Goûter’s arrival in Mid City – an area that has become the next trending neighborhood in Baton Rouge— continues the revitalization along its central route, Government Street.
Outside, an empty wooden deck seems to hint at a patio for the fall.
Inside, the decor is rustic and casual, with corrugated steel on the walls, cut lumber tables, carved-wood artwork and wide windows offering a view to busy Government Street. In spite of that closeness to the traffic outside, the restaurant is surprisingly quiet.
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During a recent visit, the screened kitchen door gave a charming, melodic squeak and bang each time it opened and closed. Not melodic was the increasing din bouncing off the walls as the restaurant filled to capacity.
The menu’s Small Plates list is far from small in size. It’s an exhaustive 20 items long, while the Big Plates section has just two choices. I found some titles in the small plates section cutesy and confusing; “Arch Nemesis” and “BYOP” are meaningless names until you know the inside joke.
Once I managed to wrap my head around the menu, an intriguing feature was the Chef Experience section. In choosing both food and drink “tours,” two could dine and drink for $100 total. But since there was a gluten allergy in our party, we decided to make our own choices, with chef guidance, from the array of small plates.
One particularly tempting choice was the Wild PB&J. Sous vide boar belly was served with petit dollops of berry compote and smears of housemade peanut butter. The peanut butter had an unusual texture but burst with peanut flavor. The boar was rich and meaty, with very little fat. The sous vide preparation kept it moist, while the compote aided in rounding out the dish with touches of tart and sweet appeal.
Another gluten-free option was the Duck 3 Ways, with deviled duck eggs, duck cracklins and duck bacon. The deviled eggs were particularly creamy and rich from the duck yolk. The addition of tasso mixed in, along with a mini-duck cracklin teetering atop, made this a one-bite wonder.
The Quail and Andouille Gumbo was overly salty with the only other discernible flavor being pepper. It was a disappointment.
However, the Turtle Soup, with its coarsely chopped vegetables and thinner consistency, was a nontraditional delight. The flavor was decidedly tomato-based roux with lots of celery and a back hint of salt. Sherry was not included nor missed.
The dessert of the day was Peaches and Cream—appropriate given that we were knee-deep into peach season. A panna cotta was cooked inside a pint Mason jar along with a skin-on roasted peach topped with buttered oats. Food in jars can be difficult to eat and reach all the layers, but for this dessert the vessel worked beautifully. Its simplicity and lightness were refreshing given the warmth of the evening. (Editor’s note: On a later visit, the dessert was no longer served in a jar and instead arranged across a plate.)
My friend described the food as “down-to-earth but gussied up.” Overall, I’d call it creative and imaginative. Goûter is a worthwhile addition to the Mid City dining scene, equally appropriate for a business lunch, date night or dinner with friends.
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GO TO GOÛTER
gouterrestaurant.com
3897 Government St. 300-4488
Lunch: Monday-Friday, 11 a.m.-2 p.m.
Dinner: Monday-Wednesday, 5-9 p.m., and Thursday-Saturday 5-10 p.m.
This story was originally published in the October issue of 225 Magazine.
Our food critic’s name may be false, but the credentials are not. This gastronome has studied the history, cultivation, preparation, science and technology of food for more than 30 years and isn’t sold on the food-layered-in-jars trend.