A new covered, open-air food pavilion at Lafreniere Park in Metairie is taking shape, and one of the restaurants set to open there in November is Louisiana Purchase Kitchen, a Cajun buffet with more than 50 years of history in Metairie.
Amy Quinette, who currently owns the restaurant with her husband, recently told What Now New Orleans that she has wanted to expand it ever since buying the restaurant from the original owners.
“Our food is so good, and we’ve been thinking, wouldn’t it be great to modestly expand?” she said. “We’re not looking to ever be like some crazy big company.”
She added that the possibility of opening a satellite location in Lafreniere Park seemed like the perfect opportunity for a small expansion of operations.
“This opportunity could be fun,” she said. “We have two kids. We go to the park a lot, so we know what families want, and it’s such a cool environment there.”
The new Louisiana Purchase Kitchen location will not be a buffet. Instead, it will feature Cajun plate lunches suited to both grab-and-go customers and sit-down diners. Quinette said the menu will have meat-and-two-sides plates featuring the restaurant’s most popular items, such as fried fish, fried okra, and potato salad. There will also be kid-friendly finger foods and daiquiris available.
In an attempt to minimize impact on the natural beauty of Lafreniere Park, Quinette said the new location will use compostable packaging for its meals.
“I was there the other day, walking out of the building, looking over the water, and watching the birds flying overhead,” she mused. “It was stunning. What an incredible work environment for us. How pretty that the pavilion will be on the water right there?”
