Thirty years ago when we bought our house in the Boonies, we were looking at the very house we bought, and drove into the town of Abita Springs, which was then less of a suburban neighborhood and more of a Boheme artist’s colony. We stumbled on an adorable, tiny cafe that epitomized all things small town. Charmed, we went in for breakfast. Everyone in there looked to me like they had been up all night doing who-knows-what, and it was almost enough for us to not go through with the sale. But we loved the house.
So much has changed in those thirty years. Abita is definitely suburban, still slightly Boheme but not in any jarring way, and the Abita Springs Cafe has had its own road back to its origins-essentially a neighborhood cafe for a country neighborhood. The business dates back to 1881 and through many family changes and mergers it just sits there at the crossroads, ceiling fans churning, serving people out of a small window.
What is so fascinating about this place is how modern the menu is. In this breakfast series the one thing that has made the greatest impression is how little real imagination there is in straight ahead breakfast places. Not so here. Abita Springs Cafe still serves the old-fashioned hash browns that are frozen shredded potatoes, right alongside one of the most modern and creative dishes I’ve had before 10am. This is a really interesting menu, served in the most mundane surroundings. There appears to be one or maybe two servers to the whole place, so don’t go here in a hurry.
Here you will find sweet potato beignets alongside biscuits with country gravy. Salmon and bagels, Benedicts like the regulars, but also the one pictured: Huevos Rancheros, Chorizo sausage with corn and peppers served on a hoecake, topped by a sunny egg. And yes, there is a crab cake Benedict. And praline bacon. In other words, an interesting blend of old and trendy, like the proprietary coffee served with partner company, Abita Roasters.
Abita Springs Cafe looks like something from the last century, but it is so this century they can show you online the chicken that laid the eggs you are eating. How they wound up at that place is part of a long and winding history, worth a visit to their website, and definitely worth a visit to the cafe.
Abita Springs Cafe
22132 Level St Abita Springs
985-400-5025
Daily 8-2 Lunch at 11
Thu-Sat Dinner 4-9
abitaspringscafe.com
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