Creole (Meat) Stuffed Bread

Creole Stuffed Bread – Creole Lunch House Lafayette LA

(and, usually, at New Orleans JazzFest)

Unless you’ve been to the New Orleans Jazzfest or a little place called the Creole Lunch House in Lafayette, LA, you may not have tasted the meat-glory of a Creole stuffed bread. It’s a jaw-dropping, awe-topping combination of beef and pork (usually mixtures of ground, plus andouille sausage), onions, celery, bell pepper, tasso (if you got it), jalapeno, and a whirlwind of seasoning and spices, stuffed inside a terrific little French bread bun. This bread is called a ‘pistolette,’ which is a single-serving size of traditional French bread.

OMG. That's all Creole Stuffed Bread makes you say.

The ingredienta of Creole Lunch House seem pretty basic, but belie how amazing their Creole stuffed bread is: bread dough, water, sugar, fresh sausage, smoked sausage, cheddar cheese, and Jalapeno peppers. Looking at the bread before your first bite, you’ll never suspect how much spicy, meaty, wicked goodness is hidden inside. You could say Creole stuffed bread is like the Cajun sandwich version of a dragon’s den: the treasure is hidden deep inside.

Emeril has a decent creole stuffed bread recipe, if you are the DIY type who likes to make your own. If you want the real deal and can’t get down to Lafayette or New Orleans anytime soon, Creole Lunch House actually offers these meaty monsters (about 16 oz. each) online here at CajunGrocer.com. You get 4 ‘pies’ for $15.95 plus shipping.

I love the comment someone said in response to this Flickr photo of a Creole stuffed bread: “It looks likes a Hot Pocket on steroids.”  If only Hot Pockets were this good (or good at all).

Miss Hebert puts the love in Creole Lunch House

THE GRADE: AWESOME!!

THE DAMAGE: under $4 (for a beefy, full-pound sandwich!!!)

THE SKINNY: CREOLE LUNCH HOUSE

713 12th Street, Lafayette, LA 70501

Phone: (337) 232-9929

Website:  Nope

Creole Lunch House, Lafayette LA

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French Dipped Sandwich (the original) (Philippe, Los Angeles CA)

FRENCH DIPPED SANDWICH

America’s Best Sandwich (possibly)

Philippe The Original French Dip Sandwich, L.A.

The Spot: Philippe (ORIGINAL FRENCH DIPPED SANDWICHES), Los Angeles, CA 

Neighborhood: Downtown L.A.

The Dish: The Original French Dipped Sandwich

The Best French Dip Sandwich is the Lamb Dip Sandwich. The beef and pork are good, but there is really nothing quite like the tenderness and flavor of the lamb dip sandwich.

Be sure to slather a little of the notorious, house-made mustard on the sandwich. For folks who like hot food, it’s a fire-starter if used in the proper proportions.

As sides, the potato salad’s quite good. There are lots of things on the menu, from old-school, hearty soups (navy bean, split pea) to pickled beets, eggs, and pigs’ feet, but most guys usually just barrel down on 2 or 3 sandwiches.

The Vibe: Really this ranks as one of my favorite places to eat of all time, for so many reasons. It’s over a century old and used to be the caterer when giant circuses came to town. It’s just a couple short blocks to Union Station and was the prime feeding ground for anyone riding the rails. it’s got the same vibe from a century ago: ancient booths and communal tables and bolted-down stools, sawdust strewn old flooring. And, during the decade or so I would occasion its giant hall in LA, it looks like most of the servers are the same, too.

Phillipe The Original is one of the few restaurants in L.A. that has the everyman feeling about it, that survived the times when just past Beverly Hills were orange groves and Malibu was barely heard of; a place that, for me, hearkens back to the Depression through the film noir era. Seems like a joint that a mug who’s down on his luck might scrape up enough for a bite.

The Damage: Lamb French Dip Sandwich $6.25

Beef, Pork, Ham, or Roasted Turkey French Dip $5.15

The Skinny: Philippe’s, The Original French Dipped Sandwich
1001 N. Alameda Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012
Phone: (213) 628-3781
Website: http://www.philippes.com