More Than a Distraction

“Bread and Circus Provisions started out providing different preserves and sauces at a farmers market in Lafayette, LA.

Stand at the Farmers Market with bottles of Chimichum, BBQ Sauce, Onion Jam, and Fig Balsamic Vinaigrette on the wooden box

After a successful Kickstarter campaign, they now grace a new brick and mortar location that packs a lot of character. The term Bread & Circus comes from a Roman method of politically appeasing the masses, not with good policy, but instead with distractions such as food or entertainment.

“Inside you'll find a hostess stand/bar combo,

shelves of their homemade preserves and sauces

as well as books about Lafayette's culinary scene,…a fresh cooler full of local veggies, a fridge full of Swamp Pop,

and a dining room full of atmosphere. Owners Manny Augello and Abi Falgout are dedicated to sharing their love of food with Acadiana, and it doesn't just come through, it slaps you in the face. Their infectious personalities and passion for what they do make their slamming food monumental in this community…” (biteandbooze.com).

“I love how this business took off, I really do. They were just a tent in a farmers market and after their Kickstarter campaign they’ve started moving into their new place…. Here is what I would like to point out. For those who aren’t familiar with Kickstarter. It is a crowd funding site where individuals aka ‘Backers’ can invest or donate to a given cause. Bread & Circus started their campaign with a goal of $10,000. They, with the help of 154 ‘backers,’ were able to raise well over $10k. In fact they raised $13,407, which in my book is a successful kickstart” (developinglafayette.com).

I had to stop at their stall the Saturday morning we visited the market and came away with a bottle of wonderful Chimichum (chimichurri) and three containers of their eggplant and black-eyed pea hummus. By the following Tuesday morning, we had consumed two containers of hummus and felt we needed some “for the road.” There is nothing easier for a light supper than hummus with pita or flatbread—or crackers for that matter. And so we made a pilgrimage to their permanent storefront.

While standing in line to order, the couple in front of us in line turned and asked if we had eaten there before. “No.” I replied. “I’ve just come in to buy some hummus.” Soon the couple were extolling the excellence of the food—especially the dinners. And we also engaged in a discussion of Lafayette’s food scene—all four of us love Steve & Pat’s Bon Temps Grill (the subject of tomorrow’s blog)and the city’s competitive food scene. It’s not unheard of for restaurants to open and close in the matter of a few months.

Our remaining time is too short to permit a return for a meal but it is on our list as one of our first stops (after 2Pauls, of course) when we return.

Before leaving Lafayette, we found the time to visit two of our other favorite stops—Sunny’s Fried Chicken in Church Point and Buck & Johnny’s in Breaux Bridge.

Having written about Sunny’s so many times in the past, I really haven’t much to say but did want to show you what the best fried chicken anywhere looks like. We have pretty much settled on an order. Chuck gets the three-piece white (two breasts and a wing) with fries. (These are buried somewhere under one of the piles of chicken.)

I order five wings.

We share onion rings which are second only to 2Pauls in Lafayette.

We bring home one of his breasts, two of my wings, and any uneaten fries and rings for supper that night. And I have learned that immediately removing the chicken from the bag in which we carried it home keeps the coating almost as crisp as when we dined in. And all of this food costs less than $17.00—and they don’t even have a tip jar at the counter.

And after our disastrous experience with pizza in Galveston we were eagerly anticipating a revisit to Buck and Johnny’s to sate our pizza urges. We were sorry that we didn’t have the chance to talk with Coatney, the wife of the late co-owner Johnny Raymond, but she wasn’t in on the day of our visit.

We shared their Margherita (while asking that the balsamic dressing be omitted)

and a sausage with light cheese.

Even though the crust seems to be thicker than we remembered, we managed to eat all but two slices, which became my breakfast the following morning.