Bike Racks Abound in Faubourg St. John

October 28, 2015 by Charlie London

article and photos by Charlie London (except as noted)
bikerack-terranovas
Bike racks are nothing new in Faubourg St. John. Terranova’s has had one for over 30 years. There is a story about the one that is by the store now. A few years ago, two N.O.P.D. officers arrived at Terranova’s on horseback, entered the store and asked if it would be ok to tie up their horses to the bike rack. The always affable Terranova family agreed.

The officers secured the horses to the bike rack then proceeded on foot. Before they could get more than a few yards away, a car backfired causing the horses to rear up and pull up the bike rack out of the cement. The bike rack was destroyed. Not long after the incident, a Terranova’s customer indicated that a bike rack was under their house and they would be willing to donate it. Paul Laplace installed the bike rack still in use today.

bikerack-cansecosCanseco’s Supermarket has a bike rack too!

bikerack-fairgrinds
Several years ago, then owner of Fair Grinds, Robert Thompson installed a bike rack in front of the coffee shop. There was much discussion about the use of an on-street parking spot for the bike rack. The bike rack at Fair Grinds gets regular use by patrons of the area.

bikerack-fsjna-friendsoffortierA few months ago, several bike stands were put up at the bus stop on Esplanade near the corner of Grand Route Saint John. The bike racks are part of the “Where Ya Rack” program and were donated by the Friends of Fortier Park and the Faubourg St. John Neighborhood Association.

David Armond captured this photo of the bike racks by the bus stop right after they were installed.
David Armond captured this photo of the bike racks by the bus stop right after they were installed.

bikerack-fortierpark
Last Saturday, a large bike corral was installed by Fortier Park on Mystery Street near the corner of Esplanade. It too is part of the “Where Ya Rack” inititiative. The bike corral was donated by friends and family of Bill Kraemer.

bikerack-fortierpark1Michael Ward wrote this about Bill on the neighborhood Yahoo group:
Bill was a good friend of ours. He rode his bike from Albuquerque to New Orleans. He would come out to stay with us every Jazz Fest and Mardi Gras. Most of time for Halloween too. He loved New Orleans and one year while he was staying at my house for Jazz Fest, he took ill and was diagnosed with blood cancer. He died the next year. We miss him greatly. His widow and friends contributed for a bike corral through the “where ya rack” program with the YLC. It was installed Saturday on Mystery street and Esplanade in the marked off no parking corner in memory of our friend Bill.

bikerack-badparkingbikerack-badparking1
While bike racks abound in Faubourg St. John, there are still those who chain their bikes up to whatever is convenient. Hopefully, they will notice the abundance of bike racks soon.

The Fortier Park beautification project is the brain child of Bobby Wozniak.  It is an urban oasis worth bicycling from anywhere to visit.
The Fortier Park beautification project is the brain child of Bobby Wozniak. It is an urban oasis worth bicycling from anywhere to visit.
A bird stops by Fortier Park to enjoy the splendor.
A bird stops by Fortier Park to enjoy the splendor.
Fortier Park
Fortier Park

Filed Under: HISTORY Tagged With: bayou st john, best neighborhood in New Orleans, bike lanes, bike racks, biking, bus stop, exercise, Fair Grinds, faubourg st john, fortier park, New Orleans, nopd, parking, riding, terranovas, touring, where ya rack

FM Radio on St. Claude

March 31, 2015 by Charlie London

Fair Grinds on St. Claude
Fair Grinds on St. Claude

It’s spring big time.  Azaleas are blooming!  Winter coats are being pushed to the back of the closet, and sandals are coming out.  April is here and that means it’s “festival season” with Jazz Fest and all that comes with it.

Fair Grinds Coffeehouse on St. Claude at 2221 St. Claude will open on Wednesday, April 1st (no fooling!).  This will be the “soft” opening from 6 AM in the morning until 1 PM every afternoon.  By fall, Fair Grinds on St. Claude will have hours that extend into the evening.

 At the Fair Grinds location on Ponce de Leon in Faubourg St. John, there is a little of everything on the calendar for April.

There will be a  Fair Grinds Dialogue on Thursday, April 9th from 5:30 to 7:00 PM in the Common Space on “Building A Community Union – Florida Sunshine Style” brought to us by Alphonso Mayfield, President, and Rick Smith, Chief of Staff, of the Florida Public Services Union, SEIU.

In addition to the regular groups using the Common Space there are some special events worth attention in the community.  Communities in Conversation is continuing its discussions, finishing on the 7th.  Teach for America has a big training session scheduled.   A Poetry Show is trying to confirm for the evening of April 27th.  Keep an eye out for coming events on the bulletin board.

The new offerings on the menu from Fair Grinds own kitchen are being greeted enthusiastically.   Thanks for that!  It will be exciting to experiment on St. Claude and then import over to Ponce de Leon.  Guatemalan quesadillas, anyone?

     

Wade Rathke

Ps.  Fair Grinds has more good news!  At the end of last week, the FCC has granted Fair Grinds’ partner, AM/FM, a license for a community, low power FM radio station at 100 watts which will broadcast all over the New Orleans city limits at 90.3 FM.  The call letters are likely to be WAMF.  It will a number of months to raise the money.  Many folks will likely be part of a “voice of the people” station full of excitement, music, news, and voices normally not heard.  The studio for the radio stationwill also be at 2221 St. Claude.

 

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: Fair Grinds, faubourg st john, low power FM, New Orleans, st. claude

Local Businesses Provide More Than Just Goods

October 23, 2014 by Charlie London

fsj-bastille-2014
The old phrase “use it or lose it” applies especially to neighborhood businesses

Shop at your neighbors’ businesses on Ponce de Leon and Broad. Keep your money working for you right here in Faubourg St. John.
After a long day of shopping locally stop in, say hello to your neighbors and have a drink at…
https://fsjna.org/2011/09/drinks/

LIVING IN A NEIGHBORHOOD—even the swankiest one—with no grocery, coffee shop or other businesses is like wearing a nice new suit of clothes without shoes. It looks great, but you’ve got no place to go. Local shops, preferably within walking distance, are the soul of any community, the place where you bump into your neighbors and get that satisfying sense of belonging.

These neighborhood hang outs don’t need to be fancy or charming. Sometimes their idiosyncratic character is the best expression of your neighborhood’s true personality. A funky, messy junk shop run by a lovable eccentric can be more welcoming than a charming-as-can-be tea shoppe or nostalgically-correct soda fountain. A laundromat with comfy benches out front can become a kind of town square that attracts people.

In many small towns, an ice cream shop is the hot spot for teenagers, while other folks in the community wander down to the gas station to drink pop and tell stories. In a lot of African-American neighborhoods, the barber shop and beauty parlor are the social hubs. These places may not sound like your idea of an exciting time but, to the people who live there, such businesses are as important as sidewalk cafes are to Parisians.

IN OXFORD, MISSISSIPPI, MANY FOLKS CREDIT A BOOKSTORE WITH HELPING HEAL THE CITY’S PRIDE after a vicious anti-civil rights riot erupted in the 1960s. Square Books, right on the courthouse square, restored many people’s faith that this was a caring, civilized community. It also helped revive the sagging downtown.

“What tends to get lost in the argument over the future of independent stores is that the dangers posed to them by superstores and on-line sellers don’t just threaten some quaint form of distributing goods,” writes author Rob Gurwitt about Square Books in Mother Jones magazine. “They imperil the fabric of our community life. Real-life stores—their place on the street, the people they draw in, the presence they cast in the community at large—help define their neighborhoods.”

It’s no secret that local businesses almost everywhere are under siege from mega-malls and big box retailers. Everyone who cares even a little about their neighborhood should make a commitment to patronize local businesses, even when bread or duct tape or CDs can be had cheaper by driving to a national chain store. Vote with your pocketbook to keep your community vital. Indeed, you might even find yourself ahead economically with the money saved on gasoline and unnecessary purchases you would never have made if you hadn’t gone into the big box. And, you’ll be way ahead in terms of community spirit and social enjoyment.

THANKFULLY, SMALL NEIGHBORHOOD STORES ARE BEGINNING TO FIGHT BACK WITH BUSINESS IMPROVEMENT DISTRICTS. This is a well-proven model where local merchants work together to spruce up commercial streets by adding nice landscaping, fixing up the storefronts, improving the lighting and other amenities. They also cooperate on advertising campaigns, special neighborhood events, shared parking facilities, and other improvements.

Many merchants are banding together in an even bigger way by joining Independent Business Alliances, which draw public attention to the numerous benefits of locally owned businesses (how often do Wal-Mart and Home Depot buy uniforms for the local little league team or sponsor an art fair?) and by lobbying political officials and the media to take note of unfair economic tactics wielded by big retailers. The first IBA began in Boulder, Colorado in 1997 and within two years involved 150 local businesses. There are now IBAs in more than 20 communities—stretching from Corvallis, Oregon, to Greenville, South Carolina— and a national group, the American Independent Business Alliance, based in Missoula, Montana.

IN HARTLAND, A VILLAGE IN THE DEVON COUNTRYSIDE OF ENGLAND, a community school took over management of the Happy Pear green grocer and market when it was about to close. It offers students a wonderful lesson in business management and sustainable economics. And, local townspeople won’t have to drive many kilometers for fresh and organic food. This is just one example of a growing number of community initiatives to preserve and promote essential local shops. In another English village, Maiden Bradley in Wiltshire, 60 percent of residents pledged between five and five-hundred pounds ( $10-1000) to save and refurbish their general store (village shop in the British parlance), with townspeople doing most of the work. It is now community-owned with any profits going back to village itself.

IN THE SEATTLE SUBURB OF LAKE FOREST PARK, RESIDENTS RALLIED AROUND A UNIQUE, REDEVELOPED MALL that was envisioned as a community center as much as a retail outlet. Third Place Commons features a superb bookstore as well as a food court featuring local restauranteurs and a stage for nightly music and performances. It has become such a beloved local hangout that regular customers formed Friends of Third Place Commons, a non-profit group to help keep the place thriving.

Resources: “Square Books”:www.squarebooks.com “American Independent Business Alliance”:amiba.net “Friends of Third Place Commons”:www.thirdplacecommons.org

Filed Under: Featured, HISTORY, Living Well Tagged With: 1000 figs, bayou breakfast, bayou st john, best neighborhood in New Orleans, best place to shop in new orleans, buy local, Cafe Degas, canseco's, Fair Grinds, faubourg st john, half shell, local business, lolas, neighborhood stores, New Orleans, pal's, santa fe, swirl, terranova, terranovas, use it or lose it

Fair Grinds Opens 2nd Location

January 2, 2014 by Charlie London

Quoting Fair Grinds Coffeehouse

fairgrinds-rathkeDear Fair Grinds Community,

Happy New Year!

At the end of the year we were asked to headline a mobile phone app for www.stay.com, which asked us to list a bunch of our favorite coffeehouses and breakfast spots in other parts of the city. It was exciting to put together such a list, but humbling to realize how vital coffeehouses are to so many neighborhoods and to the life of the New Orleans community generally, and how fortunate we are to be part of all of your lives as well and a small part of the cultural and nonprofit vibrancy of the city as well.

Speaking of support, thanks for all of the good wishes as we put the pieces together for Fair Grinds on St. Claude, which will be our second location and a chance to be part of the vibrant Marigny-Bywater neighborhoods. The address is 2221 St. Claude, a couple of yards away from the intersection of Elysian Fields and St. Claude Avenues, where the extension of the new streetcar tracks will end. I wish I could say now when we will open, but that’s as much up to various city agencies as it is in our hands. We’re making great progress though throughout the building as well as where the coffeehouse will be located. The actual space is a big smaller
than Ponce de Leon, but offers us other opportunities so we’re hoping to combine the best of PDL with some things that are a bit extra. With fingers crossed I’m praying we open before Mardi Gras, but we’ll see, and I’ll keep you in the loop.

Spread the word!

There’s always something happening at Fair Grinds! Check the Fair Grinds calendar.

Look for Fair Grinds Coffeehouse at www.fairgrinds.com for more details on what’s happening and new things that jump on the schedule unexpectedly. And, yes, we’ll continue to do Affordable Care enrollment through March 31st so watch for the notices!

Here’s hoping we all have a great New Year in 2014!
Fair Grinds Coffeehouse
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: coffee, Fair Grinds, faubourg st john, New Orleans, ponce de leon

April at Fair Grinds

April 6, 2013 by Charlie London

by Wade Rathke
fairgrinds-rathkeApril is always a fantastic Fair Grinds month as spring bursts into final blooms and the Jazz and Heritage Fest knocks on our door, so let’s see what we have in store here for the month.

This month’s Fair Grinds Coffeehouse’s Dialogue on Tuesday evening, April 9th, is a special call for all of our poets and writers that make Fair Grinds so important in the New Orleans literary community. We are going to be discussing “artisanal” or self-publishing as an important modern tool thanks to advantages in technology. Glenn Smith from Birds in the Sky Press, one of the authors who has used self-publishing will testify about the experience, and I will share our experience with Social Policy Press. We have a theory that a lot of our Fair Grinds regulars and assorted randoms have things they have written from full blown books to family histories that need to find their way to print and the public. If this is true for any of you or folks you know, of if you are simply curious about how it all works, be there…

muffins-fairgrinds1aTuesday, April 9th – 7 PM

Fair Grinds Common Space – 2nd Floor

April as always is a musical month. Here’s the tentative schedule of coming musical attractions including local groups and talent from this area as well as folks from around the country. Check the Fair Grinds calendar at www.fairgrinds.com for more details on each performance.

Swamp Lillies – Sunday, April 7th 5 PM

Open Mic with Robert Eustis – Thursday, April 11th 7PM

Lips and Trips – Friday, April 19th 7:30 PM

Snail Party (Canada) – Saturday, April 21st 8 PM

Randy Harsey – Saturday, April 27th 7 PM

Linda Kolda and Work for Hire – Saturday, April 27th 9PM

McMain Piano Recital – Tuesday, April 30th 7PM

Getting the coffee cart ready to roll over the Dillard University for a couple of hours to introduce 100% fair trade, organic coffee at their annual Health and Sports Fair on Saturday, April 6th. The same night we have a new organization, DEAF-Louisiana doing a movie night in the Common Space.

Great to see people enjoying the balcony now that the weather is so nice.

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: bayou st john, best, best neighborhood in New Orleans, eclectic, Fair Grinds, fairgrinds, faubourg st john, neighborhood, New Orleans, new orleans best neighborhood

Breakfast Anyone?

December 2, 2012 by Charlie London

Some neighbors have lamented that there isn’t a business dedicated to serving breakfast in Faubourg St. John. However, there are breakfast options available on a daily basis and on Sunday two options for brunch that should not be missed.

Breakfast sandwiches like this and full breakfast meals are prepared daily at Canseco’s. Get there early for the best selection! Canseco’s opens at 7 a.m.
Everyday, one can buy a variety of quick breakfast options that are ready to go at Canseco’s Market. Pictured here is the ham, egg and cheese biscuit but grits, eggs and sausage are also available in full meals that are hot and pre-packaged ready to go.

And, at Fair Grinds there is all manner of fair trade coffee with a variety of ready to eat muffins waiting to be heated up for you.

But, the pièce de résistance for breakfast in Faubourg St. John is only available on Sundays. Both Cafe Degas and Santa Fe restaurants offer a Sunday brunch that should not be missed.

This meal, featuring home made biscuits, meat from Terranova’s all wonderfully prepared is only available from Santa Fe and only on Sundays!

Sunday brunch served 11am-3pm at
Santa Fe Restaurant at 3201 Esplanade.


Grillades and Grits consisting of veal cutlets with creole gravy, peppers, tomatoes, organic stone ground grits is just one of the many top quality offerings for Sunday brunch at Cafe Degas.
Click on the photo for a menu!

Sunday brunch at Cafe Degas
served 10:30am – 3:00pm at 3127 Esplanade.

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: breakfast, Cafe Degas, canseco's, esplanade, Fair Grinds, ponce de leon, restaurants, santa fe

Fair Grinds Brews On

September 4, 2012 by Charlie London

Dear Fair Grinds’ Community,

There’s a lot of big news for Fair Grinders, but Hurricane Issac has got to be the lead story for our world along with big thanks for the support – and patience – of all of our community! In fact I held the September e-bulletin until Tuesday in hopes that more of you might have power finally.

You know our story because we were here in the middle of it together keeping the coffee hot and at your fingertips when it was hard to find a cup of coffee just about anywhere in the City of New Orleans. Stories in the Times Picayune with a picture of our unbroken morning ritual and in City Business marveled that we were somehow open even when it was just the last Lowe’s generator operating in the dark, a borrowed fan from Mark Herman, a borrowed extension cord from our neighbors, my mother’s big coffee pot, impressed labor from my son, Chaco Rathke, who couldn’t say “no,” heroic efforts by new manager, Zee Thornton, who rose to every occasion, and even guest turns helping provide relief behind the coffee bar from my daughter, Dine’, and my partner, Beth, both of whom enjoyed every minute. At one point one of the regulars yelled to me, “Wade, you should have had more children!” It takes a village!

It will take a couple of days to get back to normal. We have plenty of coffee, tea, juices, and most items, but some of our suppliers of baked goods are still getting back on their feet, so for Fair Grinds, just like the rest of the community, there will be progress every day, but nothing will be accomplished in just one day.

Looking forward, there’s a lot happening in September at the coffeehouse, because fall is when we cycle back into our busier time. Schools are back in session. Colleges and universities are open again. Events scheduled for late August will be rescheduling this month and on into the fall. The construction work on the balcony and new upstairs seating areas lost a week, but has started working again, so hopefully will get back in swing. Jeff Poree, doing us a huge favor, will be loaning us scaffolding soon so we can finish the last big wall on our painting job. Progress, slow but steady!

Big reminder though that the September Fair Grinds Dialogue on Fairtrade and the Port of New Orleans is more than a dialogue, and something closer to a combination information meeting on fairtrade coffee and why it is so important and a public forum to enlist explanations for why there is tariff discrimination favoring New York/New Jersey against the Port of New Orleans and how – and who – we can get to step up and start pushing for the changes which could make New Orleans the fairtrade coffee port for North America. I’m moderating and have invited guests from the Port, coffee roasters, university and religious fairtrade committees, longshoremen and other unions, public officials and political leaders, so that we can put our heads together, get the facts, understand the situation, and move to do what it takes to make a difference. Join us!

Fairtrade and the Port of New Orleans
Fair Grinds Common Space – 2nd Floor
Tuesday, September 18th
7:00 PM to 9:00 PM

Of course we continue to allow local and visiting musicians to introduce themselves to our community. Keep an eye on our calendar on the coffeehouse bulletin board and our website, because new groups are added to the line-up all of the time.

What Did You Do – A Group from Orlando – Friday, September 8th 730PM

Open Mic – Thursday, September 13th 7PM

Lydia Kolda, a new talent from Texas via Loyola, Saturday, September 15th 7PM

We also have the regular groups meeting in the Fair Grinds Common Space rooms on the 2nd floor, but it is amazing how the calendar is filling up. There’s more yoga! There are book clubs now with one group reading bell hooks every Sunday. Acupuncture is proving popular on Sunday’s as well. The Fix-it timesharing event will be rescheduled for September as will a postponed book signing. A “rights” group for the deaf is organizing starting this Saturday. The doulas are coming together. The cooperatively supported space means there is more people utilizing the space and doing great things on the 2nd floor. We’re excited about this!
You led the way and many followed as we were voted one of Gambit’s 2012 Best of New Orleans in the Coffeehouse category for the 2nd straight year – we’re so proud!

Best!

Wade Rathke

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: bayou, bayou st john, coffee, Fair Grinds, faubourg, faubourg st john, neighborhood, New Orleans, port, shop

Improvements at Fair Grinds

August 21, 2012 by Charlie London

August 21st, 2012

Dear Fair Grinds Community,

PARDON OUR DUST!
That’s what the construction signs usually say, but actually it’s not going to be that bad, and in fact I think all of you will find this special bulletin welcome news.

We’re fixing the balcony, “waterproofing” the outside patio, and preparing to open up more chairs, tables, umbrellas, computer electricity outlets, and space in our open area. How about that for an exciting addition as we prepare to celebrate our second year of “great coffee for a change?”

Here’s more than you want to know about what’s happening. We’re shoring up and replacing some of the piers and supports for the balcony. We’re replacing all rotten wood and redoing the decking on the balcony. We’re raising the wrought iron fencing on the balcony to the required 42 inches to assure safety for our customers. We’re surfacing the balcony so that rain doesn’t pour into the patio scurrying our customers when we’re facing our current deluge. We’re adding gutters to the balcony so that when the rains come then it will drain to the back, rather than spill over our sides.

Our contractor making these repairs is going to work in sections, so that only a couple of feet of the patio is unavailable at any time during the construction and so that in fact there really isn’t dust or disturbances on the first floor. Furthermore, this should be a quick process finding Labor Day back to normal with the balcony “open for business!”

Frequently asked questions include:

Will the common space be affected?
No. We will continue to operate the common space as usual.

Will dogs be allowed on the balcony?
This is a matter between you and your dog, as long as the dog is not a jumper!

What about smoking? The front sidewalk is not our property, so smokers will continue to enjoy this space. The patio though is going to move to a non-smoking area whenever practicable. Children and others run free in the patio and too often smoke clouds are trapped under the stairway making it less than ideal space. Instead we are going to make the balcony open to smoking, which actually means that our smoking customers will have MORE space to smoke and drink their coffee than they have now! “Whenever practicable” means that the community is self-policing, so when it is raining or inclement, then of course there’s going to be some smoking in the patio, but during the normal wonderful New Orleans weather, it’s balcony rules!

What about music? No music is planned for the balcony because we want to continue to be good neighbors while continuing to welcome musicians to give their time and offer enjoyment to our customers and, I’m not sure that would qualify.

We’re super excited about this huge improvement and its ability to open up more space for our more people who are joining the Fair Grinds community every day! Some pain, but lots of gain!

Thanks as always for your support!

Filed Under: More Great Posts! Tagged With: bayou, bayou st, coffee, construction, esplanade, Fair Grinds, fairgrinds, faubourg, faubourg st john, food, hangout, john, music, neighborhood, New Orleans, ponce de leon, rathke, wade

FAIR GRINDS VOTED BEST

May 31, 2012 by Charlie London

I’ve got some news that is even hotter than the coming summer weather, and it has been very hard to keep it a secret until now, but (big drum roll…), thanks to your support and votes, and many others, Fair Grinds Coffeehouse for the first time has been named by the Times-Picayune as the Readers’ Choice 2012 Best Coffeehouse in New Orleans! When you pick up your Langiappe section in what used to be the daily paper, you will see us right there in the catbird seat at #1!

That’s not all either.

Friends and faithful coffee drinkers at Fair Grinds have also voted Fair Grinds Fair Trade Coffee as the #2 Readers’ Choice Best Cup of Coffee in New Orleans. We’re not getting the big head at Fair Grinds, but I can also assure you that we won’t rest until the people in the Greater New Orleans area find out that we actually have the best cup of coffee in town. We’re setting our sights, and you will enjoy the journey.

Speaking of great fairtrade coffee, we had a ball rolling out the coffee carts (ok, that wasn’t as fun as we had hoped, but thanks to our customers for helping us get across Esplanade Avenue!) over to Cabrini High School to give the young women exam takers a “jolt of justice,” serve up hot and iced “good luck” coffee, and give the girls some good information on the importance of fairtrade. We’re crossing our fingers that we can do this on a regular basis and that the girls cry for more.

We had fun the other day with a book signing in the Fair Grinds Common Space with Lawrence Powell signing his new book about New Orleans, Accidental City, for our good neighbors, Maple Street Bookstore, and we are definitely going to put Larry on our Fair Grinds Dialogue calendar later in the year as more of us make it through the book. The Fair Grinds Dialogue is up in the air for June because our friend and regular tea drinking customer, Jerome Smith, legendary civil rights organizer and long time director and founder of Tambourine & Fan, has been out of pocket so we haven’t been able to tighten him down. Keep an eye on the bulletin board because this still may happen in June or we may have to push it off if Jerome is tied up, but whenever he’s ready, I know this is going to be something the Fair Grinds community will deeply appreciate. This is on the calendar for Tuesday, June 19th at 7PM, but, as I say, stay tuned!

Rising temperatures simply mean that the music has to heat up to keep up and the patio is sometimes cooking so hopefully that will be what you hear in June:

Self Evidence – Friday June 1st 7PM

LNJ Music – Saturday June 2nd 730PM

Benjamin Booker and You’re So Cool – Saturday June 9th 8PM

Andrea Bush – Sunday June 10th 730 PM

Issac Bramblett, Singer & Songwriter – Tuesday June 12th 730 PM

Open Mic with Robert Eustis – Tuesday June 14th 7 PM

Lips & Trips – Friday, June 15th 7pm (Are you coming?!?)

Brian Nebel – Monday June 25th 730 PM

Keep up with the events calendar on our website for any other groups that may be late additions. There are also some nice surprises like the book event for parents and children by Tomas Moniz, the editor of Rad Dad, which I have to admit sounds fascinating to me.

"Sunshine" and "Can't Stop the Beet" are two new offerings at Fairgrinds
Besides the expanding red and orange and gold paint starting to brighten up Fair Grinds another little housekeeping matter in June will be a bit of a shift around the counter. Katie Murphy, who brightens the day for many in the mornings, was a key ingredient in making the new Fair Grinds work when we turned the key on the lock for the first time on October 15th, and she will still be doing so with a smile, but her art has called her so she’s stepping aside as manager to listen to her muse as well in June, and Kami Ownbey, who has been the night manager, is stepping up her game for the whole coffeehouse. Theirs have been the shoulders I’ve gotten to lean on in learning from the cup up, so this transition has been as smooth as silk. Give them some thanks as we head for the summer!

There’s a lot more, but come by Fair Grinds, and we’ll keep trying to surprise you.

Best!

Wade Rathke

Ps. Ok, yes, that means that granitas and more cold drinks are going to be debuting in June, so let us know what you think, and we’re very close to starting to bring the juicer up to the front and make it while you watch. How about that?

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: bayou, bayou st john, best, coffee, coffeehouse, fair, Fair Grinds, fairgrinds, faubourg, faubourg st john, grinds, New Orleans, rathke

Fair Grinds Gets Jazzed Carts

April 2, 2012 by Charlie London

by Wade Rathke

I am writing this from Tegucigalpa having just returned from three days in the coffee mountains of Honduras in the world famous high altitude growing regions of San Juancito and Marcala. We have been meeting with lots of small and large cooperatives that grow organic and fair trade certified coffee to see if we can negotiate the “next step” improvement in the relationships between producers and consumers: direct trade.

In direct trade all sides benefit by cutting out the middlemen brokers who suck up a huge percentage of the “profit” benefitting neither side of the chain. We are getting a good reception and bringing back 30 pounds of coffee from various cooperatives (COMUCAP, RAOS, and COMISAJUL for example) so that our roaster can test them for our special Fair Grinds Coffeehouse blends. Then we will try to make a final deal, which won’t be easy, and in fact might not be possible this season except in a micro-lot for our own store, which unfortunately might make the whole proposition more expensive, since we would only be buying 2 tons of coffee for Fair Grinds. (Yes, you drink some coffee every year and more every day – muchas gracias!). We are hoping to find some partners to buy more and lower the price, but we will see. I’ll have more to report on this in coming weeks. It is very exciting, hugely educational, and heartwarming and heartbreaking experience, but the devil is in the details when our limited resources are part of the equation along with our desire to hold on to our prices to our community of coffee drinkers.

Katie put a postscript on a report the other day that, yes indeed, the new turkey sandwich is flying off the shelf. Many of you have probably noticed that we expanded the number of quiches and enlarged the empandas to make them a more substantial meal. Our suppliers have been our heroic partners in helping make Fair Grinds rock on the food side!

In April get ready for some surprises around Fair Grinds Coffeehouse and the greater New Orleans community as we debut our coffee “pop-ups” around the city and for Jazz Fest. We had two new coffee carts built, and we are finishing the last touches on the branding and so forth, and then rolling them out to areas where our customers have told us about “coffee deserts” that are desperate for Fair Grinds coffee at different times of the morning and afternoon. Hoping this works! We’re jazzed!!! Oh, and, yes, to accommodate the Jazz Fest crowd and our usual customer load, we’re going to have both carts set up in the patio and out front so we can operate several lines during the Festival and keep the crowds caffeinated and moving.

April again also looks like it’s going to be a musical month. Here’s the tentative schedule of coming musical attractions including local groups and talent from this area as well as folks from around the country. Check the Fair Grinds calendar at www.fairgrinds.com for more details on each performance.

Laura Stevenson and the Cans (Seattle) — Monday, April 2nd 8PM
Tom Maron and Daron Douglas – Friday, April 6th 8 PM
Open Mic with Robert Eustis – Thursday, April 12th 8PM
Jonathan Roniger – Saturday, April 14th 8PM
Joe Barbara – Thursday, April 19th 7:30 PM
Lips & Trips – Friday, April 20th 7:30 PM
Snail Party (Canada) – Saturday, April 21st 8 PM
Gallivan Burwell – Friday, April 27th 8PM
Kim and Sharon Apres-Fest (Mass) – Sunday, April 29th 8PM

Gotta run! One last cooperative meeting in minutes, so crossing my fingers that the price is right, because I love this group and its manager!

Stay well and see you soon at Fair Grinds!

Saludos!
Wade

Ps. You are missing something if you are not seeing the updates on our website and Facebook sites where we keep folks current! New features on history of coffeehouses and the real story behind chicory should be up in April along with MORE!

Filed Under: Featured Tagged With: america, bayou, bayou st john, beans, carts, coffee, fair, Fair Grinds, faubourg, faubourg st john, fsjna, New Orleans, orleans, ponce de leon, rathke, rolling, south, trade, wade, wade rathke

Magical Mystery Tour – Ponce de Leon

February 29, 2012 by Charlie London

by Robert Thompson


A ten year search for a piece of art began when I purchased a building
at 3133 Ponce deLeon in 2001. At the time it was destined to become
Fair Grinds Coffeehouse, but it had been many things before.

Neighbors would often appear during the renovation and tell me of the building’s history. Several things intrigued me. One was the place had been a notorious bar named “Daisy Mae’s” and the other was the Shirley Rabe Masinter had painted an early “hyper-realist” painting of the building.

Over the years I heard stories and reference to “Daisy Mae’s”, but nothing more of the painting by the famous local artist. I made inquries of several galleries and persons close to the artist, but with no result. Then a few months ago I sold the place.

It happened I needed a document for the sale notarized, so while eating at Liberty’s Kitchen on N. Broad, I went upstairs to the legal offices of David Band. A familiar face emerged to help me, a customer who I recalled would sometimes visit my coffehouse in his vintage Rolls Royce.

Then the revelation, in converstaion he revealed he now owned the painting I’d been searching for!

Dave sent me the picture you see above of the painting, a glimpse
into what had gone on before on Ponce deLeon, and a tribute to the
work of the well known Faubourg St. John artist Shirley Rabe Masinter.

There, in all its glory, was Daisy Mae’s, and Cafe Degas’ former tenant – a barbershop!

Many thanks to David Band for allowing FSJNAdotORG to use an image of his treasured painting and to Robert Thompson for relaying this great story!

The Magical Mystery Tour continues every Wednesday at FSJNAdotORG. You can check out previous stops along the Magical Mystery Tour in the link below:
https://fsjna.org/category/magical-mystery-tour/

Do you have anything about Faubourg St. John that you’d like to share? Please send it to [email protected]

Filed Under: Magical Mystery Tour Tagged With: attorney, band, bar, barbershop, bayou, bayou st john, Cafe Degas, Daisy Mae, david, david band, Fair Grinds, faubourg, faubourg st john, New Orleans, painting, robert, robert thompson, Shirley Rabe Masinter, thompson

Lips and the Trips

January 19, 2012 by Charlie London

Faubourg St. John neighbor Mark Fowler would like you to know, “Lips & the Trips are back at neighborhood favorite Fairgrinds Coffeehouse for a free set or so Friday, July 20 from 7:30 – 9:00 pm!

Back at Fairgrinds Coffeehouse for a big July Birthdays Party! Lips & the Trips – “Let them eat cake!” All our friends with July birthdays (including Lips and me) – should drop on by. Friday July 20 (the day after my birthday). 7:30pm

Filed Under: More Great Posts! Tagged With: bayou, bayou st john, coffee, concert, Fair Grinds, faubourg, faubourg st john, fowler, free, fsjna, lips, lips and the trips, New Orleans, trips

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