An exciting new culinary program highlighting the Gumbo State's most celebrated chefs, restaurants, markets and festivals.
Choose a trail, hop in a car and take a ride through the rich culinary and cultural experiences only Louisiana can offer.
Visit the Louisiana Culinary Trails website.
Greater New Orleans: Music to Your Mouth
Like jazz, Creole cooking was born in New Orleans from a rich blend of European, African and Caribbean ingredients. Start your concert with beignets and cafe au lait from Café Du Monde for breakfast. Who can go wrong with a stop "by" Mother's for a po'boy or red beans and rice for lunch? The perfect finale? An elegant dinner at Emeril's, Galatoire's or Antoine's, the oldest continuously operating restaurant in the country. Oh, don't forget about the Northshore strawberries for dessert!
Plantation Country: A Taste of the Past
From Creole farmsteads to American White Castles, Louisiana's Plantation Country serves up phenomenal architecture and fabulous food. Local favorites include Hymel's in Convent (don't miss the turtle soup!) and Varnedoe's Carriage House Restaurant in St. Francisville. Baton Rouge offers everything from fine dining at Juban's to the laid-back Main Street Market. Historic Donaldsonville boasts Chef John Folse's Bittersweet Plantation, a must for fresh, local tastes.
Cajun Country: Amuse-Bouche
Rich flavors and Louisiana seafood are staples of Cajun cooking's etouffees and gumbos. To add some new flavors to your Cajun repetoire, go for the bowl of chicken and andouille gumbo. The best boudin is often found in the local grocery, such as Bourque's Supermarket in Port Barre. Dance it off at Mulate's or Randol's, Acadiana's landmark restaurant-dancehalls, and you can help but "pass a good time!"
Crossroads: The American South meets Louisiana
Louisiana's diverse foodways intersect in the central part of the state, where southern fried chicken and rice and gravy are as common as crawfish and jambalaya. For a good sampling of the region, try Lasyone's Natchitoches meat pies or some fresh-caught fish from the Toledo Bend area. Nothing beats a dessert of lemon meringue or coconut pie from Lea's in Lecompte.
Sportsman's Paradise: Fresh Ingredients and Metropolitan Menus
Don't let the name Sportsman's Paradise fool you into thinking this Louisiana region is not without big-city tastes. Peaches from Ruston and freshwater fish from the local rivers and lakes can be found on the menu at restaurants from Monroe to Bossier City, and the seared duck breast at Shreveport's Columbia Cafe is simply, well … sophisticated paradise.
There is so much to see and do in Louisiana. Here are a few ideas to get you started.