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| Jason Agrees! |
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| Sensation Salad, a Southern Treat |
Today Jason and I met for lunch, which doesn't happen often even though we work in buildings next to each other. Thanks to restaurant.com, we had a great coupon that cost us $2.00 (by using coupon code CLEARANCE). We got $25 off of a $35 purchase at the the Little Village. I have been there a few times but was still undecided on the food. We started off with 1/2 loaf of the Village Bread, which is their most popular/well known dish. Jason tried to convince me to get a full loaf saying we could bring some home to my mum but I knew that wouldn't happen. We would eat the entire loaf and then not want the rest of our meal. The bread is golden and perfect, covered with sesame seeds and parmesan cheese. It is sitting on a sea of really good quality olive oil and comes with an olive spread that is out of this world. I tried sooo hard to keep from tearing off a piece and devouring it before I took a photo but I couldn't resist....I couldn't even wait the 10 seconds it takes to photograph the dish. We finished our 1/2 loaf very quickly and Jason commented again that we should have gone for the whole loaf. We were both ready to move on to the next course......One thing I love about Little Village is that the entrees come with a salad. I think all meals, especially Italian cuisine, should come with a good salad.. At Little Village you have the choice of Italian, Caesar or Sensation Salad. For all of you not from South Louisiana, you probably have never heard of the Sensation Salad. I know that I had no idea what it was before I moved to Baton Rouge. This salad is very similar to Caesar, they basically look the same. The Sensation, however, has more of a citrus based dressing vs. anchovy based. Our local news station, WAFB has a pretty good recipe. I really like the Little Village's version of this salad. When you first put a bite into your mouth you can immediately recognize the fresh citrus taste. At the end of the bite, there is a kick of something just a little spicy that is then relieved by the citrus when you have some more. This Sensation Salad is the only one I have had that has that extra heat component. The only negative I could say about my salad was that it was a bit overdressed which can be easily remedied by ordering the dressing on the side. On to the main event. I HATE that I am sometimes a reorderer...I frown upon those that do it but I am a hypocrite when it comes to Italian food. I always seem to end up ordering the chicken parmesan. At Little Village, I love that the side of pasta does not feel like an afterthought. It is artfully laid onto the plate next to the chicken. The chicken itself was moist and flavorful - definitely not a pre-formed chicken patty that you sometimes get. The crust on the chicken was a bit of a disappointment. First of all there was way too much of it. Second, probably because of the thickness of the batter, it tasted like old oil. It was a shame because, like I said, the chicken itself was really good. Lucky for me, the batter easily fell off leaving the delicious chicken breast for me to enjoy. One cannot discuss an Italian restaurant without mentioning the tomato sauce or "red gravy" as they say in Louisiana. And at the Little Village, it is the real deal. There is no denying the freshness of the sauce - you just know that it is homemade with good ingredients. It has just enough sweetness along with the perfect amount of seasoning. I also need to mention that our waiter, Blake, did a fabulous job of catering to our needs even during the lunch hour rush. The Little Village is certainly a culinary experience in which I will take part in again!
that bread sounds amazing!!!
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