East Idaho Eats: BJ's Bayou cooking up Louisiana style eats

East Idaho Eats -- BJ’s Bayou

VO: – In the small community of Roberts Idaho, one southern chef is sharing his love for Louisiana style cooking.

SOT: “Food here, while good and hearty, (was) not very varied,” owner BJ Berlin says.

VO: Owner of BJ’s Bayou, and also mayor of Roberts, BJ Berlin says he discovered his knack for cooking back in his hometown.

SOT: “When I was a boy scout in Louisiana I learned that I loved to cook,” Berlin says.

VO: Eventually he opened up for business in a one hundred year old building that used to be a cowboy saloon. Before it was BJ’s, he tried to recreate the saloon and also offered food. He said each Friday was Louisiana night, and it was a hit.

SOT: “All of a sudden we had people coming from all over east Idaho for that Louisiana cuisine. We weren’t planning on being a Louisiana restaurant, but that’s what the demand turned out to be,” Berlin says.

VO: BJ then transitioned into BJ’s Bayou and focused on that Louisiana style cooking.

SOT: “Generally the more popular dishes are things like crawfish etouffee, and shrimp creole, the sautéed dishes, the blackened ribeye’s, and our catfish,” Berlin says. “One of my favorite appetizers is our New Orleans barbecue shrimp.”

STAND UP: I’m trying the crescent city barbeque shrimp that comes with a side of bread that you can dip in your sauce. It’s just the right amount of spicy and it’s savory. If you’re feeling more adventurous you can try the alligator appetizer, or the frog legs.

VO: In addition to his best selling frog legs, and alligator BJ says customers frequently order the crawfish.

SOT: We always have crawfish on hand,” BJ says.

VO: BJ says he’s enjoyed serving in his rural community, and he feels the community and many other customers from around the country have enjoyed his cooking.

SOT: “Generally they’ve been supportive of us, if not in the buying of strange and weird Louisiana cuisine,” Berlin says.

VO: In Roberts, I’m Natalia Hepworth, EastIdahoNews.com.