Four years after Hurricane Katrina devastated this
historic city, its chefs and restaurant owners have shaken off the
sucker punch and are swinging back stronger than ever.
In
fact, the New Orleans Metropolitan Convention and Visitors Bureau said
more restaurants are open now than before the fatal storm.
“Our
observations are that despite our drop in population from pre-Katrina
numbers, the city reports 1,031 restaurants open today,” said Mary Beth
Romig, director of communications and public relations for the CVB.
“This is more than ever in our city’s history, not just since August
2005.” Romig cites the educated count of restaurants by Tom Fitzmorris
of the nomenu.co
website.
Hurricane Katrina plowed ashore east of New Orleans on
Aug. 29, 2005, killing 1,836 people along the Gulf Coast through the
storm surge itself and ensuing weeks of flooding after levees
protecting New Orleans were breached. Damages were in excess of $100
billion, making it the costliest natural disaster in U.S. history.
But
like boxers shaking off standing eight counts, existing restaurateurs
are expanding with additional eateries, and newcomers are entering the
market.
Donald Link, chef-owner of Herbsaint, has opened the highly touted Cochon and attached Butcher.
John Besh, chef-owner of Restaurant August, has opened several
restaurants, including Luke in the business district, and plans in the
first full week of September to open Domenica with chef-partner Alon
Shaya in the 504-room Hotel Roosevelt. The hotel underwent a $145
million renovation and was re-opened in July by the Hilton Hotel
Corp.’s upscale Waldorf-Astoria portfolio.
Frank and
Marna Brigtsen bought and reopened the neighborhood staple Charlie’s
Seafood Co. in suburban Harahan, La. Also, chef Scott Boswell, whose Stella!
just received the top-rated fifth bean from the New Orleans
Times-Picayune restaurant reviewer, has enjoyed steady business at his
breakfast-and-sandwich restaurant, Stanley, located in the French
Quarter’s historic Jackson Square.
“This is the best summer we’ve ever had, and it’s not
even the busy season,” said Boswell, chef-owner of Stella! and Stanley.
“It’s a combination of both locals and tourists.”
Tourism,
a large source of customers for New Orleans’ restaurants, has been
building, but it has yet to reach the 10.1 million visitors hosted in
the city in 2004.
In 2008, according to New Orleans
CVB statistics, the city welcomed 7.6 million visitors, up from 7.1
million in 2007. In 2006, in the year immediately after the
devastation, the city hosted 3.7 million visitors.
“New
Orleans restaurants are holding their own and have not felt the sting
of the recession as other U.S. cities,” said Wendy Waren, vice
president of communications for the Louisiana Restaurant Association.
“There
are still jobs at all levels available in the restaurant industry, as
the unemployment rate remains significantly lower than the national
average,” she said. “Restaurateurs’ goals during these times are to
make payroll and keep up on paying the bills.
“One
of our members, Steve Pettus, partner in the Dickie Brennan Restaurant
Group, said it best: ‘Flat is the new up,’” Waren said. “That couldn’t
be more true. If you are breaking even, you’re doing well.”
The
LRA’s figures on foodservice establishments in the entire Orleans
Parish, culled from permits issued by the Louisiana Department of
Health and Hospitals, is 1,463, about 77 percent of the 1,882 permits
issued before Katrina.
“Since the storm, we have
seen more support and pride by the locals to dine out and keep our
culinary history alive and active,” Waren said. “We have more choices
of cuisine than pre-Katrina. Sushi, Mexican, Vietnamese and Italian
restaurants are more plentiful than pre-storm. We have more dessert and
gelato shops as well. IHOP opened a location on Canal Street recently.”