Did Hurricane Isaac result in an economic loss for your restaurant?

Preparation, duration and recovery measures from a hurricane are costly for restaurants. When Hurricane Isaac hit August 28, 2012, it caused flooding in some areas and massive power outages. No doubt, as a restaurant owner, you were impacted by these occurrences. 
 
The LRA, along with the UNO School of Hotel, Restaurant and Tourism Administration, is interested in learning more about the economic impact of Hurricane Isaac on your operations. We ask that you complete this survey, which should take approximately seven to ten minutes. The information and responses will remain confidential, but should provide valuable data. We encourage you to participate and thank you in advance.

LRA Hosts Drive for Braithwaite Families

The Louisiana Restaurant Association (LRA) invites members of the community to donate toiletries, cleaning supplies and paper products to the Braithwaite, La. families impacted by flooding from Hurricane Isaac. The following items are high in demand: diapers, baby wipes, toiletry items and cleaning supplies and can be delivered to the LRA office at 2700 N. Arnoult Rd. in Metairie from 5-6:30 p.m. on Thursday, September 27.

“When you lose everything, you don’t realize you need something until you go to use it. As soon as we get in cleaning supplies they are gone in minutes,” said Suzanne Shaffer of Team Braithwaite Foundation. “It’s a relief for the people to be able to get some items they desperately need.”

Shaffer’s husband, Jesse Sr., and son, Jesse Jr., along with other community members, led the rescue of 120 people from Isaac’s flooding in Plaquemines Parish when a levee known as “the wall” was overtopped during the storm. Jesse Jr. used technology to identify those who needed to be rescued. At one point, he had 80 texts with addresses and locations of more individuals who needed to be rescued.  

Last weekend, Lynn Oaks School, where volunteers had organized donations collected by the Team Braithwaite Foundation to be distributed, was burglarized of nearly $15,000 in items like diapers, food and cleaning supplies.

“We hope to replace the $15,000 worth of supplies stolen that was meant for the families as they recovered from Isaac,” said Wendy Waren, LRA VP of Communications. “By organizing this drive, we hope to remind people, that outside the city, there’s still a lot of people struggling and we want to do our part to help those families recover.”

This effort was inspired by LRA member Greg Reggio of the Taste Buds, which operates Zea Rotisserie & Grill and Semolina Restaurants, in advance of the “Taste Buds for Braithwaite” event, September 30. Reggio has organized similar relief events for families impacted by the 2011 tornadoes in Joplin, Mo. and Tuscaloosa, Ala. for which he was named LRA Restaurateur of the Year in 2011 and received the National Restaurant Association (NRA) Restaurant Neighbor Award earlier this year.

NRA President/CEO Dawn Sweeney remarked of the Taste Buds, “We are committed to positively enhancing the quality of life for all we serve, and philanthropic activities are an important part of this mission. The Taste Buds have provided much needed relief to communities impacted by devastating disasters last year, underscoring that restaurants are often on the front lines in emergency response.”

Following Hurricane Ike in 2008, the LRA’s Greater New Orleans Chapter members fed more than 1,200 residents of the flood-ravaged Lafitte at its Town Hall. In 2010, the LRA organized more than 20 New Orleans restaurants who fed the Grand Isle community of 300 residents following the BP Oil Spill.

LRA staff and students from Archbishop Rummel High School will be on hand next Thursday to take donations and pack them into boxes generously donated by Whole Foods Market.

Isaac has come and gone. Now what?

Hurricane Isaac has passed and in its wake left massive power outages and flooding to areas in Southeast Louisiana. What it meant for restaurants with no power for many days was lost profits and products. In the worst cases, flooding and wind damage, compounded with lost profits and products.

If you have yet to re-open, here are a few suggestions to get you started.

• Write down what you need to do and secure to get your restaurant back open, even if for limited hours.
• Determine the total amount of lost business income.
• Identify all of your financial obligations, including suppliers, loans and pay
• If available, gather your past year business records, sales and projected profits to build your case for what you’ve lost due to interruption.
• Document your facility damage and your lost inventory. 

The Louisiana Restaurant Association is here to help and assist you in whatever why you need during this time of recovery. We have resources and consultants available to provide guidance as you work to regain a sense of normalcy for your business.

If you are in need of assistance to advice the local media of your status, we are able to assist in this capacity as well.

Louisiana Seafood title sponsor of second We Live to Eat Restuarant Week

The second annual We Live to Eat: Louisiana Seafood Restaurant Week features specialty cuisine from nearly 50 area eateries—from local favorites and world-renowned establishments offering both casual and fine dining fare. September 10-16, diners will have 14 chances to take advantages of the two-course lunch specials for $20 and three-course dinner offerings for $35.

During the kick off press conference Friday, Sept. 7, Louisiana Restaurant Association President/CEO Stan Harris made a special presentation to an individual who, for 40 years, has advocated for Louisiana’s seafood industry--Harlon Pearce. As the chair of the Louisiana Seafood Promotion and Marketing Board (LSPMB) for the last 13 years and given Louisiana Seafood’s title sponsorship, there was no better time to recognize him before restaurateurs, chefs and members of the media.

“Harlon has been an integral part of the Louisiana seafood industry for more than 40 years and has been the public face of the industry during Hurricanes Katrina, Ike, Rita and Isaac and during the BP Oil Spill,” said Harris. “He has been incredibly supportive of the LRA and is a consistent and entertaining presence at the Louisiana Foodservice and Hospitality EXPO every year.”
 

In recognition for his 40  years of service to Louisiana's
seafood industry, LRA President/CEO Stan Harris
recognizes Harlon Pearce at the We Live to Eat:
Louisiana Seafood Restaurant Week press conference.

Establishments participating in Restaurant Week were asked to use Louisiana seafood as a main component in the appetizer or entrée portion of the specialty menus.  From Gulf shrimp, fish, oysters, crawfish, crab and even alligator, all six of the Louisiana seafood species can be found peppered throughout the decadent menus in traditional and innovative preparations.

“One restaurant is serving an Alligator Bolognese, which is not something you see every day,” said Harris. “Crab cakes, seafood gumbos, grilled fresh Gulf fish and oysters on the half shell are just some of the standouts from our great chefs.”

We Live to Eat: Louisiana Seafood Restaurant Week is recurring for the second year and is brought to the dining public by the LRA Greater New Orleans Chapter. Designed to deliver diners to restaurants during a slow period given the heat, this year’s Restaurant Week will also be a much needed reprieve for those area residents who went days without power and sadly, many of which experienced flooding in their homes due to Isaac’s storm surge.

Losing power is one thing, but having hurricane-related home damage like flooding is something beyond inconvenient,” added Harris. “We hope that those families impacted by Isaac will find themselves at a participating restaurant next week and feel a sense of normalcy and hope during the recovery period.”  

The availability of Louisiana Seafood is extremely important to New Orleans restaurants. The LRA would be remiss not to mention the fishers that were impacted by Hurricane Isaac. Given their location, some fishers were negatively impacted, while others are able to continue to bring in fresh catch for restaurants. The LSPMB is assessing the damage to the fishing industry and will keep the LRA and public informed through its website. 

Regardless of your reasons for dining out during Restaurant Week, our establishments look forward to hosting you, your family and friends Sept. 10-16.

Bon Appetit!

Business Recovery Centers opening for Isaac victims

The Louisiana Restaurant Association (LRA) has many members that were impacted by Hurricane Isaac’s vicious flooding and massive power outages. We are pleased to share that the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), the La. Dept. of Economic Development (LED) and the La. Small Business Development Centers (LSBDCs) are opening three centers to assist with storm related impacts to business owners. Additional centers will come on line in the next few days.

Centers are opening beginning Sept. 7
to assist businesses impact by
Hurricane Isaac.

“Some of our member restaurants were located in the areas most impacted by Hurricane Isaac,” said Stan Harris, LRA President/CEO. “These centers will provide much needed resources for the restaurant owners in areas like Manchac, Madisonville, Mandeville, LaPlace, Slidell and in Plaquemines Parish who sustained significant damage from the storm as they work to recover losses and rebuild their businesses.”  

Centers are located in Plaquemines, Jefferson, Orleans, St. Bernard, St. John and St. Tammany Parishes. Specialists from the SBA and LSBDCs will be available to meet individually with each business owners. SBA customer service representatives will be available to meet individually with each business owner to explain how an SBA disaster loan can help finance their recovery.