The Catarie to breathe new life into The Caterie

A restaurant and live music venue called The Catarie has signed a letter of intent to fill about 3,000 square feet of a new retail and office development under construction at the intersection of South Acadian Thruway and Perkins Road. The Catarie plans to open by early September in the space formerly home to The Caterie, a popular restaurant and nightclub that was destroyed in a New Year’s Day fire in 2010. Jon Claitor, a partner in the Acadian-Perkins Plaza development, says the slight name change reflects new ownership. “The former owners were not interested in coming back, but the new owners wanted to give it a similar name because they plan to have a similar menu and live music schedule as the old Caterie had,” Claitor says.

The Catarie’s owners are Dwaine Henderson and David Mandina—who also have ownership stake in Mandina’s Restaurant on Canal Street in New Orleans. Permits for the The Catarie were filed Wednesday with the city-parish and state, Claitor says. The Catarie is the first to commit to moving into the new 36,000-square-foot Acadian-Perkins Plaza. Claitor says the ground floor of the two-story development—which is where The Catarie will be along with other retail spots—is on schedule to be completed by the end of July. The second story designed for office spaces will be finished in mid-August. Claitor says two specialty restaurants have expressed interest in the location, and he intends to announce additional signings next month. See a rendering of the development here.