La Joie

The ambience and service were top notch! It felt like dining downtown without the drive. We started with beignets, so we wouldn’t be too full at the end of our meal, and the were deeeee-lish! Our meal did not disappoint! The boudin balls were amazing and my favorite!
Try the Bee Knees cocktail! It was perfectly made and so good I had to have 2.

This restaurant is so good. Great environment and the food is so well done. Our server was great. This will be our new spot north of Austin.

We started with cocktails. Elegant take on the Hurricane and a Lavender Lady with well paired lavender and gin. The sommelier recommended a nice nebbiolo to go with our crab corn bisque and arugula salad. The bisque could have been warmer but still very well executed. Very much enjoyed the vinaigrette, candied walnuts and beet soaked pears on the arugula salad. The shrimp and grits came with two enormous shrimp that were perfectly cooked. Blue corn grits were a nice variation. The blue corn bread was absolutely amazing. I’d come back for that alone. The cheese cake was rich and very well done.

Great place, great food. Benjamin’s service was awesome and very professional. We will definitely come back!

An absolutely phenomenal experience from the moment we walked in until the second we walked out. What a perfect night at La Joie, settled just outside of Austin in Cedar Park.
To start, the neon sign caught our eye from the road. We spoke with the hostess, who was as friendly as she was professional. She brought us to seats at the bar which were so comfortable we didn't even want to leave! Everything about our meal defined comfort food, while at the same time bringing many elevated dining aspects throughout the meal. Chef Nick Harrison and his team have created an inspiring menu to say the least.
We started with raw oysters from both Massachusetts and PEI (Prince Edward Island, Canada). They were served with gourmet horseradish, lemon, cocktail sauce, and a delightful mignonette. Next came appetizers. Between the three of us we had boudin balls with remoulade, corn crab bisque, and gumbo with rice; all were the best versions that we had ever had. The boudin was my favorite for sure, but all were incredible. Next we shared the blackened catfish Po' Boy with French Fries, the crab Mac and cheese, and the shrimp and grits with blue corn grits; again, all magnifying the best aspects from Creole/French/Cajun cuisine. The french bread on the Po' Boy, which was made fresh in house, was a particular highlight. Shout-out to chef Juliano for home-making all of the breads and pastries. Finally, we had the beignets with pear jam, chocolate sauce with Café du Monde coffee, and persimmon jam between all of us. We also had a delightful sweet potato pie. Both were exceptional. We found the beignets especially excellent, and all of agreed that they were even better than those at Café du Monde.
Throughout the meal we had several cocktails. The libations we ordered included the hurricane, the rosemary mezcal negroni (PERFECT flavor pairing), and Bobby's Bloody Mary. All were terrific, and perfectly balanced. Especially the bloody mary which was made entirely from scratch, a rarity in restaurants these days. All the while, we received terrific service from the bartenders, Paul and Kyle. Both of these gentlemen went out of their way to make us feel at home, while providing professional and informed service.

All in all, a fabulous meal in every way.