Monday, March 5, 2012

Craving Cajun

Today's blog post comes from guest contributor Brooke Lane, an Athens Food Tours intern. She's given great ideas on how to satisfy a cajun craving in Athens, GA. Get your taste buds under control, because these locations promise to offer a delicious meal.

Brooke tells us all about it:

A visit to the colorful city of New Orleans is bound to leave one craving more of its unique culture; especially the food! The cuisine is nothing short of incredible blend of multicultural influences. Luckily for us Athenians, cravings can be satisfied at one of the authentic, New Orleans-inspired restaurants right here in town! The restaurants below serve up classics that are sure to please the palate of New Orleans natives and visitors alike.

Sisters Creole Market

Owned and run by three sisters from New Orleans, Sisters Creole Market has a menu featuring hearty staples such as Po Boys, jambalaya and shrimp etouffee -- just to name a few! Also available are specialty products such as creamy pralines and olive salad for muffaletta sandwiches. Be sure to stop by and get your King Cake for Mardi Gras! Oh, and they have sweet potato tater tots. Say that 5x fast!
George's Lowcountry Table

Located on Milledge Avenue, George's menu includes a variety of New Orleans favorites like gumbo with chicken and andouille sausage, popcorn crawfish, chargrilled oysters and barbeque. Brunch is something you don't want to miss either -- added to the menu are egg dishes including lowcountry benedict and french toast casserole. Yum!




Etienne
Most New Orleans dishes are a mix of French and other cultures, forming either Cajun or Creole cuisine. However, in the fancy restaurants of today's New Orleans', refined French food is very popular. In Athens, we find this refined French food on the corner of East Broad and North Jackson streets in Downtown Athens at Etienne Brasserie. Etienne opened in the summer of 2011 as a French restaurant serving lunch, dinner and Sunday brunch. Etienne stands as the only purely French restaurant in Athens; there are a few places that touch on French territory, but are not fully dedicated to it. The menu consists of very traditional, rustic French dishes such as coq au vin (marinated game hen, smoked bacon, onions and wild mushrooms), steak frites, duck confit, escargo, filet au poivre, hamburgers, baked pasta, homemade crepes, a meat and cheese plate, steak frites, poached salmon butter with a toasted baguette & salads. My personal favorite dish to rave about is the moules frites: made up of steamed mussles with white wine, garlic confit and fries to sop up the delicious juice. http://etienneathens.com
NONA                                                                                   As a downtown favorite, NONA offers all the quintessential New Orleans cuisine. Their menu has everything from Creole croque monsieur to traditional red beans and rice to eggplant pirogue. And for brunch, they offer beignets and bananas foster French toast among other satisfying selections such as the crab cakes benedict. NONA even has happy hour from 4-7 p.m. with $1 raw oysters and $1 beers! http://neworleansnathens.com/

Not only do all of these options serve delicious food,  but they each offer a unique atmosphere.These restaurants are sure to satisfy any craving. Be sure to check these local spots for some of your cajun favorites!

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