I am stuffed! Boudin balls were fresh and flavorful, crawfish etouffee was rich and packed with crawfish, dirty rice was tender and seasoned just right, and the bread pudding without raisins (yay!) was the perfect end to a delicious meal. The service was quick and personalized. You can tell they really care about the food they serve and the customers they serve it to. Comfortable inside dining and a spacious deck. Can't wait to return and try the alligator bites! read more

LJz Backyard Bayou - Bread pudding - Cajun/Creole Near Me - Harvest, Alabama

Great food! Everything we had was full of flavor and big portions! Crawfish and etoufee and shrimp and grits and fried fish! The sides are really good too. Cabbage sautéed with bacon and onions + squash casserole. Small indoor dining area and large outdoor covered porch. Excellent service too! read more

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Overall great experience, food was delicious!!!! Service was awesome and clean environment. I was visiting out of town and will be back! read more

LJz Backyard Bayou - Catfish over rice with crawfish etouffee and side of cabbage. - Cajun/Creole Near Me - Harvest, Alabama

I often ask myself how far can you be from Louisiana to get real Louisiana food? Well I found a good answer and it's Harvest, Alabama. 30 minutes northwest of Huntsville and out in almost the middle of nowhere, LJz is right off Old Railroad Bed in a large lot. Basically in a large converted trailer home with a shaded deck and ramp, LJz is family owned and operated by Larry "LJ" Johnson and his wife Wendy with the help of their daughter, Wisdom. Larry grew up in Franklin, Louisiana and also a retired veteran of the Army so all active and retired military get a 5% discount. They're only open 3 days a week (Friday, Saturday and Sunday) with the rest of the week for catering jobs. Everything is served in styrofoam containers even if you eat there, but don't let that fool you. LJ's food will soon make you forget that. From their famous boudin balls to poboys, LJz will tickle your senses if you're a fan of cajun and creole cuisine. Our dear friends in Huntsville introduced us to LJz and we ordered a party of food. We called in our order and everything was ready to pickup when we arrived. Boudin balls: as advertised, delicious! Shrimp & Crawfish Grits: blackened shrimp on a bed of some delicious grits and served with a side of fried catfish. Shrimplicious Platter: a nice combo of shrimp, sausage, potato, corn and egg boiled in cajun seasoning served with boudin balls. Chicken & sausage gumbo: outstanding! Catfish Bayou: perfectly seasoned fried catfish served over rice topped with their crawfish etoufee. Yom Yom Yom Yom. Boiled crawfish: this was our only complaint because they were not boiled recently and was steamed and served. So inquire when they were initially boiled if that matters to you. Otherwise, the seasoning was top notch and I can tell they were "post-soaked" properly! Yom Yom Yom! So my only other question is when will we be returning to Huntsville? It will certainly give us an additional excuse to visit our dear friends! Can't wait to try one of their poboys. Geaux Tigers! (just had to throw that in there while I was in the spirit!) read more

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I visited LJ'z after receiving recommendations through Facebook. I ordered lunch for myself and family and we all loved it! The staff were so nice and welcoming. The restaurant was clean and definitely had a New Orleans atmosphere. My crawfish were juicy and fresh and the potato salad was delicious. All the food here tasted authentic. My only complaint is that I wish the entree portions were larger. My husband ordered gumbo and got more rice than gumbo. My fish plate only had a half handful of fries. I feel it should have been more considering it was $13-$14. Additionally, it was disappointing that butter is not complimentary with the crawfish boil. It was $2 extra.. Overall, we will definitely return. read more

My family and I went here yesterday, March 7th, to try out the food. The wait time wasn't bad but the food was a disappointment. We purchased over $80 worth of food, which included 3lbs of crawfish, fish plate (mac n cheese & cabbage), and fish and shrimp plate (cabbage & dirty rice). The crawfish and cabbage were horrible. The majority of the crawfish were mushy and cabbage was extremely salty and mushy. I rated a 2 based on the price of the crawfish and we couldn't eat or enjoy them. Also, my aunt and uncle were in town and purchased crawfish and had the same experience as for quality. My aunt contacted the owner, who stated they don't do refunds and claimed that their drive back to Tuscaloosa was the reason for their crawfish being mushy. Unfortunately, that excuse and not standing behind the food and poor service is a turn-off for us. read more

This restaurant is very welcoming. The ambiance is relaxing. The food has so much flavor flavor flavor ! Even the french fries taste good. This is a hidden gem in Harvest, Alabama . Very friendly service, the type of service that makes you want to come back. I would recommend the #8 swamp potato . My daughter had the #1.catfish Bayou and my granddaughter had the kids fries with fish fillet. Oh yeah, almost forgot we had the house specialty ,Boudin Balls ! The bottom lines come and try this place !!! read more

LJz Backyard Bayou - The front - Cajun/Creole Near Me - Harvest, Alabama

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I absolutely love this place. It is in a quiet and unsuspecting part of town and the business hours are somewhat limited but the food is unmatched and phenomenally priced. It's run by a cute couple and there is indoor and outdoor seating. Highly recommend everything on the menu! We love the crawfish and the shrimp. Seasoned to perfection! read more

Our first time and wanted to try a variety of different things. We had the crawfish boil, fried catfish, etouffee, and fried jumbo shrimp. All good! read more

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if you are anywhere around on a weekend, you have got to try this place! I saw it by riding by... I made a note to myself that they were open Friday, Saturday, & Sunday. When lunchtime Saturday rolled around , i'm not sure that my son was up and going and we went to try this place. As we pulled up, there were no cars in the parking lot. The open sign was on, though. we walked up the ramp and onto the restaurant's comfortable feeling porch area. We were encouraged to see the daily specials neatly propped outside the door. opening the door, the environment takes you to A pleasant place with a smell of old bay type cajun seasoning, cajun music, a very clean dining area, and a 98 health score rating. The menu is neatly posted to your right, and by the cash register they have a stack of menus. A nice lady invited us to have a seat wherever we would like, and before I knew it I was shaking hands with LJ himself as he described what he had cooking (many items are not on the printed menu). another nice lady to a car order, and we set back and enjoyed the atmosphere in the sports that they had on three different televisions - NCAA baseball, NCAA basketball, and another that I didn't track as closely. yeah miss fear lend itself to a relaxing time and good opportunity to just sit back and talk with my son. drinks are from bottled--no cups. The food arrives in to go containers-- they do not have washable silverware or plates at this time. We weren't there for a bottomless glass or the formal China, though. We were there to experience something new and the food--The food was absolutely fantastic. In short, it was freshly cooked, seasoned to perfection, perfect in portion size, and service was attentive. The prices are affordable compared to what you pay to eat out today (2022). I fed three (one to-go order) for $33. On top of that, LJ is a military veteran. He honors his brothers and sisters of the service with a veteran discount...and you don't have to ask about it because they ask you as you are checking out. Six stars for LJ's slice of the bayou in Harvest. I would enjoy watching this local establishment grow to serve the community every night on their own plates and cups...because the food and service are certainly more deserving than many so-called restaurants. If you don't have time to dine in, take it to go and enjoy it later. I do hope that you'll stop by on a Friday, Saturday, or Sunday and give this place a try, though. read more

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The best authentic Cajun food I have found in the Huntsville area! The phone didn't have time to eat first The shrimp were huge, red beans and rice were perfectly seasoned, and the catfish smothered dirty style was a new favorite meal. The service was slow (took about 40 minutes to get our food) - but they gave us a heads up when we were ordering that it'd take a bit. Definitely worth the wait for this fresh, authentic food! read more

LJz Backyard Bayou - Catfish Over Dirty Rice smothered in Crawfish Étouffée - Cajun/Creole Near Me - Harvest, Alabama

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Lordy Lordy Lordy LJ. Thank you for bringing the Bayou to The'ville. Here was my experience: We ate here on a Friday night around 5:30. We were seated right before the crowd. We heard about the place via a friend and we gave it a try. "So glad we did" is an understatement. I ordered a swamp potato. Who on earth thought of putting that combination of goodness (sausage, shrimp, cheesy cream) together on top of a potato. And the fish on top!! Yes please!! The hostesses, Wisdom and Wendy, were among the best. I'm coming back to the swamp!! read more

LJz Backyard Bayou - Swamp Potato with catfish - Cajun/Creole Near Me - Harvest, Alabama

My cousin bought the fried turkey for our Thanksgiving gathering. It was absolutely delicious! We loved every bite. I'm already excited to get another one next year. I highly recommend you order early! read more

First visit here. The food is good; however, we waited 20 minutes for our beverages and a hour and half for our food. We ordered the alligator appetizer, and that it came out with the food. The seating is quaint but open. The food came it was in Styrofoam containers not on plates. Beverages (Tea & water) is only served in bottles. I hope when we go back next time and it won't take so long to serve the food. read more

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Food was INCREDIBLE! I ordered the Fish combo meal #3. My hubby ordered the catfish bayou with potato salad, mac and cheese and red beans and andouille sausage. The mac and cheese is something from another world! The service was incredible. The owner's wife, Wendy is super sweet and very helpful. The place is very cozy and clean. Loved the experience. It was so good that we are catering an event with them! read more

These are my people. As many of you know, NOLA is home. When I walked in to the restaurant last week, I smelled home. Also, many of you know, New Orleans has the best food in the country. Don't come at me with you high falooting NYC or SF or any other place - New Orleans, where people live to eat. Last week we tried the crawfish and it was as if we were transported to someone's backyard in New Orleans or Lafayette, let's go Lafayette, where the Cajuns rule the kitchen. Wife got the crawfish étouffée and it was great, but I knew 16 oz wasn't enough for me. I had the BBQ Shrimp poboy. Excellent job on the fry. I actually thought they were going to be grilled shrimp, but it was great stuff. Boudin balls - I loved them. The remoulade sauce is magical. Drinks - wish they had bigger cokes, I could use more coke when the food is spicy. This week- brought the kids. Older kid, and his wife and son. More crawfish. less spicy and still great. We wiped out 3 lbs very quickly. Wife got the red beans and rice - and they were fantastic. Daughter got the jambalaya and this was excellent. Son went for the crawfish étouffée - and he wiped that out. Me - Mardi Gras Pasta with sides of dirty rice and potato salad. I am a genius for picking this. The chicken/andouille pasta with a great cream sauce was AWESOME. Larry, the chef, is doing God's work with this food. I meant to take pictures, but alas - none shall be posted this time. Wait! I have one picture. My only thought - the sauces are so good, each order needs a couple of pieces of French bread. Eat here. read more

LJz Backyard Bayou - The Crawfish étouffée 16 oz. - Cajun/Creole Near Me - Harvest, Alabama

After hearing some great things about this restaurant my wife and I decided to give them a try. Let me tell you - We were not disappointed. The food and the service were excellent. We will definitely be back. Believe me if you want great Cajun food it's worth the drive. read more

The food was unbelievably delicious! Very reasonably priced and well portioned! The service was very nice and very welcoming! read more

LJz Backyard Bayou - Shrimp PoBoy with Fries - Cajun/Creole Near Me - Harvest, Alabama

The food is excellent. Couldn't ask for better. My wife and I had the fish and shrimp. And gator bites. The sides are excellent and the servings are great. read more

What a gem! So glad we found this place. Some odd things, drinks are all bottled, even water. The food is delicious. Like it might be the best Cajun food in Madison county. read more

After seeing the posts on social media, we knew we had to try this place. It did not disappoint! My husband had the catfish bayou and he was in love from the first bite. The etouffee on top of the catfish and bed of rice was delicious! I had the fried shrimp combo and it was just as good. We both thought the dirty rice was the best we have ever had. The rice was cooked perfectly and it contained plenty of meat. We will definitely order from here again! read more

It smells like heaven when you walk in the door. The owners are some of the nicest people you'll ever meet. The food is the best cajun/creole cooking I've ever eaten. Today was the first time there but will not be the last. Best shrimp and grits ever! read more