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Bayou Bar & Grill brings New Orleans flavor to Cape Girardeau County

Thursday, September 4, 2008
By Dawn Bollinger

(Photo)
A pulled pork sandwich with a side of sweet potato fries is ready to be served at the Bayou Bar and Grill on Thursday, August 28, 2008. (AARON EISEHAUER ~ aeisenhauer@semissourian.com ) [Order this photo]

ON THE MENU

Bayou Starters
Bayou-style whole crawfish: Seasoned crawfish are available every day.
Loaded nacho platter: A mounded platter of fried flour tortilla chips topped with seasoned beef, black beans, cheddar cheese, fresh tomatoes, red onions, black olives, jalapeno peppers, sour cream and picante sauce.
Gator tail: A Bayou specialty, tender alligator tail deep fried and seasoned, served with secret bayou dipping sauce.
Deep-fried green beans: Onion battered fried green beans, served with a ranch dipping sauce.

Dinners
Grilled pork chop: A one-inch thick pork chop seasoned and grilled. Served with choice of two sides and Texas-style toast.
Bayou blackened rib eye steak and shrimp: Hand cut choice Angus rib eye seasoned with the Bayou’s original blackened spices and grilled to order. Served with skewer of shrimp and one side.
Blackened tilapia dinner: Flaky white tilapia filet seasoned with house special blackened seasoning, grilled and served with two sides.

Specialties
Bene’s homemade gumbo: Straight out of the Bayou, a secret recipe of seasoned chicken, smoked sausage and boiled shrimp served on a bed of rice with a rich broth and a special blend of spices for a mouthwatering delight.
Red beans and rice: The Bayou uses Billy’s own family recipe of slow-cooked red beans, smoked sausage and Cajun seasoning served over rice with a side of honey corn bread for this Louisiana favorite.

Pocahontas, a small hamlet outside of Jackson, seems an unlikely location for a New Orleans-style restaurant.

"People said that I was crazy to open a Cajun restaurant because people around here like barbecue," owner Bill Wooten said.

But Wooten and his wife, Linda, were not discouraged and opened the Bayou Bar and Grill in 2006. Wooten fell in love with New Orleans cuisine while living there for 11 years.

The restaurant's first location was on Highway 177 near Fruitland. After a year, the Wootens purchased the current building and renovated it before re-opening. Business is so good now, Wooten recommends reservations on Friday and Saturday nights.

The Bayou's French Quarter style with its colorful Mardi Gras masks on the walls creates a New Orleans atmosphere. The restaurant consists of two sections — a bar area with a flat-screen TV and arcade hunting game and the nonsmoking dining area.

The Bayou Bar and Grill's menu includes descriptions such as a secret Bayou Sauce "so good that it makes you wanna slap yo' mama."

While Cajun cuisine rules the main menu, a children's menu is also available.

The Bayou offers a variety of entries including alligator tail and deep-fried green beans. Wooten said that although the food is Cajun-style, it is not extremely spicy.

Customers travel to the Bayou from Cape Girardeau, Jackson and Perryville, Mo. Wooten said he sees many of his customers on a regular, even daily, basis. Scott Edmonds is one of those customers.

"I know everybody, and I eat lunch here every day," Edmonds said.

Corey Wiggins also dines there often and in bulk, he said.

"I always eat too much," Wiggins said.

The Bayou Bar and Grill is open 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday to Thursday; and 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

Bayou Bar and Grill

6611 County Road 532, Pocahontas

573-833-9999


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