First and foremost, I couldn’t get over the name. The moment I heard about the new Cajun restaurant in Rapid City, Jambonz Deux (two), I started to repeat it constantly in what was an attempt at an accent.

Hour three of the car ride to the Black Hills, my co-worker finally said, “Okay… “

Message received. But did it stop me from continuing? Kind of. Not really.

The next day we arrived hungry at the downtown restaurant, which opened in September.

It was like we were taken to another place. Owner Sheree Schriver has been collecting items for years from the South and antique stores all over, and the chandeliers, jazz instruments, artwork, and more eclectic décor all are from her personal collection.

The narrow eatery seemed large, but intimate, and I loved that blues music was bustling from behind the bar.

We took a seat near one of the front windows, and our (super nice) server came over and greeted us. She explained everything is Cajun themed since the owner was from Louisiana, and recommended right away that we try the Gator Blood Bloody Mary.

What is the difference between a Gator Blood Bloody Mary and a regular Bloody Mary?” I asked.

“This has shrimp and has much more hot sauce,” she explained.

I’m a totally wuss… but challenge accepted!

And wow. She was right. One sip of the adorable drink that arrived in a mason jar and the spice rushed to my head, along with my cheeks getting hot. The shrimp helped cool it down, but that was rough. Spicy lovers will enjoy it.

Now, to be honest, I’m not too experienced with Cajun food or with much seafood. Luckily I was with a few co-workers who were, and one glanced at the menu and exclaimed, “Etouffee! They have Etouffe? I’ve never been able to find a place that serves this locally.”

Well, Crawfish Etouffee (pronounced a-too-fey) was ordered immediately. You can get a cup or bowl, so we tried a cup to share. The dish is “a stew with Cajun seasonings and the trinity cooked in a blonde roux with tomatoes and topped with crawfish tails.” The word “tails” is where I get nervous. Thank goodness the texture was not as scary as I imagined, and it was actually very tasty, with just enough seasoning intermixed with the other ingredients.

Our next dishes came out together, and how they were presented made me so happy. All of the items were in plastic containers and were all served in beer trays that made me feel like I was legit eating outside on the patio in the South.

We passed around the Pastalaya out of the next batch, and the menu explained it’s made like traditional jambalaya, but is cooked with blond roux and heavy cream. The best part? It’s topped with andouille sausage, tomatoes, and green onion served over linguini. Pasta is always my personal favorite. It did have a slight bite, but not too much. There were also shrimp on top, which seemed super fresh.

To try more menu items at once, we ordered the Soul Food Platter. This included fried catfish, three ribbonz, collard greens or coleslaw, red beans and rice, gumbo, and a cornbread muffin with a side of barbecue sauce and tartar sauce.

Let’s start with the hand-battered Catfish. My co-workers made so many noises of joy when they took their first bites, and at one point almost yelled at me to stop what I was doing and try it next.

“Do not sleep on the catfish.”

It was super flaky and was even better with the tartar sauce. Even as we tried other items, I caught them both taking bites of the catfish until it was gone.

The Red Beans and Rice were made with red beans cooked with trinity spices, andouille sausage, and was served over rice. Rice is speaking my language. My personal recommendation is to mix the ingredients together before digging in.

And while we were about to burst, we got to the Gumbo. Full of Cajun flavor, this was one of my favorite experiences of our stop.

The Ribs melted off the bone, and were nice to swap up the overwhelming (because we were being gluttonous) flavors.

Collard Greens ended our journey, and I had never had them before. Weary going in, I thoroughly liked it and ate several bites, even after all of the foods.

Bottom Line:

I’m thrilled that this moved into the historic Buell Building, and it’s a wonderful addition to downtown Rapid City. It’s like a vacation in a stop. And my etouffee-obsessed co-worker even said theirs was better than the one she was still dreaming about from a trip to Florida. Boom.

Enjoy

Enjoy Raw Oysters on the Half Shell out of Chesapeake Bay. You can order six for $12 or 12 for $22 with a side of horseradish, cocktail sauce, and lemon.

++++
Ambiance

This was my favorite part. It felt like I was on vacation in the South, waiting for live blues to start. It was so cool to see the thought behind all of the collected items from Schriver and to get a peek into her world. I wish more restaurants would have more of a story behind them like this place.

$$
Price

Especially for getting a full menu of food that’s not as common to the area, it’s very reasonably priced. A bowl of Gumbo is $6, and you can add fresh shrimp for $3. Not bad at all, plus it’s very filling. The Soul Food Platter is only $15, and that can definitely be shared.

+++
Taste

Did I mention I’m not a huge seafood fan? And the etouffee was delicious. If you ask my tablemates, that was the best catfish they have ever had. Can you beat that? Not really.

Rating Scale: Ambiance ++++ | Average Price Per Meal: $—$10 & under;  $$—$20 & under; $$$—$30 & under; $$$$—over $30 | Taste ++++

It’s the Facts

  • Schriver is originally from DeRidder, Louisiana and wanted to “share her culture and roots” with the Black Hills.
  • Schriver runs Jambonz Deux with daughter Megan O’Driscoll.
  • Happy hour is Monday-Friday 4-5 p.m., and they plan to have live music and an authentic crawfish boil in the near future.
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