Having a reputation for terrible service is usually the death knell of any business. However, the iconic Fleur de Lis restaurant in Baton Rouge flourished in spite of curmudgeonly owners and gruff service. Sustained on a reputation for top-notch pizza, Fleur de Lis closed a couple of years ago after 80 years in business. Now, a new ownership group is bringing it back to life.
Ownership partner Andy Batson recently told What Now New Orleans that he hopes to bring back the best of Fleur de Lis, and shed the reputation for “not-so-great service.”
“Everyone from Baton Rouge has a story about Fleur de Lis,” he said. “I hope to have it renovated and opened around Thanksgiving.”
Years ago, Fleur de Lis was a full-on travel stop, with a bar, restaurant, gas station, and cabins people could rent for the night. Its location at the end of Jefferson Highway was ideal for travelers pulling into Baton Rouge from New Orleans and beyond. Over the years, the cabins disappeared along with the gas service, but the restaurant remained.
While it had a bar, former co-owner Pam Rushing refused to serve any customer more than two drinks because she famously didn’t want to deal with drunk customers. Batson said that policy will go away, along with many other prohibitive policies put in place by the previous regime.
“We’re going to take down all the ‘do not’ and ‘no’ signs down,” he said. “Pam wouldn’t even let you move an extra chair to a four-top table.”
When Batson and his group bought Fleur de Lis, they also purchased the original pizza recipes, which are for Roman-style square pizzas. Those pizzas will be made in a modernized kitchen that will be brought up to code. Batson said the current kitchen doesn’t have the electrical capacity to handle all three of its pizza ovens, much less a commercial stand mixer for the dough. Renovations will also include new bathrooms and other common-sense touches.
Batson added that he plans to largely keep the old Fleur de Lis intact. He expects that Baton Rouge will support the reborn restaurant, just as it has other legacy restaurants brought back to life in the capital city.
“You know, we’ve had several iconic restaurants brought back over the years, and they’ve all been successful just because of the reputations they had with parents and grandparents,” he said. “And of course, they’re passing that reputation on to their kids.”
