K-Pauls: aint dere no more (1 Viewer)

[LonghornSaint]

This hurts, I have not eaten there in decades, but man the memories were so good...sad so see such a landmark restaurant fall to this pandemic. Paul Prudhomme was such an inspiration to me as well as many others, and it hurt when he passed, and now this.

K-Paul's restaurant in French Quarter to permanently close amid coronavirus shutdowns

K-Paul's Louisiana Kitchen, a well-known New Orleans restaurant started by chef Paul Prudhomme in the 1970s, is closing, the restaurant announced Monday morning.

www.nola.com

 

[guidomerkinsrules]

Oddly I’ve never been to kpauls
But when I lived in NTexas, I stopped at Prudhommes just about every time I drove to NO

 

[rsmith2783]

I have never been there, but I always wanted to go. How was the food?

 

[Twyst]

I would imagine the pandemic is PARTICULARLY difficult to places like K pauls that I think are more tourist oriented. Brennan's, Arnaud's, Antoines etc I just don't think of as places that can survive on local buisiness alone with the rent they must be paying.

The restaurant business is getting absolutely gutted nationwide. Its really sad.

 

[HoustonSaint68]

I'm one of those who somehow didn't manage to eat there over the years until about 3 years ago. It was very mediocre the single time I went. I use his cookbook a decent amount for base ideas but I have had to rejigger the seasonings in practically every recipe. Among other things, it's like cayenne had incriminating pictures of Prudhomme or something -- using the actual amount he suggests ruins just about everything.

 

[rsmith2783]

I'm one of those who somehow didn't manage to eat there over the years until about 3 years ago. It was very mediocre the single time I went. I use his cookbook a decent amount for base ideas but I have had to rejigger the seasonings in practically every recipe. Among other things, it's like cayenne had incriminating pictures of Prudhomme or something -- using the actual amount he suggests ruins just about everything.

I used his recipe for Crawfish etouffee and the regular amount of seasoning made it too spicy. So I agree with that.

 

[Mr. Blue Sky]

K Pauls was interesting because as i was growing up, everyone referred to it as a tourist trap, and i never actually went.. but just in the last couple of years, ive had a couple of other locals tell me that they really like it.. what I’ll always remember is that K Pauls was the epicenter of the absolute explosion of Cajun/Creole cooking popularity in the 1980s; back then it seemed on the same level as Wolfgang Puck’s or something in terms of national and international trends and recognition, with articles about it in the New York Times and the like..... Godspeed Chef Paul, and your restaurant.

 

[buzd]

I went to KPauls a bunch of times over the years and it was always pretty good. I can only get so much mileage out of the "classics" (because I can cook them the way I like them myself), but it was always well prepared and presented.

That said, I was always curious as to how long the restaurant would last after chef Paul passed, and I'm not terribly surprised that it's one of the first dominos to fall in the FQ restaurant scene. RIP.

And to those of you complaining about a little cayenne. Pfft.

 

[SaintsFan742]

And to those of you complaining about a little cayenne. Pfft.
[/QUOTE]

Agreed.

If you don't like cayenne or butter, you will definitely not like any Paul Prudhomme recipes. My wife has his original cookbook from the early 80s and it's money! Sad that his place is closing, but not a surprise nonetheless.

 

[Moon]

It wasn't a "little" cayenne, it was a LOT of cayenne...and it overwhelmed when used according to his instructions. After the 2nd or 3rd time, I just ignored & used it to taste and bang--everything was fine. I ate at K-Paul's several times over the years and ironically never had a problem with cayenne taking over a dish.

I will definitely miss K-Paul's, always had good meals there

 

[Zack Lee]

I use his book all the time but I’ve got my own notes on how much spice to use. And I’m a hot head. There just isn’t any sense making it to where I’m the only one who can eat it. I ate there once while he was still living. My impression was that it was a place for him to train chefs more than anything. I’m not sure that Covid was the only player in this. Could be that there is no way to keep it going without his personal touch.

 

[guidomerkinsrules]

And to those of you complaining about a little cayenne. Pfft.
Agreed.

If you don't like cayenne or butter, you will definitely not like any Paul Prudhomme recipes. My wife has his original cookbook from the early 80s and it's money! Sad that his place is closing, but not a surprise nonetheless.

Actually his ‘a fork in the road’ cookbook- where he tried alternative (healthier) cooking formed the basis to a lot of my cooking

 

[Mr. Sparkle]

How many chefs can say they nearly wiped out an entire fish species with one recipe?

Sorry to see it go.

 

[texasjefe]

Wonderful restaurant that had the kitchen in glass so you could watch.

 

[HoustonSaint68]

It wasn't a "little" cayenne, it was a LOT of cayenne...and it overwhelmed when used according to his instructions. After the 2nd or 3rd time, I just ignored & used it to taste and bang--everything was fine.

Exactly. I like spicy but it should complement the food, not obscure it.