[00:00] Cold Open

Brady Renard: It hits all of the profiles. It gets a little sweet, it's got some heat, it's got obviously so much flavor from each of the chicken, the sausage and the okra. Each adds something so different. It's a tomato base. It's so perfect and so wonderful.

[00:22] Intro

Brady Renard: Thanks for joining us on Louisiana's Playground Podcast, your guide to everything there is to see, taste and do in Lake Charles. I'm Brady Renard.

Jillian Corder: And I'm Jillian Corder. We're excited to bring you the authentic stories and experiences of Southwest Louisiana. We've got all the tools that you'll need to explore it.

Brady Renard: Episode 105, and we're talking F-O-O-D, food, and specifically plate lunches. Everyone's kind of Louisiana favorite staple. It's very southern too.

Jillian Corder: Easy go-to for lunch.

Brady Renard: Lots of gravy, good veggies, hearty, delicious. And we've got you covered on 12 places you may or may not have ever even tried or heard of.

Jillian Corder: That's right. Some of these I haven't tried. Tried, tried, tried of? Some things I haven't tried, and now they're on my list.

Brady Renard: Yeah. Before we get to that conversation, we'll do as we always do every week. It's time for a segment we call Envie Eats.

[01:24] Envie Eats: The Bad Apple Saloon Bar and Grill

Jillian Corder: This week, we took a trip down Ryan Street to the Bad Apple Saloon Bar and Grill.

Brady Renard: Not really. Yes, they are really, but not really. It's not an old Western saloon.

Jillian Corder: You don't have to wear Western attire.

Brady Renard: Not at all. You don't have to have a cowboy hat or spurs or be riding on a horse. It would probably be dangerous to do most of those things.

Jillian Corder: Don't do those things. It is a really, it's a hangout place. It's a bar and grill where I think a lot of people go for the bar and then are very surprised by the food.

Brady Renard: Yeah, absolutely. I think that's fair. And I like the layout too, because you walk in, there's a couple little tables there, and then there's a U-shaped bar that kind of encompasses the entire room together. It feels like the same way you would lay out, I don't know, like a living room or something, where there's one centerpiece and everyone is together there. I think that's kind of their point, that they want it to feel like a hangout for anyone that happens to be there.

Jillian Corder: Yeah, it's very much, what's the show? Cheers.

Brady Renard: Cheers.

Jillian Corder: Right? Like in its setup. You know, it's a place where everyone knows your name.

Brady Renard: Especially once you introduce yourself.

Jillian Corder: Or something like that. I don't know, I didn't watch a lot of Cheers.

Brady Renard: And so anyway, their food, in addition to the atmosphere and obviously the drinks, is very, very good. Start us off with what you got.

Jillian Corder: Okay, so I got the drunk grilled cheese, which is just a fun name, let's just start with that. It does not involve any alcohol though, fortunately or unfortunately, I don't know. I was eating it in the middle of my work day, so fortunately it did not involve alcohol. But the drunk grilled cheese is called that, I think, because of the boatload of butter.

Brady Renard: Tons of butter, tons of cheese. That's what the menu description says.

Jillian Corder: That's the actual menu description. So tons of butter, tons of cheese. Oh, and bacon. So it's like different kinds of cheese on this really buttered toast with big old strips of bacon on it.

Brady Renard: And the cheese pull was crazy.

Jillian Corder: The cheese pull's insane, and it keeps going, by the way. Each bite is that, not just like that first "cut it in half" moment. Every single bite's that way. Got it with tater tots, which are really good and seasoned and everything, but the cheese just started to, I don't know, volcano. It's like magma, just lava going over all the tater tots. So unintentionally I had cheese tots as well, because that's how cheesy the sandwich is.

Brady Renard: That sounds absolutely wonderful. And in addition, they have either fries, onion rings, they make their own onion rings, or fried okra, which is always a welcomed addition there. I went with the wings and fries. There were so many options. I kind of was leaning at one point towards the burger, and then I was like, ooh, but the fried fish sounds good. And ultimately I settled on the wings because there were like six options of wing flavors. So I said perfect.

Jillian Corder: But I feel like if you go to a bar and grill, wings should be really good. Sure.

Brady Renard: But they had also shouted out specifically their fish, and so I want to make sure that gets a shout out. So the wings were very crispy. The skin was crispy, there wasn't a battered wing or anything, so they dropped it right in. Super crispy wings. The four flavors: they did a Thai chili, which was a very sweet, mild sauce, but it was very, very sweet, kind of like a sweet and sour style Asian sauce. Then there was Korean pepper, which was more of a teriyaki, soy sauce based flavor, some actually really good kick with it. And so it was very, very good. The garlic Parmesan, very Parmesan forward, so it's kind of that salty Parmesan flavor that you come to expect, but then it's that garlic bite that's there as well, which is obviously a favorite for so many different people.

Jillian Corder: I love garlic.

Brady Renard: And then the buffalo was a very sweet buffalo, and it's very buttery. You taste the vinegar. And so overall, each was doing something completely different. And you know, you really enjoy it. I mean, who doesn't enjoy pounding out wings, right? So good.

Jillian Corder: Literally said that to the one person on the planet who doesn't eat wings. I don't eat wings.

Brady Renard: And then their fries. I got their fries thick cut, well seasoned with good cracked black pepper and salt. And obviously I always talk about it, like, how good does your French fry taste in ketchup? Because I feel like they're just married at the hip, and it's perfect. It is one of the perfect French fry ketchup marriages. And so very, very good. And just overall, it is a great meal. And I could see myself there, whether it be, hey, let's go by for a quick dinner, or, hey, it's 3 o'clock in the afternoon, we have the day off, let's go chill somewhere for a little bit. It's a really cool place either way. And they do have some outdoor seating, if the weather is a little less hot than what it is right this second.

Jillian Corder: It's a bit toasty.

Brady Renard: You know, maybe for the evening it would be a pretty cool sitting outside adventure.

Jillian Corder: And it's right there off of Ryan Street between I-210 and McNeese, so it's a great location if you're coming by for a game or something like that.

Brady Renard: Yeah, absolutely.

[06:34] Guest Introduction: Marcus Lawson

Brady Renard: From a great meal to a great guest, we welcome on Marcus Lawson. And let me tell you, this guy knows food, whether it be his time as a home chef at home cooking for he and his husband, or maybe it's all of the plate lunches that you get every week, because it's always about finding a good meal. He's won competitions, food competitions. He judges them very often. And overall, he's just a foodie, which makes him a perfect guest for today's conversation. Welcome to the show, Marcus.

Marcus Lawson: Thank you. So happy to be here.

[07:04] Rapid Fire

Jillian Corder: Okay, Marcus, you're a listener, so you know how we start this podcast off. A few rapid fire questions so that our listeners, our audience, gets to know how you play in Louisiana's Playground. Are you ready?

Marcus Lawson: I'm ready.

Jillian Corder: He's never been more ready. Okay, crawfish or gumbo?

Marcus Lawson: Crawfish.

Jillian Corder: Why?

Marcus Lawson: Gumbo you can have any time of year. Crawfish is so selective. It's just a season, so you got to get it when you can. So crawfish any day.

Jillian Corder: Limited time only.

Brady Renard: Are you more of a boil or an étouffée, or do you have a preference?

Marcus Lawson: Crawfish boil.

Jillian Corder: And you've won some of your competitions.

Marcus Lawson: Yes, I have. Yep, definitely.

Brady Renard: What's the secret?

Marcus Lawson: I can't tell you.

Brady Renard: What's the public secret? What's the secret that you can tell us? Is it cook time? Is it an ingredient?

Marcus Lawson: It's love. It's love. That's all I'm giving.

Jillian Corder: It's just passion.

Brady Renard: Yeah, I always forget that.

Jillian Corder: Write that down. Okay, poolside or beachside?

Marcus Lawson: Poolside.

Jillian Corder: I knew you were going to say that. Just had a feeling.

Marcus Lawson: It's definitely the pool. Sand, me and sand, we do not get along.

Jillian Corder: To be fair, most men that we have on this podcast say pool. Everybody's anti-sand, including Brady. I'm not. The sandier the better.

Marcus Lawson: Even as a baby, I'd kick my legs out. Yeah, no sand for me.

Brady Renard: And the good thing is, when you're done, you're done. When you're done at the beach, guess who's picking up all of the things and unsanding everything and packing it up and putting it in and then getting home and rinsing off. Not that I hate the beach. Okay.

Jillian Corder: Concert or comedy show?

Marcus Lawson: Comedy show. And I want to sit right up front and get heckled. Like, pick on me, point me out. Yeah, comedy show, hands down.

Jillian Corder: Okay, I'm with you on that one.

Brady Renard: Yeah, for sure.

[08:53] The Great Southwest Louisiana Plate Lunch Draft

Brady Renard: So the conversation today isn't a typical interview. It's one of our listicle episodes, if you will. It is the great Southwest Louisiana plate lunch draft. Now, you might be sitting at home saying, "What's a plate lunch?"

Jillian Corder: Is that a word you made up?

Brady Renard: No, it's a real term. So what we have today is our plate lunch draft. A plate lunch is very southern and very Louisiana, really an institution that we believe may have kind of started with the butchers. They had a lot of cuts of meat and were trying to push those meats to customers while they came in to pick up their food. Hey, pick up lunch as well. We have a working class amount of people, so they kind of then created a very hearty, very typically very gravy based, lots of sides. It's like a meat-and-three-veg type meal. And it's kind of created a mind of its own at this point, where it's often a daily special. As you guys know, it rotates, and so that's what kind of makes it fun. Everyone knows someone in town. It's like, that's the plate lunch spot, that's where we go. And most of us kind of have one, and so that's the one we're celebrating. We'll each pick one. We'll start with Marcus, and then we'll go Jilly and myself, and then we'll snake back the other way. You know what a snake draft is at this point, don't you? All my fantasy football heads know.

Jillian Corder: It took me a really long time to understand the snake draft situation, because I was like, when do I get to go first? Because I'm always in the middle.

Brady Renard: Now, there are four picks across three categories. You have to choose a select day of the week, and it has to be very intentional, for two of the picks. And then we'll have one that has to be Louisiana food specifically. And then you get a free-for-all pick for the last one. So, all right, can you start us off, Mr. Marcus, with the specific day pick?

[10:47] Round One: Specific-Day Picks

Marcus Lawson: I'm picking The Kitchen for Wednesday. It's fried chicken day. You can do dark or white. It comes with three sides. Some people only give you two, but this one comes with three. I choose the white beans, mac and cheese.

Brady Renard: Can't go wrong.

Marcus Lawson: The cornbread dressing is to die for. It's crazy. It's so good. It's got a hint of sugar. But The Kitchen on Wednesdays, hands down, hump day, I look forward to it, unlike other people.

Brady Renard: Two questions. Why does mac and cheese go so well with fried chicken? It feels like they are intertwined.

Marcus Lawson: I feel like they had to be created together, right? They're twins, but not.

Jillian Corder: Okay, first, the chicken or the cheese?

Brady Renard: Which do you eat first, the chicken or the cheese?

Marcus Lawson: The chicken. I don't want it to get cold.

Brady Renard: And look, I want to shout out, you mentioned The Kitchen, they do so many things well. I want to mention specifically their yams too.

Marcus Lawson: Oh my God. On Tuesdays you can get the yams. Sometimes I go just to get the yams.

Jillian Corder: Just a side of yams, please.

Marcus Lawson: Two sides of yams, bring it home, I'll fix something with dinner. But yeah, the yams on Tuesday.

Brady Renard: I think I've mentioned it before. They were so good that I became inspired to figure out how to make my own yams at home.

Jillian Corder: And now we eat them all the time.

Brady Renard: Yeah, because I said, I've got to have this. I've never had yams that good.

Jillian Corder: We were not a yam or a sweet potato family until he had those, and it changed our kitchen. The Kitchen will do it.

Marcus Lawson: The Kitchen. They will do it.

Jillian Corder: On Tuesdays, you can find me at Fatboyz Kitchen Table over in Westlake.

Brady Renard: Cash me outside, how about that?

Jillian Corder: Cash me outside. They have meatloaf and brown gravy, and I'm down for a hearty meal any day. But that's like that warm comfort food, you can't go wrong. It's like a hug plus gravy, and that's just too good. You get your choice of sides, but it's everything you could ask for in a meatloaf. It just reminds you of home.

Brady Renard: In the best way possible.

Jillian Corder: In the best way possible.

Brady Renard: Hey, I'm going home for 10 minutes real quick.

Jillian Corder: Yes, that's what it feels like.

Marcus Lawson: Is that gravy red or brown?

Brady Renard: Brown.

Marcus Lawson: Yes. I don't do a red gravy.

Brady Renard: Not any red gravy? Like a red eye gravy?

Marcus Lawson: Well, I love a red eye gravy, but like the ketchup on a meatloaf, that's not my jam.

Brady Renard: That's not my jam. I can understand that. All right, well, look, you know what? I like to kick the week off right on, in my view, the second day of the week. Sunday starts it, Monday's second, but it's the first day of the work week, so I just had to slip that one in there. I like to go to Leonard's. Leonard's is one of my favorite Mondays, because I get two of my favorite things in this world and they put them together in their plate lunch special: fried pork chops and red beans and rice. And they put sausage in it too. So it's not just like a side of red. It's legitimate red beans, rice and sausage and a fried pork chop.

Marcus Lawson: Can't go wrong.

Brady Renard: So I am the happiest little pig that day as I eat red beans and fried pork chops. And God, the fried pork chop is so good, and not enough places have it, and more places should have it, and I should eat it every day.

Jillian Corder: And Leonard's also knows how to fill a to-go box.

Brady Renard: Goodness, yes. And it comes with, and even then, it also comes with garlic bread and potato salad. I can sub the potato salad for green beans, but I mean.

Jillian Corder: Because you know you're trying to cut back.

Brady Renard: Yeah. If you're someone that has a normal appetite, that's two meals.

Jillian Corder: They do not serve small portions.

Brady Renard: And it's so, so good.

[14:34] Round Two: Specific-Day Picks

Brady Renard: So let's talk pick two now. It's another specific day pick, and mine is a little broad, but I think you'll understand. It's Fridays at T'Pot Noir. So every Friday she has some type of Cajun seafood dish, whether that be an étouffée, shrimp stew, courtbouillon, sauce piquante, and it kind of mixes up each day. Any of them, you can't go wrong. They're all great. And so I am all in on Friday's seafood at T'Pot Noir. Also want to mention, one of their sides is some of the greatest mac and cheese I've ever had in my life. I've had friends tell me, yeah, everything was great, but the mac and cheese.

Marcus Lawson: I agree.

Brady Renard: It's beyond good.

Marcus Lawson: It's next level.

Brady Renard: Good isn't enough. It is spectacular. It is special. I would say if you're creating a top 10, you need to try a bite of this before you leave. That is one of the top 10 things that you need to try before you leave, is T'Pot Noir's mac and cheese.

Jillian Corder: I found T'Pot Noir, I was introduced to it late in life, I feel like. I didn't know about it.

Brady Renard: She was already established for a long time.

Jillian Corder: Anyways, I gotta say though, if you're ordering from there, whether you're gonna pick it up or going in to eat, go early. They will run out. They make a lot too, but they are that popular that it is gone quickly.

Marcus Lawson: And can I just say, notice the dishes we're picking. These are not quick throw-togethers. Most of these you gotta make a roux, they've got to simmer.

Jillian Corder: Our favorite, because it's so easy for us to get. You pick up for $10, you pick up your little to-go plate.

Marcus Lawson: And it's worth it.

Jillian Corder: Meanwhile, they had to slave over it for hours, because I'm not in the kitchen doing this, you know?

Brady Renard: Good point. Good point. That's also just very Louisiana too, right?

Marcus Lawson: Absolutely. Let it cook.

Jillian Corder: Okay, so on Wednesdays. When I walk into work on Wednesdays, a lot of the times someone just says, hey, it's Wednesday, and there's a question hanging in the air, and you're like, oh, Mama Reta's Kitchen, because it's Wednesday and they have meatloaf on mashed potatoes. I went with two meatloaves, but you'll see why in a minute.

Brady Renard: Meatloaf, check.

Jillian Corder: Meatloaf on meatloaf. Meatloaf on mashed potatoes or rice, but on certain Wednesdays she has meatball stew. And her meatball stew is so good. It's flavorful, it's yummy. You can get it on the mashed potatoes if you say pretty please. But it's just delicious. Wednesdays at Mama Reta's Kitchen, no matter which one you're getting, that's where you got to get it from.

Brady Renard: A lot of people would say that fried chicken day is a big one.

Jillian Corder: I know that's a thing for a lot of people, but I'm not a big fried chicken person.

Marcus Lawson: I love the interchanging, the meatballs and the meatloaf.

Jillian Corder: Because sometimes you can do one or the other. So, Mama, go visit. We spend Wednesdays with Mama.

Brady Renard: It's a great choice for sure.

Marcus Lawson: So I have Prestige 337 for Friday. They do this loaded okra. It is amazing. Sausage, chicken, tasso. It's everything you can think of that's going to give you that bold, deep Louisiana flavor. We've got to brown that meat in a pot first. Prestige 337, their okra is to die for.

Jillian Corder: Made with love.

Marcus Lawson: Made with real love.

Brady Renard: That's a lot of love.

Jillian Corder: That's a lot of love, it sounds like.

Marcus Lawson: Look, that's all we need, right?

Jillian Corder: Yeah, exactly. Somebody said that once.

[18:11] Round Three: Louisiana Dish

Brady Renard: All right, now let's go to a new category. This one is specifically a Louisiana dish. Obviously, you'll start us over again.

Marcus Lawson: All right, I'm going with Kat Daddy's Drive-thru Kitchen on Friday. They serve it all day. It is crawfish étouffée, fried fish, green beans, corn, and I want to say it's either garlic bread or a roll. It's absolutely amazing, guys. You can't go wrong with crawfish étouffée. And again, there we get our crawfish again. It's not boiled, but still, we get our crawfish.

Brady Renard: And it's so nice too, they have that little drive-through, so it's quick to grab. And obviously if you're not doing a plate lunch, like for dinner and stuff, it's great too.

Jillian Corder: They're huge. They're good.

Marcus Lawson: They're huge.

Jillian Corder: They're really good.

Marcus Lawson: You can also get the fish two different ways as well. So you could either get catfish or you can get cod for like a small upcharge, I want to say maybe like 50 cents more. Delicious. It kind of gives me Culver's in the best way possible.

Jillian Corder: Oh, okay.

Brady Renard: Yeah, and she's a cotter, so.

Jillian Corder: I'm a cotter.

Marcus Lawson: Delicious.

Brady Renard: Not the fish. Like, you're not actually an Atlantic cod, you just like eating it, right?

Jillian Corder: I had to find my camera. Okay, my Louisiana dish pick, Bux Kajun Korner. Creamy Cajun chicken pasta. It's so good, when they have it. It's not on a specific day, because they kind of rotate their things, right? But Bux Kajun Korner, first of all, you can't go wrong with any day of the week when you go there.

Brady Renard: Thursday gumbo day.

Jillian Corder: It's just so good. Thursdays are consistently gumbo every time, right? But this one kind of changes around, but I had it two weeks ago, and it's just so good. It's so creamy, it's got a real kick to it. That's why I'm letting it fall into this Louisiana dish category. But they also make a very similar version that is their crawfish pasta. Now, I got this not long ago. It is too spicy for me, not probably for most people.

Brady Renard: That level, that's like jumping over a pencil. That is a very low bar to clear, if we're being honest. Sometimes the milk at the store is a little spicy.

Marcus Lawson: Is mayonnaise spicy too?

Jillian Corder: It's got a kick. I couldn't do the crawfish pasta. Somebody else that I was working with also couldn't handle it either, so it's not just me. Thank you, Lexi, for playing along. But it is just so good though. It's one of those that my nose is running and my eyes are watering, but I'm like, what, this is good, I'm going to finish it. It's so delicious. So the creamy Cajun chicken pasta and the crawfish pasta at Bux, don't pass it up.

Marcus Lawson: That sounds amazing.

Brady Renard: So this one was really hard for me, because we live in a place where almost every place has delicious Louisiana food. One of them I went down to is one of my favorites, because every time I go, I cross my fingers that when I get into the parking lot, that that's what they'll have. Because there is no schedule for this. You just have to get lucky that you're going on the day when they have it. At Steamboat Bill's, they do their chicken, sausage and okra sauce piquante.

Jillian Corder: Okay.

Brady Renard: And you have to cross your fingers that you went on a sauce piquante day.

Jillian Corder: You had me at sauce piquante.

Brady Renard: And it is so good. I typically get the sampler, so that's another pro tip: if you go, get the sampler, because you can get a bowl of gumbo. I get two bowls of gumbo, one of each, but a bowl of gumbo, a bowl of red beans and rice, and like a bowl of sauce piquante, for example. And it's just heaven, because it hits all the profiles. It gets a little sweet, it's got some heat, it's got obviously so much flavor from each of the chicken, the sausage and the okra. Each adds something so different. It's a tomato base. It's so perfect and so wonderful. And it's also so rare. Not a lot of things taste like a sauce piquante.

Marcus Lawson: I agree.

Brady Renard: And they have that big pistolette that it comes with, which is that big piece of fried bread. Trust me, it is so wonderful and so good. And honestly, if you see sauce piquante anywhere, get it.

Marcus Lawson: I agree.

Jillian Corder: It was my favorite thing growing up. Brady knows what I'm about to say. At Oakdale Elementary School and Oakdale High School.

Brady Renard: That's two Oakdale mentions now very recently here. That's where your story started.

Jillian Corder: My lunch ladies back in Oakdale, they know what they're doing. That's where the foodie in me started. I mention it to other people who went to school around there, and they're like, we didn't have that for lunch. And I'm like, I think my lunch ladies went rogue, but they knew what they were doing.

Marcus Lawson: I say the same thing. Like, we talk about the gumbo in New Orleans, like for lunch, and everybody's like, what goes with gumbo? I'm like, grilled cheese. All the New Orleans kids will tell you, that's just what we do.

Jillian Corder: And a bag of milk.

Marcus Lawson: And a bag of milk.

Brady Renard: Our son started school recently, and their menu is insane. They'll get gumbo, they've gotten courtbouillon before.

Jillian Corder: Last week they had grilled cheese and potato soup, and it was like, I've never been offered potato soup. I'm telling you, man, they're doing things right nowadays.

[23:20] Round Four: Free Pick

Brady Renard: All right, this is the fun one. It's our last pick, and it is our free pick. So I gave no rules, no oversight. You picked wherever you want, no questions asked. And so I took the biggest liberty.

Jillian Corder: Of course you did.

Brady Renard: Westlake Wings and Chinese Food.

Marcus Lawson: Oh, that's not a stretch at all.

Brady Renard: It's not technically a plate lunch. It's not a rotating special, but it's served in a styrofoam container, check. It's got a lot of gravy, check. Sauce, it's over rice, check. It comes with a big fried piece of yumminess. I mean, do you want me to keep going? It works, okay? Their wings are my favorite in town.

Marcus Lawson: Hands down.

Brady Renard: They are my favorite in town. I like the hot and honey or the spicy. I rotate depending on what my mood is that day.

Marcus Lawson: Have you had the salt and pepper?

Brady Renard: I like those too. I've got a friend, that's what he orders, the salt and pepper. That one is a shout out, because they have the onions that are there on top of it too. Pro tip, another pro tip: I like asking them to get the leftover sauce that they mixed and put it over the rice, so you get a little bit more flavor into that rice, and the egg roll that comes with it. And their wings are crispy and huge, and you get stuffed. And every time you go, you're like, man, this is a huge line. And then you look at your watch and it's been three minutes and you're already ordering. So even though the line looks huge, it flies through. They are so wonderful. Westlake Wings and Chinese Food, it is another must-stop while you're in town, especially if you love wings, you gotta go.

Marcus Lawson: Agreed. If they are on vacation, I am sad. Sad.

Brady Renard: There's a lot of uproar when July rolls around and they take their week-long family vacation that they deserve.

Marcus Lawson: They do, they do.

Brady Renard: But it's inconveniencing. Shout out, because they deserve it, so I'm happy for you.

Jillian Corder: Need to let them send you that invite so you can just.

Brady Renard: Can you take it up with me? Can you let me know so we can sync our vacations together?

Jillian Corder: Sync our schedule, yeah. Okay, for my free pick, I went Nina P's Cafe. So Nina P's, you can't go wrong with anything on the menu, right? That voodoo burger, that's my favorite whenever it's not a plate lunch. Plate lunch wise, and today, the day we're recording this, it's actually available right now. Hint, hint.

Brady Renard: Walk, don't run. Run, don't walk.

Jillian Corder: Chicken fried steak. That's like this big. It's smothered in white gravy. It comes with rice dressing, which is my favorite, and you get to pick a veggie on the side too. It barely fits in a to-go box because it's so big. It's that perfectly tender chicken fried steak. You don't have to work at it, it just comes through so easy. And the batter is deliciously gummy and has that little bit of a sweet thing to it. And then the gravy's thick and wonderful. Everything I ordered is covered in gravy.

Brady Renard: It's a plate lunch.

Marcus Lawson: This is the warm food that, like, plate lunches are that homey, like, yum, yum. Po'boys are that quick bite. You know?

Jillian Corder: Yeah, no, this is the like, and Nina P's and a chicken fried steak.

Marcus Lawson: It's a good choice. And I have Citizen's Choice for my free pick. Very, very good. Oh my goodness, the oxtails. They're the reason my back is so big. Big back, big back. But it comes over rice and gravy, cabbage, candy yams. You need to try these candy yams as well.

Jillian Corder: I don't know if I've had theirs yet.

Marcus Lawson: And cornbread.

Brady Renard: They are good.

Marcus Lawson: And this box you cannot close either. It's so, so good.

Brady Renard: I got the boss man special from there before, with the wings, and they were good.

Jillian Corder: Yummy.

Brady Renard: And funny enough, he said oxtails. He told me, he said, I didn't want to keep doing the oxtails, but any time I ever thought of taking them off, people were like, no, you can't. You cannot take off the oxtails. They have to be on the menu. So they remain right there.

Marcus Lawson: They have to stay. Oxtails are.

Jillian Corder: Good choice.

Marcus Lawson: Thank you.

[27:21] Sign-Off

Brady Renard: So who do you think kind of won? I mean, look, we're all winners. If you go to any of these four places, or 12 places rather, you are a winner. And so give us your thoughts on who you think got the best team.

Jillian Corder: I feel like we just filled out your food calendar for you for the next couple weeks.

Brady Renard: If you've been wondering where to eat for the next little bit, you should be having full ideas there.

Jillian Corder: You penciled all this down, right?

Brady Renard: Yeah, exactly. So we appreciate your time, Marcus, and joining us.

Marcus Lawson: Anytime, anytime.

Brady Renard: The biggest thank you of all though goes out to you, the viewers, for sitting here on this podcast and watching and listening, and maybe telling us that our opinions are bad while you're watching, or telling us, you know what, Brady, you got it right. We appreciate any feedback that we get, and the subscriptions and the follows on our social pages and our YouTube as well. We just really appreciate it.

Jillian Corder: That, of course, helps us grow our audience and further share the unique experiences that Lake Charles and Southwest Louisiana have to offer. Go to visitlakecharles.org/podcast for advice on where to eat and things that are happening this very weekend. I'm Jillian Corder.

Brady Renard: That she is. And I'm Brady Renard. Thanks again for coming to play at Louisiana's Playground. C'est tout.