Soupçon: Louisiana Food News for May
A dash of dining news—Baton Rouge's new Tsunami and Korean bowl spot, a tasting menu gone wild, and wood-fired pizza in St. Francisville
A New Tsunami
Same bright, delicious “Sunflower”-style sashimi and Hung lo rolls; new digs. Louisiana’s favorite sushi restaurant just opened its newest location at the corner of Bluebonnet and Highland Road—a much anticipated addition to the Tsunami family. The original Baton Rouge location is well-known as having one of the best views in town—with its stunning Mississippi River skyline. Tsunami-Highland focuses its energy on interior aesthetics, created by local high concept design studio Tiek Byday, who has infused the space with the aesthetics of otherworldly luxury. Stay up to date with the new restaurant on Instagram
A Tasting Menu Gone Wild
For years, the tasting menu at elegant Garden District dining staple Coquette was a beloved prix fixe option for New Orleans diners. It won’t be available any longer, but never fear: Chef Michael Stoltzfus is bringing that concept at an even higher level to his new restaurant Wild South, which opened at the end of February in the space that formerly housed Lengua Madre. Wild South’s always-changing menus—a sample of which includes dishes like lion’s mane mushrooms with black garlic and cured egg yolk; and an oyster roast with swordfish bacon, green garlic, and trout roe—are created to showcase the traditional ingredients and foodways of South Louisiana, with Stoltzfus’s elevated spin.
Here’s to More Kimchi
“We couldn’t help ourselves, we just had to stop by. You could smell this food a block away!” “I love seeing kimchi on a menu in Baton Rouge.” Such was the chatter ahead of us in a long line of folks eager to try whatever was wafting so deliciously down Baton Rouge’s Main Street. The culprits were likely the braised beef or stir-fried shrimp, but truly everything at Okki Tokki, a Korean restaurant opened last month, looked and smelled compelling. With a build-a-bowl dining set-up, a dizzying array of possibilities lay ahead. The choice between sweet potato noodles or garlic fried-rice, and whether to opt for gochujang vinaigrette or soy tahini, presents a challenge for those with indecisive demeanors. The beverage choices must also be taken into consideration, where else can you have a melon soda? Amidst many tempting options and a prime downtown location, Okki Tokki is already becoming a new favorite lunch spot in the Capital region.
Keep up with the restaurant on Instagram @eatokkitokki
Reimagining the Pizza Joint
In late April, Big River Pizza Company finally opened its doors to guests, following a period of high anticipation from St. Francisville locals and heaping helpings of love and hardwork poured into the project by owners Morgan and Lizzie Moss. With vintage and industrial style touches, what had been a long-vacant building formerly occupied by the West Feliciana Council on Aging
has transformed into a highly aesthetic indoor/outdoor dining space one might expect to find in a more metropolitan location. There is much to rave about at Big River, but its multifunctionality stands out. The pizzeria offers fast-casual, family-friendly dining which doesn’t sacrifice quality or flavor, provided by the wood-fired Marra Forni oven, hand–thrown sourdough pizza crust, and even seasonal salad options. Beyond fresh pizza, diners can enjoy hand-dipped ice cream cones from the adjoined ice creamery. Oh, and, snug in the back of Big River you’ll find Proud Mary’s, a speakeasy-style cocktail bar, which, with lush fabrics and animal-print carpeting, speaks loudly and clearly for itself.