Bourbon Street Bistro, NOLA Comes to LaPorte

THIS RESTAURANT IS NO LONGER OPEN - John has moved to The Bistro On the Greens in LaPorte - A review of that is coming soon. In the mean time enjoy this blog as an intro into Moultrie's world. 

There is little need to fly down to New Orleans in order to catch the NOLA vibe. Simply get in your car and drive to Bourbon Street Bistro located at 701 Lincoln way, La Porte, Indiana. 

You will be welcomed by deep, rich woodwork, tin press ceilings, antique slot machines, open staircase, and an over-sized pot belly stove. Let yourself be lulled by a vintage Creole atmosphere.  Be transformed and transported to a by-gone era. Tennessee Williams couldn’t have designed the scene any better. Imagine Vivian Leigh and Brando crying out over the banister and streetcars rushing by you as you await the first course. There is a spirit of the past that has been preserved in this Vaudevillian theatre formerly known at Etropal and John Moultrie’s sense of style and flair ensures that spirit of yesteryear is pervasive throughout his establishment. 

A word of warning: Don’t come to the Bistro if you think you are going to be watching calories. Be ready to indulge and treat yourself to a homegrown Mardi Gras. Moultrie’s homegrown recipes hail from a rich tradition in Cajun cuisine, seasoned with love by his ancestors. Couple that with his vast experience in the culinary industry and voila it combines to make the experience memorable and delish!

We began our gastronomical journey with a Hurricane Rum Punch, a NOLA tradition. Next, by recommendation of the staff we enjoyed Fried Green Tomatoes, which were perfectly fried and evoked comments including “mmm, nice, mmm, yes! Shall we place another order?”

Next came my order of Gumbo Ya Ya, which was very savory and delightfully rich with all the traditional Cajun ingredients of onions, celery, sausage and chicken in a traditional broth.  My fellow diners feasted on Blackened Salmon, Kitchen Jambalaya, and my dish was Bourbon Street’s soon to be famous Bourbon Street Smothered Chicken. Each entrée came with a superb corn bread mini-loaf. All in all the food was prepared fresh and served up hot and fast.

John Moultrie’s commitment to excellent and a desire to bring high quality entertainment, food and overall experience to the people of La Porte and surrounding areas deserves a huge round of applause. The next time I go I will have to find a way to save room for the Bourbon Street Bread Pudding. I have often said, you can tell the truest culinary ability of a restaurant by how good their bread pudding and other house made desserts are, next to that is their soup. It might be time to add cornbread to that list.

Bourbon Street Bistro offers live entertainment on weekends. While they do not take reservations, one can always try by messaging the Bistro via their Facebook page. Don’t wait too long to get in there on the weekends, it fills up fast!

Bourbon Street Bistro is currently open from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday and from 4:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. Thursday through Sunday.  For more information, call (219) 575-7261 or visit facebook.com/bourbonstreetbistro.

Bartlett's; A Buckin' Good Time, Indeed!

I first meandered onto Rt. 12, in the spring of 08’ while looking for a new place to call home. I stopped in at Chesterton Indiana and was immediately enamored with the small town charm and thought, “yeah, this would work.” But then I remembered just a little bit further north was a campground I had stayed at in 05’ and a nature retreat I had taken part in down the road on Rt. 12. Curiosity of the past got the best of me and I found my way to 12 heading east. In many ways I never turned back to the south or to the west. Now, right off of 12 is where I call home! So, then where does Bartlett’s come into play?

There have been far too many times Saturday Night Stever and I have traveled along 12. The scenic route is breathtaking no matter what season you are in. Nature unfolds before your eyes. Travelers from near and far use this simple 2 lane highway as their thoroughfare and just like us, their senses are awakened. No hustle, no bustle, just you and Ahhh!

There is one place on the south side as you enter into the Beverly Shore section of 12 that has piqued our interest for a couple of years now. A small establishment with a big buck downing a beer. Aside from the interesting logo, is that the parking lot was always full! To me that it is an indication that either they have really good beer, or really good food, or maybe both! Well, this past Friday, the Buck Beckoned and we took the bait.

Upon walking in to Bartlett’s we discovered an establishment that was a mix of Northwood’s traditional and Lincoln Park, artesque. Our server was Melanie. She was very kind, helpful and knew the lay of the land. Steve became elated as he discovered that they carry Hacker Pschorr Weiss. A glorious wheat beer that is rarely found in these parts! After delivering our libations, our server started us off with a “charcuterie plate” which was spectacular. The selection of cheeses, sliced beef tenderloin, french bread, assorted pickled treats and roasted peach and jalapeno’s was a perfect addition to the selection already mentioned. In addition to these delicacies was elk sausage. While Steve shared that the elk was good, I did not indulge as that is not my thing, but to the more adventurous it is very good to know.

For our main courses we chose recommendations by our server. Her suggestions were based upon the more traditional and long standing items on the menu. Before I go too deep into our eats, let me make mention of the very well-laid out menu. Very nice for someone who is dining at the place for the first time. Okay, on to the eats…Steve ordered a chicken schnitzel, which he found to be delightful. As for me, I had a hankering for steak. The beef tenderloin on the charcuterie plate,(which was outstanding) left me wanting a little more of the red. So, I went with the bistro steak frites. Needless to say, I wasn’t as satisfied as Steve was with his, or I was with the charcuterie board. It isn’t that it was not cooked correctly, or anything like that, it is just that there were way too many shoestring potatoes and it overtook the entire tasting. I had to dig too deep to get to the vegetables and the meat to potato ratio was way off kilter. Equally the vegetables served did not blend well with the frites or the steak. Aside from that the experience was outstanding.

One of the things that stand out above all the aforementioned was that Hugh Kirk, the dining room manager took the time to stop by and chat with us. His welcoming presence matched that of our server. Good customer relations goes a long way. I am certain that the hospitality, fine food, ambiance and libation selection is why the parking lot is always full!

Its claim to be “gourmet” is indeed true! Where else can you get an outstanding charcuterie? Along with fine food, great libations, and warm atmosphere are the many additional happenings at Bartlett’s. Steve and I were especially intrigued with the live music offerings. Considering that we are live musicians, that aspect captured our attention. Check out Bartlett’s current event schedule here.

Our Compliments to the Chef! Blue Chip Hits the Jackpot!

Steve and I have had the privilege of enjoying a nice little neighborhood establishment for some time now. Lately due to my injury, we have been laying low, but, in honor of the season, we have treated ourselves to a couple of nice trips to the "Big Blue" as we fondly call it. "Big Blue" is also known to most as Blue Chip Casino. Our experience involves a late night snack at William B's over the weekend, and again tonight for a little post-Christmas shopping soiree. First of all, as you all know I have raved on and on about Copper Rock Steak House at Four Winds, and while I have to admit, I love David and Tamara and the crew, (especially their breads and spread served with every dinner) I really am impressed with what is going on at Blue Chip. Elegance, gourmet dining without losing your shirt and shoes. Saturday night we were treated like royalty by the Host Patrick and our server Patti. Both were outstanding and just good people! The food was exquisite and I w agreed William B's French Onion soup is actually superior to Four Winds. Also, the wedge salad is superior as well. The way it was presented lent to the overall improvement over Copper Rock. Again tonight it was superior. But, the soup Steve ordered was out of this world-Cream of Garlic soup. Now before you turn up your nose to it, it was maybe one of the outstanding soups that I have ever had. What was even more enjoyable was the delight our server Sean took in serving it to us. We were able to discuss the ingredients and he relayed my inquiries to the Chef. Our main meal was Brandied Chicken over fingerling potatoes and Steve had Braised Short Ribs served with Red Pepper Mashed Potatoes. It was absolutely unbelievable. Culinary excellence! To rejoice over food, experience fine dining in our backyard, and be treated like it mattered whether we were there or not, what more could a girl want? Oh did I mention the whole experience did not break the bank.