21 March 2024
The Little Gem Saloon is opening in the CBD. | Little Gem Saloon
Plus, Toups Meatery relaunches its free meal program as Landry declines federal EBT funding, and a South American steakhouse opens downtown
Glenn and Allison Charles, the couple behind bustling Gert Town restaurant Nice Guys Nola, are opening a restaurant, bar, and music lounge in the former Little Gem Saloon space, Nola.com reports. Headquarters, the first-floor restaurant, will serve a Southern-inflected menu of shrimp bread, crawfish etouffée, glazed beignets, and bread pudding, among other dishes, from chef Louis Brown II — upstairs, Red Light District, a sumptuous lounge and event space with a Moulin Rouge theme, will host musical performances and events. It’s a meaningful revival on South Rampart Street, a 20th century commercial and cultural corridor of New Orleans’s Black community and a hub for early jazz — the Little Gem Saloon was one of its cornerstone music venues. “We feel it’s a lot of responsibility, and we want to keep a sense of the history here and share that with people,” Allison Charles told Nola.com. Renovations are already underway.
Toups’ Meatery relaunches free Family Meals
Mid-City’s Toups’ Meatery is relaunching its Family Meal program, which offered free boxed meals to thousands of New Orleanians during the early months of the pandemic, following governor Jeff Landry’s refusal to accept more than $70 million in federal aid for the 2024 Summer EBT program, which would have offered extra grocery money to the families of around 600,000 Louisiana children. Isaac and Amanda Toups announced the relaunch in an Instagram reel. “We never thought we’d be here again, but we are,” Amanda says in the reel. They’re starting with Easter dinner boxes, and crowdsourcing funds at @toupsmeatery on both Cashapp and Venmo; a sign up link to receive a box is linked here.
A South American steakhouse lands in Canal Place
Brasa, a South American steakhouse from Antonio Mata and chef Edgar Caro, is now open in the former Morton’s space downtown. Many of the dishes from Brasa’s Metairie location have carried over to the new restaurant, which emphasizes unique cuts of Angus beef and local seafood. Appetizers include short rib mac and cheese and boquerones; entrees feature aged hanger steaks, Wagyu pincanha, smoked chicken, black Angus ribeye, and other hefty meat cuts, served with South American-style sides like carrots and smoked corn.