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| Middendorf's in 2006. Photo: Rdpeyton, Flickr |
A hurricane can't keep a good restaurant down.
Middendorf's, a Louisiana catfish institution, on Wednesday reopened in its original location, nearly one year after four feet of Hurricane Ike floodwaters sloshed through the building. The exiled restaurant kept serving guests in an adjoining annex, but owner Horst Pfeifer says a white coat of paint applied to the structure known as the "brown building" didn't fool his longtime customers.
"It means a lot to people," Pfeifer says. "They want to be in the original building."
Middendorf's, which celebrated its 75th birthday on July Fourth, was the brainchild of Louis Middendorf, a lousy fisherman whose catch didn't pay the bills. He used his $500 World War II veteran bonus to start the cafe and stationed his wife Josie in the kitchen. Her paperthin fried catfish, which gained more fans every time the state poked another interstate past Manchac, was ultimately celebrated by Saveur and -- of greater interest to the Middendorf's crowd -- the quarterback-rich Manning family.
Pfeifer claims the restaurant is even better than it was before the storm, citing the new ceilings, insulated cypress walls and level floor.
"Before the floor was crooked," Pfeifer says. "Now it's level. Everything looks prettier than it used to. It's stunning."
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9-05-2009 @3:35PM mandy said... Sorry,but Middendorfs food is awful! After waiting quite awhile for our food (delivered by a no personality waitress), I could not believe that people rave about this stuff they pass off as food! There is very little selection on the menu, and the catfish tasted like it was dipped in a bowl of sand before it was fried in old grease! Not only was the service terrible, the food awful, then you get overcharged for something I would not feed to my dog! Would never go there again!
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9-07-2009 @7:26AM Sierra said... Wow, Mandy! Why don't you tell us how you REALLY feel?
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