Posted in Louisiana January 05, 2018 by

You’ll Feel Like You’ve Been Transported To Italy At This One Amazing Restaurant In Louisiana

If you’re in the mood for some of the best Italian food you’ve ever had, then you need to head over to The Village. You’ll find The Village over on Airline Highway in Baton Rouge, and they’ve been cooking authentic Italian food with recipes from the original owners over 70 years ago. Let’s take a look at how this charming restaurant came to be.

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The history behind this little restaurant is quite fascinating.
googlemaps.com
A young entrepreneur named Vince Distefano was running a card game out of a leased building in Baton Rouge back in 1945. While the men played, Vince’s wife, Stephanie would make extra money cooking for the crowd.
One day, the sheriff came by in a surprise raid and arrested everyone in the building, including the Distefanos.
The Little Village/Facebook
They decided to get out of town, and moved to a nice seven-acre fishing camp on Airline Highway and built a new place to continue their gambling ring. As the games grew in popularity, more and more cars were parked out front. Travelers often mistook the building for a restautant, and eventually the Distefanos decided they might as well start feeding all those hungry people. And just like that, The Village was born!
The Village grew in popularity over the years.
The Little Village/Facebook
Vince died in 1965 and Stephanie continued to run the day-to-day operations until 1992, when she retired.
Today the restaurant still carries the traditions and recipes that the Distefano family started more than 70 years ago.
The Little Village/Facebook
You’ll find delicious, authentic Italian dishes, mouth watering steaks, and exceptional Louisiana seafood all on the menu. You’ll have a tough time deciding on what to get, but don’t worry—it’s all good!
One thing’s for sure, when you go you have to get the bread.
The Little Village/Facebook
Everyone raves about The Village Bread. Their most popular appetizer consists of a braised Italian sesame loaf, baked fresh to order. Once it’s out of the oven it’s brushed with olive oil, sprinkled with cracked black pepper and topped off with some freshly-grated Romano cheese. Served with a side of their signature olive tapannade, this bread is seriously delicious.

The Little Village has locations at 14241 Airline Hwy, Baton Rouge, LA 70817 and 447 Third Street, Baton Rouge, 70801.

Have you ever eaten here? What’s your favorite item on the menu? Let us know in the comments below!