Toups South Turns One — And Celebrates with a 100-Pound Hog

Toups South, Isaac Toups’ lauded second restaurant located in the Southern Food and Beverage Museum, is turning one -- and celebrating the milestone with a 100-pound hog. On October 5, in addition to the regular menu, Toups South will offer boucherie specials all night, with the addition of some $7 cocktail specials (sidecars, sazeracs, and tail feathers).

Isaac Toups opened Toups South in the museum in October of 2016. Taking a cue from the museum itself, Toups explores the culinary traditions of the entire American South, expanding far beyond the chef/owner’s Cajun roots. Since opening, the restaurant has garnished praise both locally and nationally.

The museum’s artifacts bleed past the curtained wall into the restaurant, where the cocktails are mixed at the original Bruning’s Bar, once the main centerpiece of the museum in its early years. The bar was built on 1851 and occupied Bruning’s Restaurant overlooking Lake Pontchartrain until it was lost to Hurricane Katrina. Other museum artifacts, like miniature booze bottles and photos also adorn the space.

The main point of action in the restaurant is the large U-shaped demonstration kitchen. Recently Toups South launched a monthly Counter Club, where 18 diners sit at the bar as Toups “flexes some off-kilter ideas.”

His first restaurant, Toups Meatery, is included in Eater NOLA’s list of 38 Essential Restaurants.