Washington's Character, Part 2

Continuing my walk around Washington, Louisiana, I picked up the route in the center of town.

Main Street
Washington, LA

The work of the downtown shops bears no resemblance to the focus of the 1820s (when the town was already 100 years old).

Thrifty Way Pharmacy Building

“Although nowhere near the Mississippi River, Washington claims to have been the busiest steamboat port between New Orleans and St. Louis. Cotton and other crops from nearby plantations were delivered to Washington on flatboats, stored in warehouses, and then packed on steamboats for shipment to New Orleans.

La Belle Saison
French Antiques

“The first steamboats started visiting Washington right around the 1820's, and they created a boom that lasted for the next 80 years. But that changed when the railroads came through.

Wolff Hall, c. 1800s

“Amazingly, 80 percent of the buildings in Washington, its old homes and businesses, are historically significant, prompting comparisons between Washington and colonial Williamsburg, Virginia, but unlike Williamsburg—many of whose structures are reconstructed replicas—the historic homes and businesses of Washington are graceful, original buildings from Louisiana's nineteenth century past” (townofwashingtonla.org/antiques).

Plantation Antiques, c. 1840s

A number of antique businesses occupy buildings along Main Street and other streets of the town.

Nanny Belle Antiques and Collectibles

The French Farmhouse
French and Belgian Antiques (view from the rear of the former home)

The Old Schoolhouse Antique Mall
Has over 40,000 square feet of quality antique shopping and over 100 dealers

Ardoin's Grocery and Market

Washington Municipal Public Library

Immaculate Conception Catholic Church, c. 1851

Schmidt Hotel, c. early 1800s; now the Steamboat House

A drive around town on narrow, sometimes winding, streets took me past homes ranging from the rustic

to homes on well-manicured lawns

with old live oaks, many of which are recorded on the register of the Louisiana Live Oak Society.

Washington's rich heritage shines through its present.

Washington, A Small Historic Town

A drive through the parishes surrounding Lafayette Parish will take you through small towns, such as Rayne, Eunice, Grand Coteau, and St. Martinville as well as the lesser known towns of Sunset, Melville, Butte LaRose, and Loreauville.

Oftentimes these towns—and the thousands of other like-size points on state maps—are by-passed by travelers on their way to the more well-known destinations. With limited time, travelers miss the unique features of these “off-the-beaten-path” treasures.

On a recent drive to St. Landry Parish, I visited one such town, Washington, the third oldest settlement in Louisiana.

The first stop was the Washington Museum and Tourist Information office.

My walk around the one-room collection of items relating to the town’s history took me past displays of arrowheads and sharpening tools and a 1920 price list for groceries and other items from the Klaus dry goods store.

In one part of the room were some early household items and

in the corner was some farm equipment.

Another display contained an ebony-handled French gambler’s dirk (a short dagger), a $100 poker chip, and pre-Civil War Pharo cards (a widely-played gambling game in England; its name is derived from the picture of an Egyptian Pharaoh on one of the cards).

The medicine case of Dr. H.C. Milburn from the late 1800s seemed to serve as a portable pharmacy.

An article from the Lafayette Morning Advocate from June 23, 2008, caught my eye because it referred to the historic Eagle Hotel (c. 1825, with the brick hotel portion added in 1852). The former Eagle Hotel would be our next stop.

As I left the Tourist Information center, we found the town’s marker in an alley “waiting” to be restored and returned to its position at the city limits.

Across the street from the center, I saw a small version of a farmers’ market.

Nearby was the former Eagle Hotel. I think this historic structure, which is set back from the street, is now owned by a West Coast movie producer.

As is often the case with small towns, there is history, a story, a person, or a place that is missed when travelers pass through or pass around on the interstate. I (Chuck) grew up in a small town with some interesting bits of history unknown to all who missed our exit when former Route 66 travelers were re-routed around town by I-55. But for those who missed these bits:

“Reuben Flagg is attributed with delivering the first pork shipment to Chicago, in 1831, to a group of Methodists.

“The first frame home in Chicago was possible because Flagg hauled the walnut timbers to build it. Plainfield thus earned the nickname ‘Mother of Chicago’.

“Plainfield is also claimed to be the home of the very first ice cream sundae. Story says that a Plainfield druggist created the novelty after the urgings of patrons to serve something different. Topping some ice cream with syrup, he named it the ‘Sonntag’ after his surname. ‘Sonntag’ means ‘Sunday’ in German, thus the ice cream sundae was born” (plainfield-il.org/pages/villagehistory).

But, back to Washington, Louisiana.

To learn a bit about the town, I searched out a local resource. I met a police officer (whose name I did not learn). After a conversation about my walking around town taking photos, our travels, and sights to see in Washington, he recommended seeing Magnolia Ridge. This 60-acre plantation had over three miles of trails with gardens.

It had been open to the public, but was now closed.

Even getting photos from the street would have been worth the drive to see it, but as we talked, the officer saw the caretaker of the property and flagged her down. When Miss Donna drove up and I had been introduced to her, she said I could drive to the entrance, park near there, and walk the trails.

However, the parking lot was clearly closed and the entrance to the area where I was told I could park was gated. I appreciated Miss Donna’s invitation and probably could have opened the gate, but I thought that would not be a good idea.

But I enjoyed the view of Magnolia Ridge from the street.

I returned to the main part of town to continue my walking tour of the downtown.

(Unfortunately, the trolley is only available on a rental basis.)

Have You Seen the Car Commercial…

with Shaquille O'Neal where he says to close the commercial, "Like my Mom said the day I was born, ‘Wow, that's a lot more than I expected’.”

Hang in with me. We’ll get back to this later.

I have been trying to calculate the number of times we have visited the Lafayette, LA, area. I know that there were three short trips before we bought the RV and at least four—if not, five—after we became nomads. But somehow the Steamboat Warehouse Restaurant in Washington (about 25 miles north of Lafayette) escaped our attention until it was recommended to us by a member of the Lafayette Convention and Visitors Bureau.

“Construction on the Steamboat Warehouse began in 1819 and was completed around 1823. Of the original seven warehouses operating on the banks of Bayou Courtableau, formerly known as the Opelousas River, the Steamboat Warehouse is the only one still standing.

When the railroad chose Opelousas for its local route, the steamboat’s whistles were silenced. Since then, the warehouse has fulfilled many functions ranging from a feed mill to a general store. Restored to its original shape in 1977, the Steamboat Warehouse Restaurant remains a feast for the eyes…. It combines the rustic atmosphere of historic yesteryear with wonderful regional cuisine that is Louisiana at its finest” (steamboatwarehouse.com).

“’It was one of the first to use a renovated facility in south Louisiana, tapping in to cultural tourism before the phrase was invented or anyone thought it was cool,’ said historian and Washington resident, Jim Bradshaw” (countryroadsmagazine.com).

And rumor has it that the warehouse is haunted. “…(T)he Steamboat Warehouse Restaurant, located on the banks of Bayou Courtableau, is a wonderful location for any historian or ‘Ghost Hunter’….

One of the staff claims she witnessed a cart rolling several feet one evening during close out. Another evening a female staff member was pushed in the back while waiting for her order from the kitchen. The owner and chef (Jason Huguet) claimed that one night he came to the restaurant around 2:00 a.m. and while he was there he heard dishes ‘clanking’ in the restaurant. Another employee has seen a female and young girl walking along the bayou” (laspirits.com).

We arrived at around 12:30 p.m. and found almost every table filled. Given that the 2011 population of Washington was under 1,000, you know that this must be a destination restaurant.

And, like the Two Step restaurant in San Antonio and Buck & Johnny’s in Beaux Bridge, Steamboat Warehouse Restaurant is another example of modernizing an historic structure without sacrificing historical integrity.

The restaurant’s menu was posted on their website, so we had time to study it and arrive at a game plan—share three appetizers and one dessert. But upon seeing the day’s specials, Chuck (a.k.a. Mr. Potato) had to add a cup of the Loaded Baked Potato Soup. So this was added to the mix.

As our “first course” we had the soup along with an order of Shrimp Betsy—six large Gulf shrimp sauteed in olive oil, herbs, and spices and accompanied by bread for dipping. (Two were eaten before the photo was snapped.)

When the dish first arrived at the table, I thought that I smelled an overabundance of garlic. But that first impression was misleading. Instead, the broth was a nicely balanced mix of oil, herbs, garlic, and lemon. In fact, the broth was so tasty that—once we had eaten the shrimp and bread—I ate the remaining broth with a spoon. And the shrimp were, since we are in Cajun Louisiana, cooked perfectly.

The soup had a thick—not “spoon stand up straight,” but thick nonetheless—cream base with some small recognizable pieces of potato and was topped with cheddar cheese, sour cream, bacon (real bacon) bits, and scallion tops.

The cheese was placed directly atop the soup so that it became slightly melted so that we had little cheese threads hanging off each spoonful. And, of course, bacon makes everything better.

It was time for course Number Two and here we have to give props to our server—Jade Buller. She waited until we had finished the soup and shrimp before asking the kitchen to send out our next two selections. This gave us a few minutes to savor what we had eaten and anticipate what was to come.

The next round included an order of two fried Crab and Crawfish Cakes made with fresh Louisiana white crabmeat and crawfish that was served with homemade remoulade. These appeared to have been battered before frying in a method that I can best describe as “chicken fried.” They were lightly seasoned and the sweetness of the shellfish was the predominant flavor.

The remoulade was good, but like with the pesto accompanying my crab cakes at Buck & Johnny’s, I decided that the cakes needed no further embellishment.

Our fourth item was the Eggplant Belle Rose—two fried eggplant medallions topped with Louisiana crawfish, Gulf shrimp, and fresh crab meat, then smothered with a seafood sauce containing fresh bluepoint crabmeat. The eggplant had been lightly coated before frying and had a thin and crispy exterior.

Again, the crawfish, shrimp, and crab mixture had been seasoned and again not so seasoned that you couldn’t taste the shellfish. And the sauce was rich and creamy and contained small pieces of crab.

Since we added a fourth appetizer, did we forgo dessert? Of course not. And shared a slice of Bananas Foster cheesecake.

This was dense, creamy, and rich with a caramel-like topping and the cream cheese mixture was flavored with banana liqueur.

And now back to Shaq’s mama. I had checked Urbanspoon for diner reviews and was a little concerned to read comments like “…food was fair. Over priced for the portion I received. Service was very slow. Wouldn't eat here again.” and “Food is overpriced. Portions are too small.” And “Very pricey!! The food was not great…”

Well, we disagree on all counts. The food was excellent and certainly not overpriced for the quality. And our server Jade was first rate.

So, as Mrs. O’Neal said “Wow, that's a lot more than I expected.” And earns 5.0 Addies.

To review the role of Adler, Kitty Humbug, and the Addie rating system, read the November 14, 2011 blog.

I Was About Twelve…

Update: The post-surgery evaluation went very well and the pathologist’s report said that the growth was not cancerous. The robotic surgery with a competent surgeon at the controls went very well—no pain, no discomfort after surgery, and I was walking quite easily the day after surgery.
Other news: we were involved in an accident—no injuries to anyone, but it will require about a month to repair the damage to the truck (a really long story). So for the next month or so, we will be posting entries on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. The reasons for the abbreviated schedule are: 1) it is hot and humid in Cajun Country in the summer (three days ago, the heat index for Ville Platte, LA—about 20 miles from our campground in Duson—was 115 degrees), so extended time outside is unlikely, 2) we have visited this area for several extended stays in the past, so there are few new places that we have not visited, and 3) many of our stops at restaurants are at those which have become our favorites and the subjects of earlier entries.
So with that up-date completed, Kate resumes our writings with an entry about a recent restaurant stop.

I Was About Twelve…

when one morning my mother threw up her hands and declared “I’m not going to fight with you every morning.” What was the topic of our daily fight? Breakfast. Her insistence that I eat it and my equal insistence that I not.

Breakfast has never been my favorite meal of the day. And, if I am going to eat it, it has to occur at least an hour—if not more—after I have gotten up and only after a cup or two of coffee. And then it will probably only consist of a bowl of yogurt topped with some crunchy cereal (I hate soft foods) or a couple slices of toast with peanut butter—crunchy of course.

So I was intrigued when I read about a new restaurant—Brick & Spoon, in Lafayette, LA—that promised a unique take on familiar breakfast foods and whose menu I found equally intriguing.

As described at brickandspoonrestaurant.com: “We’re serving a complete, high-quality Southern experience for those who want accessible, affordable alfresco dining. Completely sophisticated and sensual yet totally casual, our menu features hearty breakfast and lunch fare paired with deliciously unique cocktails and built-to-order Bloody Marys….”

“New brunch spot Brick & Spoon hasn’t even been open in Lafayette for a month, but two more locations are set to open soon, one in Houston and another in Orange Beach, Ala. That’s because friends Ryan Trahan, 25, of Crowley, (LA) and Bryan Jewell, 30, of Rayne, (LA) want to quickly brand their breakfast-and-lunch restaurant. ‘We wanted to spread the Southern mojo,’ Jewell said. And with just a look at the menu and a taste of the food, it’s easy to understand why these young entrepreneurs are confident and why customers are willing to wait an hour or more for a table…” (Megan Wyatt theadvertiser.com).

“…The owners also designed the menu and they wanted it to be ‘as creative as possible,’ according to Trahan. ‘We want people to like what we do. We don’t want to be something that you can find anywhere. We want it to be unique to us.’

“…Along with brunch, comes those morning libations, and Brick & Spoon will have no shortage of those. The drink menu is full of infused Irish coffees, mimosa flights, and Big Spoon Bloody Marys with a choice of 50 different items to fill the concoction, including seafood, vegetables, cheeses, eggs and 10 to 12 different kinds of vodka, including some infusions with cucumber, bacon and others (Elizabeth Rose at theind.com).

The Bloody Mary has a base price of $10.00 for which you get your choice of vodka (one is a pickle vodka), five veggie “garnishes,” two meats and/or cheeses, and a choice of rim seasoning. Add-ons range from $.20 to $1.50 each. Depending on how elaborate one wants to be, the cost could increase dramatically.

I passed (this time) on the Bloody Mary, but we decided to share an order of Café Beignets served with fig marmalade. The order of four were good, but didn’t knock my socks off, and were no competition to those served at Café du Monde in New Orleans or the best we have found anywhere at the Coffee Depot in Scott, LA.

It was the list of brunch items that had gotten my attention and which offered a plethora of choices. Want eggs? Two choices are the Caribbean Scrambler (jerk seasoned chicken breast, onions, and grilled pineapple and topped with Monterrey cheese and mango salsa) and the Crab and Sweet Pepper Scrambler (sautéed crab meat, sweet peppers, corn, and house-made cheese sauce).

And their list of Eggs Benedict variations is one of the most creative I have seen and included: the Benedict Po-Boy with toasted French bread, grilled ham medallions, poached eggs, and traditional hollandaise; the Soft Shell Crab Benny with a cornmeal dusted soft shell crab, grilled ham, poached eggs, Creole hollandaise, and scallions; the Oyster Bed with cornmeal dusted oysters, tomato, pecan smoked bacon, and poached egg topped with rosemary hollandaise; and the Korean BBQ Beef with in house Korean BBQ sauce, red onion, mango salsa, poached eggs topped with traditional hollandaise.

I was really tempted by the Korean BBQ Benedict, but finally settled on the chorizo stuffed Breakfast Tacos. The menu described the shells as fried wontons, and although these did not meet my definition of a wonton, their use was sheer genius.

They were light and thin and so crisp that they tended to shatter when bitten into leaving a plate of wonton shards which I didn’t let go to waste. The chorizo wasn’t overly spiced which, at 10:00 a.m., can be a good thing. I would have deemed this dish spectacular if the cheese and lettuce garnish not have been so ice cold that they almost immediately lowered the temperature of the meat filling.

I was sure that Chuck was going to order the Stuffed French Toast Sliders stuffed with mascarpone and whipped cream cheese and topped with fresh berries, Fosters sauce (Is this similar to Bananas Foster sauce, I wonder.), whipped cream and powdered sugar. But then he surprised me and chose the Roasted Corn, Crab, & Sweet Pepper Crêpe.

An ethereally light and thin French crêpe was stuffed with lump crab, roasted corn, and sautéed sweet peppers and bathed in their house-made cheese sauce that contained more than just a hint of Cajun/Creole-like seasoning. As I have said on numerous occasions, corn and crab are one of the culinary world’s most perfect combinations, and the heat in the cheese sauce was the ideal offset.

Brick & Spoon’s menu doesn’t have either of the two standard breakfast potatoes—home fries or hash browns. Instead, many of the dishes—including our two—come with ‘Pomme Frites’ (French fries). You can get these either plain (my choice) or dressed with truffle oil and parmesan cheese (Chuck’s choice). What a mistake I made! The truffle and salty cheese taste of Chuck’s elevated the humble fry to potato nirvana. Make no mistake. This is not a mistake I will make again should be have the opportunity to return.

There were a couple of missteps—especially my ice cold cheese and lettuce—but we still are looking forward to a second visit and award Brick & Spoon 4.5 Addies.

To review the role of Adler and the Addie rating system, read the November 14, 2011 blog.

Home Again

I returned home on Friday after a successful robotic surgery. I have a follow-up appointment in two weeks and expect that to go well. No traveling for at least a couple of weeks when I have a follow-up appointment. So, we won't be writing for awhile.