Lunch Bites: Plantation Inn
March 6, 2012
Fishermen, start your kayaks…
March 6, 2012
The Larose Regional Park and Civic Center hosts its 15th Annual Wild Game Supper March 8. The supper sees countless unusual dishes, like raccoon, nutria, yak, several varieties of deer, antelope, elk and even kangaroo.
“We add new dishes every year, and we try to add things that are more exotic each time,” says Travis Terrebonne, committee chairperson of the event and chef of the event’s kangaroo loin. “The most interesting dishes are the raccoon and the nutria. Nutria and raccoon are edible, and depending on how much seasoning used, it can be good but it’s definitely interesting.”
During its 15 years at the civic center, the event has brought in a substantial amount of money in donations from ticket sales and proves to be the center’s second most successful fundraiser.
“When we started, it was a group of around 200 or 300 people,” says Jasmine Ayo, executive director for the civic center. “Last year, we filled the entire civic center with about 900 people.”
With a new park pavilion, Ayo vows there is plenty of room to accommodate the growing numbers.
During the event, guests enjoy sampling the 40-plus dishes of outlandish concoctions and hometown favorites like white beans and rice. A cash bar is available, as well as a live band and live auction. The civic center displays mounts of striking animals from all parts of the world, including bears, giraffes and ostrich.
Meats come from all over the world, yet the majority comes from the back yard. Terrebonne says that most of the meat is obtained from hunting; either friends receive it from traveling hunters or they hunt it themselves; a small percentage is ordered. That’s the case with his kangaroo.
The dinner was a friendly cooks’ gathering until last year’s event, when the committee began its fish, fin and feather awards, labeling the best dish in each category as well as the overall best. A committee of judges makes up 50 percent of the vote while the guests make up the second half. In addition to the awards for best dishes, a special honor, The Outdoor Icon Award, is given to someone who has dedicated themselves to the outdoors, hunting and conservation.
Last year, The Outdoor Icon Award was given to two brothers, Pat and the late John Brady. The men are the original founders of the Wild Game Supper, starting it 25 years prior to the first event at the civic center.
“It started out as a friendly supper between eight of us, getting together to eat ducks and play Pedro,” Pat explains. “We decided to do it next year and more friends heard about it, so we added more ducks to the pot.”
The two ran a telephone company and hosted the event inside their warehouse. Without any anticipation, the supper continued to grow each year through new dishes and new faces.
“One year, after everything was over, we’d stayed outside and thanked everyone for coming,” Pat says. “I came back into the warehouse and mentioned to my brother that I saw more people that I didn’t know than I did. People started expecting it rather than appreciating it.”
The last year the Brady brothers hosted the event, Pat recalls they had about 1,500 guests. The two proposed handing over the supper to the civic center and offered to fund it until it became more popular throughout the community. Since then, the Wild Game Supper has grown in attendance and support with the public and projects promising growth and a good time for guests.
“It’s all about the camaraderie of it,” Ayo says. “It doesn’t matter if you’re a millionaire or just the guy driving the truck of supplies that day. If you like hunting, fishing and good food, it’s the event to look forward to.”
Each participant can find something unique to enjoy, and the gathering proves to be an oasis for hunting enthusiasts young and old alike.
“There is nothing better than a camp supper, and they recreate that,” Pat says. “There’s a special patio for the cooks to use and I always say that they come to cook, drink beer and tell lies to each other.”
– Esther Ellis is a freelance writer.
The Larose Regional Park and Civic Center hosts the 15th Annual Wild Game Supper tomorrow at the civic center. Tickets cost $50 and must be purchased in advance.
