Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
CAFÉ RECONCILE
If you're looking for flavorful Southern cuisine at an affordable price, look no farther
than the corner of Euterpe Street and Oretha Castle Haley Boulevard, home of Café
Reconcile.
Not only will you leave with a very satisfied tummy, but you'll have contributed to
one of New Orleans's greatest nonprofit success stories.
Café Reconcile opened in 2000, the brainchild of the late Rev. Harry Tompson, who
joined with other community members in looking for ways to alleviate the violence,
substance abuse, and homelessness that were overtaking the neighborhood. They
came up with the idea of a restaurant that would train at-risk youth in the city's thriv-
ing hospitality industry.
On any given weekday, the place is packed for lunch. Teens age 16 and older, along
with young adults up to age 22, work in all areas of the restaurant, from steward to
waitstaff to chef. The service is excellent as is the food, with fried catfish, baked ma-
caroni and cheese, and smothered pork chops among the specialties. Since its begin-
ning, Café Reconcile has seen more than 1,000 of its graduates move on to careers in
restaurants, hospitals, and other food-service providers.
The café's partners include some of the city's top chefs and restaurateurs, among
them Emeril Lagasse, Ralph Brennan, and John Besh. The Emeril Lagasse Founda-
tion Hospitality Center, a special-events space, occupies the second floor.
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Turn right on O. C. Haley. In the first block, at 1712 O. C. Haley, is the Ashé
Cultural Arts Center. Housed in what was once Kaufman's Department
Store, it opened in the late 1990s. Its mission: to use art and culture to sup-
port community development. In addition to staging an array of performing-
and visual-arts shows, the center offers movie screenings, health-and-well-
ness activities, and outreach programs. The Diaspora Boutique sells an
abundance of African merchandise from clothing to jewelry.
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Continue walking on O. C. Haley. In the next block, at 1632 O. C. Haley, is
the Friday Night Fights Gym, which stages amateur boxing bouts outside
Blind Pelican, a nearby bar at St. Charles Avenue and Euterpe Street. The
event typically includes musical and dance performances.
