Eating in Shreveport
by Liz Williams, New Orleans food writer and Tip of the Tongue podcaster
I recently spent three days in Shreveport visiting my cousins. These three days turned into an eating festival that took us all over Shreveport, and left me hoping for another excuse to visit Shreveport to eat at all the places that I missed.
I am half Sicilian. My mother was Sicilian, but my father was from north Louisiana. I grew up in the Sicilian community in New Orleans. I even wrote a book about it, Nana’s Creole Italian Table: Recipes and Stories from Sicilian New Orleans. And, I have been to Sicily. I was excited to go to a restaurant in Shreveport owned by first generation Sicilians. We went to Chianti Restaurant.
Chianti’s was a wonderful experience. My mother’s table often boasted dishes of real veal. It was almost white, even when uncooked, and extremely tender. With great uncles who were butchers (my grandmother’s brothers), my mother had good sources for meat. That meant she could get veal, but also organ meats when my uncles knew it was the last day they could sell the kidneys or brains or liver. They would call my mother, who might take frozen fish out of the freezer and trade for liver.
Chianti’s veal was quite a pleasant surprise. I had not eaten veal that tender in a very long time. Everything that we ordered at Chianti’s was just as I expected it to be. There were no disappointments. I would go back in a heartbeat. The biggest problem is that I might have to fast for three days are each meal there.
And what a spotless kitchen that was. I was honored to be shown the kitchen. It was smaller than I expected, but it shone as though it had been polished.
6535 Line Ave, Shreveport, LA 71106
(318) 868-8866
A less authentic traditional Italian experience, but one that was just as wonderful, was a meal at Cush’s Grocery & Market. Here was food that made me think of what Italian food has become in New Orleans – Creole Italian. A slow cooked tomato sauce that was well balanced and not too sweet. A tasty Italian sausage. Crab salad dense with crabmeat stuffed into the waiting cavity of a fresh avocado. Both sides presented, stuffed to the gills on the plate. That was best for sharing, or at least taking one side home for lunch the next day.
And what else was there? I was disappointed that I didn’t live in Shreveport after my visit there. It would be great to find a friendly place like that where I could reliably find good steak, excellent sausages, and good cheeses. Cush’s would be my place for condiments, good wines, cheeses, and cooked food to be brought home and warmed for dinner. There was good Italian flour for homemade pizza dough and bronze-cut dried pastas.
Between Chianti’s and Cush’s, I had found both authenticity and nostalgia. That is the perfect combination.
9535 Ellerbe Rd, Shreveport, LA 71106
(318) 795-9006
For more cooking at home, I found lots to love at Chop Shop. I wasn’t able to try the weekly supper club, because my visit didn’t coincide with the supper club schedule, but if it reflects the quality that I saw on my visit, then I will do a bit better planning next time I am in Shreveport. I like the way they support their food colleagues by stocking their store with like minded people’s honey, eggs, soups, breads, and other foods. This would be another regular stop if I lived in Shreveport or stopped through there regularly.
724 Azalea Drive, Shreveport, LA
Chopshopshv.com
One of the ways I judge whether a town is a good food town is to see if the town has both good restaurants and good quality ingredients for sale. I want to explore more farmer’s markets next time I get to Shreveport. But what I did see of ingredients was that there is home cooking still taking place. And home cooks are the best judges of restaurants. Home cooks want good ingredients and expect good ingredients in the food that other people cook. Having a good base of home cooks keeps restaurants on their toes.
I loved the bold statement on Frank’s menu that asserted the lack of a freezer. That means that all ingredients have to be fresh. Of course, they do have a freezer that keeps their gelati and their sorbetti properly cold. They are allowed that. They make their own mozzarella. The make their own pizza dough.
When I was at Frank’s it was clear that everyone was happy there – the staff in the kitchen and front of house. Chef Oscar David always has a smile on his face. And that makes the food taste better and keeps customers happy. I was happy there. I loved it that you could eat there all during the day, so on those crazy travel days when your schedule is irregular, Frank’s can quell your hunger with aplomb. The Salsiccia is a wonderful example of the creativity of the place, with a nod toward tradition. Sausage and red peppers are a classic combination.
6950 Fern Avenue, Shreveport, LA 71105
(318) 230-7130
Lunch at Jacquelyn’s Café is part of the fabric of Shreveport. I had to make a stop there. They have pie by the slice. That means that a stop there for a sweet fix can made you happy. A slice of pecan pie with vanilla ice cream or the Almond Jacq Pie (almonds with a shortbread crust) is not to be missed.
They have all of the things that make it a real diner. But the crab and shrimp salads make you know that this is a Louisiana restaurant. Jacquelyn’s is a Monday through Friday diner so don’t wait until the weekend to try it.
1324 Louisiana Ave, Shreveport, LA 71101
(318) 227-8598
I am from New Orleans, so I love seafood, but I wanted to be sure that I got my taste of the goodness of north Louisiana food. I stopped in to speak with Chef Hardette Harris at Us Up North. She is keenly interested in protecting the traditional food of north Louisiana – keeping the food of north Louisiana from overwhelming the traditional foodways. So, while I was there we ate fried catfish and greens. There was cornbread and pork. And Chef Harris knows so much about the food and foodways of the area. And she is right, it is important to preserve north Louisiana foodways.
Foodways are always changing. As transportation changes, as people move in or out, and just social influences can alter foodways. Foodways are always in flux. But it is important to not forget what used to be that has been the bedrock for the future.
300 North Allen, Shreveport, LA 71101 https://www.usupnorth.com/
And when we wanted someplace special for the evening, there are some lovely choices in Shreveport. One place that is very modern and has a today vibe with carefully curated food is Heron. If you have been eating all day, as I had, it was possible to go later and still eat. There are many wonderful choices with many ingredients sourced at local farms.
The bar program at Heron is also very chic. There is a playful Heron twist on many traditional cocktails. The Lost Paper Plane was right up my alley.
1023 Provence Place Blvd., Shreveport, LA. 71106
(318) 918-3887
And I loved the very new restaurant in Shreveport – Koi Asian Fusion. This new restaurant is not only beautiful in a way personal to the family, but it is one where taste, freshness, and tradition are all combined. The Chu family has been running a traditional American Chinese restaurant for years. Koi is pan-Asian. There is sushi as well as Korean and other influences from around Asia.
The bar program has cocktails formulated with Asian flavors like ginger and coconut. But my favorites were the very creative and tasty nonalcoholic drinks. Too often nonalcoholic drinks are too sweet to enjoy. These are thoughtfully crafted and enjoyable.
If you don’t have reservations, you may find a place at the bar for full service.
6104 Line Ave., Shreveport, LA. 71106
(318) 681-8005
