At a reception on March 15, the editor and publisher of Southern Living magazine announced what most of us already expected. Lafayette had won the magazine’s innaugural Tastiest Town of the South competition.

With more than 194,000 votes, Lafayette beat its nearest competitor Louisville by nearly 35,000 votes. Lafayette beat its in-state competitor of New Orleans (3rd place winner) with nearly 4 times as many votes. Also in the running were Birmingham, Ala., Houston, Raleigh, NC, Decatur, Ga., Charleston, SC, New Orleans, Charlottesville, Virg., and Baltimore.

This win comes on the heels of Lafayette being named Best of the Road for food in the nation by USA Today and Rand McNally.