Louisiana Seafood King torn between opening new restaurant in Baton Rouge or New Orleans

On the heels of being crowned the 2013 King of Louisiana Seafood thanks to his speckled trout Perdu dish, chef Cody Carroll is looking to open a new restaurant to complement his Hot Tails Restaurant in New Roads.

But Carroll, who lives in Baton Rouge and is a graduate of both LSU and the Louisiana Culinary Institute, is weighing a big decision. Either he can try to replicate the success of his restaurant in Baton Rouge, or set his sights a bit higher and try to establish himself among the world-class chefs of New Orleans.

“Baton Rouge—although it has definitely evolved—is still not a destination for the food industry. In New Orleans, you have people flying in from all over the world who are coming to dine out,” says Carroll, who is looking at possible locations in both cities. “That’s a huge difference to a chef.”

But while New Orleans offers the chance for chefs like Carroll to really test and hone their culinary craft, the Crescent City is also a bigger risk. In the areas Carroll is considering in the city, primarily the French Quarter and Central Business District, it’s virtually impossible to purchase a location, and leases are much more expensive than in Baton Rouge.

“In New Roads, my wife [Samantha] and I bought and built this restaurant ourselves, and that’s really what we’d prefer to do with the new restaurant,” says Carroll, who has taken a first-place award in the local Fęte Rouge competition the past two years.

Carroll likens Hot Tails Restaurant, which he opened three years ago, to Baton Rouge eateries like Sammy’s or Mike Anderson’s Seafood. He’s confident a replication of the New Roads restaurant in Baton Rouge would be successful.

“I know Hot Tails would be awesome in Baton Rouge. That kind of restaurant goes over very well there,” he says. “But as a chef, of course, I kind of want to go beyond that.”

Carroll has dreams of owning a “more upscale” restaurant along the lines of Galatoire’s Bistro or Beausoleil.

“But doing that kind of upscale restaurant in Baton Rouge is tough,” he says. “Right now, I’m at the point as a chef of asking myself: What do I really want to do?”

Carroll isn’t giving himself much time to make his next big career decision. He knows the newness of his 2013 King of Louisiana Seafood win—which came at the Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marking Board’s annual cookoff in New Orleans last week—will eventually fade.

“We really want to make a decision and have the new restaurant in development this summer, and use this win while the fire is still hot,” Carroll says. “Whatever I decide, it’s going to be a challenge any way you look at it.”