The South - Eastern USA - page 866

The top zydeco joints in Acadiana, Slim's Y-Ki-Ki ( www.slimsykiki.com ; cnr Main St & Park
St, Opelousas) , a few miles north on Main St, across from the Piggly Wiggly, and the Zy-
deco Hall of Fame (11154 Hwy 190) , 4 miles west in Lawtell, strike it up most weekends.
Wear your dancing shoes and don't be afraid to sweat!
Plaisance , northwest of Opelousas, hosts the grassroots, fun-for-the-family Southw-
est Louisiana Zydeco Festival ( www.zydeco.org ; late Aug) .
In Eunice ( www.eunice-la.com ) there's the Saturday-night (6pm to 7:30pm) 'Rendez-
Vous des Cajuns' at the Liberty Theater ( 337-457-7389; 200 Park Ave; admission $5) ,
which is broadcast on local radio. In fact, visitors are welcome all day at KBON
( www.kbon.com ; 109 S 2nd St) , 101.1FM. Browse the capacious Wall of Fame, signed by
visiting musicians. Two blocks away, the Cajun Music Hall of Fame & Museum (
337-457-6534; www.cajunfrenchmusic.org ; 230 S CC Duson Dr; 9am-5pm Tue-Sat) is a
dusty colletion of instruments and cultural ephemera that caters to the die-hard music
buff. The NPS runs the Prairie Acadian Cultural Center ( 337-457-8499; www.nps.gov/
jela ; 250 West Park Ave; 8am-5pm Tue-Fri, to 6pm Sat) , which has exhibits on rural
life and Cajun culture and shows a variety of documentaries explaining the history of the
area.
If all this leaves you in need of a respite, try centrally located Potier's Cajun Inn (
337-457-0440; 110 W Park Ave, Eunice; r from $55; ) for spacious, down-home-Cajun-
style cozy apartments with kitchenettes. Ruby's Café ( 337-550-7665; 123 S 2nd St, Eu-
nice; meals under $10; 6am-2pm Mon-Fri, 5-9pm Wed & Thu, to 10pm Fri & Sat) does popular
plate lunches in a 1950s diner setting and Café Mosaic (202 S 2nd St, Eunice; meals $3-4.50;
6am-10pm Mon-Fri, from 7am Sat, 7am-7pm Sun;

) is a smart coffeehouse with waffles

and grilled sandwiches.

WORTH A TRIP
THE TAO OF FRED'S

Deep in the heart of Cajun Country, Mamou is a typical South Louisiana small town
six days of the week, worth a peek and a short stop before rolling to Eunice. But on
Saturday mornings, Mamou's hometown hangout, little Fred's Lounge (420 6th St;
8am-2pm Sat) , becomes the apotheosis of a Cajun dancehall.
OK, to be fair: Fred's is more of a dance shack than hall. It's a little bar and it gets
more than a little crowded from 8:30am to2ish in the afternoon, when owner
'Tante' (auntie) Sue and her staff host a Francophone-friendly music morning, with
bands, beer, cigarettes and dancing (seriously, it gets smoky in here. Fair warning).