A Fast-Casual Caribbean Restaurant Is Crowdsourcing Its Way to the Warehouse District

The owners of the Westbank’s charming Restaurant des Familles are bringing a fast-casual Caribbean restaurant to New Orleans’s Warehouse District, and they’re seeking investments large and small to help get them to the finish line.

After an initial attempt to find a location in Marrero for their NOLA Caye idea, Bryan and Brooke Zar signed a lease earlier this year in an upcoming mixed-use condo building on Baronne Street where it meets St. Joseph & Howard Avenue (846 Baronne). They launched an Indiegogo campaign last month with the goal of raising $650,000 by mid-July, with options ranging from a discounted advance gift card to a 10% equity investment of $150,000.

The campaign lays out in thorough detail the couple’s background and achievements at both Houston’s Steakhouse in San Francisco and with Restaurant des Familles, and their inspiration, plans, and expectations for NOLA Caye. Renderings show a sleek exterior entrance and a spacious, bright interior stocked with on-trend chairs, plant life, and white marble.

Nola Caye/Facebook

The menu for a preview night of the upcoming project held at Restaurant des Familles in March shows items like coconut shrimp, tuna tacos, and a crab cake salad. The projected opening date for Nola Caye is September 2019.

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