Sunday, September 27, 2020

French Quarter Icons Struggle

It should come as no surprise that Pat O's is struggling and may be forced to lay off a substantial number of employees.  The Times-Picayune reported:


Pat O'Brien's, the French Quarter bar renowned as the birthplace of the "Hurricane" cocktail, has had to inform 80 of its employees they might be permanently laid off as it fights for survival amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The iconic bar on Peter Street reopened in early September for limited hours Friday-through-Sunday under rules that restrict table service to 25% of capacity. But Shelly Oechsner Waguespack, president and third-generation part-owner of the bar, said there are still too few customers to sustain the business.

We're down to the bare bones," said Waguespack, who said the bar has tried every measure to keep as many of the 200-plus pre-pandemic employees it had on the payroll during the shut-down period, but now has had to take further measures to curb costs.

"Our people want to work just as much as anyone else wants to work," said Waguespack, who expressed frustration that Orleans Parish has kept restrictions tight while the rest of the state has moved to the next phase, allowing more people to gather in bars and restaurants.

"Regardless of how many emails we send to the City and the Council, our fate is in the hands of a certain few and that is troubling," she said. "We're in a critical situation in New Orleans and it's frightening." Rest of article.
Emeril's in the French Quarter notified the state it might lay off 97 workers.  The restaurant is closed.

Mark Hughes of The Cannery in New Orleans managed to get an audience with Mayor Latoya Cantrell. The Mayor told Mr. Hughes he was pretty much out of luck and he needed to take up his problems with the federal government.  Start at 13:50 in podcast.






23 comments:

Anonymous said...

Good find. Does Mississippi keep similar records?

Anonymous said...

'Take it up with the federal government'? What's the fed govt got to do with restrictions in New Orleans and Orleans Parish?

On a side note, nice places like Pat O'Brien's began feeling pain years ago when hoodlums, punks, whores and thieves began taking over the streets. Sort of like today in the rest of the country.

Anonymous said...

no conventions, tourism dead, New Orleans self induced something worse than flooding. Seems to easy to say Democrat Gov and radical Mayor. Nursing homes were hit hard but not many tourist visit them.

Anonymous said...

Do not underestimate the loss of conventions on these New Orleans institutions. Pat O'Brian's, Antoine's etc. do a lot of individual business and might seem to be "immune" from COVID - 19, but I would wager that more than half of their income comes from corporate events related to conventions and conferences. The company that I work for has locations in several states, and when we have a regional meeting in New Orleans there is at least one dinner at an Arnaud's or one of the many Brennan's. We get a room big enough for 40-80 people and we are never the only company doing that. I hope most of them can survive.

Anonymous said...

Are Chokey and Cantrell related? Or did they just attend inept mayoral classes together?

Anonymous said...

I won't be surprised if a recall effort gets started in NOLA. Its a tourist driven economy. The mayor is absolutely crushing the economy. Governor said Saints can start hosting fans, Mayor said no thanks.

Anonymous said...

@6:27

Hoodlums, punks, whores, and thieves have been part of NOLA for centuries. And nothing says nice like having a drunk kid from a good Rankin County family puking up that hurricane he just finished at Patty O’s. It is really okay to live in the past, just not the past that never was.

Anonymous said...

I’m actually sitting in the quarter right now.

I’ve been here for 15 plus years off and on.

The doom sayers are miserable people in their own lives and have no relevant knowledge of the state of things.

Most reasonable people know that though.

It’s not perfect but it’s getting better. Lake Charles residents still have some hotels booked up thru the state and feds.

Cops are everywhere.

It’s quiet and peaceful and the weather is perfect.

This weekend I’m told the bars will begin to emerge from reasonable constraints placed by the governor and mayor.

Note...most bar owners here wish they had known masks would be so helpful in fighting the virus....they say this would be over already.

But keep hurling unfounded BS and please if you believe it....stay away. That’d be beat for all.

Anonymous said...

With New Orleans having so much of its economy based on hospitality and tourism, it is easy to see how it is suffering from CV19. When you consider the crime in the city, it is a place that I will avoid for the time being. As my old dad used to say, "In New Orleans, crime is an industry"

Anonymous said...

I would open my bar and if the City or State tried to shut me down, I would tell them Cantrell said its a federal issue. Too many people allowing local authority to run all over them. My business isn't "essential" and we never closed down. Some people need to grow a set and buck authority some times. Most of the time, they wont do anything or have the legal grounds to do so. I will say I do feel bad for the city as it is tourist driven and the annual conventions bring it tons of revenue.

Anonymous said...

this has nothing to do with D/R politics.

NOLA survives thanks to visitors. Conventions/tourism/weekend warriors/cruise ship boarders-when that goes away, so do businesses that need them to survive.

This is probably why Mississippi is faring far better than most of the country. Tourism isn’t paramount to our economy.

Anonymous said...

You go, 10:30! It's not like NOLA has never seen hard times before.

I'm surprised that Pat O'Brien's is still open at all. The number one tourist trap in the Quarter. And Emeril? He had his time, but it's pretty much over. As much slapstick as good cooking.

Since the same things are happening everywhere in the U. S., maybe Congress will finally find a way to help again.

Anonymous said...

You can always tell the liberal idiots on here. They defend the left and "their peoples" no matter the situation. New Orleans is like jackson. A claptrap of infestation.

Anonymous said...

I wish Carlos Marcello was still around.

He would have kept these places open . . . it may have involved an "offer the politicians could not refuse",
but that would have been only business . . . nothing personal.

For a poor old tomato farmer from Metairie, (or somewhere around NOLA) Mr. Marcello did have some clout.


Anonymous said...

9:59 - Kids don't go to Pat's place. Unless they're with their parents. Nice try. Groups of adults no longer feel safe on the streets and that's where the money is, the well heeled adults. While it's true that drunks, whores, thieves and punks have always infested the city, to some degree, they've not always been 80% of the locals, which is now the case. When you pare that fact with a mayor that doesn't give a shit...this is what you get.

It's the same as we see with reputable restaurants and other establishments 'failing' in Jacktown and closing down or escaping. But, go ahead and tell us about the lofts and trendy night spots soon to bust loose in Jacktown.

Anonymous said...

Live by Tourism ...die by lack of tourism.

I've always felt that large cities with tourism being their major source of tax revenue kinda are cheating with an unfair advantage over "non-tourist " cities . Thats not an exact way to say it though. These tourist cities have been blessed with a huge advantage of steady stream of outside money pouring into them. The smart ones diversified or at least didnt waste it all on corruption or other worthless crap. The ones that did....well it those tourism dollars disappear for even a few months...their city budget is completely shot.

It's like the situation of resource rich countries (think africa) that end up being shit holes. As opposed to countries without those resources actually have to work and build a real economy.

Does anyone here feel sorry for ME countries and their woes due to low oil prices? Likewise...I dont feel sorry for cities who have leaned too heavily on the tourism crutch for decades. Cry me a river. Really.

NOLA has had plenty of time and plenty of outside money over the years...much more than most cities ...so ....

Anonymous said...

The city put the kibosh on kids being in bars with parents. Seriously. And they hammered the strip clubs. But you can't walk out of your hotel without stepping over a hobo and stepping in puke. Priorities got misplaced in NOLA.

Anonymous said...

I've never been a big fan of the Mayflower, but it is one of the last remaining landmarks left in my
hometown.

Now I plan to have dinner there this week.

The Mayflower seems to understand how deal with local thugs.

Anonymous said...

"And Emeril? He had his time, but it's pretty much over. As much slapstick as good cooking"

Emeril was never New Orleans.

He's a showman from Massachusetts that has used NOLA culinary heritage to sell spicy salt to lonely women in North Dakota.

I think he's now selling a toaster on late night infomercials.

Anonymous said...

4:22 pm

Please stay away. It’ll be better without you.

Pete Fontaine said...

Posters who tell the truth about this roach infested, horse-piss smelling den of iniquity are asked to stay away in droves. Imagine that.

Where else can you enjoy 25 cent beer under a crystal chandelier while checking out the garter belt on a chick who hasn't seen a shower in eight days?

PS: It's only a rumor that a powdered donut will cure crabs and a hangover. Don't fall for it.

Anonymous said...

8:31 pm

You sure seem to know a lot about it.

Glad you’ve resisted temptation ?

Anonymous said...

Oh dear! I didn't know they were opened. If they do curb pick up and have a menu on line, I'll be there picking up today.

Putting a flyer in the nearby neighborhoods and apts might have helped.



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If you get tired come relax at the Fox News Tent. To gain admittance to the VIP section, bring either your Republican Party ID card or a Rebel Flag. Bringing both will entitle you to free drinks.Get your tickets now. Since this is an event for trolls, no ID is required, just bring the hate. Bring the family, Trollfest '07 is for EVERYONE!!!

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