The Real Deal
“All that other stuff is just glorified ketchup,” proclaims hot dog vendor Russell Hiltz, proprietor of the Grateful Dawg hot dog cart on Jefferson Street (this week’s LivingIND cover story) and maker of Russell’s Cajun Barbecue Sauce. Hiltz made his first sauce in 1974 for friends at a cochon de lait. “I’ve been obsessed with sauces ever since,” he admits. For the last several years, the Hiltz family has been making and packaging its own barbecue sauce at a little plant in Mire. The sweet, spicy sauce is about as good as it gets, a noble challenger to my all-time favorite, Sal & Judy’s (produced out of the namesake restaurant in Lacombe, La.). There’s nothing fancy about Russell’s sauce: tomato concentrate, cane syrup, apple cider vinegar, olive oil, red wine vinegar, garlic, onion, cayenne and a few others comprise the ingredient list. You can pick up a jar of Russell’s Cajun Barbecue Sauce for $5 at Corner Pantry Grocery, 801 Foreman Drive, and online at www.russellssauces.com and, of course, at the Grateful Dawg cart. — Walter Pierce
Local Loyalty
In an effort to encourage people to do business locally to help the area’s economy, CC’s Coffee House partnered with several Lafayette businesses to create a “Value Book” that includes savings on CC’s drinks as well as discounts or freebies from the Zoo of Acadiana, Bath Haus and Lee Michaels Fine Jewelry. “The more that those in the community support our local businesses, the more we all will benefit,” says Matt Saurage, president and fourth-generation family owner of Community Coffee Company. The book is free and available at the zoo, Bath Haus, Lee Michaels and the customer service counter at the Mall of Acadiana. — Leslie Turk
Geek Chic
Trekkies and fashionistas alike may find some common ground this month with the release of the newest Star Trek movie. Zoe Saldana, who plays the lovely Uhura, sports at least three different pairs of some very trendy Alexis Bittar earrings in the blockbuster film. A native New Yorker, Bittar has been on the fashion scene since the mid ’80s, and his line of exquisitely carved Lucite jewelry has been seen everywhere from the Sex and the City series to Estee Lauder campaigns. Now, his jewelry will boldly go where no man has gone before, as his architectural designs have hopped aboard the iconic Starship Enterprise. To make it even more appropriate, one of the pairs worn in the movie is dubbed “pod” earrings. Have Scotty beam you up to kiki in River Ranch, where the Alexis Bittar line starts at $85. Call 406-0904 for more information. — Maria Capritto
In rendering his ruling, District Judge John Trahan all but called the real estate developer a liar for inconsistencies in his accounts of what prompted him to punch a school teacher unconscious.
Frank’s Casing Crew, now doing business as Frank’s International, will make its final appearance on ABiz’s list of the Top 50 Privately Held Companies in Acadiana this year, and once again, it will likely be at the top with more than $1 billion in annual revenues. The 75-year-old company specializing in tubular fabrication and installation services to the oil and gas industry plans to go public this year.
The defeat, or rather highjacking of House Bill 420 in the final days of this year's Legislative Session, say Reps. Vincent Pierre and Terry Landry, is the result of the propaganda spread by one unidentified local media outlet and an unnamed former state Representative, but nothing to do with the original legislation's lack of checks, balances or details.
City-Parish Council Chairman Brandon Shelvin heaped steady doses of condescending ire on a Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Louisiana executive while failing to reveal his financial ties to a BC/BS rival.
Abbeville native David Primeaux was a popular professor until his death late last year, and while he was successful at camouflaging a dark past, he couldn’t outlive it.
Tehmi Chassion’s failure to recuse himself in the school board’s selection of a group health benefits provider raises ‘serious questions’ on whether he violated state ethics law.
He’s a singer. A songwriter. A piano man. A family man. He’s even got his own Wikipedia entry. He’s David Egan. And he knows ancient secrets about the monolithic stones of Stonehenge that he’s not willing to share.
The Real Deal
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