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Amanda (“Mandy”) Osgood and Tracy Lindberg of Graze Acadiana join Discover Lafayette to discuss their love of creating beautiful food presentations and what it is like to open your own small business.
A mother–daughter team who have brought the art of grazing to Lafayette since 2019, this episode is presented in partnership with Lafayette Travel and Eat Lafayette as we spotlight locally owned restaurants and eateries.
Located at 113 Arnould Boulevard in Lafayette, Graze Acadiana was built upon the Australian concept of gather and graze, which connects people with beautiful, high-quality food and creating shared experiences around the table.
Building a Business Together
Mandy reflected on what it means to run a business with her mom:
“We spend every single day together and call each other a million times. Building this business together brought us closer. And we just have a really close friendship. So it’s been great. And being business partners, I know a lot of people can’t manage that with family, but it’s been really good for us.”
The two are originally from the Mississippi Gulf Coast. “We’re both actually from the Gulf Coast in Mississippi, the Biloxi/Ocean Springs area. And we moved here… Mom moved here about 15 years ago, and I moved here about 13 years ago,” Mandy explained. “I had my first child and she needed to be closer to her grandson. So here we are.”
They quickly felt at home. “We fell in love with Lafayette. It’s just so family oriented. Family friendly. Of course, the food’s wonderful and the people are wonderful. And so it was really a place that I wanted to raise my family and wanted to be closer to.”
Mandy describes herself as “the creative one” while Tracy brings her restaurant management background and entrepreneurial mindset. “We both love entertaining. We love gathering people together and just making beauty out of simple things,” Mandy added.
The Early Days of Grazing
Before “charcuterie” was a household word, Tracy and Mandy were already creating lavish spreads.
“Back in the day, friends and family would have us do weddings and birthdays and stuff like that. We used to make these massive grazing spreads. We didn’t even know they were called that at the time. We put gorgeous food on the table.”
In 2018, they saw the grazing trend explode in Australia. “There were about five places in the entire United States that were doing the grazing thing at that time. Like big cities—Austin, New York. My mom was like, let’s do it.”
From the start, they chose to run things professionally. “So from day one, we started in a commercial kitchen. We didn’t do it out of our house,” Mandy explained. But that came with hurdles.
Tracy recalled: “What really surprised me… was when we went down to the health department and found out that we had to have the commercial kitchen, and then we had to have a grease trap. Normally people make things at home, but incorporating this in the way we wanted to do it—right or not do it at all—cost tens of thousands of dollars.”
Mandy added: “I don’t think any of us knew that we were going to know this much about a grease trap at this point in our lives. My mom scoured plumbing department rules and laws… because grazing was such a new concept. There were no set standards for that. We had to figure all that out.”
Surviving COVID
By 2019, Graze Acadiana had opened its first storefront off Kaliste Saloom Road. “Things were booming and going and we were growing… educating people what the charcuterie world was about because it just wasn’t that popular here,” Amanda recalled.
Then the pandemic hit. Their tagline had been “Gathering Grapes.” Amanda laughed:
“And Covid said, no, you don’t. So we had to start changing our concept and work with that.”
They shifted from large spreads to individual options. “We started doing petite boxes, little individual charcuterie portions and jars,” Mandy said.
With only a handful of staff, it was mainly mother and daughter running things. “In those first two years, I think we had two employees, maybe three… but it was pretty much me and Mom,” Mandy explained. They also leaned on curbside pickup: “No one could really have a lot of people in the shop. So we would run out and do curbside delivery with charcuterie.”
Expanding to Arnould Boulevard in Lafayette LA
By 2021, the demand outgrew their small kitchen. “In January 2021, we actually signed a lease for the building that we’re in now, on Arnold Boulevard, in the Jason’s Deli parking lot off of Johnson Street. And we love that location. Our kitchen quadrupled in size, which made us so happy,” Mandy said.
The central location made a difference. “When you’re working the kind of work that we do, you’re spending so much time in the kitchen. So it made a huge difference for us,” she added.
What Goes on a Board?
Graze Acadiana has built a reputation for abundant, well-paired boards.
Mandy explained: “Our boards have at least five cheeses, two different charcuterie meats, fresh fruits, dried fruits, nuts, cornichons, olives, jams, and pickles. We say there’s a little bit of something for everyone on those boards.”
She added a key philosophy: “Cheese needs a friend. If you went and bought a block of goat cheese at the store and shoved that in your mouth, that’s not going to be that great. But when it’s paired with those other items that complement it well, it is enjoyable.”
Popular meats include salami, chorizo, and prosciutto, paired with cheeses like Brie, aged cheddar, cranberry Wensleydale, and blue cheese.
The duo takes pride in sourcing locally. “From day one we’ve always used Noni’s Kitchen jams and pepper jellies… and we’ll visit the farmers market every few months and see if there’s any new people we can have in our shop,” Mandy said.
Tracy noted how supportive Lafayette’s food community is:
“It doesn’t matter if you’re an attorney or a doctor or what. Everybody’s just so friendly, and they all just want to help each other. It’s not really a competition either. It’s everyone supporting each other.”
Who They Serve
Their boards serve every occasion—from weddings and showers to everyday lunches. “Every moment is worth celebrating,” Mandy emphasized. “We make pre-made options every single day, you can just walk in… everything from a little $8 box to an $89 box.”
Clients range from pharmaceutical reps ordering for doctors to schools rewarding staff, to families grabbing platters for weekend parties. “I’ve had people pick up one for their doctor after going through a medical journey,” Mandy said.
Even kids love it. “Adults sometimes see that beautiful thing and no one wants to touch it yet because it’s too pretty to eat. And the kids, they just dig in,” Mandy shared.
Beyond Charcuterie: Olive Oil & Vinegar Bar
Graze Acadiana also offers an olive oil tasting bar with more than 60 premium oils and vinegars. “They are super healthy, super high in antioxidants, anti-inflammatory properties,” Mandy explained. Nutritionists and doctors send clients who are making lifestyle changes.
Some even use vinegars as wine substitutes. “You can actually put balsamic vinegar in sparkling water and you have like a little tasty refresher. A mocktail,” Mandy shared.
Community Events
Graze Acadiana hosts monthly and seasonal gatherings:
- Build-a-Board Nights (teaching guests how to assemble charcuterie boards)
- Sip and Sample Nights featuring oils and vinegars in food and drinks
- Evoo & You Recipe Club every last Thursday of the month (“It’s like an elevated potluck… I have been blown away. There are amazing cooks in Lafayette.”)
Mandy described Evoo & You as “such a comfortable, fun night… more so a learning experience, a community, just get people together, spend time together, and enjoy some good food.”
Looking Ahead
While Tracy and Mandy don’t plan to expand beyond their current location, they’re always adding products and new ideas. “We’re content where we are, but we’re always changing things,” Mandy said. “Right now, especially since we have a great team at Graze, we’re able to try new things and add new products. Of course, with the olive oil, we have shipping kicking off really well.”
Tracyy summed it up: “I would love the public to know you can come in any day that we’re open. At our olive oil tasting bar, we have fresh bread, you can taste everything, you can try everything. The health benefits are phenomenal… It really changed my life in the kitchen.”
Visit Graze Acadiana
Graze Acadiana is open Tuesday–Friday 9:30 AM–5:00 PM, and Saturday 9:30 AM–3:00 PM at 113 Arnould Boulevard in Lafayette.
Sign up for their newsletter and find out more at grazeacadiana.com to be the first to hear about ticketed events.
What a wonderful affirmation of the creative spirits in Acadiana! Thanks to Mandy, Tracy, and our sponsors for making this interview possible!
