Cafe Des Amis
Breaux Bridge, LA
Lunch
December 17, 2009
The Set-Up - On the road from Baton Rouge to Houston we stopped for a delightful lunch at one of our favorite outlying Baton Rouge-area restaurants, Cafe Des Amis in Breaux Bridge, LA. This quaint Cajun-flavored town, home of the annual Crawfish Festival, is just 45 miles west of Baton Rouge and readily accessible by I-10. The restaurant itself is on Bridge Street in downtown Breaux Bridge, just a couple miles off the interstate.
The Meal - I ordered fried catfish with crawfish etouffee (on the side) for $13 off the lunch menu. Trying to "eat light", Kay got two appetizers, the fried shrimp ($8) and a cup of shrimp and okra gumbo ($5). She saw the green beans dripping with bacon grease on my plate and quickly placed a side order ($3.50) for herself.
My catfish was a large, whole filet serving piping hot. The etouffee is normally a topping, so ordered "on the side" it came in its own bowl. I asked for and quickly received some steamed rice to complete the dish. Two entrees (albeit one small) for the price of one. The etouffee was better as a side dish then when I've had it as a main course, primarily because it was served hotter.
We both received a dollop of potato salad, which was very tasty and not overwhelmed with mayonnaise.
Kay got a lot more fried shrimp than she expected, but she ate them all. The gumbo was also full of shrimp and whole chunks of okra. Better her than me. I dislike okra in all forms, and screen out gumbos that have a lot of it.
After all this delicious food we didn't have room for a dessert that might be worth a special trip to Cafe Des Amis, and what drew me to the restaurant for the first time many years ago - white chocolate bread pudding. This amazing dish, which we first ate at a fundraiser for a downtown Baton Rouge arts and science museum, consists of bread pudding served hot with warm white chocolate sauce. One piece (about $6) is enough for two or three people.
We'll get to eat some soon because we're going back to Cafe Des Amis for their New Year's Eve dinner and party. The restaurant holds zydeco (a form of Cajun music) brunches on Saturday mornings, but we've never been organized enough to make the trip. We look forward to hearing the band and eating Cafe Des Amis's wonderful food that evening.
One complaint with the lunch menu is the lack of sandwiches other than various croissants.
Ambience - The restaurant also has some very atmospheric features. Since the beginning, the owners have invited diners/artists to sign their white-painted walls and columns with indelible (well almost) markers. Some of the signatures go back into the 1990s. The effect is charming without the kitsch associated with the usual 8x10" publicity photos or custom shots of the celebrity shaking hands with the restaurant owner.Cafe Des Amis also serves as an art gallery with rotating exhibits by local artists. Most of the paintings and metal sculptures are for sale. Our daughter's bedroom is decorated with several of the metal wall hangings.
The Check - Our bill for two for lunch (soft drinks only) was about $40 with tax and tip.
The Scoreboard (one-to-five scale)
Food - four (today's was a five, but other meals haven't been quite as good)
Dessert - five (for sure for white chocolate bread pudding)
Ambience - five (artsy, French/Cajun charm)
Service - five (our needs, including my "go cup" of iced tea were met quickly and efficiently)
Price/Value -four (a little pricy for lunch, but with a lot of extras)
Overall Assessment
Special Occasion
Favorite - trying out for Special Occasion status on New Year's Eve
Very Good
Good Enough
If Hungry Enough
Keep Driving and Looking
Other Issues - Downtown Breaux Bridge features street parking only. This could be an issue during crowded times, though we've never failed to find a nearby space.
Cafe Des Amis has a sister restaurant, the Grapevine Cafe, in Donaldsonville, LA, which is about 35 miles east of Baton Rouge off I-10. The two restaurants are very similar.
Travel Tip - If you have tim
e, head about five miles out of Breaux Bridge to the Lake Martin Wildlife Preserve, where there may be thousands of nesting snowy egrets and other waterfowl. You don't even need to hike. There's a nice gravel road around the perimeter.Cafe Des Amis Hours of Operation
Monday - closed
Tuesday - lunch only, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Wednesday/Thursday - 11 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Friday/Saturday - 7:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.
Sunday - 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.
www.cafedesamis.com
337.332.5273
fax 337.332.2227
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