Thirsty Thursday: The Riff Off (Toup's Meatery, New Orleans)

Last week I made my quarterly jaunt down to Louisiana for work.  After wrapping up all my site visits, I was rewarded by sharing an amazing dinner with my cousin Primo at Toup's Meatery.  This place has been on our radar for a while, and we finally got around to visiting.

(Photo Source: nola.eater.com)

Owner Isaac Toups may be familiar to you if you're a fan of Top Chef--he finished third on the 13th season of the show. But Toups Meatery has been around since 2012.  As opposed to Blue Oak BBQ, which sits catty-corner across Carrolton Ave and hosts a more laid-back vibe, the Meatery is more upscale, with low lights, small packed tables, plenty of ambient chatter, featuring a few local beers, double-digit cocktails and entrees ranging from $20-40.  Primo & I decided to start with the smoked trout deviled eggs, and then share the Meatery Board: $25 for a selection of their available house-made meats, pickled veg, and condiments.

Smoked Trout Deviled Eggs, topped with cracklin, pickled jalapeno, and trout roe.

Note: I swiped this photo from their Instagram--the low lighting inside didn't do much for my photos.

The Meatery Board didn't disappoint.  We enjoyed tasting our way through the variety of offerings, particularly the pickled wax beans, grilled jalapeno, housemade dill pickles, ginger sesame sausage, boudin ball, chicken-pork terrine with brandied cherries, and candied pork belly...

See...low lighting makes for crappy pics, and I can't bring myself to use a flash or bring in extra lighting.

...and OHHHH the rillons...I mean...pork belly is amazing in pretty well any form.

(Delicious photo borrowed from Tabelog.)

To accompany this, I selected the "Riff Off" from their cocktail menu.  While the name of course appealed my love of Pitch Perfect, the server's description of its contents sealed the deal.

Ingredients:

Plum Liqueur

Chicory Bitters

French Sparkling Cider

It's like fall, in a glass.  And it paired beautifully with the ginger/sesame sausage.

All in all, if you're a fan of tasty cocktails and housemade meats, this is a must for your "to dine" list. I do recommend getting a reservation, since even the bar was packed when we visited (8pm on a Friday).