After extensive renovations and a fire during those renovations, the historic Bon Ton Café at 401 Magazine St. is preparing to reopen as Bon Ton Prime Rib. According to permit documents filed with the City of New Orleans, the reimagined restaurant will have a new bar, new kitchen equipment and new seating. While the name “Bon Ton Prime Rib” has yet to be formally announced, the South Carolina-based CentraArchy Restaurant Group that owns the restaurant has the name listed as one of its restaurants. The restaurant is currently hiring staff, according to recent job postings.
Although it moved twice and is apparently going through a rebrand, the Bon Ton Café is technically the third-oldest restaurant in New Orleans, behind Antoine’s and Tujague’s. It closed in March 2020 just before the COVID-19 pandemic triggered widespread restaurant shutdowns. The CentraArchy group, which also owns Chophouse New Orleans, bought the restaurant after it closed in 2020 and had been investing in major renovations to the building. A fire in September 2023 that was seemingly sparked by oily rags from renovation work caused a major setback, but it looks like the reopening is finally getting close to happening.
