Fat Tuesday at Lunde's: Every Baby Needs a King Cake

Babycake likes Mini-Moonpie!

Is there a more appropriate or better place to lunch in the Gump on Fat Tuesday than Lunde's? Mardi Gras beads, moon pies, red beans and rice, Louisiana Hot Sauce and King Cake (complete with baby!). Laissez les bons temps rouler! Our favorite NOLA-transplants lunch spot with all the carnival trappings without the liquor license.  Drat. Plenty of King Cake babies though and in all sizes. Some were so big they were the size of toddlers. ("You go right back up there and get me a toddler. I need a baby, Hi. They got more'n they can handle.") Here we see how one baby helps the smaller baby with the Marine haircut jump back into a moon pie. It's all about how we all can help each other get along and have fun at the same time.

Come on in, the Moonpie's warm...

What's even better is that after you eat at Lunde's you can watch them tear down that building next to the old Jeff Davis Hotel--one brick at a time. I could watch people tearing down buildings for hours. Outside Lunde's you can do it at no extra charge.

View from Lunde's

All in all a great Fat Tuesday: Got the baby out of the King Cake and saw a building get torn down. Hard to top that especially since when in between you can savor some fine red beans and rice.

A hearty dish on Fat Tuesday.

Now, after this big splurge what to give up for lent? Hmmmm. I've got it: Moon Pies!!

At least it's a start.

Click on this to go to urbanspoon reviews

Ed. Note: Today we debut our Informational Values label mandated by the FCC (Food Communication Commission). These labels supposedly allow consumers to make smart choices about what they read. We shall see.

The % of Daily Value is based on a 100 pt. scale with 100 equaling a post that brings total consciousness and 1 equaling a simple fart noise.

The Shadow Pup Muses About Katrina While At Lunde's [CENSORED]

[Editors Note: We apologize for the rant of Shadow Pup and have redacted portions of same per requests from the Montgomery Humane Shelter.]


Bob Dobbs Warning: If you believe that [Redacted] This was posted by the Shadow Pup. We are not responsible for liberal heart attacks caused from reading this....

You know I am famous for my lack of patience. And I do not suffer fools well. While waiting an extraordinarily long time for my chicken salad po'boy at Lunde's Monday I noted all the New Orleans artifacts which adorn the walls there and my mind wandered to all the "Fifth Anniversary of Katrina" media coverage that began this past Sunday and continues in our local paper: "The Mt. Gumpery Advertiser." For me, it was a bad combination of events that lead me to connect my annoyance with [Censored].

Do not get me wrong. I loved going to New Orleans before Katrina, have been back since and would love to go again. It is a unique place with some of the finest restaurants I have ever enjoyed. Lunch at Galatoires is the epitome of lunch anywhere. But let's be honest, [Redacted by Humane Shelter]

Whoops!

The truth is that cities in Mississippi (yes, unlike you Bama fans, I can spell it) [Redacted by Humane Shelter] I didn't think so.

 And, excuse me, but [Redacted by ASCPA]

There is a silver lining to the clouds of Katrina: We in the Gump have Lunde's as a consequence of Katrina. I know some of you think we are shills for Lunde's because you cannot get Etoufee (I'm a dog and cannot spell) like you want it. I say: I told you to order the blackened pork loin you bozo! I am not responsible for other items on the menu....arrrf!

[Redacted by Humane Shelter]

Yours in lunching, Shadow Pup.

Oh, by the way, the chicken salad po' boy turned out okay.

Vegetarianism, Vegans and Trojans at Lunde’s

Vegans build their pyramids on water. They are not good swimmers. 

Unbeknownst to us, effective July 5, the Bama Bistro decided to close on Mondays. So when the LITG gang (Tojo Yamamoto, Big Easy Slim, Show Dog, Chase N. Allpots, Bama Bing, Cornbread Carp, Shadow Pup, BB MAK and Fat Clemenza) showed up at Bama Bistro hungry but locked out, the consensus was to shift the meeting to nearby Lunde’s (pronounced “Loond’s” because it is owned by Norwegian Cajuns) in the Bell Building. Once again, Bama Bistro forced us into a very fine corner table at trusty Lunde’s where one of the best lunches in the Gump can be had for two bucks under the Tojo line.

It is somewhat old news that everything at Lunde’s is good and reasonably priced. The red beans and rice, shrimp etouffe, chicken salad po’boy and blackened pork loins were devoured by the group with a slice of freshly baked “lemonade cake” for dessert. Me-oh, my-oh. However, today the real treat was catching up with the news and banter of the diverse LITG crew, which started something like this:

BB MAK: Wow, look across the street at the two MPD Segway scooters parked on the sidewalk in front of Flames Grille. Has Flames started giving away doughnuts?

Show Dog: Maybe Flames serves Krispy Kreme doughnuts now.

Tojo: Good doughnut never too crispy. Good doughnut yield to bite like Superfly Jimmy Snuka yield to Stomach Claw.

Allpots: Can vegetarians eat doughnuts? I was in Asheville at the Biltmore House this weekend and upon leaving Sunday went downtown and breakfasted at the “Happy Greens” on Wall Street. Everything had a “V” by it except the omelets and mine came with a biscuit and some type of fake non-meat sausage I cannot name. But I was wondering if vegetarians can eat things like doughnuts.

Bama Bing: I ate at a very fine vegetarian restaurant in San Francisco one time. The food was real good but I would bet you there was some bacon fat involved in the process somewhere. I like any recipe that starts with “melt 1 ½ sticks of butter.” [At which time Karen Lunde presented Cornbread Carp and Fat Clemenza with two warm pats of Land-o-Lakes for their delicious cornbread].

BB MAK: Vegans can’t eat any animal byproducts but some vegetarians can eat eggs, cheese and butter.

Tojo: Tojo vegetarian. Tojo not eat meat—just pork.

Shadow Pup: Pork is the other white meat.

Tojo: What is first white meat?

Shadow Pup: Chicken. You must have taken too many blows to the head.

Tojo: Tojo vegetarian—just eat pork and chicken.

Bama Bing: Yeah and I’m a male Lesbian….. [Awkward pause].

Shadow Pup: Not that there is anything wrong with that….

Show Dog: I’ve never understood the various types of vegetarian labels. There are strict vegetarians and then there are some that eat fish and, err… pork and chicken. What are they called?

Fat Clemenza: Episcopalian vegetarians. By the way, I’ve never understood why vegetarian restaurants serve dishes that mimic meat dishes.

Bama Bing: Yeah. If their food tastes so damn good why do they have to pretend like it’s my food… tofu “burgers,” mushroom “sausage”…. eecch. Next time I see a vegetarian I’m going to hog-tie him and force-feed his hippie ass some Conecuh sausage. That’ll cure him.

Cornbread Carp: I just wish that one time when I go to eat at the home of a vegetarian they will return the favor of me serving them a dish served without touching meat by serving me a meat dish served on a plate that never touched bean sprouts. That’ll never happen.

Shadow Pup: Have you ever noticed that strict vegetarians have an odor about them. What’s up with that?

Show Dog: There was a guy I knew growing up in Troy that thought male vegetarians were either communists or carnivores trying to lay girl vegetarians and then eating Big Macs on the way home.

Bama Bing: I knew that guy. His name was Robert [censored]. He was a character. At the local restaurant he loudly announced his plans to marry his fourth wife. His buddy told him: Robert, you know that girl has slept with everybody in Troy? The whole restaurant got quiet and
Robert said: “I know. But Troy ain’t no big place.”

Show Dog: Robert quit school in the 3rd grade—sort of like Tojo—and liked to boast he was told he would never be anything but a ditch digger and that he was, in fact, a ditch digger….but one who dug them with several D350 Caterpillars worth $300,000 each.”

Bama Bing: He is the same guy who learned to fly his own Bonanza and landed illegally behind a 757 at Hartsfield because he had to pee.

Show Dog: Yeah, they were putting the handcuffs on him as he relieved himself at the end of the runway. Thankfully it was before 911 or they would have shot him down.

Chase N. Allpots: What a classy fellow. You know they call themselves the “Trojans” for the same reason. [Awkward pause]

Bama Bing: They call all the teams Trojans down there because Troy is so safe and secure.

Show Dog: Real snug.

Bama Bing: There used to be a condom factory in Troy, but they only made “Ramses” and “Sheik.” They call that irony.

Allpots: "Stay classy Troy."

BB MAK: Anyone want to split a piece of the “Lemonade Cake?”

Tojo: Can vegetarian like Tojo eat cake?

Fat Clemenza: You think they got cannoli?

Cornbread Carp (to Show Dog): You gonna finish your cornbread?

[And the banter resumed….]

Now you see why we enjoy our LITG meetings. They bring out the best (or worst) in lunchtime conversation. At LITG, like this blog, you will always learn something….you did not know. Enjoy!

Lunde's Cajun-Norwegian Fusion

You heard it here first. Cajun-Norwegian Fusion. It's a movement.

It is probably true that few Norwegians ever settled in the squishy part of southern Louisiana. The heat, humidity, gnats, gators, binge-drinking and non-stop sex would be too harsh for Norsemen (this is why they took over Minnesota instead). But I can tell you that  Lunde's Norwegian apple pie sits just right with their excellent shrimp ettouffee. I think they may be onto something.

Yesterday Shadow Pup, The Younger, Tojo Yamamoto, Big Easy Slim, BoDiddly, Chase N. Allpots, The Great Grantini, Cornbread Carp and I strolled over to one of our favorites -- Lunde's on Montgomery Street.

We've always pronounced it American-style like "Lundy's" and since the joint serves up reliably tasty cajun/creole type dishes, we erroneously thought the name was some kind of play on "Lundi," which is French for "Monday," which is pronounced "Mundy" here in the Gump. Shortly after being seated, however, our preconceived notions began to crumble.

The trouble started when Big Easy Slim, a native of New Orleans and LITG's expert on all things Louisianian, advised us to save room for the Norwegian apple pie. "Huh?" I said, "Norwegian desserts in a Cajun joint? What the hell is up with that?" Turns out the co-owner/chef at Lunde's is a Norwegian guy named "Lunde." I googled it on my phone gadget and found out that "Lunde" is Norwegian for "Jones."

"It's probably pronounced 'Loond' or something," sniffed Allpots, the elitist snob. "Apparently we shall now have to call this place Loond's."

About this time co-owner Karen mistakenly put Allpots' salad in front of Tojo, who never orders salad, but ate it anyway, sans dressing, just to watch Allpots squeal like the overindulged Irish brat that he most assuredly is.

Apparently Karen has some bayou country in her DNA because she shared grandmother's take on the origin of the word "jambalaya." It is an interesting story (click on the picture below) but conflicts with the etymology foisted on me as a youngster, which is that the loose translation of "jambalaya" is "Warden, I'll have me some of that stuff there for my last meal before y'all shave my head and put the juice to me." You live and learn.

As usual, I digress. Back to the lunch.

The gumpers went with a variety of dishes and nobody was disappointed (except Allpots, who had his lip poked out until somebody brought him a salad). We had shrimp ettouffee, red beans & rice, jambalaya, blackened shrimp, grilled pork loin... plus some other stuff I can't remember or spell correctly. You can also get a mean meat & 3 at Lunde's (see below). Cornbread Carp approved of the cornbread and noted, for the record, that Lunde's serves real butter and that the cornbread is served hot enough to quickly melt said real butter.

Shadow Pup asked his pal, "How's that ettouffee, Tojo?"

"Tojo like." came the reply. That is Tojo's highest rating.

How to top off a great Cajun lunch? Well, how about some of B.E. Slim's favorite Norwegian pie? It was sort of a cross between a pie and a cake, served fresh out of the oven with vanilla ice cream on top (which sort of Americanized it). We jumped on that foreign pie like it was Liv Ullman back in the day, gobbling that stuff up so fast nobody remembered to take a picture, but I found this one on the web, which pretty much shows what Norwegian apple pie looks like.

Anyway, Lunde's is a real good lunch place, even if we don't really know how to pronounce it, and I think this Norwegian/Cajun thing is going to catch on.

I'm outta here. Have a good weekend. See y'all Munde.


Random Lunch in the Gump picture of the week:

BoDiddly snapped this one at the grocery store the other day.

Publix has everything.

Lagniappe at Lunde's

Fat Clemenza walked me down to Lunde's today so we could console ourselves with some comfort food. The Gang had favorably rated Lunde's previously (see Oct. 11, 2009 and Sept. 10, 2009 reviews) so we found the little place on the first floor corner of the Historic Bell Building and went in around noon. (The place is open 11a-2p for lunch) There were not many there when we arrived but business picked up as we lunched in this quaint place with a lot of homey touches from the Big Easy.

Since the place has been so well reviewed, I will not repeat what has been stated. However, I just have to let everyone know about the "Blackened Pork Loin" available on the Meat and Three Menu. (Here is where Carpasaurus i.e. "The Cornbread Carp" may become interested). When the meat and three arrived I was surprised to see that there was a  square of fluffy, cakey, twinkie-like tasty CORNBREAD the size of a Buick next to the porkus loinus! See below:

Photo by Darla, special to LITG, used with permission. Not actual size.

One funny event: Fat Clemenza asked if one of the vegetable choices--macaroni and cheese--was 'home made.' The smart ass in me would have normally quipped: "Mac and Cheese is about as man-made as a 'vegetable' can ever get." I held my tounge and the waitress politely responded that the M & C was homemade. This caused me to wonder: Are any vegetgables really "home made?" Cake can be "home" made, pie can be "home" made but vegetables?  My green beans and corn were certainly good but I wouldn't think they were "home made." Doesn't the Big Guy Upstairs get some of the credit for "making" them?  Nevertheless, the main point here is that the veggies were tasty and fresh, but the surprise cornbread square was lagniappe! The "other white meat" loin was just perfectly prepared and a generous portion. (Did they know we were professional restaurant reviewers?) Best of all, the price ($7.50 with tea) allowed me to pick up the tab for Fat-C and tip generously all for a "Jackson." Now that's value in the Gump. So try Lunde's, it's now officially Shadow Pup tested, Shadow Pup approved.

Friday Microgump: Lunde's is a Contender

A small unit of Gumpers pulled off a surprise sneak attack on Lunde's (downtown, first floor of the Bell Building), which got a great unsanctioned review early last month from Shadow Pup, head of LITG's elite K-9 Corps. Mimi Furst, FTR and I had some bidness to tend to Friday and I still had a bad taste in my mouth from Monday's trip to Wintzell's, so we agreed on Lunde's. Very good call, as it turned out.

Shadow Pup is a reliable reviewer, but his judgment can be clouded by his sudden urges, like when he suddenly has to go hump a leg or needs to mark his turf. He likes to sniff butts, although we try not to tease him about that. Shadow Pup also saved Tojo Yamamoto from a bad experience at a local Chinese place, too. It seems Shadow Pup smelled a relative in the walk-in. You've gotta trust Shadow Pup's sniffer. But I digress.

Going stark raving mad for properly-cooked seafood with some pizazz, and remembering Shadow Pup's lengthy but informative review of Lunde's. We tried it. WE SHOOT, WE SCORE!!

I went with an old favorite - Shrimp Ettouffe. Outstanding, spiciness level just *barely* below where I like it with only a couple of drops of Tabasco needed to get it perfect. This is key... cajun cooking is like getting a haircut. You can't uncut hair and you don't want your food too hot from the get-go. The shrimp were like baby bear's porridge -- just right. Fresh, good-sized, plentiful and perfectly cooked, i.e., they were the last ingredients added to the ettouffe.

Mimi had the blackened Tilapia and seemed very compatible with it. FTR went with a steak po-boy (hmm, interesting... it was dripping with gravy... he ate it with a fork... very nice he said... he didn't share... well okay then).

Anyway, I am suggesting we Gump this place hard, because not only was the food damn good, it was a great value. But I can't put it into words so I will just let the annotated lunch tab make like a Larry Puckett customer and do the talking for me. Check this out:

Minigumpage: Lunde’s Downtown Restaurant: Cajun-Urbun-Southun

Lunde's Downtown Restaurant boasts of a location in the "Historic Bell Building." Old Montgumphrians can at the slightest prodding rattle off the names of some of the "historic" downtown buildings that have graced the capitol city skyline over the years. There are the Frank Leu Building, the Exchange Hotel, the First Alabama Bank (Regions) building and, more on point, the Bell Building. Unfortunately, what passes these days for "historic" is a little thin. The coolest thing about the Frank Leu Building was when they blew it slap up. At least the Exchange Hotel was a brothel frequented by some of Alabama's most notorious politicians and it was fun to watch it torn down so the infamous floor where the sinning was done was exposed to the righteous throngs below. It is true that the First Alabama Bank building was, at one time of its completion at the turn of the century, one of the two tallest buildings in Alabama. (Birmingham may have even been a smaller town than the Gump at the time but today has a mayor who has some problems).
The other tallest building in Alabama was at one time the Bell Building at 12 towering floors but is that all that made it "historic?" Was the Bell Building where the orders were given to fire upon Fort Sumter or the location where the flawed Alabama Constitution of 1901 was debated? No, it was not built until 1907 and unfortunately, N.J. Bell, a local businessman and entrepreneur did not even live to see the completion of "his big dream" (according to the sign near the elevators). In other words, the only thing truly historic about the Bell Building was that 100 years ago it was considered a really big building: Big Whoop.
The Bell Building has certainly not been a home to fine cuisine in the recent past. If anything, it has been a historically bad place to eat. Actually, before walking over to Lunde's I shuddered to think of all the poorly prepared excuses for food that had been dished-out within the first floor of the Bell Building since 1910. Remember that god-awful lunch counter? Or the first attempt by Boomer-T to actually cook what was loosely referred to as "Bar-B-Que there?" Those bad memories followed me through the door at Lunde's and--thankfully--quickly evaporated.
Even those of you who watch Letterman and "E!" may recall a hurricane named Katrina a while back and the horrors that it wrought upon the City of New Orleans and the Gulf. However, there was some good to come from it. The chaos caused a few New Orleanians with talent in the cooking arts to migrate north to the Gump. One such refugee was the wife of Chef Loren F. Lunde, who is stated to be a graduate of the C.I.A. As such, New Orleans' loss was Montgomery's gain. But in the interest of full disclosure, I must say that on their Facebook page, it is stated that Chef Lunde has called the Gump home for 35 years so my assumption may be wrong. We bloggers never let the truth interfere with a turn of a phrase.

In any event, I know that from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday to Friday in a corner of the first floor of the "Historic Bell Building" at 201 Montgomery Street, you can lunch in the gump with Chef Lunde among the trappings of the Big Easy. Etouffee, jambalaya and Po' Boys of all varieties await your beck and call. For me, however, it would start with that old reliable: red beans and rice with a sausage I cannot spell or pronounce. It sure was a tasty sausage nevertheless.
I guess one way you know you are getting authentic red beans and rice is when it is served with no hot sauces on the table (or in plain sight) because none are really needed. (I wonder if Chef Lunde would throw things if he knew you asked the waitress for some "Texas Pete") While $7.99 is a little pricey for a dish you can get at good places in New Orleans for much less, the flavor took me back to those wonderful pre-Katrina visits to NOLA and the sights, smells and tastes of good Cajun food and banjaxed drunks wearing beads and silly masks. It really did not need anything added for my taste and I like it spicy!

Those who favor the traditional "Meat and Three" will not be disappointed either. For $7.59 you can choose, depending on the day of the week, between old favorites like fried chicken, meat loaf and country fried steak. If you occasionally drive to work without your seatbelt on and like "edgier" fare, you can choose pork loin or Tilapia in shrimp sauce (or should I say "scrimp"). The usual vegetable suspects are available including the ubiquitous and questionable vegetable: "Mac & Cheese". The portions delivered around me appeared ample. If price is an issue you can always seek a discount. If you want a 10% discount all you need to do is join the military. It that is a tad inconvenient you can also e-mail Lundes4lunch@gmail.com and join their "Email Lunch Bunch."

From what I saw the place had some regulars and everyone was chatting it up in sated comfort. A friend who grew up in "N'owlins" eats there often and rates the Cajun food authentic and "good" (not great I note). According to him, the Chef is actually a Scandinavian and can also whip up some of the finest Dutch apple pie "en del toto de Gumpo".


The décor is a little fru-fru (not that there is anything wrong with that) but the place is spic and span clean and the waiters are very attentive.




After a Lunch in the Gump at Lunde's you can always amble across the street and tour the Rosa Parks Museum for a taste of some real history. All in all Lunde's can supply a Cajun-Southern-Urban experience to which I would rate at four Jambalayas out of Etouffee.

As always at your service,

Your Shadowy Pup, Lh.D.