Louisiana Eats: Coffee, Tea, or ???

On this week’s show, we’re taking a look at the coffee and tea scene across Louisiana.

We begin with Geoffrey Meeker, owner of French Truck Coffee. It took only one cup of coffee from San Francisco to inspire him to become a New Orleans coffee purveyor. Now, Geoffrey and his team are at the vanguard of what many are calling the third wave coffee movement.

Then, we visit one of the many coffee shops that serve French Truck Coffee, a diminutive restaurant in New Orleans’s 7th Ward called Pagoda Cafe. There, we demystify the flat white, a specialty coffee drink with origins on the other side of the world. 

Host Poppy Tooker and French Truck Coffee owner Geoffrey Meeker

REGGIE MORRIS

Next, we switch from coffee to tea and meet the only tea educator in Louisiana, Garrett Johnson. He’s spreading the gospel of fine loose leaf tea through a series of lectures and gatherings in the Shreveport area. Garrett invites us to the table to learn about traditional hot tea and sample some of his favorite brews.

Finally, we take a tour of Luzianne Tea in New Orleans East and speak with Malcolm and Scott Shalders, third and fourth generation tea masters. There, we discover what goes into ensuring the quality and consistency in each Luzianne tea bag, and learn about a family history steeped in tradition.

Whether it’s coffee or tea, we’ll top off your cup on this week’s Louisiana Eats! 

Basic Coffee Rub

½ cup finely ground coffee

3 T kosher salt

¼ cup coarsely ground pepper

Combine all ingredients and store in an airtight container for up to a month.

Use 2 Tablespoons of rub per 1 ½ pounds of protein.

***Add other flavoring ingredients such as brown sugar, dry mustard, dried ginger, paprika, chili powder, coriander and oregano as desired.