Lafayette’s Farm-to-Table Restaurants

    It’s easy to offer farm-to-table cuisine in Lafayette, for the region is ripe with farms, bakeries and butcher shops and a long tradition of living off the land and environment.
    Not to mention Lafayette is home to some of the country’s finest chefs.
    The kitchen of Jolie’s Louisiana Bistro is helmed by Chef Manny Augello, a leader in the local farm-to-table movement and a board member of the Acadiana Food Circle. Augello recently served up a “Louisiana Summer” menu at the esteemed James Beard House in New York City that consisted of smoked boudin with pork cracklings and summer tomato–white bean cassoulet and crispy quail with roasted figs, balsamic–cane syrup vinaigrette, sugar-and-spice pecans and fried chèvre, among other delectable delights.
    Jolie’s menu features seasonal, local produce and meats that changes constantly. One visit to their web site and you’ll see the specials for the week, including a house-made charcuterie plate.
    Jolie’s is located at 507 W. Pinhook Road in Lafayette and open for lunch and dinner Tuesday through Saturday with brunch on Sunday.
    The Saint Street Inn at 407 Brook Ave. near the University of Louisiana at Lafayette campus was founded with farm-to-table in mind. Owners Mary Tutwiler and Nathan Stubbs frequent the city’s farmer’s markets to take advantage of fresh produce and organic products and their beef and smoked sausage comes from a Eunice slaughterhouse near Lafayette. Specialty meats such as andouille may be purchased from Johnson’s Boucanière in Lafayette and tasso from Best Stop in Scott.
    The Saint Street Inn also changes its menu to accommodate what’s available seasonally, serving up sandwiches, salads, pizza, burgers and entrées. Diners will also find that week’s menu offerings on the restaurant’s web site.

     The restaurant is open for lunch Tuesday through Saturday and for dinner Thursday through Saturday evenings. They occasionally offer special events on the front porch or side patio, the latter of which also contains a small stage for live music, next to the herb garden. 
    For more information, visit www.jolieslouisianabistro.com and http://saintstreetinn.com.