Phone video leads to arrest
January 10, 2018
Lafourche Booking Log – Jan. 10, 2018
January 11, 2018
There is no question that food is a big part of Louisiana culture, not just because of the abundance of seafood and Cajun cuisine, but also because of the way families and friends gather around food to enjoy each other’s company. Rather it be to visit with family members, friends, or coworkers, restaurants are a big part of the southern food culture. Established in 2013, the Ochsner Eat Fit program was created to give restaurant goers who wanted to eat healthier, more options at their favorite restaurants in the Louisiana area.
The Eat Fit program allows people who frequent certain restaurants to relish in a good meal, without the guilt. The program explains, “In our culture, food is more than nutrition – it’s an obsession. Five minutes after lunch, we’re talking about dinner. And fortunately, Eat Fit makes it easy to indulge without the guilt.”
Although Eat Fit got its start working with restaurants in the New Orleans area, it expanded to other regions around Louisiana, including the Houma area, in its Eat Fit Bayou extension. One of the participants in our area is Ground Pat’i.
“It’s a fantastic program. People want to eat healthy,” says Linda Ayers, owner of Ground Pat’i for eight years. “They want clean food, but they want to eat something that tastes good as well.”
The Ochsner Eat Fit program was designed to work with chefs to offer items on their menu that cater to those who might be dieting, or who struggle with diabetes, high blood pressure, or other ailments. Linda and her staff, who already had a “Lighten Up” menu before they joined Eat Fit, were able to create even healthier meal options for their customers through the program. She’s witnessed first hand the positive effect it has had on people in the community.
“I’ve had plenty of people that were on chemo for instance,” Linda says, “Their doctors tell them to eat good clean food and they can come here to eat. They can dine with their families and have something that’s in the guidelines of what their doctors want them to eat.”
Ground Pat’i, which will make two years participating in Eat Fit this Spring, has for a long time been known for their award-winning hamburgers and other delicious items on their menu such as the fried catfish and shrimp platters, but their healthier dishes are tasty as well. Their Lighten Up and Eat Fit sections of their menu combined have just under 25 items to choose from such as burgers, pork chops, salads, shrimp, tuna. Linda says that local favorites on the Eat Fit section, include their sweet potato fries, mahi mahi, and fresh steamed vegetables. The latter of which is the most popular with her customers.
“People just love them and it’s because they are fresh with nothing added to them. They are just fresh veggies,” Linda says.
Ground Pat’i, established in New Orleans in 1971 and made its way to Houma in the mid 70s, has been a popular destination in the Terrebonne Parish community for many years now. Not only does the variety of meal options, quality of food, and home-style atmosphere bring people to this location, but also the nostalgia. Being here for over 40 years, several generations have walked through the doors of Ground Pat’i, many of who have fond memories there. Linda shared a story about a married couple who stopped to talk to her as they were exiting the restaurant just the other day.
“Thirty-five years ago, right here, on this day, I asked her to marry me,” the man told Linda.
Whether by incorporating the Eat Fit program to provide healthier food options or by being the destination for a marriage proposal, Ground Pat’i of Houma proudly continues to cater to the needs of its community. •
