Amazing Cajun in Portland: Acadia A New Orleans Bistro

Holy heck y’all… Acadia was JUST the thing I’ve been looking for in Portland. I love me some really good cajun food. Soothes the soul and sets fire to the palate. I’ve been to a couple of places in Portland, including the well loved le Bistro Montage, and they’ve been good. Acadia took it up a notch in my humble opinion.

The simple but fun ambiance of the restaurant made it a much easier place to have a conversation than some of the competition. Tasty dishes were presented with thought to how they looked visually…which pleased the Instagrammer in me.The flavors blended well, but always had a surprising pop of flavor.

The Starters

The above pictured Corn-Meal Fried Louisiana Soft Shell Blue Crab with Jalapeno Tarter, English Pea, and Mint Salad is the perfect example. The peas, mint, and perfectly cooked crusty-on-the-outside and tender-on-the-inside crab made for a surprisingly fresh and light tasting appetizer…perfectly rounded out by the surprising bite of jalapeno at the end.

Also highly recommended is the Louisiana Barbecue Shrimp with lemon, black pepper, white wine and butter. Seriously… save all the bread for yourself so that you can just sop up this sauce.

The Entrees

The entrees were just as drool worthy as the appetizers. The pork tenderloin with cornbread puree and rhubarb chutney was a favorite. They bake the cornbread and then puree it! Who would have thought?

The Drinks

Obviously, I enjoyed Acadia. But, it wasn’t just for the food. I was thrilled to be able to try a variety of the cocktails as well. From savory to sweet the cocktails worked as a starter before the meal, accompaniment during the meal, and an end of night topper. My favorite was the Mint Julep topped with a beautiful dusting of powdered sugar.

The Acadia Drink Menu:

Study Retreat– cucumber vodka, blood orange, byrrh, port wine, salt. Any easy sipper whether you’re hitting the sand or hitting the books.

Young Sarandon– union gin, fresh rhubarb, house-made rhubarb sorbet. Frothy and live,just a touch of sweet. Surely an Oscar-caliber performance.

Portland Caprese– white rum, fresh basil, clarified tomato, cane vinegar, honey, lemon, salt & pepper. Somewhere between drinks and dinner, you’ll find this epicurean delight. Savory and smooth, get ready to fool your palate, signora.

Julep– bourbon, min, sugar. Nothing is better than one of these for helping pick your Derby winners. Ours has a secret ingredient that we think sets it apart.

Commander La Croix– Tequila, lemon, honey, apple cider vinegar, ginger beer. For easing out of your Master Cleanse…

The Desserts

If you’ve never had the opportunity to watch a group of food blogging women be served three decadent desserts then you are missing out. The entire table moved as we all stood up to see the desserts as they were being prepped with garnishes and passed around for photos. I’m pretty sure everyone in the restaurant was wondering what the heck the crazy gaggle of women were doing taking photos of these desserts instead of just digging in! But, dig in we did. We tried the following amazing sweet treats:

Vanilla Bean Bread Pudding– with white chocolate-brandy ganache, toasted pecans and thickened sweet cream

Tropic thunder: the dessert- banana cake with maraschino drizzle, coconut frosting, passion fruit cheesecake, and golden graham-macadamia crunch

Chocolate esspresso layer cake– with burnt marshmallow, fudge icing and white chocolate crumb

This dinner was provided by Acadia with purpose of potential review. My thoughts are my own. I will be going back!