Plan to discover a destination filled with heart and awash in culture, where your senses are free to color outside the lines, where your feet may dance to a different drum and where you have the freedom to listen to your soul.
Nestled between a bayou and a byway, it’s an eclectic destination where the natural resources are as rich as the flavors and where industry keeps time with entertainment. It’s an innovative place where the first bottler of happiness came into his own and the entrepreneurial spirit initially found skies to climb.
It’s where food shouldn’t just be for thought—it is for sharing, for celebrating and for savoring. Here, you’ll find there’s a meal for every palate and a flavor for every memory.
It’s a visit that feels like a weekend, and a weekend as comfortable as home. Discover Monroe-West Monroe, where you’re welcome to play outside the lines.
VISIT
At Biedenharn Museum & Gardens, step up to the soda counter to hear the tale of Coca-Cola’s bottling beginnings and refresh with a 5 cent Coke. Tour the elegant home of Joseph Biedenharn, first bottler of Coca-Cola, every room lovingly decorated by his daughter Emy-Lou Biedenharn, a renowned opera singer. Stroll through the beautiful ELsong with over an acre of terraces, fountains, formal plantings and statues. Explore the extensive collection of historically significant and unique Bibles, including a Gutenberg leaf, in the Bible Museum adjacent to the home.
TOUR
Occupying one of the last standing buildings from the WWII Selman Army Airfield Navigation School, this totally renovated Chennault Aviation & Military Museum is filled with more exhibits and artifacts than one would ever believe. The aviation portion highlights three historic chapters in the nation’s and Monroe’s history: the Navigation School (largest in the country at the time) that trained over 15,000 navigators during WWII; the birth of Delta Airlines from a regional crop dusting service; and Louisiana native General Claire Chennault, leader of the Flying Tigers. The military portion is portrayed through sections of the museum representing all five military branches.
EAT
Chef Cory Bahr opened Parish Restaurant in the fall of 2018 in downtown Monroe. He was a Food Network Star Finalist in 2017,he also Beat Bobby Flay, Food & Wine named him “People’s Best New Chef” in America in 2015 and “People’s Best New Chef” Gulf Coast in 2014. In 2012, Cory became a Food Network’s Chopped! Champion. Bahr’s focus on transforming local ingredients into flavorful, simple cuisine quickly established Parish as a staple in the dining scene of Monroe-West Monroe.
SIP
Located in the rolling hills of West Monroe, Landry Vineyards has become both a local tradition and a must-see stop for visitors. Enjoy the views from the Tasting Room while sampling their wines that range from dry to semi-sweet. Tours of the vineyard include a trip around the vines and a stop at the wine cellar. Don’t miss the Fall and Spring Outdoor Concert Series and Summer Harvest Festivals when the grounds are filled with music, food and fun.
