Louisiana’s restaurant landscape has shifted again, only months after three other beloved restaurants served their final meals. This time, two New Orleans kitchens and a 71-year-old Lakeview snoball window said goodbye within a little more than two weeks.
Each filled a different niche: homestyle plate lunches, Greek-Jewish comfort food, and icy treats after a hot afternoon. Their regulars lost familiar gathering spots, although two of these stories may continue in new forms.
Hot Stuff, New Orleans
Hot Stuff opened on Maple Street in May 2024 as a cafeteria-style meat-and-three from Mason Hereford, chef and partner Nate Barfield, and the team behind Turkey and the Wolf. Diners moved down a steam table for a main, bread, and sides, finding Southern comfort food in a playful room and on a patio packed with vintage signs. The rotating menu also offered buttery rolls or cornbread plus vegetables such as black-eyed peas, collard greens, and miso green beans…