By Jeanni Ritchie
The Palace Café has closed its doors.
Palace Café, one of the many famous Dickie Brennan & Co. restaurants in New Orleans, closed their doors July 7 after a legal dispute with their landlord.
As they neared the end of a 35-year lease which also included a purchase agreement, the restaurant’s operators were working toward a deal to purchase the property from its owners, Philip Werlein, Ltd.
A dispute on the fair market value brought both sides into Civil District Court. It centered on the value of improvements made to the property by the restaurant group, and whether these should be included in the purchase price. Court records show that in June, Judge Ellen Hazeur ruled in favor of the Werlein family.
That ruling is currently being appealed. In the meantime, Steve Pettus, managing partner of Dickie Brennan & Co., said it was no longer “fiscally responsible” to continue to operate the restaurant. The disparity between the assessed values for the property is too great to purchase it, and terms offered for a new lease to continue operating were five times higher than the previous lease, Pettus said.
A statement on their website from the owners reads, “It is with heavy hearts that we share that Palace Café has closed its doors. You can find our Crabmeat Cheesecake and other signature dishes to pre-order locally at THE COMMISSARY (and) for nationwide shipping at GOLDBELLY.
The page links to The Commissary, a NOLA market and eatery also owned by the Dickie Brennan & Co. group, and Goldbelly, a food mail-order company.
My friend Mary and I ate at Palace Café in April for my “NOLA Girlfriend Getaway” article. We loved our meal, the unique and interesting dishes like Crabmeat Cheesecake and Catfish Pecan Meunière, a true playground for our palates.
Palace Café was first conceived by the Brennan’s as the next generation’s take on the Creole dining experience. They became a cultural mainstay. And that is how I know they will not be down for long.
“Over these 34 years, millions of diners have broken bread with us here on Canal Street. We’ve had the honor of sharing our passion for hospitality with these guests as well as our thousands of team members who trained and worked in our historic building,” Dickie Brennan said in a statement.
He continued, “Although we are saddened to so suddenly have to close the doors, we are optimistic about a next chapter for Palace Café on Canal Street, or elsewhere in our city. Don’t count us out yet.”
We would never count out a Dickie Brennan restaurant. You and your family, sir, have redefined dining in New Orleans!
Jeanni Ritchie is a contributing journalist in Central Louisiana. She can be reached at jeanniritchie54@gmail.com.
