Ruth's Chris leaves NOLA

[TAPrice]

Ruth's Chris Steakhouse will permanently relocate its corporate headquarters to Orlando.

Article from RestaruantBiz:

http://www.restaurantbiz.com/index.php?opt...k=view&id=13144

[Mayhaw Man]

If Ruth was around this never would have happened.

Nothing like corporate loyalty. Her son Randy is a great guya and a major supporter of the SFA, but I don't think that he controls the board, just the Fertel Foundation.

I am sure that there will be more and more of this as we go along. Hibernia seems to have made a major move to Houston, and with it's pending sale, I am sure that last Friday afternoon Hibernia made the last transactions that will be made under that old New Orleans logo. I wonder what will happen to the Hibernia building and the lights on top?

[highchef]

I've heard about Hibernia and sad to say they are trying to operate with almost no employees in a shell of a building somewhere in B.R.

The people I've talked to in B.R. have not had anything good to say about Ruth's.

The bottom line is that Hibernia is ripe for a takeover and is probably on the short list for the major banks in the country. So is Whitney, although they are functioning great for the time being.

What should have been a 5 minute run into Albertson's last night turned into an hour. I gave directions to an uptown evacuee, discovered our mutual friends, gave her phone #'s and generally welcomed her to the area. Then had a 20 minute conversation with a fellow UNO grad who was buying his 2nd bottle of wine for the evening to celebrate his friends finding an apt. and getting out of his. What a week. What a nightmare. Fill up your tank, fill up your pantry. You never know what tomorrow will bring. Cheers!

btw, Albertson's put itself up for sale last week. If it's your store, you might want to monitor the situation.

[Mayhaw Man]

Did it flood out in Elmwood? Paul Prudhomme's spice plant is there.

How about Crystal (Baumer Foods)? I am pretty sure that give their location at Carrollton and Tulane, they went under.

I suppose that coffee processing by the industrial canal is a done deal as well.

Folgers in Lacombe, the largest coffee warehousing and processing facility in the world, is running ads on NOLA.com looking for their employees.

What else?

[highchef]

Elmers. I'm worried there won't be any chocolate bunnies. stupid, but I've never had an Easter without one.

Moscas.

The blue plate mayo people.

[Mayhaw Man]

Elmers. I'm worried there won't be any chocolate bunnies. stupid, but I've never had an Easter without one.

Moscas.

The blue plate mayo people.

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Elmer's is actually in Pontchatoula and they are fine

Mosca's, though it could d with some sprucing up, likely is ok. I don't think that part of the Parish flooded.

Blue Plate would have gone under early. Those people that they kept showing up on the Broad Street Overpass? That's not too far and Xavier went under as well, and that's not too far away either.

I don't even want to think about all of those car loads of egg yolks sitting back on the rail spur. Ugggh. They were bad enough when they were fresh. Making mayo in large amounts is not a pretty thing under the best of circumstances.

[highchef]

Elmer's is actually in Pontchatoula and they are fine

Elmers 'of New Orleans' is not in New Orleans????

A week ago that would have struck me a lot differently.

Today I'm glad of it.

I am making stuffed artichokes in honer of Mosca's tonight. I think I'll pick a Neworleans dish for everynight..maybe slip some beinets in there this weekend.

Corrinne Dunbars. Now that was a classy place. I don't know if they were still in business though.

edit for spelling, as usual.

and shrimp boats..not poboys, shrimp boats.

Edited September 8, 2005 by highchef (log)

[joiei]

Ruth's Chris Steakhouse will permanently relocate its corporate headquarters to Orlando.

Article from RestaruantBiz:

http://www.restaurantbiz.com/index.php?opt...k=view&id=13144

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and what will they do when Orlando gets hit by its own devastating hurricane?

[robyn]

Ruth's Chris Steakhouse will permanently relocate its corporate headquarters to Orlando.

Article from RestaruantBiz:

http://www.restaurantbiz.com/index.php?opt...k=view&id=13144

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and what will they do when Orlando gets hit by its own devastating hurricane?

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Well - Orlando isn't immune to hurricanes (there was damage last year from Hurricane Charley - maybe Frances as well). But all things considered - you're usually safer 50 miles inland than when you're on the coast. (Note by the way that RC is actually moving to Seminole County - which is a relatively affluent area adjacent to Orlando.)

The current CEO of RC has roots in central Florida. So it wasn't unusual that he decided to relocate there.

What's important in terms of the future of larger businesses in Louisiana isn't nostalgia. Or "loyalty". It's whether the state provides a reason for businesses to stay through the problem months/years ahead. It is no secret that Louisiana has not been the most business friendly state in the country. Mississippi's in the same category. The states can use this event as an opportunity to roll out the red carpet - or to continue with "more of the same". If it's more of the same - I don't think it will take much to persuade larger companies that can relocate just about anywhere to leave.

So far - I haven't seen much evidence of the "red carpet" (e.g., Entergy will probably go into bankruptcy - while a state official says it won't get 10 cents worth of rate increases to pay for $1 billion in repair costs - insurers will probably leave Mississippi as a result of the "flood damage" class action - etc.). But it's still early in the game.

Note that there are of course some businesses - like restaurants - hotels - etc. - that are more or less "local". But most of them don't provide the types of jobs with decent pay that are attractive in terms of economic planning these days. Robyn