WESTLAKE DINING

Mario Pacetti Friday, July 25, 2014 Comments Off on WESTLAKE DINING
WESTLAKE DINING

I grew up in SWLA, from the third grade up until I was 20 years old, and during that time I can only remember going to one restaurant, and it was the home of the best burgers  around  — Perkins Fat Burger.

I am not saying that there have been no other good restaurants in Westlake, but for me,  Perkins is the only one I can really remember. That  being said, though, things have changed in the little town of Westlake, and there are some great places that are worth crossing the bridge to enjoy.

Round Top Burger House

Round Top Burger House

The old Perkins Fat Burger location is where this dining tour of Westlake begins, and, just by chance, it is home to the new burger joint in town — and the burgers are worth the trip.

The owners of Round Top Burgers really made the location nice to look at, and all the old pictures of Westlake from the black-and-white photography era really gives you a sense of Westlake’s history, and what it looked like well before I was born.

I always get the “Mad Dog” burger when I go to this place, and the burger comes with a perfectly seasoned hamburger patty. It is topped with jalapenos, pepper jack cheese and jalapeno mayo on a slightly toasted bun. Let me tell you, this is a great burger made by some really nice ladies.

Everyone at Round Top is always so nice, and the fact that they seem to remember everybody’s name makes it feel more like an old-school burger join —  so much better than these fast-food places where no one even smiles at you anymore.

I really don’t know who makes the best burger in SWLA, but I think I am going to do my own best burger contest and see if some of my young chef buddies want to come along and help me find the burger of all burgers. And, by the way, just because a burger has 10 patties on it doesn’t make it a good burger — it makes it a messy burger.

Next up is a place owned by a friend of mine. It’s called Mel’s Cakery, and Melani Duncan is the amazing pastry chef who creates the sweetest of sins in the absolute cutest place in Westlake. Chef Mel does a complete assortment of cakes, cookies, and cupcakes that she will personalize to your specifications.

Mel's Cakery

Mel’s Cakery

I don’t eat a lot of sweets anymore, but I asked Mel if she would do my son Mac’s first birthday smash cake for him, and when I went in to pick it up, I decided to grab a few different items to taste. I tried her red velvet cupcakes, as well as the strawberry cupcakes, and I must admit I ate half of what I was supposed to bring back to the people helping with Mac’s party — and it was worth it.

Mac was having a baseball-themed party, and I asked Mel to make him a baseball-shaped cake. She did a perfect job, and it tasted pretty darn good. I know this because I had to sneak a bite in before Mac destroyed it. Mel is a hometown girl who shares her talents with all of us, and Westlake should be proud to have her.

Everybody knows that the king of the po-boy in SWLA is Darrell’s, and they’ve earned the title. Every place in the Lake Area that has a ham, turkey and roast beef po-boy on the menu has a version of the Darrell’s Special, even if they won’t admit it. In fact, the “Big Daddy” on my menu was created in California so that I could get my own Darrell’s fix.

There is a place in Westlake that’s called Old School Poboys, which my brother Barrett told me has a po-boy that could compete with the Darrell’s Special. I felt that was a bold statement to make, and I had to find out for myself.

The location is designed for customers to grab and go. It even has a drive-through window, which makes it very convenient for all the refinery employees who only get a 30-minute lunch.

I got the small OSP Special, which has three different meats and three cheeses, as well as jalapeno mayo and mustard, which I actually really liked. The gravy had a nice flavor, as well.

Old School Poboys

Old School Poboys

The other sandwich I got was the Surf and Turf. The shrimp had a buttery flavor that went very well with the gravy. I am not normally a surf and turf fan, but this was a sandwich I would get again. Here is the kicker: The bread they use is as good as any that I have had with this type of sandwich.

Westlake also has a new meat market in town, and if I am not mistaken, it’s in the original Dino’s Donuts location (Dino’s is still one of my favorite donut spots of all time). Lagniappe Meat Co. is now open for business. I went in during the first week that they were open, and they were still working out some of their production procedures. The  owner was very upfront about this, and didn’t make any excuses about it, which I thought was very honest of him.

This place will be doing plate lunches every day, as well as breakfast sandwiches. I had the ribeye, egg and cheese breakfast sandwich, which was served on Texas toast. There was just enough of a runny yolk to make the sandwich perfect. I also had a boudin egg roll with cheese — a first for me (and I can’t be the only one who’d never had one). Surprisingly, the ingredients are well suited for each other … go figure.

Lagniappe Meat Market

Lagniappe Meat Market

The cracklins were all cut into small pieces, and they were cooked well. There is nothing I hate more than biting into a cracklin that is too thick and soft. It makes you want to take the cracklin right back out of your mouth and rinse the taste out. The only thing that could have been done differently was the spicy cracklins could have been a tad more spicy, but the owner addressed the problem before I even said a word. Every new place needs a few weeks to work out the kinks. Trust me, I will be back.

Bar-B-Que Pit Stop has been around the longest of any of the places I’ve written about thus far; I must admit I had not tried it until recently. I was glad not to have to drive to south Lake Charles to eat good BBQ.

I have only had the Pit Stop’s brisket sandwich, as I’m trying to eat lighter. The brisket was cooked by someone that has either been cooking meat for years or who’s learned from someone with a great smoking talent. Either way, they are doing some nice things on the north end of Sampson St.

Bar-B-Que Pit Stop

Bar-B-Que Pit Stop

There are a lot of nice things developing in Westlake. They have brand new blacktop roads going in right at the beginning of Sampson by the I-10 bridge, as well as a lot of new construction going on right on Sampson St. McDonald’s is getting a brand new location, and there’s a new Taco Bell. I  normally wouldn’t even mention fast-food places, but they create jobs, which leads to more local places which stimulate our local economy.

SWLA is thriving with vendors offering fresh grown produce, as well as naturally-raised meats, so much so that you can actually look for places that only use products that come from our great state. Those are the places we need to support.

 

 

 

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