Tucked into the Bywater neighborhood is a hidden gem. Suis Generis has been around for thirteen years, but some might not be familiar with the restaurant’s health-focused, farm-to-table mission and its weekly rotating menu. Owned by Ernie Foundas and partner Adrienne Bell, Suis Generis and its associated farm, SG Tiki Farm, approach their business with a zero-waste concept offering fresh food in a cozy, welcoming atmosphere.
New Orleans-native Foundas grew up in the restaurant industry. His Bostonian grandparents were restaurateurs, and a young Foundas was taught to cook by famed chef Paul Prudhomme. He bounced around the French Quarter, working different jobs at restaurants before attending college in Boston and learning about the industry there. While attending law school, Foundas maintained his connection to the hospitality industry by working as a chef. He and Bell purchased the property for Suis Generis in 2002 and developed the restaurant, which opened its doors in 2012.
Foundas describes the menu at Suis Generis as fresh-ingredient oriented, using ingredients from SG Tiki Farm, a four-acre property that Foundas and Bell bought in Pearlington, Mississippi seven years ago. Foundas is an ingredient hunter who builds his menu based on what he can find and what is readily available.
“Our menu is ingredient and technique driven,” Foundas says. “We’re a zero-waste restaurant on the cooking side. We focus on minimizing waste and implementing fermentation to transform ingredients and flavors to create an interesting and unusual menu.”
The menu is ever changing, but current highlights include Acorn Fed Ibérico Pork Secreto Steak, the “wagyu” of pork, salbitxada sauce, prima donna creamed spinach, heirloom Khorasan grain salad with sage, garlic and Bell pepper; Norwegian ‘langoustine’ lobster, garlic chili butter, crawfish boil new potatoes, broccoli rabe, and chipotle aioli; Farmer’s salad, tiki field greens and butter lettuce, pickled peaches, Vidalia onion, Roma tomato, hot paprika spiced pepitas, and fig balsamic herb dressing; Cretan Calamari, sauteed with tomato, red wine, fennel, kalamata olives and served with a baguette; and Char-grilled Hanger Steak, chimichurri sauce, and Caribbean spiced yucca chips.
At Suis Generis, every dish is a labor of love.
He explains, ‘Week to week I look for interesting and unusual ingredients. This particular week I was able to get Secreto Steak which a really unusual and rare cut of pork. Because we got that we decided to make a European- Mediterranean menu. If we get one interesting ingredient we try to build the entire week’s menu around it.”
Foundas also owns Suis Generis Music, a record label that also serves as inspiration for the restaurant’s cocktail menu. The Pink Teddy Bear, a tiki-style drink made with coconut and cherry juice, is named after one of the label’s lead artists, Pink Teddy Bear. The rest of the cocktail menu features drinks made with tinctures straight from the farm, an array of tiki drinks, and a wide selection of non-alcoholic cocktails, wine, and beer.
In 2023, Foundas and Bell launched the Tiki Food Lab, a learning and research center situated on the SG Tiki Farm, which offers classes and special menus. Here, participants learn about fermentation, cooking techniques, the science of flavor, and zero-waste eating. This fall, the Lab will offer “The Sounds and Flavors of Peru” on September 13, featuring DJ Suzy Q, a Peruvian artist, and will feature a discussion on the people, food, and music of Peru. On September 27, “Chef Tricks and Tips,” a class and tasting menu, will teach knife skills and how to finish flavors. On October 4, the Food Lab will collaborate with Bacchanal for an event featuring “Flavor Transformation with Wine and Vinegar.” October 25 will be “Tarot and Tea Leaves: Mysticism in Food,” a collaboration with Mystic and Cottage Magick. A full schedule can be found on the Tike Lab’s website and tickets for these events range from $75 to $125.
In addition, on November 29, Suis Generis is bringing back its fishing rodeo with its “Tiki Pig Roast and Primative Watercraft Fishing Rodeo.” The event initially started in Grand Isle because restaurant guests wanted to learn how to fish but went on hiatus during the COVID-19 pandemic. It returns this year to the SG Tiki Farm in Pearlington for an exciting experience that’s not to be missed.
Suis Generis is open Friday and Saturday from 6:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. and Sunday from 6:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.
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