the passion that Seth exudes when he speaks of his establishment. He aims to be a green brewery...recycling brew water, sending spent grains to local farms, and sustaining his yeast for future batches. I made out of there with a growler of Littlen Horny which is already gone.


Following the brewery, I head back towards Geer Street to explore FullSteam Brewery  to try out their "Clack-A-Lacky" ginger ale. HOLY GINGER BAT MAN! It was fantastic! FullSteam is a very unique experience. This dog friendly bar features darts, ping pong, and an arcade. The noise from the arcade, littered with children, is dampened by glass walls separating it from the bar, where I was able to comfortably sit and take in my surroundings in peace.

Now, I'm new to town. But many people in the office, again, ask for advice about where to go. Where do I get my advice? My boss who was born and raised in Cary, NC. So the boss man followed my journey on FourSquare, texting me advice on where to go next. He claims I inspired a food-tour evening for him and his lady friend in Raleigh that night. The last piece of advice he gave me that day was the Food Trucks. The great thing about that part of town is the number of food trucks parked outside the bars. Too many to choose from. So after a few drinks, I stumbled outside to grab a moo-shu pork taco and a taxi.

Southernism: Coke & Peanuts

A tradition that reminds me of summers growing up, an a southernism that makes my office of yankees cringe. Of course, I could only be talking about Coke & Peanuts.

Yesterday I was sitting at my desk with a bottle of Coke with a handful of peanuts in it and my colleagues refused to talk to me while I enjoyed this wonderful treat. I reckon I've found a way to get them to leave me alone when I'm busy.

My department consists of about 15 mid-twenty year old transplants from all over the country (and a Canadian, eh). This quirky snack had them all up in arms. "THAT IS NOT A THING!" They claimed. Yanks. If you google Coke & Peanuts, the FIRST result is the Coca Cola website. If that's not proof that it's a thing, I don't know what is.

But their inquisitive minds got me thinking. What is the origin of this odd, yet delicious combination? It appears that no one really knows. Many, however, believe that it stemmed mainly out of convenience for the hard southern workers. Need to keep working while you eat a snack? Driving? Smoking? Hands dirty from working on cars? This southernism allows you to keep one hand free while enjoying the sweet and salty duo.

I remember doing this when I was growing up. Our parents would drop us off at the pool for swim team practice every morning where we would stay until they got off work. I'd drop a handful of peanuts into a coke bottle so I didn't have to worry about my soaking wet, chlorine hands messin' with my peanuts.

 One summer in college, I worked in a small mountain town in Grundy County (kinda Middle/East TN). The days were hot and long and many afternoons were spent on the front porch of a civil war era hotel in a rocking chair with coke and peanuts.

Now this pairing has sprouted many interesting recipes like Coca Cola cake with Broiled Peanut Icing and my personal favorite: The Tallulah (coke, peanuts, and whiskey). So the next time your enjoying some peanuts, plop a few in your coke. You can thank me later!