Montana's Colombian Restaurant in Baton Rouge

Went to Montana's for lunch. This Colombian restaurant is on Coursey, about a block off of Sherwood Forest. It's a combination grocery store, butcher shop and Colombian / Mexican restaurant, open for five months now.

The dining area is small, no more than six or seven tables. There are actually two menus; one that is primarily Mexican, and one with photos that is mostly Colombian (you may have to ask for the Colombian menu).

I started with an appetizer of a delicious empanada de carne ($1.50), a golden-fried meat pie stuffed with stewed beef (as opposed to ground meat found in most restaurants) and a bit of diced tomato, served with Colombian relish on the side.

I ordered their Paisa Plate, which is a combination of Colombian favorites. It comes with a small, lightly seasoned but juicy thin-cut steak. Also on the plate is a wonderful Colombian sausage, made in-house. A tasty corn cake, an over-easy egg, a slice of avocado, and a large chicharron strip (excellent pork cracklin). Also included were several pieces of platano maduro, fantastic sweet chunks of fried plantain. This is all served over a bed of white rice with faintly seasoned red kidney beans, Colombian style. Considering this is South American fare, none of the food was spicy. I was asked if I wanted corn tortillas, which I did, and used to make tacos from the steak, beans and avocado. They offer fresh fruit drinks, but I opted for just water.

The service was great, the husband-wife team that owns the restaurant were very attentive (albeit during a slow time of day), and even went looking for me to let me know the food was done as I shopped around their store (nice selection). The food was great, the service was great, the owners friendly, and the portions were so much better than expected (couldn't finish my food). The only real downside is that it's a good little drive, but still well worth it.

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Montana's supermercado carniceria y retauarante
11954 Coursey Blvd
Baton Rouge, LA 70816
(225) 296-8003
Map