As he graciously opened the door to his smokehouse for me to get a photo, the smoke drifted up into his face and the wonderful aroma of the sausage filled the room. I wonder how many layers of soot is on that door.
He is a true artisan of the old country and hand cuts the meat for his sausage and his andouille (pronounced Ahn-do-ee) and does all of the stuffing of the sausages by hand. He uses only white oak wood for his fire as that gives the best smoke and flavor to the meat.
This is the only place that I will buy Andouille for my gumbo.
W. J.'s Smokehouse on Fifth Street.