98. Acadiana
We all know why brunch exists on Sunday mornings—hangover cure. It’s got the holy trinity of morning-after liquids: coffee (for caffeine), water (for hydration), and booze (to ease the pain). Luckily, Acadiana’s got it all. Perfect, right? Yes. Except for the freaking jazz band in the middle of the dining room. Don’t get me wrong, I totally enjoyed the band since I was well hydrated and caffeinated already, but if you are looking to nurse your bad decisions and alcohol consumption then you may want to ask for a table on the patio.
That said, it’s otherwise a great decision for brunch. A word to the wise though—the menu is a set three course deal. Which is a lot of food, and (in my opinion) a lot of money. It’s $32 a person, which comes to around $45 once you get coffee and tax and tip, and that is quite a lot of cash to spend on a meal before noon. It’s not overpriced—you get tons of food and quality food at that—but still, almost $50 for brunch is a little crazy.
Acadiana plays to their strengths at brunch with plenty of gumbo, shrimp and grits and otherwise sinful Southern delicacies. For my appetizer I had the trio of deviled eggs because it’s not like I’m going to pass that little gem up. The eggs were more a serving dish for a trio of salads (chicken/shrimp/etc.) which were quite good, but I like my deviled eggs to be specialized with the way the yolks are prepared, not by the stuff piled on top. My cohort Rachel ordered the shrimp and grits because that’s what you order at a Southern restaurant, and she loved it. The grits were more corn cake than grit in my opinion, but whatever dude, it’s all about the sauce. For my main course I had the Acadiana Eggs Benedict, which was poached eggs over crawfish cakes doused with tasso ham hollandaise. Here’s the thing, that looked too good on the menu not to order, but after it came I realized that I don’t really like Eggs Benedict. That much cream and fat and butter that early in the morning is just too much. That being said, I thought it tasted great—salty Southern flavors at it’s best. But I only finished half. There was a potato hash thing served along side my eggs that was really just a throwaway and it tasted like it. The potatoes were overcooked and cold, but since I couldn’t even get half my eggs in my belly I wasn’t too upset to miss out on the so-so potatoes. Rachel had the gumbo, which I don’t need to tell you was pretty awesome.
I could have done without dessert since it was 11:30 in the morning and all, but included in the price means included in the price. I had the beignets, which were large and in charge. They were great, and I learned from Rachel—a gal with Lousiana roots—that the way you tell a tourist in New Orleans is if they breathe when they’re biting in to a beignet. The duststorm of powdered sugar is the fanny pack of the Delta I guess. Rachel had the bread pudding, which was good for the fact that bread soaked in milk is always good, but it wasn’t going to move any mountains.
Here is the thing, if you starve yourself for a few days before brunch at Acadiana, you will be completely satisfied. There is food coming out your ears by the end of the meal (the complimentary biscuits and jalapeno butter are too good to be missed) and that might be okay if you’re still nursing a hangover. I would not, however, eat brunch at Acadiana before the following events: running a marathon, weighing yourself, riding a roller coaster. Because really, doing anything now besides lapsing into a coma seems a little trying.
