The 11 Best Restaurants in Ruston LA: Food We Loved!

We recently went to Ruston Louisiana for a long weekend. I want to say that I love the South. For starters, I love all that country music! And I love Southern accents, and of course, I love Southern hospitality. That hospitality is never more evident than in all the fabulous restaurants in Ruston, LA!

And, If you know me, you know I love honkytonks. Ok, I’ve never been in a real honkytonk but I love the sound of it.

Are there still real honkytonks out there? I want to say I’ve been honkytonkying before I die!!

And for sure I love southern food. While we were in Ruston recently I sampled as much great food as possible and want to share it with you! There are a LOT of good places to eat in Ruston! Check out my list of the 11 best restaurants in Ruston, LA!  

Where is Ruston, LA?

When I found out my son’s tournament was going to be in Ruston, LA, my first thought was WHERE? I’ve been all over the United States, but I am from up North so had never heard of Ruston before.

For those of you that don’t know, Ruston is a cute college town located in North Louisiana.

It’s about 1.5 hours east of Shreveport, Louisiana, or about 2 hours west of Jackson Mississippi.

There’s not much very near Ruston, but that’s ok because if you’re visiting Ruston, there’s a good chance you’ll be there for something related to LA Tech, and you’ll be way too busy to worry about what’s nearby.

And with the campus, cute downtown and so much good food, Ruston has all you need.

What Are The Best Restaurants In Ruston, LA?

Full disclosure that there’s no way we could sample ALL the great restaurants in Ruston, but we did get to a good many. And from bowls of gumbo to BBQ tacos to scrumptious desserts, we found a lot of tasty food in Ruston.

Here Are The Best Restaurants We Found In Ruston, LA

1.Ponchatoulas

Ponchatoulas is the real deal for authentic Cajun food in Ruston. Located in a historic building in downtown Ruston, the restaurant was busy when we got there at about 7pm on a weeknight.

Luckily, I made a reservation so we didn’t have to wait – I think we would’ve had to wait without one. When I’m hungry I hate waiting so I always try to make reservations. A lot of places don’t take them these days, but some do so I say try it. 

Ponchatoulas is bigger than it looks from the outside, with a very large bar taking up one corner of the restaurant. Overall the interior is cool with quite a bit of the historic red brick walls that I like. It’s all very casual which was fine with me because I didn’t bring anything other than casual clothes with me on this baseball trip!

Best Restaurants In Ruston: Cajun Food

Onto the food! We were told by multiple people that Ponchatoulas is THE place to go in Ruston for authentic Cajun cuisine. When more than one person recommends a place, chances are there’s a good reason.

We ate a late lunch, so we weren’t super hungry for dinner, but we wanted to try it out. So you could say we took one for the team and forced ourselves to eat more grub.

Even though their large menu had a wide selection of Louisiana-inspired entrees, I wanted to be a little healthy so I ordered a side salad to start. I don’t think I had eaten anything green for days beforehand so a salad was overdue. For my entree, I ordered a bowl of gumbo.

My dining partner had the Oyster platter with onion rings. And with my gumbo, I added a side of one of my very favorite things in this world: hush puppies!! These little devils were perfectly crispy albeit a little light on the spice.

However, I didn’t leave any on my plate, so what does that tell you?!

My gumbo was seriously delish! And my partner said his oyster platter rocked.

Confession: I do not like oysters in any way, shape, or form so I’ll take his word for it.

We planned to go back so we could try the jambalaya, crawfish and red beans & rice, but with so many other places to try, we just didn’t have the time!

All in all we enjoyed Ponchatoulas. Their Louisiana-inspired dishes were just what we were looking for and the friendly staff made us feel at home.

OVERALL: No way to have a bad meal here.

2. Flying Burger & Seafood

This place has a strange name in my opinion, but so many people recommended it we decided to go for it anyway.

As first-time visitors, we didn’t know what to expect, but it was a good choice. The Flying Burger & Seafood restaurant is more of a quick service type place where you order at the counter.

But it’s not fast food type food. It’s way better than fast food. It’s pretty fast yes, but it’s also good and fresh food. And they have a much bigger selection of entrees than what you’d find at your typical fast food place. 

We hit the Flying Burger for lunch and again, it was crowded! All the Ruston peeps know where the good stuff is I guess! I ordered grilled shrimp kabobs with red beans & rice.

My partner had a basket of the jumbo shrimp & fries that came with….you guessed it – hush puppies!

Best Hushpuppies In Ruston?

And while he wasn’t looking I snuck in a side order of hush puppies for myself. I think they were less than $3 and let me just say, they were worth every penny. These, my friends, were the BEST hushpuppies of the trip!!

I’d say there were in the top 5 orders of hushpuppies that this gal has ever had.

And I’ve had me some hushpuppies before. These were tha bomb! They were far and away the highlight of my lunch. If for no other reason than their pups, the Flying Burger earns a top spot on my list of best Ruston restaurants!

I thought about getting a takeout order of hush puppies, but well – a girl only needs so much food!

But, If I go back, I can’t promise that I won’t order a basket of hush puppies for my lunch! Our lunch was delicious and inexpensive. I’d go back for sure. There’s lots of interesting items on the menu I’d like to try, and the prices are more than reasonable.

If you go to Flying Burger, get yourself some hushpuppies. You’re welcome!! 

OVERALL: Quick, fresh and tasty lunch spot. Hushpuppies for the WIN!

3.Portico Restaurant And Bar 

On another night we headed over to Portico for drinks and dinner. We met some friends from the team and we all wanted to hear live music, so Portico’s was our choice.

Sure enough when we walked in we saw & heard the band playing in the enclosed patio area. We opted to sit in the bar because it was too loud to have a conversation out on the patio with the band right there. The bar was perfect for our group because we could still hear the music but we could also chat, so it worked out great.

Portico’s is a little more upscale than most of the other restaurants we hit in Ruston.

It isn’t super fancy, but it’s a nice place with a full bar and large restaurant area in addition to the outside area. With the live music it seems like a welcome addition to the area’s dining scene.

We started with drinks from the bar, and then checked out the menu.

While I’m usually a fan of chicken sandwiches, I had one of their specialty sandwiches, the cheesy pig sandwich- it’s a creative combo of pulled pork, mozzarella, asiago, cheddar and jalapenos on grilled ciabatta. It was delicious!

Another person in our group ordered the crabby tomato appetizer – a unique combo of fried green tomatoes topped with lump crab. And another friend had the southern made burger which includes the amazing addition of pimento cheese, along with a fried green tomato and bacon.

Also super good was the mac & cheese. The pork chops and the hamburger steak looked fabulous as well.

Best Restaurants In Ruston: Most Creative Hushpuppies

If you head over to Portico while you’re in Ruston, try the pimento pups.

I’m so mad I didn’t get them when I had the chance!! I was too busy talking and didn’t notice they were on the menu until it was too late.

IThese bad boys are pimento and cheddar jack cheese hush puppies served with a remoulade dipping sauce! How could I have missed these!  If you try them, drop me a note and give me your opinion!

OVERALL: The menu has something for everyone.

4. Heard Freighthouse Food Truck Park

Another day for lunch we headed downtown to the food truck park – which isn’t a park, but a lot where food trucks are parked. The “Heard” offers food trucks all serving their unique creations.

Since I’m all about cheap (and good!!) eats, we put them on the list to check out. I think food trucks need more love. The way some of these food truck chefs crank out gourmet eats in the confines of a tiny hot box is pretty amazing.

Grown and Grazed Food Truck offers quite a selection of great-looking burgers and people raved that they are some of the best burgers in town. Also in the food truck lineup is Bad Wolf BBQ with barbeque favorites: Staple Sandwich with yummy soup and sammies: southern favs at Grace Classics; street tacos and more from Taqueria Mexicana and more!

Things were poppin’ when we stopped by for lunch. We waited in line but it was worth it! I started at Taqueria Mexicana and dived into the BBQ street tacos special which included 3 tacos, each filled with different smoked meat.

All were very good, my favorite was the chicken. A side of their sweet chili Brussel sprouts knocked it out of the park. Oh. My. Goodness. These are the absolute best Brussels sprouts ever. They are sweetish and spicyish and you’ll freakin love them!

Next door at the Staple Sandwich Company I found heaven in a wonderful roasted tomato soup. The soup is a flavorful tomato soup and full of chunky potatoes and carrots. It comes with a side of focaccia. I also had the yummy garbanzo bean salad, and finished up with one of the best Arnold Palmer’s I’ve had – super fresh!

I highly recommend checking out this delightful food truck food or the others for homemade, fresh and delicious fare. They take great pride in all they serve.

OVERALL: Local Favs Winner-Winner

5. Uptown Downtown Bakery 

If you know me, you know I have a big sweet tooth (trying to reform!!) but alas, on this trip to Ruston I did need a little sugar, and Uptown Downtown hit the mark.

The bakery is just the cutest little spot downtown and everything there looked fabulous. I can attest to the fabulousness of their scrumptious brownies.

The menu also offers homemade sandwiches including inventive melty grilled cheeses such as the Cajun piggy which includes shrimp; the Big Buffalo with buffalo chicken. You can also dig into the pananis, wraps and salads.

Uptown Downtown looks like it’d be a great place to grab the girls and chill with some coffee and sweet treats or a light lunch. I’d love to try more treats from Uptown Downtown.

OVERALL: A hometown feel with a sweet ending.

Bonus: Best sports Bar in Ruston – The Dawg House

If you’re LA Tech fans The Dawg House is the spot for you! Our tournament was held at LA Tech so of course when we heard about the Dawg House we had to check it out.

We rolled up late Saturday afternoon, grabbed a table, and ordered drinks. The place was half-full even though it was past lunch and not year dinner – always a good sign! The A/C was cranked up and the TV played all the sporty events.

The menu features all kinds of good-looking grub – the boudin egg rolls sound intriguing and the burgers are huge!

Go get yourself a pile of wings, some cold beer and watch the game.

This place is that local joint you want when you’re looking for a good time! I want to come back during football season! Woot Woot!

Best Restaurants In Ruston, LA That We Didn’t Get To

6. Rotolos Pizzeria

We heard that Rotolos was the place to go in Ruston for awesome pizza and craft beer. They’re supposed to have great pizza and Rotolo’s craft beer got rave reviews from those I talked to. I’m a big pizza lover – it’s hard to beat pizza and a glass of wine or a cold beer – so will definitely plan to try Rotolos if I’m ever back in Ruson!

7. Beau Vines Steakhouse 

While we didn’t make it to Beau Vines, this upscale steakhouse got big thumbs up from many. While definitely not a regular family dining spot, Beau Vines is the place to go if you’re looking for fine dining. It’s definitely not cheap, but if it’s a special occasion, it might be worth it to you to spend some cash on what looks to be a fabulous meal.

8. Log Cabin Grill & Market

Several people told us to check out Log Cabin Grill & Market  on farmerville hwy as it’s a must go-to in Ruston and definitely in the best restaurant group in town. Unfortunately we didn’t make it. I even called to see if there was a wait one night and of course there was so we went elsewhere. But the menu options area insane here and everyone I talked to said the place is awesome.

9.Raw

I think every college town needs a sushi bar or two and Ruston is no exception. We saw a few different sushi places, but Raw was always the buy one. I did check out the menu and it did look like they had amazing sushi rolls. I love spice so their spicy crabmix and spicy salmon rolls look especially awesome to me!

10. Utility Brewing

Who doesn’t love pizza & beer? At Ruston’s only microbrewery, you can have the best of both. Their gourmet brick-over pizzas get rave reviews. Who does something like a mole based pizza or a patty melt pie?? Not to mention their sweet peach pie. The creativity blows me away. These are just some of their recent specials.

Sign me up for all of the above! Plus they have their regular brick oven pizzas, a great selection of mirco brews and live music. Yes!

11. Ben Christmas Crawfish

Eat like a locall and try a real crawfish boil. It’s one of Louisiana’s signature dishes! Shrimp, crawfish, potatoes, corn on the cob and all the spices. This is the specialty of the house at Ben Christmas casual spot. Grab yourself a picnic table and dig in!

What are your favorite restaurants in Ruston? Shoot me a message and let me know! I’d love to hear 🙂

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