The Truth about Reindeer

We’ve got the skinny on reindeer — learn the truth about about our flying friends as we finish this week. Come join us, we’d love to see you at the table. Here’s what we’ve got cooking for you at week’s end: Cabbage and sausage soup and pan-seared tilapia or catfish or shrimp diabolical with dirty rice, roasted broccoli, house salad, and fresh bread.

What We’re Cooking for You at Week’s End

Thursday, December 15

Cabbage and sausage soup and house salad with house bread. This soup, made with our house-made stock, lovely cabbage, and juicy sausage is just the ticket to begin finishing the week well. “According to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, while both male and female reindeer grow antlers in the summer each year, male reindeer drop their antlers at the beginning of winter, usually late November to mid-December. Female reindeer retain their antlers till after they give birth in the spring. Therefore, according to EVERY historical rendition depicting Santa’s reindeer, EVERY single one of them, from Rudolph to Blitzen, had to be a girl. We should have known… ONLY women would be able to drag a fat man in a red velvet suit all around the world in one night and not get lost.” Well, there you have it, that’s what happens when reality clomps into a perfectly good understanding of Christmas. We wonder if the Department of Fish and Game gave any information about reindeer flying….

We’ll also have poblano peppers stuffed with a savory mushroom and spinach filling available!

Friday, December 16

Pan-seared tilapia or catfish or shrimp diabolical with dirty rice, roasted broccoli, house salad, and fresh bread.  ($15). Buddy the Eld shares elf eating habits, “We elves try to stick to the four main food groups: candy, candy canes, candy corns, and syrup.” We wonder if he might want to add shrimp quesadillas to that list?

What’s Cooking Next Week

Come join us next week, we’ll have pulled pork tostadas, Louisiana red beans and rice, chicken tortilla soup, and shrimp and grits on Friday.

We’ll be closed for the holidays from December 26, 2016 to January 9, 2017. We’ll reopen for the new year with lunch service on January 10, 2017. We are truly thankful for all the folks who frequent our table. Thanks for giving into our lives with your time and talk, our lives are enriched because of you. We hope you have a blessed and happy holidays! 

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

img_1226

Stone House Eats Bread Baked Daily

Lunch Served | 11am-2pm Tuesday — Friday

You can find our house at 828 Julia Street in Rayville, Louisiana. You can call us at (318) 267-4457.

Thanks for letting us serve you, and may God bless you richly as you sit at the table.

Famous Quotes

Essayist Harlan Miller remarks, “The outdoor Christmas lights, green and red and gold and blue and twinkling, remind me that most people are that way all year round — kind, generous, friendly and with an occasional moment of ecstasy. But Christmas is the only time they dare reveal themselves.” Dare to reveal yourself this Christmas!

Story Credit: “Reindeer Story at Christmas.”

December 13, 2016 Weekly Menu

Happy Birthday to an old friend who’s given us many mirth days! Dick Van Dyke will be dancing his way through the house this week. Come join us, we’d love to see you! Here’s what we’ve got cooking for you this week: Brisket tacos with charro beans and Spanish rice, house-made hamburgers on jalapeño buns, cabbage and sausage soup, and shrimp quesadillas.

What We’re Cooking for You This Week

Tuesday, December 13

Brisket tacos, charro beans, Spanish rice, and fresh salsas. Our overnight brisket chopped and served on lightly fried corn tortillas with charro black beans, lime cilantro slaw, and fresh tomato and tomatillo salsas will help you rethink the traditional taco. Believe it or not, he started at WDSU-TV in New Orleans (NBC Channel 6), before being hired by an old army buddy who was an executive at CBS to be a morning anchor. His newsman for that show: Walter Cronkite. Of course, he quickly moved from anchoring to comedy starring alongside Mary Tyler Moore as Rob and Laura Petrie on The Dick Van Dyke Show. Richard Wayne Van Dyke came into this world on this day in 1925, and we have been enjoying his singing, dancing, and laughing ever since. Happy Birthday Mr. Van Dyke, and thanks for the smiles!

Wednesday, December 14

Our very own house-made hamburgers on jalapeño buns. Well, we make our burgers with a special mix of meat and spices, add our house salad, creole mustard, and homemade mayonnaise to a jalapeño bun for a fantastic burger. You can even add cheddar cheese, our own pimento cheese, bacon, or a fried green tomato. What’s better than home-made hamburgers, jalapeño buns, and lots of trimmings? Someone once said, ““If you can’t wrap Christmas presents well, at least make it look like they put up a good fight.” This hamburger is wrapped up beautifully just for you.

If you can’t make it for lunch on Wednesday, just give us a call at 267-4457, we’ll set aside some supper for you including our house-made hamburgers made to order, jalapeño bun, chips, and and our own house-made pickles.

Thursday, December 15

Cabbage and sausage soup and house salad with house bread. This soup, made with our house-made stock, lovely cabbage, and juicy sausage is just the ticket to begin finishing the week well. Mark Twain quips, “Training is everything. The peach was once a bitter almond; cauliflower is nothing but cabbage with a college education.” Come get some educated cabbage, Mr. Twain will be holding court with Tom and Huck.

Friday, December 16

Shrimp quesadillas with fresh salsas and guacamole ($15). Well, it’s time for a small Friday shrimptastic twist as we take shrimp, creamy cheese, and some flavorful veggies and add them to our wheat wraps for some savory quesadillas. The quesadilla started in colonial Mexico in the southern and central regions as a flattened and cooked circle of masa (tortilla), filled with Oaxaca cheese and served with chopped onions and guacamole. Of course, quesadillas have become hugely popular in the U.S. as a kind of fancy grilled cheese. Our Scandinavian friends even make a kind of quesadilla using lefse (a thin potato pancake using leftover potatoes, flour, butter, and cream — resembling a tortilla) containing brie cheese and lingonberry jam. Come join us at the table, and let us help you make the leap into the weekend!

IMG_0687

Stone House Eats Bread Baked Daily

Lunch Served | 11am-2pm Tuesday — Friday

You can find our house at 828 Julia Street in Rayville, Louisiana. You can call us at (318) 267-4457.

Thanks for letting us serve you, and may God bless you richly as you sit at the table.

Famous Quotes

Humorist Dave Berry gives us a funny look at Christmas, saying, “Once again we find ourselves enmeshed in the Holiday Season, that very special time of year when we join with our loved ones in sharing centuries-old traditions such as trying to find a parking space at the mall. We traditionally do this in my family by driving around the parking lot until we see a shopper emerge from the mall, then we follow her, in very much the same spirit as the Three Wise Men, who 2,000 years ago followed a star, week after week, until it led them to a parking space.” Merry Christmas and happy hunting!

Image Credit: “Medieval Miniature of the Nativity by the Master of Vyšší Brod, c. 1350,” CreativeCommons.org.

Rudolph, Make Some Étouffée!

The secrets of flying reindeer are revealed this week, and we’ve got a fabulous wine tasting event Friday night. Come join us at the table, we’d love to see you! Here’s what we’ve got cooking for you at week’s end: Potato and leek soup and shrimp étouffée served over Louisiana rice. 

Please come join us for a Wine Tasting at Our House, December 9 from 5pm-7pm. Click here for more information.

What We’re Cooking for You at Week’s End

Thursday, December 8

Potato and leek soup with house bread. We roast potatoes and leeks, add them to our own house-made chicken stock, and cream it to make a delicious repast for a cold Thursday in early December — just what’s needed to warm you late in the week. Did you know that potato and leek soup has a Welsh origin? But, it’s popular in other cultures, too. In Romania soup lovers call it Ciorbă de praz, and in France they sup on Soupe aux poireaux. Well, we just call it just what you need for a cold wintry day.

Friday, December 9

Shrimp étouffée served over Louisiana rice ($15). Shrimp lovingly cooked with the tasty trinity veggies, a light roux, and delectable Cajun spices in a delicious sauce served over Louisiana rice will make you boogie up and down the street. Few know the secrets of flying reindeer, but we discovered the hidden power behind their airborne prowess: shrimp étouffée. Yep. It’s true. Santa Claus even redoes those old, familiar words to get Chef Rudolph ready in the days leading to Christmas. “Then one froggy Christmas Eve, Santa came to sing, ‘Rudolph with your Cajun stuff, won’t you make étouffée?'” Of course, Hermey is the sous chef, and Santa totally has the shrimp hook-up with Yukon Cornelius, who not only mines for gold and topples Abominable Snow Monsters, but happens to be a heck of a shrimp boat captain with his canine sled team crew. Come join Chef Rudolph for a celebration of his 52nd birthday as he whips up some special North Pole shrimp étouffée this Friday.

 Tobacco Express, Southern Beverage Company, and Stone House Eats will host a wine tasting featuring a selection of red, white, and sweet wines with some cheese and crackers just for your browsing pleasure. Please come join us for a wonderful and relaxing evening of tasting at our house! Please come join us for a Wine Tasting at Our House, December 9 from 5pm-7pm.

img_1403

Come join us for a Wine Tasting at Our House, December 9 from 5pm-7pm. Click here for more information.

Stone House Eats Bread Baked Daily

Lunch Served | 11am-2pm Tuesday — Friday

You can find our house at 828 Julia Street in Rayville, Louisiana. You can call us at (318) 267-4457.

Thanks for letting us serve you, and may God bless you richly as you sit at the table.

Famous Quotes

Writing at Better Homes and Gardens, Harlan Miller notes, “Probably the reason we all go so haywire at Christmas time with the endless unrestrained and often silly buying of gifts is that we don’t quite know how to put our love into words.” 

Image Credit: “Hermey the Elf and Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer,” CreativeCommons.org.

December 6, 2016 Weekly Menu

“I wish we could put up some of the Christmas spirit in jars and open a jar of it every month,” Harlan Miller writes. Well, we want to help your Christmas spirit with some wonderfully cooked food. Here’s what we’ve got cooking for you this week: Chicken fajita tacos with charro beans and Spanish rice, pulled pork sandwiches on jalapeño buns, potato and leek soup, and shrimp étouffée served over Louisiana rice. 

Come join us for a Wine Tasting at Our House, December 9 from 5pm-7pm. Click here for more information.

What We’re Cooking for You This Week

Tuesday, December 6

Chicken fajita tacos with a creamy avocado sauce, charro beans, and Spanish rice. We take marinated chicken lovingly roasted, place it atop corn tortillas with some grilled onions and peppers, add a little creamy avocado sauce, and serve these delights with charro beans and Spanish rice. On this day in 1884, workers in Washington D.C. placed a nine-inch aluminum pyramid on top 555 feet of 36,000 blocks of granite and marble to complete the Washington monument. The impressive monument commemorates its namesake city and the first President of the United States, George Washington. Construction on the monument began in 1848 when representatives from the National Monument society laid the 24,500 pound marble cornerstone. During the Civil War, construction was halted, and Mark Twain commented that the unfinished project looked like a “hollow, over-sized chimney.” Well. Our fajita tacos will be none so high as the great monument, but they will certainly point you in the right direction as you head into this week.

Wednesday, December 7

Pulled pork sandwiches on a jalapeño buns with apple slaw. Slow cooked pork, pulled to tender pieces, house made barbecue sauce, and jalapeño mayonnaise topped with our tart apple slaw on jalapeño bread form a porkalicious sandwich that simply makes your week warmer and better. Our old friend Charles Dickens penned in The Pickwick Papers, “Happy, happy Christmas, that can win us back to the delusions of our childish days; that can recall to the old man the pleasures of his youth; that can transport the sailor and the traveller, thousands of miles away, back to his own fire-side and his quiet home!” Well, these pulled pork sandwiches can totally help transport you to the fire-side. Come join us to get over hump day, we’d love to see you.

If you can’t make it for lunch on Wednesday, just give us a call at 267-4457, we’ll set aside some supper for you including pulled pork sandwiches, jalapeño bun, apple slaw, chips, and and our own house-made pickles.

Thursday, December 8

Potato and leek soup with house bread. We roast potatoes and leeks, add them to our own house-made chicken stock, and cream it to make a delicious repast for a cold Thursday in early December — just what’s needed to warm you late in the week. Author Phyllis McGinley writes, “But the kitchen will not come into its own again until it ceases to be a status symbol and becomes again a workshop. It may be pastel. It may be ginghamed as to curtains and shining with copper like a picture in a woman’s magazine. But you and I will know it chiefly by its fragrances and its clutter. At the back of the stove will sit a soup kettle, gently bubbling, one into which every day are popped leftover bones and vegetables to make stock for sauces or soup for the family. Carrots and leeks will sprawl on counters, greens in a basket. There will be something sweet-smelling twirling in a bowl and something savory baking in the oven. Cabinet doors will gape ajar and colored surfaces are likely to be littered with salt and pepper and flour and herbs and cheesecloth and pot holders and long-handled forks. It won’t be neat. It won’t even look efficient. but when you enter it you will feel the pulse of life throbbing from every corner. The heart of the home will have begun once again to beat.” Soup, the key to the beating heart of the home, gives us a taste of a loving home…even if the kitchen is messy.

Friday, December 9

Shrimp étouffée served over Louisiana rice ($15). Shrimp lovingly cooked with the tasty trinity veggies, a light roux, and delectable Cajun spices in a delicious sauce served over Louisiana rice will make you boogie up and down the street. Erma Bombeck jokes, “Adults can take a simple holiday for Children and screw it up. What began as a presentation of simple gifts to delight and surprise children around the Christmas tree has culminated in a woman unwrapping six shrimp forks from her dog, who drew her name.” Come on by the house for some great shrimp étouffée — you can totally bring those shrimp forks your dog gave you for Christmas last year.

img_1375

Come join us for a Wine Tasting at Our House, December 9 from 5pm-7pm. Click here for more information.

Stone House Eats Bread Baked Daily

Lunch Served | 11am-2pm Tuesday — Friday

You can find our house at 828 Julia Street in Rayville, Louisiana. You can call us at (318) 267-4457.

Thanks for letting us serve you, and may God bless you richly as you sit at the table.

Famous Quotes

Our old and good friend Dr. Seuss (Theodore Geisel) has the Grinch ponder, “Maybe Christmas, the Grinch thought, doesn’t come from a store.” Yep. The Grinch got it right, Christmas comes from somewhere, really someone altogether different. Merry Christmas!

Wine Tasting at Our House!

You’re Invited to a Wine Tasting!

Friday, December 9 from 5pm—7pm

Tobacco Express, Southern Beverage Company, and Stone House Eats will host a wine tasting featuring a selection of red, white, and sweet wines with some cheese and crackers just for your browsing pleasure. Come join us for a wonderful and relaxing evening of tasting at our house!

Wines will be available for purchase through our friends at Tobacco Express.

clara_peeters_-_cheesestack_with_knife_shrimp_crawfish_glass_of_wine_and_bread

You can find our house at 828 Julia Street in Rayville, Louisiana. Just click on the address for directions.

Come join us for a wonderful evening of wine tasting, December 9 from 5:00—7:00pm. You can call us at (318) 267-4457 with any questions you may have.

Thanks for letting us serve you, and may God bless you richly as you sit at the table.

Famous Wine Quotes

Our good scientist friend Sir Francis Bacon once observed, “Age appears to be best in four things; old wood best to burn, old wine to drink, old friends to trust, and old authors to read.” Right on, Sir Francis!

Image Credit: “Wine and Cheese” and “Cheesestack with Knife, Shrimp, Crawfish, Glass of Wine, and Bread,” CreativeCommons.org.

 

 

Happy Anniversary, Mr. Grinch!

Well, The Grinch joins us at the table — apparently, he’s a big shrimp lover. And, we say goodbye to the originator of the food icon The Big Mac. Here’s what we’ve got cooking for you at week’s end: Our very special fried green tomato BLT and shrimptastic po-boys. 

What We’re Cooking for You at Week’s End

Thursday, December 1

Fried green tomato BLT. We toast our fresh house-made bread, add our house salad with fried green tomatoes and bacon to recreate the old standby BLT with a little bit of southern jazz. He wanted a bigger, better sandwich for his customers, and for two years, he tried unsuccessfully to get the franchise to pull the burger into their menu (calling it first, “The Aristocrat” and second, “The Blue Ribbon Burger”). During the third year, the franchise relented, and a twenty-one-year-old marketing secretary coined the name we know so well: “The Big Mac.” Jim Deligatti, an early Ray Kroc McDonald’s franchisee in the Pittsburgh area, designed the burger, and Esther Glickstein Rose gave us the now historic name. Well, we said goodbye to Mr. Deligatti this week, and he passes into food immortality. Come join us for our own bid at food immortality: the fried green tomato BLT. Try it today with our own house-made ranch or chipotle ranch for a little excitement to bump you into the weekend.

Friday, December 2

Shrimptastic Thursday: Barbecued shrimp stuffed po-boys or fried green tomato and shrimp po-boys with house-made remoulade sauce ($15). Take a half-size po-boy, hollow the bread to make a bread cave, stuff it with our own New Orleans style barbecued shrimp (prepped in loads of butter, white wine, and saucy spices), cover it with barbecue sauce, and grab the napkins. Or grab our fried green tomatoes, add some shrimp sautéed in our barbecue sauce, our house salad with house-made dressing, some remoulade sauce, and you’ve got a little more than a po-boy, you’ve got a “Whoa-boy.” Guess who turned 50 this week? Dr. Seuss’ wonderful tale of a grinch gone good: “The Grinch Who Stole Christmas.” Few know what helped turn the Grinch — sure, the Whos singing down Whoville way, despite their lost Christmas trappings and presents, warmed his heart to a much larger size — but, he had a secret love he discovered in Who fridges while attempting to abscond with Christmas: shrimp. Yep. The Whos were notorious shrimp lovers, making a special shrimp salad called “Shrimp Wiggle” to adorn the table with their roast beast and Who pudding. How they got shrimp at the foot of Mount Crumpit remains a literary mystery, but the Grinch, his heart now turned when he learned you couldn’t stop Christmas, tucked into the table for some famous Shrimp Wiggle. Well, come join us for a shrimptastic Friday — we know you can’t stop Christmas, someone’s coming to town, and it’s not Santa Claus.

There really is a old recipe called “Shrimp Wiggle.” Check it out, along with fifteen other old, but odd recipes: “16 Weird Recipes from 100 Years Ago That We Should Totally Be Eating Today.”

Stone House Eats Bread Baked Daily

Lunch Served | 11am-2pm Tuesday — Friday

You can find our house at 828 Julia Street in Rayville, Louisiana. You can call us at (318) 267-4457.

Thanks for letting us serve you, and may God bless you richly as you sit at the table.

Famous Quotes

Mark Vieha set these immortal words to music (and sang the original jingle for TV in 1976) and had folks singing their way down the road: “Two all-beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions – on a sesame seed bun.”

Image Credit: “The Grinch’s 5oth Anniversary,” Tom Holland.

November 29, 2016 Weekly Menu

Watch out, cooler weather has finally arrived! Come join us for a heart-warming set of meals this week — Moliére, Magellan, and Steve Martin will be here adding their own special spices to the week. Here’s what we’ve got cooking for you this week: White bean with kale and Italian sausage soup, chicken chicken pot pie, fried green tomato BLT, and shrimptastic po-boys. 

What We’re Cooking for You This Week

Tuesday, November 29

White bean, kale, and Italian sausage soup. We use mayacoba beans, healthy kale, and Italian sausage in our own house-made chicken stock to make this delightfully savory soup for you on a chilly Tuesday — just what’s needed for this cooler weather. 17th century French playwright Moliére observed, “I live on good soup, not on fine words.” He also famously noted, “All the ills of mankind, all the tragic misfortunes that fill the history books, all the political blunders, all the failures of the great leaders have arisen merely from a lack of skill at dancing.” Well, this soup may not help your dancing skills, but will certainly improve your day.

Wednesday, November 30

Chicken pot pie. Made with specially cooked chicken breast meat, a host of roasted root vegetables, and a scrumptious sauce made with our own chicken stock, S.H.E. chicken pot pie redefines mom’s old standby meal. Well, way back in 1519 Magellan made his way from Spain to the Pacific Ocean, navigating the straits off the tip of South America. Few know, though, that it was chicken pot pies, Magellan’s favorite food, that powered the crews of the three tiny ships on their historic voyage. How they kept chickens in such tight spaces for so long remains a mystery. Perhaps, they started something else: using tuna or other fish as “the chicken of the sea.” Yep, it’s one of history’s strange, but silly mysteries.

If you can’t make it for lunch on Wednesday, just give us a call at 267-4457, we’ll set aside some supper for you including house salad, chicken pot pie, and house-made bread.

Thursday, December 1

Fried green tomato BLT. We toast our fresh house-made bread, add our house salad with fried green tomatoes and bacon to recreate the old standby BLT with a little bit of southern jazz. Comedian Steven Colbert quips, ‘I’d forgotten what an honest sandwich it is. For those of you not familiar, “BLT” stands for “bacon, lettuce, and tomato.” A lot of people think the “B” stands for “bread”, and I can understand someone not wanting a lettuce and tomato sandwich. But, the bread is implied in the word “sandwich.” Anyway, it’s an American original. Everyone should have a BLT as soon as they can.’ We couldn’t agree more, have a BLT as soon as you can, it just may help you get to the weekend quicker.

Friday, December 2

Shrimptastic Friday: Barbecued shrimp stuffed po-boys or fried green tomato and shrimp po-boys with house-made remoulade sauce ($15). Take a half-size po-boy, hollow the bread to make a bread cave, stuff it with our own New Orleans style barbecued shrimp (prepped in loads of butter, white wine, and saucy spices), cover it with barbecue sauce, and grab the napkins. Or grab our fried green tomatoes, add some shrimp sautéed in our barbecue sauce, our house salad with house-made dressing, some remoulade sauce, and you’ve got a little more than a po-boy, you’ve got a “Whoa-boy.” Back in 1922, Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon stepped 3,000 years back into history when they entered the tomb of King Tut in the Valley of the Kings. Among the thousands of priceless items, they discovered some Egyptian sandwiches made with mutton, duck, and goose, some ancient veggies, and, of course, clay jars with barley beer — because the ancient Egyptians didn’t want to enter the afterlife bereft of their beloved beer. Well, these sandwiches weren’t po-boys in the original sense (mainly because of that whole golden coffin thing), but we’ll bet they were good. Maybe old Steve Martin got it right, “born in Arizona, moved to Babylonia, King Tut.” Maybe it was those sandwiches that made the boy king so funky. Yep. Come get funky with us this Friday.

Have a look at Steve Martin’s iconic performance of King Tut from Saturday Night Live here.

IMG_0516

Stone House Eats Bread Baked Daily

Lunch Served | 11am-2pm Tuesday — Friday

You can find our house at 828 Julia Street in Rayville, Louisiana. You can call us at (318) 267-4457.

Thanks for letting us serve you, and may God bless you richly as you sit at the table.

Famous Quotes

Our funny friend Steve Martin suggests, “Talking about music is like dancing about architecture.” Hmm.

November 21, 2016 Thanksgiving Week Menu

What do the Gettysburg Address, “Who shot J.R.?”, and turkey bombs have in common? Soup! They’re all here for our Thanksgiving week menu! Come join us for a great start to our Thanksgiving celebrations. Here’s what we’ve got cooking for you this week: Shrimp and corn chowder, spinach and artichoke soup, and Henry’s chili. 

What We’re Cooking for You Thanksgiving Week

Monday, November 21

Shrimp and corn chowder. Our shrimp and corn chowder is heavenly potion of potatoes, cream, and shrimp that you won’t want to miss on this chilly Monday — it’s a great way to start Thanksgiving week. On November 19, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln delivered one of the most brilliant and terse descriptions of the democratic ideal and vision. Apparently, Mr. Lincoln felt very unwell on the day of his train ride from Washington to Gettysburg, so his White House cook Alice Johnstone made a special potato chowder soup with biscuits and gravy on the side to send with him. We imagine the president, as he scribbled the now iconic words we know, “Four score and seven years ago, our fathers brought forth a new nation conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal,” taking a few sips of soup and nibbling biscuits and gravy. Miss Johnstone, a native of Chicago, found her way into the White House by way of a slip on the ice in Washington that injured her. Near the end of her convalescence as a friend of the Lincoln’s, she made a fabulous fricasseed chicken with loads of gravy and biscuits. Mr. Lincoln, to hear his wife Mary tell it, ate enough for three people. Thus, Miss Johnstone became the cook, preparing lots of comfort food for a burdened and war-weary president. By the way, Lincoln was very ill, dizzy and pale, when he delivered the Gettysburg Address, and doctors now believe he suffered from a mild case of smallpox, and when he returned to the White House, he suffered through a protracted illness. Come join us for some historic shrimp and corn chowder this Monday.

Tuesday, November 22

Spinach and artichoke soup — with some crab if you like. Spinach, artichokes, shallots, mushrooms, and lots of creamy broth make this a wonderful Tuesday soup — add some crab for a little brachyuran pizzaz. Thirty-six years ago, millions of folks tuned their sets to Dallas to discover “Who shot J.R.?” We learned that Kristin Shepherd, his wife’s sister and his former mistress shot the guy everybody loved to hate. We like to think that our spinach and artichoke soup might have cooled the angry assailant, but we’ll never know.

Wednesday, November 23

Henry’s chili. Our chili has just about everything, except the kitchen sink — hamburger, sausage, mushrooms (yes, mushrooms), piles of onions, peppers, tomatoes, and lovely spices (even a little beer, but don’t tell anyone). “Turkey bombs are falling in the parking lot!” Yep. It’s that famous episode of WKRP in Cincinnati where a Thanksgiving radio promotional goes hilariously awry. You can watch part of that crazy Thanksgiving episode, “Turkeys Away” here. Well, we’ve got just the chili for you as you prepare for your own turkey drop on Thanksgiving Day! Come join us at the table for some laughs and good food as we celebrate the many things for which we can be thankful.

img_1375

Stone House Eats Bread Baked Daily

Lunch Served | 11am-2pm Tuesday — Friday

Thanksgiving Day remains a very important day for us to express our gratitude for the goodness and faithfulness of God in our lives. Folks get together with families and friends, celebrating and remembering how good life truly is. Sure, most of us will probably eat too much, but let’s think just a little differently. Can we really be too full of gratitude? Let our full bellies reflect the fullness of our hearts in deep gratitude for how God has given into our lives.

You can find our house at 828 Julia Street in Rayville, Louisiana. You can call us at (318) 267-4457.

Thanks for letting us serve you, and may God bless you richly as you sit at the table.

Famous Quotes

Actress Joyce Giraud notes, “Thanksgiving is one of my favorite days of the year because it reminds us to give thanks and to count our blessings. Suddenly, so many things become so little when we realize how blessed and lucky we are.”

Closed Friday, November 18, 2016

We will be closed Friday, November 18 for a catering event! We hope to see you next week for the days leading up to Thanksgiving! We’ll serve shrimp and corn chowder, spinach and artichoke soup with roasted oysters, and Henry’s chili.

Please come join us next week! We’ll be open with lots of special soups and our standard menu available. We’ll be open November 21-23, 2016 during the Thanksgiving week. We’ll be closed November 24-25, 2016 for the Thanksgiving holidays. 

Thanksgiving Day remains a very important day for us to express our gratitude for the goodness and faithfulness of God in our lives. Folks get together with families and friends, celebrating and remembering how good life truly is. Sure, most of us will probably eat too much, but let’s think just a little differently. Can we really be too full of gratitude? Let our full bellies reflect the fullness of our hearts in deep gratitude for how God has given into our lives.

Friday, November 18

We will be closed today for a catering event! We hope to see you next week for the days leading up to Thanksgiving! We’ll serve shrimp and corn chowder, spinach and artichoke soup with roasted oysters, and Henry’s chili. 

img_1365

Stone House Eats Bread Baked Daily

Lunch Served | 11am-2pm Tuesday — Friday

We will be closed Friday, November 18 for a catering event! We hope to see you next week for the days leading up to Thanksgiving! We’ll serve shrimp and corn chowder, spinach and artichoke soup with roasted oysters, and Henry’s chili. 

Please come join us next week! We’ll be open with lots of special soups and our standard menu available. We’ll be open November 21-23, 2016 during the Thanksgiving week. We’ll be closed November 24-25, 2016 for the Thanksgiving holidays.

You can find our house at 828 Julia Street in Rayville, Louisiana. You can call us at (318) 267-4457.

Thanks for letting us serve you, and may God bless you richly as you sit at the table.

Famous Quotes

American writer William Arthur Ward noted, “Gratitude can transform common days into thanksgivings, turn routine jobs into joy, and change ordinary opportunities into blessings.” Absolutely.

Image Credit: CreativeCommons.org.

November 15, 2016 Weekly Menu

Elvis will be singing songs of food love with Charles Dickens recording his special observations at the table this week. Come join us for some “Love Me Tender” good food. Here’s what we’ve got cooking for you this week: Clélie’s special fall soup, chicken and sausage gumbo, and shrimp and grits. 

What We’re Cooking for You This Week

We will be closed Friday, November 18 for a catering event! We hope to see you next week for the days leading up to Thanksgiving! We’ll serve shrimp and corn chowder, spinach and artichoke soup with roasted oysters, and Henry’s chili.

Tuesday, November 15

Clélie’s special roasted vegetable fall soup. Take roasted acorn, butternut, and mirliton squash, add some roasted pumpkin and regular potatoes with other flavorful veggies, and combine them into a delicious fall soup for a great way to enjoy this cooler weather. Poet Percy Bysshe Shelley noted, “There is a harmony in autumn, and a luster in its sky, which through the summer is not heard or seen, as if it could not be, as if it had not been!” Well, if you need some harmony today after a summer that just wouldn’t seem to quit, we’ve got just the soup for you.

Wednesday, November 16

Chicken and sausage gumbo. We make our gumbo with a dark roux, chicken, sausage, and the trinity of bell pepper, onion, and celery. Oh, Grandpa Justin would add sauterne wine, a cup or two or three, and so do we. On this day in 1956, Elvis premiered as Clint Reno in Love Me Tender. Folks say, though, that his soulful rendering of that song actually started back in Tupelo when he’d sing for his mama as she made him her special version of gumbo. Yep. Elvis, singing to his mama, “Love Me Tender,” as she made the roux. That gumbo probably propelled him into stardom, and it gives us a little insight into that Tupelo honey that made him, well, Elvis — hips, lips, hair, and all. Come join us, you may just hear the King’s voice wafting from the kitchen.

Have a look at Grandpa Justin cooking his dark roux gumbo here.

If you can’t make it for lunch on Wednesday, just give us a call at 267-4457, we’ll set aside some supper for you including house salad, chicken and sausage gumbo, and house-made bread.

Thursday, November 17

Shrimp and grits ($15). Shrimptastic Friday: Shrimp on baked garlic cheese grits (crispy or creamy), $15. Shrimp lovingly cooked with chopped veggies in a delicious sauce served over baked garlic cheese grits (either crispy or cream) will make you toot your horns up and down the street. Well, our old friend Charlie Dickens finished the last installment of his immortal classic about the French Revolution, A Tale of Two Cities. The serial novel began with these invitingly philosophical words, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way — in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.” Truth is, for an impoverished boy growing up in Portsmouth, England living on things like bread, butter, potatoes, and bacon, something from the sea was a welcome respite. Charlie will be here, enjoying a welcome respite in the shrimp and grits. He might even have a new start to a novel he’s tentatively calling, The Grit of Portsmouth, a tale of a local boy fighting his way towards a better life of shrimp and grits.

Friday, November 18

We will be closed today for a catering event! We hope to see you next week for the days leading up to Thanksgiving! We’ll serve shrimp and corn chowder, spinach and artichoke soup with roasted oysters, and Henry’s chili. 

img_0558

Stone House Eats Bread Baked Daily

Lunch Served | 11am-2pm Tuesday — Friday

We will be closed Friday, November 18 for a catering event! We hope to see you next week for the days leading up to Thanksgiving! We’ll serve shrimp and corn chowder, spinach and artichoke soup with roasted oysters, and Henry’s chili. 

You can find our house at 828 Julia Street in Rayville, Louisiana. You can call us at (318) 267-4457.

Thanks for letting us serve you, and may God bless you richly as you sit at the table.

Famous Quotes

“Every leaf speaks bliss to me, fluttering from the autumn tree,” wrote Emily Brontë. Blissful, fluttering leaves, scraping lightly on the ground, crackling underfoot — sounds like a great fall day to us.