Abita, one of our favorite breweries here at the Rivershack Tavern, makes a handful of harvest beers. For the hot summer months, that beer is the Satsuma Harvest Wit. You’ve definitely seen it around – it has a bright orange and green label that’s hard to miss. But you might not have tried it because it’s still fairly new and only available for the summer season.

Satsumas are a bit like mandarins and came to America from Asia in the 1700s. Where was it brought? To Plaquemines Parish. So we think its pretty fitting that Abita chose the fruit for its summertime beer.

Satsumas reach their peak in winter, and Abita picks them then. When the beer is ready to be sold in summer, it’s the perfect combination of citrus, spice, and sweet to get you through a hot Metairie happy hour.

Another great thing about Abita using local produce for their brews? You know they’re going to pair well with our food. The brewery recommends the Satsuma Harvest with salads, fish, shrimp, and lobster. So come on down to the Shack, grab a Seizure Salad and a See-Food Platter, and enjoy all the flavors of our area while you’re sipping on this Abita brew and listening to some Metairie live music!

We’ve got a great weekend coming up at the Shack with great food, rockin’ music and loyal customers. We’re having The Refugeze Friday, the new Pontchartrain Wrecks and of course our Super Trooper Sunday Funday.

But, if you’re already dreading that woeful Monday next week, we’ve got something for you to look forward to. On Monday, we’re
having a “Get out of the parish…” night. Escape the hustle and bustle of the Orleans Parish by heading over to the Shack in Jefferson.

To give you some ammunition for chats at the bar, we’ve got some interesting facts about Jefferson Parish.

– Jefferson Parish was established way back in 1825 and was named in honor of Thomas Jefferson because of his participation in the Louisiana Purchase that brought this area to the United States.

– Notable residents of Jefferson Parish include Steven Seagal, former Gov. Dave Treen and state senator Danny Martiny.

– According to Wikipedia, there are 19 historic districts or places in Jefferson Parish. The most recent listing on the National Register is the Southern Pacific 745.

– Danny Granger, the forward for the Indiana Pacers, lived in Metairie.

– Iconoclast and author Jack Kerouac mentions Gretna in his book “On The Road.”

Now that you know some fun facts about Jefferson Parish you probably didn’t know before, share these with other patrons down at the Shack.

Things are always swinging down here at the Shack with awesome food and rockin’ music. While we love all types of music, nothing gets our feet tapping and heads bobbing like a good classic rock guitar ballad. This weekend we’ll be having The Blackened Blues Band rocking the joint, so come down for some good times and maybe you’ll catch one of these great songs.

Whipping Post – Allman Brothers Band

This blues classic is something to marvel at. The fantastic guitar work and wailing vocals makes us want to belt out as loud as we can whenever this song comes on.

Voodoo Chile (Slight Return) – Jimi Hendrix

To be honest, nearly any Hendrix song would fit here perfectly without any arguments, but we have to give the nod to Voodoo Chile (Slight Return). Jimi outdoes himself with his wah-wah pedal and patented guitar magic.

Free Bird – Lynyrd Skynyrd

No song embodies the term “rock ballad” like Free Bird. From its haunting slide guitar introduction to riveting guitar solo at the end, you’ve got an amazing rock song.

Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door – Guns N’ Roses

While we know this is a cover song of a softer Bob Dylan version, Guns N’ Roses really puts a lot of emotion in this song. You have Axl Rose’s screeching voice mixed with Slash’s soulful guitar licks. Good stuff.

Cocaine – Eric Clapton

Clapton is another one of those guitarists who hypnotizes you every time he plays. He has a couple great rock classics, but Cocaine is a catchy one with a lot of nice rhythms and licks.

Down here at the Shack, we believe in serving classic Louisiana food and there’s nothing more interesting than our alligator sausage. We serve the alligator sausage as one of Shack-A-Tizers or you can get your fix in our delicious alligator po’boy. So, in honor of our alligator sausage, here are some fun facts about the alligator that you probably never knew.

– Only two countries in the world have alligators: the United States and China.

– The reason why alligators sit with their mouths open is to release excess heat from their body and regulate their temperature.

– According to aviation records, planes collide with one alligator a year on the runway.

– Despite having a heavy and seemingly immobile body, an alligator can run at speeds of more than 30 mph, but not for more than a couple feet.

– Alligators have walked the earth for more than 200 million years.

– The average life span of an alligator is about 50 years.

– The nostrils of an alligator are pointed upwards so they can breath while their whole body is submerged.

– Alligators can’t move their tongue, so they most get food down their throats by lifting their head upwards.

– The word “alligator” comes from the anglicized version of “el legarto,” the Spanish term for lizard.

Now with all these fun facts about alligators rattling around in your head, you’ll be able to tell some amazing tidbits while eating an alligator sausage down here at the Shack.

Believe it or not, the Shack is finally becoming legal. Since 1990, the Shack has been bringing you the finest food, the feeling of community, rockin’ entertainment and, of course, great beer.

This Sunday, the Shack is celebrating its 21st year in existence and we plan on doing it in style, the Rivershack Tavern way.

We’ll be serving everything from our delectable menu replete with all the finest beer.

The Shack is already one of the longest residents of 3449 River Road for the past 100 years. Before 1990, the Shack was the Riverside Inn for 11 years. Then between 1974 and 1977, the place was mostly vacant except for a brief ownership by Eleanora Washington. Before that, the site was home to Riverside Inn for 13 years.

Despite that rocky and ever-changing land of 3449 River Road, we’ve made it our steady home and it’s now an integral part of the community.

It’s amazing to think of all we’ve seen in the past 21 years. Four different presidents, floods come and go, celebrations and disasters. But one thing has never change over the course of all those years, our critically acclaimed food.

So, make your voice heard and share your favorite memories with us by coming down and joining in the festivities on Sunday and any time this week.

Crawfish season is still booming and we’re still serving up delicious food over here at the Shack. When you come down to get your seafood or po’boy fix, you should really check out our variety of beers. A couple posts ago we wrote in some detail about our favorite types of Abita beer, which come from the nearby brewery.

Each part of the year, Abita makes seasonal beers that they only pump out for a few months. Currently, the seasonal Abita beer is Red Ale, which goes from now until May. The reason its called Red Ale is because it has ruby coloring and moderate carbonation. It’s made with British pale and crystal malts with ale yeast all the way from California.

The Abita website recommends you try it “with traditional Irish fare” but it’s actually good with a variety of dishes we have here at the Shack.

Abita’s Red Ale has been described as having a complex taste and smell with a combination of flavors mixing together uniquely while the citrus flavor stands out the strongest.

Perhaps the greatest asset of this beer is its drinkability.  It goes down very smooth, which makes it an ideal session beer.

So if you’re interested in trying one of Abita’s classic beers, come down to the Shack where you can enjoy great music and delicious food.

As we posted about last week, the Shack is hosting a number of  crawfish-related activities every Sunday. Along with delectable food and satisfying beer, our crawfish boils are some of the best in the New Orleans area, so you don’t want to miss it.

Whether you’re a native who’s eaten crawfish your whole life or someone who’s new to the delicate art of crawfish eating, you might not be familiar with the fascinating history of crawfish throughout Louisiana.

In order to track the true traditions of the crawfish boil, you need to take a trip to the outskirts of New Orleans in Cajun country. Acadiana, the large portion of area south and west of New Orleans, was first populated by a group of French exiles from a part of Canada called Acadia. Eventually their name while living in Louisiana morphed from Acadians to Cadians and finally Cajuns, thanks of course to heavy accents.

Since the Cajuns lived in the swampy area of the bayou, they had to really search for their food and found that between March and June, an abundance of the beady-eyed creatures came out of hibernation in search for food of their own. The Cajuns began eating crawfish and it became a popular staple in the culture.

From that point on, crawfish boils grew in popularity as processing plants were built to take out the tail meat and local farmers began harvesting crawfish to ensure copious amounts were available.

Today, a simple drive through the New Orleans area during crawfish season will get your stomach grumbling with signs everywhere advertising the freshly boiled shellfish.

So, now that you know a little more about their origins, come down to the Shack and get your crawfish fix.