Small Bites

Kimberly Harper wants locals and out-of-towners to appreciate and get a taste of downtown on her new Baton Rouge Food Tours. The tours kicked off in November on Thursdays and Fridays and take visitors on a one-mile trek to some of downtown’s top restaurants while providing a brief history and a few stories on Louisiana culture.

Poor Boy Lloyd’s, the Hilton hotel, Stroube’s, Zolia, The Lobby Café and Restaurant IPO are all included, with hefty tasting options at each stop.

“You will definitely get full by the end of the tour,” Harper says. “This is a great way to get to know the essence of the city.” batonrougefoodtours.com

On Halloween day, Trader Joe’s opened to big crowds, anchoring the new Acadian Village at Perkins Road and Acadian Thruway. With unique and organic foods and cheap—very cheap­­­—wines, the grocer buys directly from suppliers in bulk and offers only a few brands that don’t carry the Trader Joe’s label. “Everything we have here is popular,” says store manager Brian Augustine. “The customer decides what we sell. If something isn’t selling, we take it off the shelves.” The Baton Rouge location, open each day, 8 a.m.-9 p.m., is this West Coast chain’s first venture into the Louisiana market.

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