Office Trip to Mizado

Since my LETSDEVELOP.TV portfolio included that I write a food blog, I figured Mizado would be the springboard to jolt me back into writing. It's been a while and my writing will surely be rusty, but I believe that composing these blogs is more productive than posting random Bored Panda article to the LETSDEVELOP.TV Facebook page.

Every Tuesday at LETSDEVELOP.TV, our boss, Jay, takes me and my co-workers to lunch, followed by a meeting back at the office. Before lunch, the five of us employees write about four or five restaurants onto the whiteboard and we vote on where we want to eat. As we voted, I predicted that our hunger would lead us to Mizado. I was fine with that. I've never been, so I voted for it.

We arrive after 12:30 to find sparse parking. As we entered the establishment through its foyer, the scent of a doctor's office filled our nostrils. It's a clean smell, but an odd one to smell in a restaurant. As we were lead to be seated, I noticed that the restaurant's interior did not emulate to the packed parking lot. Before entering, I had perceived there to be a heavy lunch crowd. I am seated with my co-workers and our waitress hands out the menus.

The paper menus displayed a clean design. They were square and folded in half to open up as a book. Before I read the menu, our waitress brings out complimentary pickled vegetables and fried garbanzo beans to the table. The vegetables were crisp, savory with some spiciness. The fried beans pleasantly contrasted it's pickled compliments with a light, crunchy texture. I begin to explore the menu and notice there are lots of taco items. This brought me to wonder exactly what type of restaurant this establishment claims to be.  Is it Mexican? Spanish? Central American? Latin cuisine? It seemed that the menu reflected more than one culinary culture. Though the term is not in the restaurant's branding, I consider this cuisine as a "fushion." I find that term as code for " this isn't 100% not authentic (Mexican, Spanish, i.e.) cuisine, but we have a chef who adds concept and cultural inspiration to our dishes and we're going to do whatever we want." OK, fair enough. As long as the food is good, right?

Jay joins us and we first order appetizers: melted cheese and pistachio guacamole. The cheese comes out first with impressive presentation.  The melted cheese sat in a skillet upon a wooden platter aside a half brown paper bag filled with tortilla strips. The strips seemed "store bought" but could have at least been fried in house. I didn't care much for the strips. The cheese was good. It was mild, but embodied intricate flavors. It hardened rather quickly. As I'm trying to scrape the savory, cold, hardened cheese off my plate, a man pulls a cart with the ingredients for guacamole beside our table. I've heard of this table side entertainment but have never witnessed the spectacle. He begins to mash the ingredients together so vigorously the mixing bowls slip and are caught before they fall to the floor. I enjoyed the pistachio guacamole the most out of everything I tried. The amount served was deceiving when we found that tortilla strips were placed beneath the dip to "bulk it up." The tortilla strips were not necessary for the consumption of my portion of guacamole. I was satisfied eating it straight with a fork. The avocado was not overpowered by salt, lime or cilantro. I could still taste the cool, nutty flavor of the fruit. The pistachios added a satisfying crunch among the mush.

Lunch is served. I ordered the pork tamale. I'm a big taco person, but I had a hard time getting over $4-$6 per piece tacos, even though I wasn't paying. It was beautiful as it sat on top of the corn husk. It kind of looked like a sushi roll crowned with tempura crunchy and sauces. It was actually topped with a banana chutney with a touch of cinnamon. I liked the sweetness of the banana and the savoriness of the shredded pork. It was an interesting change from the usual pork and cinnamon apple combo. The cornmeal was dense and as orange as sweet potatoes. I don't care too much for cornmeal filling, but it was fine. I exchanged half my dish with Jay for one of his duck tacos. Cradled in a white corn tortilla, the duck was tender, moist and savory. The meat was good, but I found it to be seasoned in more of a traditional way rather than with Mexican or Latin spices. Sprinkled atop was a pineapple salsa. I always enjoy a pineapple salsa. I'll take that on a taco any day. It was cool and sweet and paired well with the duck meat. It was a good taco, but I don't think it's worth the price. If the tortilla were made in house, then I would think differently.

Overall, the food at Mizado wasa bit better than I had expected. It's a little overpriced with their pre made tortillas, but it's made up for with good table side guacamole and the complimentary fried beans and pickled vegetables.  I would like to go on a Tuesday lunch again to try more items. I give Mizado a B-.

Thank you Jay, for treating us. We are blessed to have you!

 Pork Tamale

New Discoveries

So, it's been a long time since I've made a post in my food blog! Maybe this one will get the ball rolling.

To start off, I've been living in Metairie since October and have been exploring a lot of the food options in the area. I've found great, tasty bargains at Cansecos, great Honduran food in Fat City, and flavorful Viet food on Airline.  I know that I've barely scratched the surface in my food exploration.

Having bought my first home and living on my own, I've found myself cooking a lot more.  I've really hit the jack pot with getting a rice cooker for Christmas.  I steamed some Brussel Sprouts for the first time with the rice cooker then put them in the oven with some olive oil, garlic powder, salt and pepper. They tasted so savory and their texture was soft, but with an outer crisp, that I find myself thinking about them day by day. The crawfish enchiladas were a hit as well. I mostly cook eggs and bacon.

Cooking more has been saving me money...I think, but a local grocery store provides ready-to-eat meals at minimal cost. Cansecos is that place where I can go to the back of the store and find that hot, ready-to-eat meal I crave after a long, cold run. There are plenty of options including, but not limited to meat-pies, fried chicken, hamburgers, ribs, fried turkey, and BBQ chicken. One of the best deals that I've gotten there was a half BBQ chicken that only cost $2.99! That's if I'm remembering that price correctly, but I know for sure that it was a great deal! And it was good! I don't know what kind of BBQ sauce was used but it was brown, thin, and not overly sweet. Better yet, I think I ate off of it twice! All in all, Cansecos is my ideal place to go for a quick meal that's ready to eat or the place to grab a sweet potato or something that I need in a pinch.

It was before I was living in Metairie when I first went to La Nueva Hacienda in Fat City. I took a long lunch from work and met up with my mom at the fabric store before going on our Honduran adventure. No, really it kind of felt like I was in Central America when I walked through the doors of the restaurant/bakery. The aroma of fresh baked goods filled my nostrils and the sound of Spanish speaking soccer anoucers filled my ears. Knowing more Spanish than the little that I do know would have helped me at this eatery because very little English was spoken by the workers and the customers at La Nueva Hacienda. Luckily there was a written menu with pictures that my mom and I could point to and we managed to order our meals. Mom had gotten the fried chicken that seemed to be fried to a perfect crispness with little or no batter. It was golden brown and crispy along side a salad and red beans. I had gotten a plate full of steak accompanied by half an avocado, sour cream, a wedge of cheese, scrambled eggs, and black beans. The eggs needed nothing added for flavor and the avocado was cool and fresh. The meal didn't end there. We also had each a large side of sweet fried plantains and an order of freshly homemade flour tortillas. Right now, those are the best tortillas that I've found in the Metairie area. I'm hoping to find more like them! Overall, the meal was great. It was a higher priced lunch, but we got our money's worth because we had plenty of left-overs. All the ingredients of my meal united in flavorful harmony, especially combined in one of the homemade tortillas. I'd call it comfort food because that's how I felt while eating that meal...comfortable.

My boyfriend and I had made a second visit to La Nueva Hacienda, but it wasn't for lunch or dinner. We went there for the tortillas and tortillas is what we got...eventually. We needed tortillas to make crawfish enchiladas. Going to this restaurant/bakery may not have been the ideal place for ordering 20 custom made tortillas, but it was the only place I knew where to get them. I learned that day that walking into that restaurant asking for 20 homemade tortillas is like walking into a Copelands and asking for 75 biscuits to go. It was an awkward situation and the workers made strange faces as my boyfriend placed the order in Spanish. I felt like a fool for coming there and was dreading the time we took waiting for our tortillas to be made. Finally they came in all their warmth and homemade glory. The waitress handed them to us with a smile and a "Gracias" and we took them into my car and immediately tasted the warm, flat, homemade goodness called a tortilla. We were not disappointed.  My boyfriend, Ben, said we'd get tortillas from there again, but next time we'd be calling to place our order ahead of time. Ben explained to me how in other cultures, groceries are bought at the time they are needed and not ahead of time in bulk were items are used over time. This made sense to me and I finally understood why it was so awkward to place the random order of 20 small tortillas.

My favorite discovery, since living in Metairie, has to be Vietnamese restaurant, Pho Orchid Express on Airline Drive. Being one of the coldest days of this year, I may be paying a visit to the popular lunch time establishment. I don't know how long the eatery has existed in the location where it now resides, but it is clearly not undiscovered. The Express is always crowed during lunch time, even after 1PM. It is an ideal lunch place due to the name is holds: Express. Food is ordered and payed for before being served, which makes having lunch there fast, convenient, and easy. They menu is on a digital screen and printed menus, and specials are written on a chalk board. The menu is great which includes Viet style po'boys and tacos, pho soups, vermicelli dishes, crepes and even steak and eggs! The tacos, or "bacos" are a perfect combination of my favorite flavors. I order the pork tacos where the charbroiled meat rests on a sweet, soft bun, accompanied with cucumbers, pickled carrots, green onions and my favorite ingredient, cilantro. Four tacos come in an order that about $7. I like topping them with Sriracha sauce. Another lunch favorite of mine is the Combination meal. It includes a baby bowl of pho, with a choice of half the Viet po'boy (dressed like the tacos), spring rolls (not fried) or egg rolls which are fried crispy, and the meal also includes a fountain drink or iced tea. The combo cost around $7 as well. And a great combo it is! I order my pho with brisket and side it with a Viet po'boy with pork. My only complaint is that the sandwich comes out way before the pho and it leaves me wishing I could enjoy them together, but I always find myself having to start on the sandwich to save time. The pho always comes out hot and savory with a side of sprouts, mint leaves and jalapenos. I mix Hojin sauce and Sriracha sauce together in my pho to create a sweet and spicy concoction. I usually have to take some left over pho home even when it's the smallest portion served. I'm very happy to have discovered this expressway of Viet cuisine. This establishment reminds me of a cherished Viet restaurant in Memphis called Pho Hao Bin, a mom and pop run business serving Vietnamese, Chinese and Vegetarian cuisine. Viet food has become one of my favorite types of food and I'm glad to have it near home. Check out Pho Orchid Express for lunch or dinner!

The above material is quite a lot for one blog and probably should be broken up into sections, but it describes where I'm at right now in learning about the food scene in the area and my journey in further educating myself about food and different food cultures.

Steak, scrambled eggs, avocado, sour cream, cheese and plantains from La Nueva Hacienda.

Fried Chicken with salad and red beans  and rice from La Nueva Hacienda.

Tortillas from La Nueva Hacienda

Pork tacos from Pho Orchid Express.

Back to the Blog!

Thai Thai of Covington (formally known as Thai Flavor formally known as Thai Spice)

I've finally come back to my food blog, but for more than one reason.  During my recession of food blog writing, some friends and family came to me and asked if I was still writing my food blogs.  I was surprised to find out that more people read my posts than I thought.  So, in the back of my mind I figured I'd start the blog back up again, but that idea kept getting pushed onto the back burner, as I was searching for work as a recent college graduate from art school.  My laziness also held me back from getting back to the blog and that's a flaw I have recognized and strive to address.  But there are other reasons I wanted to return to the blog.

One reason had started with some news I received a few weeks ago, when I got a call from my mom.  She said a friend of ours, who had worked in the restaurant supplying business, told her some old friends were back in town.  Mom told me Mrs. V and Top were back in town running the Thai Thai restaurant formally known as Thai Flavor, which was the name of the restaurant when my family and I first met Top and Mrs. V when we first starting going to the restaurant.  To my knowledge, I believe the restaurant was first called Thai Spice. It was ran by Mrs. V, her brother Ricky, and her son, Top.  It wasn't till after the restaurant's name was changed to Thai Flavor when my family and I started eating there.  Ricky had been caught embezzling money that was supposed to go to insurance.  So he left the restaurant and opened Thai Spice across the street on Hwy 190.  That was when the original Thai Spice became Thai Flavor.

About half a decade ago. Thai Flavor was the first Thai restaurant my family had been to and we loved it.  I had never had fried rice so good in my life.  The rice was moist, and so flavorful, and had a new taste so pleasing to my palate.  That fried rice probably started my love for sweet and savory dishes.  The meat, eggs, and onions were savory as they complimented the sweet fried rice, raisins, pineapples, and Thai seasoning.  Fried rice was all my sister and I would order for a while at Thai Flavor, but it wasn't the meal I always got when I started going to there.  I always used to order the sweet and sour chicken.  It was a great version of the classic Asian themed dish.  My sweet tooth savored that meal and I loved the addition of pineapples among the onions, carrots, and sweet bell peppers.  After I had the fried rice, I found myself liking it even more than the sweet and sour and that was my go to meal.

My family and I went to Thai Flavor A LOT.  I'm sure we were there once a week.  Our friend, Ms. Jill, who worked for SYSCO, knew Mrs. V and Top well and thats how my family and I got so well acquainted with the restaurant owners.   Mrs. V and Top are some of the nicest people you'd meet.  They took good care of us at Thai Flavor.  They especially showed honor and love towards my mom's mom, my grandma, Me Me.  When we took Me Me to Thai Flavor, Mrs. V would bring out complimentary desserts.  The desserts were fried banana ice-cream and sticky rice with mango with a coconut creme sauce.  Those desserts were awesome.  Me Me especially liked the coconut mango dessert since she loved coconut, and everyone enjoyed fried bananas spring roll style with ice-cream.  My family sure did spend a lot of time at Thai Flavor.  The food and people were great. 

The Thai Flavor era ended when Mrs. V and Top returned to Atlanta, where she had grandchildren and family living there running other Thai restaurants.  It was sad to see them go, but good that Mrs. V could be with her grand kids.  Ricky then took over Thai Flavor and restaurant's name changed to Thai Thai by Ricky.  I think we went there once, but the food was not as good and that friendly duo, Top and Mrs. V, were gone.  We tried some other Thai restaurants that plentifully sprang up around Covington,  but none could compare to Thai Flavor.

Shocking and sad news hit the newspaper and local news a few weeks ago.  Ricky had been arrested for drug possession and distribution.  He later admitted to possession of child pornography and sex crimes against juveniles.  Thai Thai took a hard hit due to Ricky's reputation.  Business had come to a halt, but it was this incident that brought Mrs. V and Top back into town.  After the shock of Ricky's crimes and arrest, I was gladden to hear of the return of Top and Mrs. V.  My parents, some friends, and I went to Thai Thai as soon as we could, to meet back up with our old friends.  It was a happy time.  It was a time when drinks were on the house, and people were smiling and eating good food just like the old Thai Flavor times.  It is sad about Ricky, but he is now in jail and is not coming back to Thai Thai as far as I know.  Business had been slow for Thai Thai since the new management, but it's picking up a little at a time.  A reputation can really hurt a business and that is why I'm writing about Thai Thai and why I wanted to return to my food blog.

I am writing to let people know that Thai Thai is a good place to go to eat and have a good time.  I want people to know that the management is new and it's practically a brand new restaurant.   Mrs. V and Top are great and kind people.  They run a nice business and the food they serve is flavorful and great.  The cuisine of Thai Thai is just like what was served when the restaurant was called Thai Flavor.  I often find myself wanting to call "Thai Thai" "Thai Flavor" because it reminds me so much about the good old times.  I encourage people to give Thai Thai a try.  I recommend the fried rice, spring rolls, any dessert, the Pad Prick Khing, and the Thai tea.  Thai Thai is great for take out and for a nice sit-down dinner with family and friends.  You can find Thai Thai in Covington on corner of 190 and Three Rivers road going towards Covington. 

Thank you for reading my blog.  The other reason I wanted to start writing again is because writing is just a good thing to do.  It is productive and it gives myself a bigger voice and I can write about good things and Thai Thai is a good thing. 

T-Bone's. Go there!

There's a new steak and potatoes place in town, and it's called T-Bone's. Located in Covington where the old Semolina's used to be, you will find the most original hamburgers, steaks, dinner, lunch, and breakfast items.

There are so many reasons for giving T-Bone's a visit. The first reason for going to T-Bone's is that you will most likely meet T-Bone himself. If you're a hot head, he'll probably give you a sample of T-Bone's Devil's Spit hot sauce. Number two reason to visit T-Bone's is that you'll have access to the tasty home-made pickle bar. The bar includes home-made sweet and spicy pickles, Tabasco pickles, sour pickles, jalapenos, and even habaneros! The different varieties of pickles are also available for purchase by the jar to take home. A third and my most recently discovered reason why to go to T-bone's is that you can order a ice-cold bottle of Mexican Coke. Yes, tall bottle, real sugar Coca-Cola. If you like the real stuff, T-Bone's is the place to get it, but Mexi-Coke isn't the only legit item at T-Bone's.

Every choice on the menu is the real deal. At T-Bone's you'll find the best burgers in town. One burger on the menu is the Jalapeno Bacon Cheeseburger. Get that bad boy dressed and enter burger euphoria. You will find that the bun has been slightly grilled and generously buttered and speckled with pieces of jalapeno baked inside it. After taking a few bites, you'll discover that that hunk of burger is dressed with T-Bone's home-made pickles and you may find a lucky clove a garlic between the bacon, cheese, and beef.

A wide and unique selection of burgers is only a smart part of the bigger picture of T-Bone's menu. There are T-Bone steaks, sirloins, carne asada, and tacos to choose from, plus classic breakfast plates, pulled pork sandwiches, and a wide selection of sides. You'll find the right side item for every potato-loving palate on T-Bone's menu. You can choose from a baked potato, sweet potato fries, potato skins, and even baked potato salad to compliment your meaty entree.

So, if you're the ultimate meat and potatoes kind of person, then hurry to T-Bone's to satisfy your palate and your stomach. There is no other restaurant like T-Bone's in the area, or will you find the same unique, flavorful food and extra friendly service.

T-Bone's is new, so rush on by before the Bone gets a liquor license, and get free light beer with your meal. That's 20oz of free beer a round and free beer is the best beer and it tastes great with a burger. T-Bone's is a great place to eat at any time of the day and a place you'll want to eat at every day after you're first visit.

Here are some visual reasons to go see T-Bone....


The carne asada with sweet potato fries and baked potato salad.


Double Down Burger


Tbone's Tostada


The Jalapeno Bacon Cheeseburger with baked potato salad.


Steak Tacos

Urban Spoon Link

Best Pizza Pie on the Northshore

Within the past decade there have been many popular and local pizza joint chains popping up along the Northshore of Lake Pontchartrain. These restaurants include Isabella's Pizzeria, the Italian Pie, and the Mellow Mushroom. These recently local pizza sensations have been popular among hungry teens and local families for their family atmosphere, traditional menu items, and convenient locations.

These pizzerias have been successful in the Northshore area in recent years, but there is one pizza joint known to many locals to be the most unique since 1976.

The Pizza Man restaurant, in Covington, LA, is the Nothshore's oldest independent Pizza Parlor that stands out among the popular local chains of pizzerias in the area. Even though the Pizza Man has been in longer existence than myself, the atmosphere has not seemed to have changed since the year this pizzeria was established. Inside the restaurant, decorated pizza boxes line the walls along the ceiling of the restaurant with original cartoon drawings of the pizza man character making references to local and popular culture. With almost every visit to the Pizza Man, "Puff The Magic Dragon" can be heard playing from the old jukebox. Unlike other pizza joints in the area, the preparation of the pizza at the Pizza man can be witnessed by its customers through a window that reveals the kitchen. At the time when I was a child and to this very day, kids line up along the kitchen window to see red gravy drizzled upon pizza dough into the shape of a smiley face and dry dough thrown at the window by the "pizza man" himself.

Not only is the atmosphere at Pizza Man unique and different from other local pizza chains, the pizza served there is like no other in the area. The crust of Pizza Man pizzas are very thin and eating one of the pies sometimes require a fork on knife. My favorite specialty pizza at the Pizza Man is "The Pizza Palace." The Palace, as the specialty pie is called for short, is heavily topped with mozzarella, thinly sliced pepperoni, Italian sausage, blanched green peppers, home-made meatball, and onions. The eating of a Pizza Palace pizza is a rich pizza experience so good that you'll forget you're eating a pizza. There is probably more toppings, sauce, and cheese than there is pizza dough in a Palace pizza. This pie is also available with a sprinkling of garlic and it can not be compared to any other pizza made in the Northshore or any other pizza I have eaten in my life time. The Palace pizza should be enjoyed with Pizza Man's large Italian tossed salad that is big enough to feed a family of four, and a cold frosted glass mug of local Abita Amber beer from an ice-cold keg.

The Pizza Man is a local hole-in-the-wall legend of Covington, where I have made many fond childhood memories. It is a perfect place to take your kids for a family dinner. Pizza Man is located on 1248 Collins Blvd. and is open 7 nights a week.



The Pizza Palace pizza and a small cheese pizza next to it.


The kitchen window with children looking in with the pizza man inside making pizzas.


The large Italian salad in dim lighting.


Abita Amber in the frosted mug.


Decorated pizza box.


Pizza Man menu.

<a href="http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/57/777127/restaurant/New-Orleans/Pizza-Man-of-Covington-Covington"><img alt="Pizza Man of Covington on Urbanspoon" src="http://www.urbanspoon.com/b/link/777127/biglink.gif" style="border:none;padding:0px;width:200px;height:146px" /></a>

Bob's Barksdale

Bob's Barksdale is probably my favorite place to eat while I was in school in Memphis.

Bob's is a classic hole-in-the-wall, diamond in the rough, plate lunch haven. Located on Cooper in an orange brick building, Bob's is only open for breakfast and lunch but serves both from opening till close at 2pm.

Like a Waffle House menu, Bob's menu has two sides, one for breakfast and the other for lunch. On the breakfast side of the menu, classic breakfast items can be found including egg combination selections including steak and eggs, "hotcakes," reasonably priced omelets, and biscuit and white gravy plates for customers who have the palette for the traditional country dish.

My favorite breakfast meal at Bob's is a simple plate of two fried eggs over medium with homemade hash browns, white toast with jelly, and a side of bacon. What I had and loved to do with this dish is to take Bob's delicious homemade maple syrup and drizzle it over the whole entire plate. I highly recommend eating hash browns drizzled with syrup rather being doused with ketchup. Even as odd as it sounds to some, the sweet maple syrup so magically compliments the crispy, salty hash potatoes to perfection. I can't even eat hash brown without smothering them in syrup. I don't only anoint the hash browns with syrup, but also the eggs, toast, and bacon. As good as the the maple syrup tastes on salty bacon, its extra sweetness soaks into jelly smeared white toast that is then dipped into the egg yoke that floods the plate and is mixed with more syrup. This delicious homemade syrup truly ties this breakfast plate together. So give the syrup a try before snatching that ketchup bottle and giving your hash browns a tomato blood bath.

Now, what I really like about Bob's is its daily plate lunch specials. The lunch plate at Bob's come with one meat, three sides, and cornbread or rolls for under $7. Two different plate lunches and a country fried steak plate lunch is offered on the menu every day. Plate lunches at Bob's include meats such as fried chicken, fried fish, fried liver, beef tips in red gravy and noddles, baked chicken, and the stuffed bell pepper. Sides include delicious homemade coleslaw, new potatoes, mashed potatoes, corn, carrots, northern beans, baked macaroni, cinnamon apples, and apple sauce.

My utmost favorite plate lunch at Bob's is unquestionably the stuffed bell pepper that is served mainly on Wednesdays. Sometimes stuffed neatly, but mostly a delicious mess, the stuffed green bell pepper is stuffed with ground beef, onions, rice, and topped with red gravy. Though I thoroughly enjoy a Rocky and Carlos and a Di Christiana's stuffed bell pepper, I'd have to say that Bob's is my favorite. It may be because the pepper is sometime almost chopped up with the meat or that it's served with rice, but every time I ordered it, I never wanted to finish eating it. I wish that meal could last forever.

I can't publish this blog without mentioning my sister's favorite part about Bob's. The bread served with the plate lunches are a choice of homemade cornbread or homemade rolls. My sister is crazy about those rolls and I can't blame her. These rolls baked are in a cornbread pan and are slightly sweet but just barely enough so the fresh flavor and dense texture of homemade bread are complemented and just heavenly. A good slathering of butter on a Bob's roll just makes it complete.

As I mentioned, Bob's Barksdale truly is a diamond in the rough. When I say rough, I mean the booth seats are mended with duct tape, going to the bathroom is an adventure down a narrow hall, and the walls are covered with sports memorabilia, pictures of staff, family, and friends, and random art. If you live in Memphis or are just visiting, check out Bob's during the morning or around noon for a true home cooked southern meal.


The stuffed bell pepper with apple sauce, carrots, and new potatoes.

My friend, Jonathan, with the steak and eggs.

The fried chicken plate with mashed potatoes, baked macaroni, cinnamon apples, and rolls.

Beef tips in red gravy on noddles with coleslaw, broccoli, and new potatoes accompanied with a basket of homemade rolls.

The stuffed bell pepper with mashed potatoes, rolls, and northern beans, which tasted similar to white beans and rice. Third side item is not pictured, but was probably either coleslaw or apple sauce.

Sweet's Outdoor Grill

Sweet's Outdoor Grill is a great lunch time place for delicious smoked BBQ with sweet Louisiana flavor.

The most popular items at Sweet's are its smoked brisket, smoked ribs, and smoked chicken. Sweet's BBQ sauce is slightly sweet, slightly tangy, not too thick, but like no other as it perfectly compliments smoked BBQ meat. A wide variety of sides are offered at Sweet's including smoked corn, coleslaw with walnuts and raisins, baked beans with sausage and onions, and the best potato salad I've ever had. I highly recommend ordering a side of potato salad to accompany an order of Sweet's BBQ ribs. The potato salad beautifully compliments the flavor of the large meaty ribs. The potato salad with the ribs ties the meal together as the potato salad is cool, fresh, and perfectly seasoned and the ribs are warm, plump, and full of smokey flavor.

Sweet's Outdoor Grill is located on Government Street in Baton Rouge in a very unique location. There is no indoor seating at Sweet's, only a picnic table outside under an awning and food is ordered through a window.

This is a great place for a quick and satisfying lunch and now it is open till 6PM. The meat is smoked over 12 hours in a large smoker and the service is fast. Plates and sandwiches are served with a piece of white bread and you will be informed with what just came out of the smoker before you order.

The atmosphere of Sweet's is just as unique and enjoyable as its food. The restaurant is basically a shack attached to a plant nursery. By the first day you go, Sweet's outgoing owner, Rod, will make you feel like family.
Every time I go, Sweet's customers all seem to know each other and I'm always greeted with a big warm welcome.


This is Sweet's.

This is the order window with the menu next to it on the right.

The smoked brisket with smoked corn, beans, coleslaw, and white bread.

The smoked ribs slathered in BBQ sauce with beans, and white bread.

The smoked BBQ chicken with beans, coleslaw, potato salad, white bread and a cup of sauce.