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Short Orders: New chef brings flavors of Big Easy to Lucky 32
By Carl Wilson, February 21, 2007

Jay Pierce has joined Greensboro's Lucky 32 (1421 Westover Terrace; 370-0707) as executive chef, and it couldn't be at a more appropriate time. Pierce, New Orleans born and bred, is ushering in Lucky 32's popular New Orleans menu for 2007.

Pierce, 34, has worked at Emeril Lagasse's restaurants in New Orleans and Orlando, Fla.

The Big Easy-inspired menu includes the likes of Basin Street Chicken ($14.95) with sliced ham and pepper jack cheese smothered in a Creole sauce; Jambalaya ($14.95); Creole Spiced Pork Tenderloin ($18.95) in spicy voodoo glaze; a vegetarian dish of Eggplant Creole ($12.95) with Provolone cheese and Creole sauce; and Baked Bananas Foster ($5.95).

Pierce has created three dishes for this year's menu including Fried Oyster Fritters ($9.95) with warm fennel slaw and remoulade; Bayou Shrimp Cakes ($7.95) with spicy voodoo glaze and local homemade chow chow; and Fried Oysters salad ($10.95) with shaved fennel, boiled eggs and pecans.

"My goal is to include a little more seasonal food utilizing local farmers and produce," Pierce says, continuing Lucky 32's tradition of sustainable relationships with local products such as Goat Lady Dairy and Counter Culture Coffee.

Lucky 32 works closely with Eastern Carolina Organics, a company that contracts with local farmers to grow items on demand.

"I'm really excited to get the farmers to plant it for us," Pierce says. "Instead of California lettuce, we try to source it locally."

Lunch prices on the New Orleans menu are a little lower, and there are even brunch items that include a Crescent City Omelet ($8.95) with Creole sauce and hash browns and Chicken Andouille Hash ($8.95) with tasso gravy and poached eggs and English muffin.

Pierce feels that the time is ripe for people in Greensboro, whether native or not, to rediscover the area's traditional flavors.

"As a chef, I would like to really develop an interest in what Southern cuisine used to be," Pierce says. "I want it to be distinctly Greensboro."

Lucky 32 is open 11:15 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday, 11:15 to 10 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, 11:15 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday.