Denny Culbert
“I find that restaurants do one of two things: they either take you further into a time or a place, or further out of a time or a place.” Vestal, Chef Ryan Trahan told me, is meant to be an escape.
Inside the much anticipated downtown Lafayette restaurant—which opened late-April—a hand-painted mural by artist Jason Tait illustrates a scene of revelry—a depiction of the Roman festival Vestalia, which honored Vesta, the goddess of the hearth, home, and family. Limestone plaster walls and zellige tile are softened by jewel-toned velvet cushions and mosaic tabletops. The domed ceiling is an Art Deco nod to the restaurant’s predecessor—the oldest bar in Lafayette, Antlers (opened in 1921). And, on a busy night—as almost every night has been since it’s opened—the room vibrates in conversation, glimmering against the warmth emitted at its center: a massive wood-burning hearth.
Denny Culbert
The entire space was the fruit of creative collaboration, but Trahan attributes much of the vision to Houston interior designer Amanda Medsger. “We wanted the restaurant to center around a fire,” he said. “Fire is something that always brings people together, we find warmth from a fire. We wanted to create something really inviting and soothing for people to kind of escape from their every day. Amanda took a lot of inspiration from that, and from the seafood, trying to create a place that was kind of like having a dinner party or house party behind-the- scenes of a mansion.”
[Read about Chef Ryan Trahan's previous restaurant, Dark Roux, here.]
Modernity sings in the space, elevating the seafood and steak concept into totally new territory for Lafayette. Trahan’s menu invites exploration, with a selection of intriguing small plates the likes of ceviche served with salted strawberry, mint, coriander, and lime; squash served with ricotta, brown butter, and sunflower seeds; grilled pork ribs with tamarind, peanut, and coconut cracklin’; and Trahan’s favorite: Wagyu beef tartare with wasabi, oyster mayo, capers, and shallots.
Denny Culbert
And while it would be easy to linger over the share-able delicacies of the menu’s front cover (paired with one of cocktail connoisseur Paige Hanson’s concoctions—I recommend the Mr. Lafayette, myself), it really is worth your belly-space and your time to flip it over for the main courses. When I visited recently, I paired the U10 shrimp and grits with the smoked beef cheek Bolognese lasagna, both options rich in comfort and surprises of their own. But word on the street is that the real gems of Vestal are its steaks—from the forty ounce dry-aged lone bone tomahawk to the Angus coulotte. And each cut is served with bone marrow herb butter.
[Get some of Chef Ryan Trahan's recipes here: Chargrilled Oysters and Pampano en Papillote.]
“There’s definitely a heavy French, Italian, Japanese influence,” said Trahan. “But it’s always grounded in Southern sourcing, ingredients, and techniques.” The oysters are from the Gulf, he said, as is much of the seafood. The caviar is from New Iberia, and the cheese is from St. Martinville. “What we can’t source locally, like seaweed for example, we either make ourselves or source the best product possible.”
Denny Culbert
Originally scheduled to open in early 2020, Vestal has already seen its fair share of challenges and setbacks between the pandemic, slowed construction, and delayed shipments. The time granted, though—while frustrating—allowed the team to be really thoughtful about the details, said Trahan. All of the plates, for example, were handmade by a ceramist in New York. The coffee mugs were made by Susan Craig from Pottery Alley in Lafayette. The barware was sourced from flea markets and antique halls across Louisiana. “The time,” said Trahan, “gave us a chance to really refine and create the Vestal experience we wanted.”
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