When Lucky 8 opened late last year in Southside Village, it filled Sarasota’s Cajun food void. Sure, you might have found a shrimp po’boy at one of our many seafood restaurants, but that was largely the extent of any Louisiana-inspired dishes on offer. And while po’boys are delicious, they barely scratch the surface of Louisiana’s rich culinary history. 

Cajun cuisine fuses Native American and Black American culinary traditions and infuses them with a dash of French flair. That’s evidenced by the cuisine’s foundational ingredients, the “holy trinity” of celery, onions and bell peppers, which are added to every sort of Cajun stew. It’s a riff on the French mirepoix (made with celery, onions and carrots) and imbues an earthier flavor profile to Cajun food’s most famous dishes: gumbo and jambalaya.

Lucky 8’s food comes courtesy of chef and co-owner Mark Majorie, who worked in kitchens in New Orleans for years. Majorie's partner in the endeavor is Edward Zaki, the owner of 1592 and co-owner of Adeline. The small restaurant has a few high top tables near its front window and booths along a side wall. Kitschy antiques and art are reminiscent of Grandma’s house, while a black-and-white mural covers the back of the restaurant, a contrast with the warm dining room. The space is best described as cozy-cool.

The small menu is the same at both lunch and dinner and demonstrates Majorie's confidence in his craft. No chef is capable of making 125 dishes at a high level, and Lucky 8’s honed-in menu proves that Majorie knows this. Each dish is precise—and delicious. For starters, you’ll find pimento cheese served with fried saltines and Zapp’s potato chips ($10) and a collard artichoke dip ($11), but it’s the crawfish bread pudding ($12) that is a must-order. Tender crawfish are folded into a savory bread pudding and topped with cheddar cheese gravy. The first bite feels like a hug. It was great with an Abita Turbodog ($7), one of the pours on Lucky 8’s beer and wine list.

For entrées, you’ll only find sandwiches, salads and sides, but each one is better than the next. The mandatory po’boy ($16) is a great rendition of a classic, but the muffuletta ($17) is even better, with oil-soaked bread, plenty of Italian deli meats and an olive salad spread. Pair that with a side of chicken and sausage gumbo ($9) and you’ll be transported to the French Quarter in no time.

The menu’s unsung hero might be the buttermilk salad ($9 or $16), which is lightly dressed and tossed with avocado, egg and tomatoes. It doesn’t sound like much, but when it’s topped with a crispy chicken thigh ($10), you’ll see why I recommend it. That chicken thigh is the single best piece of fried chicken I may have ever tasted—andI would know, because I’ve eaten a lot of fried chicken thanks to my Nashvillian heritage. The marinated thigh provides salinity from within, while the coating brings subtle spice, a warming sensation building at the back of your throat as you reach for another bite. The crispy exterior, meanwhile, would satisfy Goldilocks—it’s not too thick, not too thin, but just right. Ordering this dish was a last-minute after-thought. There’s a version of me in an alternate timeline who did not order it, and I’m sad for her. It’s that good.

Dessert offerings are as dialed in as the rest of the menu: sweet bread pudding ($9) or a brownie ($9), both topped with vanilla ice cream. While I’m sure they’re both lovely, I’m inclined to just order another piece of fried chicken.

LUCKY 8 | 1812 S. Osprey Ave., Sarasota, (941) 444-0155, lucky8srq.com