One stop shop? . . . Just as more people were turning on to the hunger-healing eats at Fharmacy (will we ever taste mussels like that again?) the tiny Banks Street spot suddenly closed up shop leaving fans sad and hangry for nearly two years. But just recently, the little yellow shotgun opened its doors again, this time as Cause and the Cure. Launched by Robert Corroza (owner of High Grace NOLA in the French Quarter), Cause and the Cure features a conflab of cultural cuisine from the Big Apple bodega-born chopped cheese “sammich” with cheese-laden ground beef with sauteed cabbage to Korean-style corn dogs rolled in toppings like potato crisps or seasoned uncooked ramen. The cause for these reputed hangover cures can be inflicted while seated on the same bar stool with cocktails such as the bourbon-based Banks St. Mulberry Smash or St. Peter’s Punch – their version of a Hurricane. The only thing missing at Cause and the Cure is a crash couch.
2540 Banks St., causeandthecurenola.com
“Sittin’ here eatin’ my heart out waitin’” . . . Speaking of parties, consummate chef and wacky weed-lover Mason Hereford has done it yet again, teaming up with Nathan Barfield (the now former chef de cuisine at Turkey and the Wolf) to launch Hot Stuff on Maple Street. Built out like a meat and three inside the old brick building that once housed Favori Deli, Hot Stuff is serving up plates of stewed chicken, Mississippi pot roast, and chicken fried steak. Sides include collard greens and black-eyed peas, but diners should expect a twist or two on the old formula. So far, dishes like miso green beans, chili-crisp marinated cucumbers, brown butter sage rolls, and smoked chicken wings with pineapple habanero BBQ sauce have made it to the board, but at this point it seems anything is possible.
7507 Maple St., hotstuffneworleans.com
Brew on the Avenue . . . Yet another craft beer brewery recently opened its doors, this time on St. Charles Avenue right next to the city’s ultimate brew purveyor, Avenue Pub. Located inside the space that long housed Pralines by Jean, Care Forgot Beercraft is the brainchild of NOLA-native Connor Martinez, a booking-agent who became a home brewer run amok. Beers featured at the recent grand opening include Poboy Bread (an American wheat), Shoebox Parade (a session IPA), and a golden ale dubbed Yat Accent. Kicking it at Care Forgot for a brew or two, guests can also avail themselves of a Margherita pie while appreciating a colorful wall mural by local artist Anna Schnitzler @sassybananadesignco and a beer-utiful, stained-glass art piece by Devin Balara @solid_space_glass hanging in the window.
1728 St. Charles Ave., careforgotbeer.com
A cut-out for caffeine … Algiers Point’s Lower Coast Coffee has at last found a home inside NOLA Boards on Magazine Street. Cottage coffee roaster Patrick Kelly has recently launched his roasts inside another business (a la Cherry Coffee/Whatever Coffee-style) selling and pulling his unique blends. Buy New Orleans Coffee & Chicory, French Breakfast and Southern Pecan by the pound or grab a shot of Bulbancha Espresso (a blend of beans from Central & South America, East Africa, and Indonesia). The new board bar also features goodies from Bellegarde Bakery including sweet tidbits like tahini thumbprint cookies and almond croissants
4228 Magazine St., lowercoastcoffee.com
“The lights are much brighter there” … The Caro Mata Group – ie. beloved New Orleans chef Edgar Caro and his partner Antonio Mata, recently launched the second location of their Metry-born hit Brasa South American Steakhouse downtown on Canal Street. The restaurant group completely remodeled the Canal Place space (formerly occupied by Morton’s Steak House) to evoke the romantic aura of a South American locale with “lush, raised tropical gardens of foliage and plants designed by Luna Botanicals” plus rattan and wicker furnishings, abstract paintings by Tina Hall and unique sculptures made by Hernan Caro (Chef Caro’s uncle). Chef Caro has crafted a menu featuring many of the same dishes found at the first location on Metairie Road such as oysters a la Brasa and empanadas, with the stars being unique cuts of meat including 30-day aged Creekstone Farm black Angus hanger steak, Sakura Farm Wagyu picanha with fat cap, Heritage Green Circle smoked chicken, and Linz Farm prime black Angus rib eye and Creekstone Farm prime black Angus strip loin both aged in-house for 30 days
(504) 371-5553, 365 Canal St., Ste. 220, brasasteak.com
It’s too damn hot! . . . Seasonal closures in New Orleans restaurant industry are nothing new – think Casamento’s annual shutdowns in June, July and August – but it seems more spots are taking a page out of the old-school oyster house’s playbook. Tchoupitoulas Street restaurant Wonderland & Sea took a two week vacation in June and Bon Temps Boulet’s Seafood is only open during crawfish season (who buys crawfish out of season, anyhow?), but Decatur Street restaurant Saint John was the most recent shocker this past June.
After opening during the pandemic, a recent (and ongoing) tussle with Entergy, and the business-killing summer doldrums, chef/owner Eric Cook has decided to close Saint John. The bad news is the killer turkey necks and guzzle-by-the-quart gumbo will likely never grace the French Quarter again. The good news? Saint John has announced it’s new location inside the Le Chat Noir building (formerly a theater, and Bearcat’s short stint into fine dining) and they’re planning on opening sometime this fall.
*Article originally published in the August 2024 issue of Where Y’at Magazine
**Lead image courtesy of Cause and the Cure
