The Grapevine Market and Café, Donaldsonville, LA
The Grapevine Market & Café, 211 Railroad Avenue, Donaldsonville,
LA 70346 (225-473-8463).
Regarded by many lovers of fine cuisine as an unquestionable authority, Emeril is admired for his culinary expertise and undisputable taste. Emeril knows the best food and the best restaurants. In contrast to Emeril, I sometimes go to restaurants to enjoy the food and surroundings with no preconceived notion of what authorities regard as outstanding.
Two summers ago my daughter and son-in-law were living near the west bank of the Mississippi River. Although they resided in what was once the town of Modeste, their mailing address was Donaldsonville. I went to visit their animals while they sneaked away to Grand Isle for a vacation.
Every day during the animal sitting interlude, I explored the town of Donaldsonville, a magnificent place. Donaldsonville is so interesting with its quaint houses and historical buildings that a tourist would pay to go there if he knew about it.
The unpretentious settlement squashed next to the River contains monuments explaining its unique Civil War history, has a striking Catholic church with an imposing steeple, and displays its history of once being the capitol of Louisiana.
One day I wandered into the Grapevine, a restaurant with an unpretentious storefront on the main street known as Railroad Avenue. Inside! What a surprise! An art display that was worthy of paying an admission fee covered the walls. Everyone on the staff was friendly, not superficial.
The waitress seated me by a window, through which I could enjoy more art in the sunny courtyard and enjoy studying the cat living out there.
The warm French bread was irresistible. On the menu were too many good choices and no bad ones. Two men at the next table told me they had traveled from the southwest corner of Louisiana to have a great meal.
They were eating turtle soup. If they had traveled many miles for no purpose except to eat a great meal and chosen the Grapevine over all the restaurants they could have visited in New Orleans, I realized that I should try what they were having. I could not imagine that anything could taste better than the crawfish bisque I was eating.
I asked the waitress, “Could I please have a spoonful of the turtle soup?” She brought me a bowl of it!
The next time I visited my family, my son-in-law Mike had the pleasure of entertaining me on Wednesday, his day off. We went to the Grapevine, after I explained to him that his own little town of Donaldsonville contained restaurants of the quality of elite New Orleans places. He could not refuse to agree with me.
Although Mike and my daughter Christie have visited the Grapevine several times, she is still a Grapevine neophyte because she cannot pass up one of the salads. She really is not unobservant though: she taught all of us, including some of the staff, that the bread needs to be dipped into a little bowl of the house dressing.
Last year, a friend of mine, Dr. Paul Elliott, a Dallas Internet marketer—in my opinion the world’s most talented marketer—visited us in Donaldsonville. Paul is also the most proficiently-talking silver-tongued speaker—his specialty is copywriting—I’ve ever known; and he is a gastronomic marvel.
Although his mouth has never met food he didn’t like, he has the ability to discern what is really good. His taste buds are so acute that he can name every ingredient used in my dishes, sometimes as many as twenty.
His tongue went wild in the Grapevine. After we consumed the crawfish bread as an appetizer and the special of the day, he asked in pure Texas vernacular, “What is the piece of resistance?”
“White chocolate bread pudding,” Miss Effie replied without hesitation.
Would you believe that Cynthia gave me the official recipe for her White Chocolate Bread Pudding to share with my readers?
You can find your copy at my website at http://fwlcookbook.com/WhiteChocBreadPudding.
This Christmas, Christie and I made white chocolate bread pudding for her friend Melissa. We didn’t want to make the entire amount as I have been doing; so we shrank the recipe. Out of respect for the Grapevine, I dare not tell you how I divided the ingredients. When we make the bread pudding, it is so good that it disappears instantly, but its taste pales in comparison to la pièce de résistance. Although Cynthia told me exactly how to make the dish, I believe the secret is in the bread.
Mary Tutwiler, Emeril’s staff writer, has written a charming review of the Grapevine and posted it in “Emeril's Notes From the Kitchen,” on the website, ttp://www.emerils.com/cooking/archives.
She reminds us that the Acadians first arrived in New Orleans in 1755 after being exiled from Nova Scotia. One of the their early settlements was a trading post that became known as Donaldsonville, named after the land owner William Donaldson.
Donaldsonville, sitting in the heart of the Second Acadian Coast, was first a Cajun settlement and also a Creole community with sugar cane plantations around it.
She mentions several of the wonderful items on the Grapevine menu:
· Eggs Begnaud
· Shrimp and Okra Gumbo
· Duck and Andouille Gumbo
· Dickie's Barbeque Shrimp Pont Breaux Style
· Cynthia's Oysters Des Amis
· Eggplant Wheels
· Crawfish Pie
· Spinach and Andouille Stuffed Drum
She concludes by saying that the Grapevine is a place to celebrate “just because” and that she will stake her reputation on it.
The Grapevine is truly on the way to everywhere.
Mary Lou
LA 70346 (225-473-8463).
Regarded by many lovers of fine cuisine as an unquestionable authority, Emeril is admired for his culinary expertise and undisputable taste. Emeril knows the best food and the best restaurants. In contrast to Emeril, I sometimes go to restaurants to enjoy the food and surroundings with no preconceived notion of what authorities regard as outstanding.
Two summers ago my daughter and son-in-law were living near the west bank of the Mississippi River. Although they resided in what was once the town of Modeste, their mailing address was Donaldsonville. I went to visit their animals while they sneaked away to Grand Isle for a vacation.
Every day during the animal sitting interlude, I explored the town of Donaldsonville, a magnificent place. Donaldsonville is so interesting with its quaint houses and historical buildings that a tourist would pay to go there if he knew about it.
The unpretentious settlement squashed next to the River contains monuments explaining its unique Civil War history, has a striking Catholic church with an imposing steeple, and displays its history of once being the capitol of Louisiana.
One day I wandered into the Grapevine, a restaurant with an unpretentious storefront on the main street known as Railroad Avenue. Inside! What a surprise! An art display that was worthy of paying an admission fee covered the walls. Everyone on the staff was friendly, not superficial.
The waitress seated me by a window, through which I could enjoy more art in the sunny courtyard and enjoy studying the cat living out there.
The warm French bread was irresistible. On the menu were too many good choices and no bad ones. Two men at the next table told me they had traveled from the southwest corner of Louisiana to have a great meal.
They were eating turtle soup. If they had traveled many miles for no purpose except to eat a great meal and chosen the Grapevine over all the restaurants they could have visited in New Orleans, I realized that I should try what they were having. I could not imagine that anything could taste better than the crawfish bisque I was eating.
I asked the waitress, “Could I please have a spoonful of the turtle soup?” She brought me a bowl of it!
The next time I visited my family, my son-in-law Mike had the pleasure of entertaining me on Wednesday, his day off. We went to the Grapevine, after I explained to him that his own little town of Donaldsonville contained restaurants of the quality of elite New Orleans places. He could not refuse to agree with me.
Although Mike and my daughter Christie have visited the Grapevine several times, she is still a Grapevine neophyte because she cannot pass up one of the salads. She really is not unobservant though: she taught all of us, including some of the staff, that the bread needs to be dipped into a little bowl of the house dressing.
Last year, a friend of mine, Dr. Paul Elliott, a Dallas Internet marketer—in my opinion the world’s most talented marketer—visited us in Donaldsonville. Paul is also the most proficiently-talking silver-tongued speaker—his specialty is copywriting—I’ve ever known; and he is a gastronomic marvel.
Although his mouth has never met food he didn’t like, he has the ability to discern what is really good. His taste buds are so acute that he can name every ingredient used in my dishes, sometimes as many as twenty.
His tongue went wild in the Grapevine. After we consumed the crawfish bread as an appetizer and the special of the day, he asked in pure Texas vernacular, “What is the piece of resistance?”
“White chocolate bread pudding,” Miss Effie replied without hesitation.
Would you believe that Cynthia gave me the official recipe for her White Chocolate Bread Pudding to share with my readers?
You can find your copy at my website at http://fwlcookbook.com/WhiteChocBreadPudding.
This Christmas, Christie and I made white chocolate bread pudding for her friend Melissa. We didn’t want to make the entire amount as I have been doing; so we shrank the recipe. Out of respect for the Grapevine, I dare not tell you how I divided the ingredients. When we make the bread pudding, it is so good that it disappears instantly, but its taste pales in comparison to la pièce de résistance. Although Cynthia told me exactly how to make the dish, I believe the secret is in the bread.
Mary Tutwiler, Emeril’s staff writer, has written a charming review of the Grapevine and posted it in “Emeril's Notes From the Kitchen,” on the website, ttp://www.emerils.com/cooking/archives.
She reminds us that the Acadians first arrived in New Orleans in 1755 after being exiled from Nova Scotia. One of the their early settlements was a trading post that became known as Donaldsonville, named after the land owner William Donaldson.
Donaldsonville, sitting in the heart of the Second Acadian Coast, was first a Cajun settlement and also a Creole community with sugar cane plantations around it.
She mentions several of the wonderful items on the Grapevine menu:
· Eggs Begnaud
· Shrimp and Okra Gumbo
· Duck and Andouille Gumbo
· Dickie's Barbeque Shrimp Pont Breaux Style
· Cynthia's Oysters Des Amis
· Eggplant Wheels
· Crawfish Pie
· Spinach and Andouille Stuffed Drum
She concludes by saying that the Grapevine is a place to celebrate “just because” and that she will stake her reputation on it.
The Grapevine is truly on the way to everywhere.
Mary Lou
posted by Mary Lou Cheatham at 6:05 PM
