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Started By
Message
After 21 years, Vega Tapas Cafe in Old Metairie has closed
Posted on 10/11/17 at 10:13 am
Posted on 10/11/17 at 10:13 am
Wow, very sad! Love this place, we go once a month, sometimes more.
"Surprisingly, July and August were typically the best months at Vega Tapas Cafe in Old Metairie, said owner Greg Francis. The restaurant for years, during those typically slow months, has run a special "tour of the Mediterranean menu" that brings in customers. This year, Francis said his revenue was down by half in those months. That's when he knew the restaurant was in trouble.
"It got to the point where I couldn't afford to open another week," Francis said.
Vega Tapas Cafe took its traditional week off for summer vacation in September and then never re-opened.
Alison Vega opened the small plates restaurant in 1996 and it was immediately popular. She sold it in 2003 to Glen Hogh. Francis bought the business in 2015.
Vega, after working in the Caribbean for years, returned to New Orleans and last year opened the restaurant Station 6 with her husband and fellow chef Drew Knoll."
Francis blamed increasing competition for the loss of business at Vega Tapas Cafe.
"It's not the easiest thing to do in the world," Francis said about closing the restaurant. "But you have to take the failures with the successes."
nola.com
"Surprisingly, July and August were typically the best months at Vega Tapas Cafe in Old Metairie, said owner Greg Francis. The restaurant for years, during those typically slow months, has run a special "tour of the Mediterranean menu" that brings in customers. This year, Francis said his revenue was down by half in those months. That's when he knew the restaurant was in trouble.
"It got to the point where I couldn't afford to open another week," Francis said.
Vega Tapas Cafe took its traditional week off for summer vacation in September and then never re-opened.
Alison Vega opened the small plates restaurant in 1996 and it was immediately popular. She sold it in 2003 to Glen Hogh. Francis bought the business in 2015.
Vega, after working in the Caribbean for years, returned to New Orleans and last year opened the restaurant Station 6 with her husband and fellow chef Drew Knoll."
Francis blamed increasing competition for the loss of business at Vega Tapas Cafe.
"It's not the easiest thing to do in the world," Francis said about closing the restaurant. "But you have to take the failures with the successes."
nola.com
This post was edited on 10/11/17 at 10:15 am
5
Posted on 10/11/17 at 10:50 am to t00f
quote:
After 21 years, Vega Tapas Cafe in Old Metairie has closed
"It got to the point where I couldn't afford to open another week," Francis said.
What's sad is that even after being open 21 years the margin's are so slim that they still survive week to week.
You have to do it for the love because very few make the money. Better off investing in the Weinstein Company.
Posted on 10/11/17 at 11:03 am to Martini
I would imagine the trendy sushi place down the road and the new South American themed steak place put a hurting in Vega recently
Posted on 10/11/17 at 11:28 am to t00f
You never want to see a local business close, but the one time I went there it was meh.
Posted on 10/11/17 at 11:39 am to t00f
These restaurants need to be more creative and reinvent themselves every few years. There is too much competition to remain stale.
Posted on 10/11/17 at 11:52 am to t00f
Bummer. Used to live within walking distance but only been there twice since I moved 8 years ago. Never had a bad meal there. There are so many restaurants to try though, that these "middle aged" places seem to be having a tough time right now.
Posted on 10/11/17 at 2:05 pm to t00f
Brasa is packing em in every night. 85 seats, turning them over 3 times.
Rock n Sake
Cafe
Oak oven coming soon
Loft 18
Some competition for Food and drink in that area all of a sudden
Rock n Sake
Cafe
Oak oven coming soon
Loft 18
Some competition for Food and drink in that area all of a sudden
Posted on 10/11/17 at 2:10 pm to GynoSandberg
quote:
Oak oven coming soon
They better up their beer game:
beer
Abita Amber 3.5
Abita Purple Haze 3.5
Bud Light 3.5
Coors Light 3.5
Bayou Teche LA 31 Biere Noire 3.5
Bayou Teche LA 31 Biere Pale 3.5
Michelob Ultra 3.5
Miller Lite 3.5
Peroni 4.5
Stella 4.5
Posted on 10/11/17 at 2:17 pm to t00f
I’ve found that beer people have a distorted perception that most people give a shite about beer offerings. Especially at a place like Oak Oven, with that ole metry demographic. Wine will drive their alcohol sales
Posted on 10/11/17 at 2:34 pm to GynoSandberg
quote:
I’ve found that beer people have a distorted perception that most people give a shite about beer offerings.
I think craft beer sales in this area indicate you are wrong.
We'll see. If I go into a pizza place I am drinking beer not wine.
Posted on 10/11/17 at 3:22 pm to t00f
quote:
I think craft beer sales in this area indicate you are wrong.
In restaurants? Extensive craft lists arent a selling point to the majority of customers. Not according to the numbers ive looked at
quote:
If I go into a pizza place I am drinking beer not wine.
Have you been to Oak Oven? It isnt a pizza place. It's contemporary italian that happens to serve wood fired pizza. It has the ambiance of a modern version of Vincent's on the ave, not a Pizza D. The Harahan location is a wine crowd, as id guess the Ole metry would be as well.
Posted on 10/11/17 at 3:37 pm to GynoSandberg
quote:
Have you been to Oak Oven? It isnt a pizza place. It's contemporary italian that happens to serve wood fired pizza. It has the ambiance of a modern version of Vincent's on the ave, not a Pizza D. The Harahan location is a wine crowd, as id guess the Ole metry would be as well.
gotcha, we'll see. I was just talking about a few nice beers not a whole lineup.
Posted on 10/11/17 at 5:53 pm to GynoSandberg
quote:
I’ve found that beer people have a distorted perception that most people give a shite about beer offerings. Especially at a place like Oak Oven, with that ole metry demographic. Wine will drive their alcohol sales
This
And Oak Oven is legit
Posted on 10/12/17 at 7:50 pm to TigerWise
I'm drinking a Grace & Grit right now (that's a "fancy" IPA beer, for you non-beer people), but when I'm eating Italian food, I'm going with wine. No doubt.
Posted on 10/12/17 at 8:05 pm to GynoSandberg
quote:
Have you been to Oak Oven?
Sorry don’t make it to Harahan very often so will have to take your word for it.
That said, this is where I assumed it was mostly a pizza place.
“The Harahan location seats 39 people. Once the Old Metairie space is renovated, it will have 70 seats inside, 15 to 20 outside and a banquet room.
"The menu will be almost identical," Macaluso said.
The kitchen they are building will include a wood-burning oven for pizzas.
"It is a crafty pizza place embedded with a dyed-in-wool Creole-Italian restaurant where handmade pastas reign supreme," wrote critic Brett Anderson about Oak Oven in our dining guide. "Chef and co-owner Adam Superneau's craft and ingredient-driven approach to local Italian cooking is truly novel."
Nola.com
Posted on 10/12/17 at 8:38 pm to t00f
I hope like hell they didn't end up leveraging themselves too thin with that location.
It's a big piece of property and I bet it was stupid expensive
It's a big piece of property and I bet it was stupid expensive
Posted on 10/12/17 at 8:45 pm to notiger1997
I was thinking the same thing especially with the saturation in the area and pretty close to cafe b.
Also, I am disappointed this is what is going in here, I heard faint rumors that a bacchanal type place was going in here and was excited.
We will see if Harahan translates to Old Metry.
Also, I am disappointed this is what is going in here, I heard faint rumors that a bacchanal type place was going in here and was excited.
We will see if Harahan translates to Old Metry.
Posted on 10/12/17 at 9:01 pm to notiger1997
Rent on that space is like $18k a month or thereabouts. Can’t remember exactly
And they will supposedly have a courtyard setup similar to Bacchanal. That’s what I heard originally when they signed on
And they will supposedly have a courtyard setup similar to Bacchanal. That’s what I heard originally when they signed on
Posted on 10/12/17 at 9:04 pm to GynoSandberg
Huge if True
Posted on 10/13/17 at 10:00 am to t00f
quote:
Also, I am disappointed this is what is going in here, I heard faint rumors that a bacchanal type place was going in here and was excited.
We will see if Harahan translates to Old Metry.
You will not be disappointed in Oak Oven assuming their food stays the same quality as it does in Harahan. Don’t let the fact that it originated in Harahan turn you off from the place.
Source: I work in Harahan and it’s the regular rotation for myself and many coworkers.
The one thing that does scare me is the size of the venue, as alluded to a few posts up. They get all their ingredients locally and although locally sourced food has become an almost played out trend, you really can tell the food higher quality than your average pizza/pasta joint. I’m worried they will have to compromise on the quality of ingredients to meet the higher demand/overhead.
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