Take me out to the ballgame

The Acadiana Cane Cutters baseball team opens their 2013 season on May 30 and offer a fun-filled summer schedule at Fabacher Field at Southside Regional Park in Youngsville, just a stone’s throw from downtown Lafayette. The team is part of the Texas Collegiate League, a summer baseball league designed to give the top professional prospects a chance to play in a minor-league baseball atmosphere while maintaining their amateur status.

    Acadiana’s roster will be comprised of talent from the University of Alabama, Southern Mississippi, Texas A&M, Old Dominion, Cal State Bakersfield, Nicholls State, LSU-Eunice, Southeastern and the University of Louisiana-Lafayette among others.
    Games include special events such as Thirsty Thursdays with discounts on beer, post-game fireworks on Fridays, Fun Jumps on Tuesdays and waterslides on Sundays. Like Major League Baseball, some games throughout the season have special themes, such as Scout Night, Military Appreciation Night and Bobble Head Giveaway.
    The Hampton Inn & Suites Lafayette is the Official Hotel of the 2013 Acadiana Cane Cutters Baseball Club. To access the Cane Cutters’ Baseball corporate rate, call (337) 266-5858 or visit the hotel’s web site.
    For the complete schedule, special events and tickets, visit http://www.canecuttersbaseball.com.

Memorial Day Weekend in Acadiana

    Kids are out of school, temperatures are rising and the fun keeps on this Memorial Day Weekend. There are plenty of events happening in Lafayette and surrounding area for the long weekend. Here are a few to choose from:
    The Cajun Heartland State Fair opens Thursday, May 23, 2013, and continues with live entertainment, carnival rides and more through June 2 at the Cajundome. Rides include the giant Ferris wheel, Crazy Mouse and the Mega Drop. Performers include Bag of Donuts, Wayne Toups, Geno Delafose and French Rockin’ Boogie, Louisiana’s Leroux and more. Check the web site for special offers!

Cajun Heartland State Fair

    Looking for live music? Downtown Alive!, a weekly family-friendly free concert series held in downtown Lafayette, presents Sassafras Jubilee at 6 p.m. Friday, May 24, in Parc San Souci. In Opelousas, the Music & Market Spring Series continues with Bon Soir, Catin from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Friday at the Courthouse Square.
    The Okra and Creole Zydeco Festival will be Friday and Saturday, May 24-25, at 203 N. New Market St. in St. Martinville, the first year in which the two original festivals (Okra Festival and Creole Zydeco Festival) are combined into a special two-day event that supports the African-American Museum.
    For families, there’s the Downtown Lafayette Movies in the Parc on Saturday at the Downtown Drive-In Parking Lot, 725 Jefferson St. “The Neverending Story” will be shown for $2 (free for children 5 and under) and food and beverages will be available on-site for purchase.
    Outdoor enthusiasts will want to paddle down Bayou Vermilion on Saturday, May 25, leaving at 8:30 a.m. at Vermilionville. Later on at 1 p.m. Saturday, Vermilionville offers its weekly Cajun jam session, so why not stay and dance! On Sunday, May 26, Vermilionville’s Bal du Dimanche (Sunday dance) features Carl Hollier and Cajun Company from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.
    To honor those who have served, the Lafayette Concert Band presents “Songs of Remembrance” at 3:30 p.m. Sunday, May 26, at East Bayou Baptist Church. The concert is free.

    Zydeco Extravaganza with music, food and fun begins at noon Sunday,  May 26, at the Evangeline Downs Event Center in Opelousas. The music lineup includes Keith Frank, Chris Ardoin, Geno Delafose, Brian Jack, Leon Chavis, Same Ol' 2 Step, Cupid and many more. Admission is $15 pre-sale; $20 at gate.

Lafayette’s restaurant scene continues to evolve

La Carreta

    This spring, several new restaurants have opened or announced openings, expanding the city’s already vibrant and award-winning culinary scene.
    Social Southern Table & Bar opened at 3901 Johnston St., “a chef-driven bar” that combines a sophisticated menu along with specialty cocktails and upscale beers and wines.
    La Carreta now serves up Mexican dishes and margaritas, among other drink specialties, at 400 Jefferson St. in the heart of downtown Lafayette.
     Brick & Spoon unveiled the first of what will be its five restaurants in three states with its Lafayette flagship eatery in the Grand Pointe Village shopping center of Lafayette. The restaurant offers a breakfast, brunch and lunch menu featuring fresh ingredients, local farm produce and the most elaborate Bloody Marys on earth.

Deviled on the Bayou at Brick & Spoon

    Coming up on May 20, the Lafayette version of Ruffino’s opens in River Ranch, a popular Baton Rouge restaurant specializing in steak, seafood and Italian fare. Titled Ruffino’s on the River, the restaurant’s regional specialties will include a shrimp corndog appetizer and Louisiana crawfish ravioli. Ruffino’s is helmed by Chef Peter Sclafani, named “Restaurateur of the Year” by the Louisiana Restaurant Association for two consecutive years (2010, 2011), Baton Rouge’s Chef of the Year in 2004 and the city’s Marketer of the Year in 2011.
     Lafayette was named the town “Best for Food” in America in the 2011 Best of the Road Rally by Rand McNally and the “Tastiest Town” in 2012 by Southern Living magazine.
    For information on Lafayette’s restaurants, food tours, Boudin Trail, recipes and more, visit http://www.lafayettetravel.com/eat.