What Now Media Group hosted its Accelerate event in New Orleans on Tuesday, September 15, bringing restaurant operators and industry partners together to build relationships, exchange ideas, and connect with companies specializing in the day-to-day needs of running a business. The event was held at Amour by Ouu LaLa’s, located at 2209 Lapalco Blvd., Ste. FF in Harvey, and hosted by Joshua Spivak, What Now’s COO.
The New Orleans gathering included 11 restaurant attendees representing ten brands, along with two media representatives, and eight partner attendees representing five partner companies. The group represented a broad range of concepts, including Cajun, Southern, Italian, and Korean food, to doughnuts, coffee, pizza, and more.
Restaurant Attendees
Amour by Ouu LaLa’s – 2209 Lapalco Blvd., Ste. FF, Harvey, LA 70058
Founder Alana Lawrence attended representing Amour by Ouu LaLa’s, the restaurant and lounge concept she developed after operating her OuuLaLa’s catering business. It offers takeout breakfast during the day before transitioning into a restaurant-lounge in the evening.
Bayou Bella Grub – 344 Field Road, Bayou Vista, Louisiana
Carla Thomas, owner, and Leah Ruffin, manager, attended representing Bayou Bella Grub, a recently rebranded fast-casual Cajun-inspired concept relocating from Patterson to the Bayou Vista development in Morgan City.
Bridge City Snowballs – 1400 Bridge City Ave., Westwego, LA 70094
Valencia Brocks, owner, attended representing Bridge City Snowballs. The Westwego shop opened in 2025 and is a neighborhood dessert shop offering New Orleans-style snowballs, ice cream, and additional snacks.
Cajun Bleu – 4404 Leo Kerner Pkwy., Marrero, LA 70072
Chef Davenisha P. attended representing Cajun Bleu, a Marrero restaurant offering Cajun and seafood-focused dishes alongside burgers, pasta, steaks, lamb chops, and other Southern-inspired fare.
Compagno’s – 1600 W. Causeway Approach, Suite 1, Mandeville, LA 70448
Michael Compagno, owner, attended representing Compagno’s, a restaurant rebranded from his family’s historic eatery Acropolis of Mandeville, with recipes dating back to 1929 centered on Italian and New Orleans cuisine
Gangnam Korean BBQ – 807 Railroad Ave., Donaldsonville, LA 70346
Lindsay Lee, owner, attended representing Gangnam Korean BBQ. Lee is developing the Korean barbecue concept in downtown Donaldsonville, alongside Lemon Tree Coffee and Ramen Bar as well.
Reverie New Orleans – 7523 Maple St., New Orleans, LA 70118
Owner Sara Razack attended representing Reverie New Orleans, a family-run all-day café and dinner concept planned for Uptown New Orleans. The restaurant has a globally influenced menu drawing from the family’s Trinidadian, Middle Eastern, Indian, Spanish, and West African heritage.
Rise & Glaze – 8235 Scenic Hwy., Baton Rouge, LA 70807
Layhuoy “Kelly” Chea, owner, attended representing Rise & Glaze. The planned Scotlandville shop is centered on handcrafted doughnuts, coffee, kolaches, and breakfast items, taking over a vacant commercial space near Southern University.
Southerns – 1720 W. Thomas St., Hammond, LA 70401
Anthony Cruz, co-owner, attended representing Southerns, the chicken sandwich concept he operates with Gene Colley. The brand began as a pop-up and food truck operation before opening its first brick-and-mortar location in Metairie, followed by its Hammond location.
Upper Crust Pizzeria & Italian Cuisine – 401 Carondelet St., New Orleans, LA 70130
Lisa Mondello, co-owner, attended representing Upper Crust Pizzeria & Italian Cuisine, a planned Central Business District restaurant from the team behind Meaux Jeaux Pizza and Istanbul Grill.
Media Attendees
The event also welcomed members of the local food and hospitality media community.
Sayidana Brannan-Douglas attended representing French Fry Media, while Nicole Caridad Ralston attended on behalf of Off the Eaten Path NOLA.
Partner Attendees
Herman Rivas, PCM, and Chad Bloodworth, PDM, attended representing Auris. Auris combines payroll, HR administration, onboarding, time and attendance, employee self-service, payroll tax administration, and compliance support, with dedicated human support for business owners and operators.
Jared Klepko and Chandler Mangrum, PAMs, attended representing Human Interest. The company provides employer-sponsored retirement plans, including 401(k) solutions, handling plan administration, compliance, filings, and employee support.
Merchant Lead Julian Chavez attended representing DoorDash. Through its merchant platform, DoorDash helps restaurants reach customers through online ordering, delivery, and pickup, while providing tools for menu management, customer discovery, and restaurant operations.
Joshua Key-Maginnis, SRM, and Jamar Travis, District Manager, attended representing Global Payments’ Genius point-of-sale platform. Genius combines restaurant POS and payment capabilities, including menu management, mobile payments, order routing, digital kitchen tools, and integrations designed to connect front- and back-of-house operations.
Anson Trahan, Account Executive, attended representing SpotOn, a restaurant technology company providing POS and management tools. Its platform includes online ordering, reservations, scheduling, labor management, marketing, reporting, and profitability systems.
What Now Media Group shares restaurant opening news in 33 cities across North America, breaking news, and provides timely insight into yet-to-open brick-and-mortar businesses. The platform shares news of thousands of openings across all 33 cities annually.
Stay tuned for future Accelerate events from What Now Media Group in 2026. For more details, see the Accelerate page here.
Click here for a complete list of our partners. To learn more about becoming a preferred partner, click here.
