Boutin's Cajun Restaurant in Baton Rouge, Louisiana

On a recent trip to Baton Rouge, LA, my family and I were lucky enough to stumble on a most enchanting restaurant. Boutin's Restaurant, located at 8322 Bluebonnet Blvd, Baton Rouge, LA 70810. We enjoyed our Friday night there so much we went back on Saturday. This wonderful restaurant offers the most delicious food, large portions and a lively atmosphere. In October of 2001, owner Lynn Boutin opened this fabulous establishment.

Atmosphere & Décor

When you walk through the door, you are greeted by a most entertaining restaurant. There are Cajun artifacts through out. Informative and entertaining Cajun information makes waiting for a table a pleasure. The place is casual and very large. And you must not forget the dance floor. They have a live Zydeco band that plays each evening and dancing is a must. You will see the very youngest to the very oldest out on the dance floor scooting their boots. Out back they have a lovely deck with tables that over looks a nicely shaded pond which would be perfect for a romantic evening. The kids will also enjoy feeding the turtle and fish. You can purchase a hand full of "cat" food from a candy machine for a quarter and the children will be trilled to see all the turtles and fish come rushing to greet them.

Menu

As you will see the menu is very extensive. The quality of the food is excellent.
Some of their wonderful appetizers are (ranging in price from $5.95 to $8.95), Crawfish Wontons, a delicious crawfish, surrounded by jalapeno, pepper jack and parmesan cheese, wrapped in wonton skin served with a plum ginger sauce. Grilled or Fried Alligator, tender pieces of alligator cooked to your liking. Try it blackened for a spicy treat! Stuffed Mushrooms, fresh mushrooms stuffed with a crabmeat dressing rolled in breadcrumbs and deep-fried. Shrimp & Oyster en Brochette, shrimp and oysters wrapped in bacon and deep-fried. Barbeque Shrimp, broiled shrimp in a butter garlic sauce with rosemary. Appetizer Platter - Grilled alligator, fried crawfish tails, bite-size catfish, boudin, stuffed mushrooms and andouille which is in the $32.00 range.

They offer Crawfish Etouffee (pronounced A-two-Fay), which is peeled crawfish tails smothered in a stew of chopped peppers, onions and garlic. Available by the cup or bowl.
And a wonderful LA Seafood Gumbo, a roux based soup with shrimp, crawfish, and oysters. Served with white rice. Also available by the cup or bowl.

If you are in the mood for a salad they several interesting ones to choose from with a price range of $4.95 to $14.95. You might want to select the Grilled Alligator Salad (topped with grilled alligator). Popcorn Crawfish (topped with popcorn crawfish) or the Zydeco Salad (topped with grilled shrimp, blackened catfish, blackened chicken and grilled andouille). All of the salads are made with fresh romaine and iceberg lettuce, spring mix, carrots, ripe roma tomatoes, eggs, green bell pepper ring, purple onion ring, and croutons. You have your choice of their homemade dressings, House Remoulade, Creole Honey Mustard, Ranch, Bleu Cheese, Italian and Thousand Island.

You must not forget the southern deep-fried entrees ranging in price from $13.95 to $15.95. You must try the Stuffed Crabs, fresh crabmeat stuffing lightly battered in breadcrumbs and deep-fried, or the Fried Crawfish Tails, sweet crawfish tails seasoned and fried to a golden perfection. Another must is the Fried Frog Legs, which are lightly battered and in bread crumbs and deep-fried. All fried entrees are served with home style French fries, jambalaya, corn maque choux and hot toasted garlic bread.

If you don't like deep fried food they have a fabulous selection of grilled entrees ranging in price from $13.95 to $16.95. Just a few of the grilled items are Grilled Shrimp, butterflied shrimp grilled to perfection served with jambalaya, corn maque choux, and homemade stuffed potato. Grilled Frog Legs, six seasoned frog legs served with jambalaya, corn maque choux, and homemade stuffed potato. Or a Cajun Honey-Glazed, Maple Leaf Duck, which is a slow-roasted, half duck, basted with a hot and spicy honey-glaze, served with jambalaya, corn maque choux and homemade stuffed potato.

For those who must have the beef you can choose between the Cajun Style Ribeye, a Chef cut 14oz. USDA Choice Ribeye char grilled to your preference, served with corn maque choux and homemade stuffed potato ($20.95) or the Hamburger Steak Lafayette, a half pound char-grilled hamburger, topped with cheese, sautéed onion and mushroom Cajun gravy served with jambalaya, corn maque choux and homemade stuffed potato ($12.95).

You may add a Boutin's house salad to any entrees and any grilled items may be blackened.

Specialties of the House are truly special. Price ranging from $14.95 to $20.95. Just to name a few there is a amazing Super Seafood Platter, stuffed crab, fried crawfish, golden fried butterflied shrimp, fried catfish, fried oysters, fried frog legs and a stuffed bell pepper served with jambalaya, corn maque choux and home style fries. The Catfish Boutin, a seasoned catfish fillet, lightly floured and grilled to perfection, topped with BoutinÕs Crawfish Etouffee served with jambalaya, corn maque choux, and a homemade stuffed potato. Also, Crawfish Enchiladas, a spicy blend of cheeses, crawfish, onions, and peppers topped with a Cumin Mornay sauce, served with corn maque choux, and jambalaya. A too die for Crabmeat Au Gratin, a fresh lump crabmeat dish topped with a spicy au gratin sauce, cheddar cheese, baked to a bubbly finish served with corn maque choux and a stuffed potato. And the Shrimp and Oyster En Brochette, a delicious dish of shrimp and oysters wrapped in bacon and deep fried served with a homemade stuffed potato and corn maque choux.

For the pasta lover in your family they have the Louisiana Purchase, a marinated grilled chicken breast served on a bed of penne pasta, with artichokes, herbed wine and cream sauce, topped with roasted pecans or the Crawfish Tasso Alfredo, a dish of crawfish and tasso combination in a cream sauce over a bed of fettuccini pasta.

Lunch Specials, served Monday - Friday 11:00 to 2:00, range in price from $7.95 to $8.95.

They also offer platters to go. In addition they have a large banquet room and special menu for very large parties.

Service

Both nights we had excellent service. The wait staff was prompt and courteous. On a weekend night be prepared for a slight wait.

I spoke one older couple that told me they come to Boutin's every Friday because they love the food and the dancing. On our second night there we brought a few other families with us. One father stated, "Man you can't beat this amount of good food for the price." My husband was also quick to point out the beer "Was good and cold". This is a wonderful restaurant is very family oriented. If you have even in the Baton Rouge area you must not let this wonderful dining experience pass you by.