Lafayette, Louisiana, Named ‘Tastiest Town in the South’

by Jessica Festa on

Looking to plan a delicious food-focused trip? While the southern United States is well-known for its mouth-watering soul food and rich flavors, Southern Living has recently named Lafayette, Louisiana, the ‘Tastiest Town in the South.” The criteria for choosing the winner was based on how the food identified the culture, how the area’s cuisine influences the local community and tourism, an array of price points, sustainability, media buzz on local chefs and an abundance of food-related events and festivals.

Writers Senior Editor Paula Disbrowe, “Lafayette’s distinct culinary identity as the capital of Cajun country, its spicy, sausage-laden roots, and a new generation of locals devoted to preserving their heritage while putting a fresh spin on tradition have made it an incredibly satisfying place to eat.”

So, where should you go to get some of the city’s best cuisine? First there is the French Press Cafe, a trendy eatery serving dishes like smoked duck breast with sweet potato spaetzel and prime filet mignon with blue cheese, fried poached egg, caramelized onion, potato pancakes and a Cognac demi. Their signature dish is Sweet Baby Breesus – biscuits stuffed with bacon, cane syrup and fried boudin. There’s also Johnson’s Boucanière, a BBQ joint serving items like fried boudin-stuffed grilled cheese with BBQ sauce, slow-smoked beef and pork sandwiches loaded with the works and smoked brisket cooked for 13 hours.

Want to taste the flavors of Lafayette for yourself? The magazine is running a contest until April 30, 2012, where one lucky traveler can win $2,500 toward a trip to their favorite tasty town. For details and to enter, click here.

[Photo via French Press Cafe]

Video: Scenes From Greater Yellowstone

by Kraig Becker on

Yellowstone National Park and the surrounding wilderness is one of the most beautiful destinations in all of North America no matter what time of year you visit. For outdoor lovers and adventure travelers it is an amazing place that deftly blends breathtaking views, exceptional wildlife encounters and crazy geothermal features that are unlike anything else on Earth.

Last year cinematographer and photographer David Stubbs spent a considerable amount of time in the area working on various projects. He compiled some of his footage into the video below, which serves as an excellent two-minute example of what makes the Greater Yellowstone region such a great place for travelers. The video features snow capped peaks, time-lapse images of geysers, sparring moose and so much more.


Creative Airline Pricing, Cost Cutting A Sign Of The Times

by Chris Owen on

Recent airline pricing changes have brought some lower fares through some creative re-categorization of seats with mixed results. Before, buyers of air tickets could count on the good seats being in first or business class and the bad seats in coach. Now, airlines are breaking it down further with seating options that offer seats a bit better and worse than the standard fare.

Delta’s new sub-economy ticket most likely gets penny-pinching travelers a middle coach seat, formerly known as the worst of the worst, at a discount. The fare is non-refundable, no changes can be made and seating assignment happens at the airport.

“If you like sitting in middle seats and having your travel party split up, you’ll love Delta Air Lines‘ new Basic Economy class,” says the Orlando Sentinel’s Ed Perkins.

Going the other direction, US Airways offers ChoiceSeats, which are for sure not a middle seat and are mostly window and aisle seats towards the front of coach. Some may have more legroom via a seating configuration change or their location in exit rows. All get priority boarding, eliminating a fight for overhead storage space.

I took the bait on US Air’s ChoiceSeats from Orlando to Amsterdam last week thinking, “Hey, for $50 the extra legroom will surely be worth it.” On the first leg of that flight from Orlando to Philadelphia my hunch was right. The airline had reconfigured seating to have two rows of seats where three were previously, allowing for a good deal of extra space.But on the next long leg from Philadelphia to Amsterdam I had no such luck. All “Choice” meant was priority boarding and no extra space. Oddly, seating diagrams on both flights looked exactly the same.

Talking with a passenger who had flown using US Air’s “Choice” option before, I was told with an eye roll, “It’s kind of a crap shoot. Sometimes there’s more room, other times not, just kind of depends. Wait ’till they bring dinner.”

Sometimes it’s hard to hear correctly at 39,000 feet, but I was not real sure why this guy threw in the comment about dinner. Later, I found out.

The choice was chicken or pasta. When the flight attendant came by I asked, “What should I choose, Chicken or Pasta?” Her answer: “Your best bet is to go out for dinner.”
This was dead on accurate.

Was it a big deal? No, not really in the grand scheme of things. The flight arrived early and my luggage made it with me. That should be good enough.

Airlines are cutting back on non-essential services and making moves like offering different categories of seating in an attempt to provide rock-bottom low fares. If they can do that while maintaining and improving on-time service and luggage handling, this should be good enough.

“Airlines are finally catching up with what their promise is, which is getting you there on time 80 percent of the time with your bags,” said Dean Headley, a business professor at Wichita State University in an ABC News article. “They realize that people are paying a lot more money, and the system is more complex than it was, and they have to do a better job,” he said. “To their credit, I think they are doing a better job.”


Flickr photo by redlegsfan21

New York’s Longest-Running Craft Beer Festival Takes Place This Month

by Jessica Festa on

For the past 15 years, the New York Craft Beer and Fine Food Festival (TAP New York) has been taking over Hunter Mountain in New York. On April 28 and 29, the event is back again with expectations to be the biggest festival to date.

TAP New York began as a small gathering of about 200 beer enthusiasts and a few breweries. Over the years, the occasion has grown enormously. Now, the entire Base Lodge of Hunter Mountain is needed to hold all of the attendees. Additionally, this month over 70 breweries will be representing more than 140 individual beers so you’ll be able to sample both old and new favorites.

According to TAP New York, “The resurgence of craft brewing, spawned in part by the creative brewers at Saranac and Boston Brewing, has lead to fuller bodied, flavorful brews featuring rich colors, bold flavors, and imaginative ingredients. New craft breweries are opening every year, and we’re both happy and proud to welcome them aboard.”

For those who like to nosh while drinking, this year’s food theme is Caribbean Food. Delicious cuisine and cooking demonstrations will be part of the programming. Also, a beer competition run by qualified judges will award the best breweries and individual craft beers in the state.

Tickets are $64 for Saturday, $52 for Sunday and $105 for the entire weekend. A designated driver pass is $20, regardless of date. To purchase, click here. If you would like to register your brewery for the event, click here.

Chef Paul Virant On Working With The New Hotel Lincoln In Chicago

by Grant Martin on

Chicago‘s Hotel Lincoln opened this March, the relaunch of a pillar in the Windy City. This version of the hotel brings new investors and a whole new look, including tight collusion with the neighboring well acclaimed restaurant, Perennial Virant.

We stopped in for a visit while construction was still underway and grabbed a drink with Paul Virant, the head of Perennial Virant, Vie and a dozen other projects, to see what he had in store for the relationship and get a feel for the space.

The hotel is now fully open for business.

***

Drinks at the Perennial Virant, Lincoln Park, Chicago.

Paul Virant: You know my oldest son’s name is Lincoln. He’s kind of feeling like it’s named after him.

Grant Martin: You let him believe that?

PV: Oh! Of course.

GM: Did you know that the hotel was going to be opening when you got involved with Perennial Virant?

PV: Yeah, from when we formed a partnership with Rob and Kevin at the Boka Group I always knew that it was going to open up as well.

GM: Part of the master plan…

PV: When Perennial opened up in 2008 there was a group that owned the space and they were going to build it out with a hotel. That was always the plan. Those folks went to jail. They were some shady finance people. So another investment group bought the building and then brought in Joie de Vivre as the hotel group that’s going to manage. It’s cool because they renamed it its original name. Have you seen it recently?

GM: Not since I visited a few weeks back.

PV: You should see it! You can go around the bar and take a look at it. It’s got this very historic charm to it.

%Gallery-151920%GM: I liked the tour. It’s hard to work with some of the layout they had. The rooms were originally a bit smaller – it was a Days or Comfort Inn earlier.

PV: It was a Days Inn.

GM: Transitioning from that layout to a boutique property is a little bit harder because you need more space and a wider footprint to appeal to a modern yuppie demographic.

PV: I think there is some truth to that. If you look at a lot of major city hotels – like in New York – many city rooms are small now. But they’re designed really well.

GM: So how did you get into this arrangement?

PV: I knew Kevin Boehm [of the Boka Restaurant Group]. I have my other place, Vie in Western Springs. And I had been actively looking for restaurant space in the city for a couple of years prior. Kevin also knew that and when Ryan Poli left the former property he called and said ‘Hey, what do you think about closing [Perennial], partnering and reopening as a new restaurant – with us – at no expense to you?’ It was a great opportunity.

GM: Working with a hotel directly like this – how does it affect your brand? Does it dilute it?

PV: It could potentially, but the reputation of the Boka Group is entirely solid so I was never concerned with partnering with them.

I think hotels in general have really evolved into not only a place to stay but a destination for dining. There have been a lot of partnerships with great chefs and big hotles all over the world that do a pretty solid job. Why shouldn’t there be the same sort of integrity that’s put into a small restaurant and hotel?

GM: So you think that the trend of top line chefs working with hotel brands will continue?

PV: Look at Sandro Gamba, who was the original chef at the Park Hyatt here – the Elysisan having Ria on premise, what Graham Elliott did for Avenues. It’s a challenge, but I look at it as more of an opportunity to preach a bit about what my philosophy is towards food and the kind of stuff that I want to do.

GM: So will you have the exact same menu between the restaurant and in-room meals?

RV: The way that in-room dining works is that it’ll be offered during restaurant hours. The restaurant menu will be offered in the rooms with some exceptions. If there’s no issue with compromising integrity or quality then I’ll say that we can do it.

In any relationship there’s got to be some compromise. But for the most part – as far as the food goes, I’m calling the shots. [Boka] is excited about having a caliber of restaurant like this.

GM: So how will your focus change? Will it shift with a hotel clientèle in play?

PV: There won’t be a big difference. [Perennial Virant] is going to become a seven-day operation, so that encompasses a lot of different types of food. It’s largely a matter of staffing and opening up a little earlier.

GM: But you do expect traffic to pick up with the hotel opening.

PV: I think there are statistics that claim that 20 percent of the hotel’s occupancy will visit the restaurant. That’s a lot of growth.

GM: You’ll be spending the bulk of your time on site here then?

PV: My other restaurants are well staffed and I spend a lot of my time down here. My ultimate goal would be to promote a head chef here so that I can pursue some other things. One of the things I’m looking to do is start a farm. I also have a canning book coming out in April that’s all about canning and preserving.

GM: Great, well after the tour we’ll stick around for dinner.

PV: Thanks for stopping by!

[all photos by Erin Drewitz]