architecture

John Kennedy Toole house in Carrollton under review for landmark status

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A center-hall cottage in the Carrollton neighborhood is on its way to becoming a local landmark for its distinction as the last residence of John Kennedy Toole, the author of the Pulitzer-awarded novel “A Confederacy of Dunces.” 
The Historic District Landmarks Commission approved the building at 7632 Hampson St. at its October meeting for further study, the next step in becoming an official landmark. 
Although the property has displayed a Orleans Parish Landmarks Commission plaque since 1987, it does not have landmark protection. The designation would help to safeguard the site’s preservation. Toole lived in the house from 1966 to 1969, the year he died at 31. During that time, the “Dunces” manuscript mostly stayed at the top of an armoire in his bedroom, according to a biography. The senior editor at Simon & Schuster had returned the manuscript in 1966 after a year of back-and-forth correspondence and revisions.

food and drink

La Patrona brings a fresh taste of Mexico to the Riverbend

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La Patrona serves authentic Mexican food in the Riverbend at 575 S. Carrollton Ave. The restaurant is run by Edwin Alonzo and Veronica Cardona, the former proprietors of La Mansión, which operated on Dublin Street from 2015 to 2021. Alonzo and Cardona are from Guatemala. Cardona cooked at a Mexican restaurant in San Antonio before moving to New Orleans in 2015. She learned the ins and outs of Mexican cuisine.

business

NOLA Brewing adds a bar; barbecue to replace Rocky’s on Magazine; Sara’s gets a new chef in the Riverbend; and C’est La Vie closes shop

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NOLA Brewing on Tchoupitoulas is adding a bar space for tastings and has just released a new beer; more details are emerging on the future of the former Rocky’s Pizzeria space on Magazine; Sara’s Bistro on Dublin Street has a new chef and a new approach; and the French restaurant C’est La Vie has closed on Magazine Street. Damage from Hurricane Isaac prompted the renovations at NOLA Brewing, and the new high alcohol Mechahopzilla was just released last week, reports Gwendolyn Knapp of Eater NOLA. The changes in the 3200 block of Magazine are ongoing, reports Susan Langenhennig of The Times-Picayune: Salu will get an upstairs dining room, Byblos is moving into the old Nacho Mama’s space in mid-October, a tacqueria will be in the old Byblos space, and the former Rocky’s is slated to become a barbecue restaurant. The menu at Sara’s Bistro in the Riverbend is becoming even more eclectic under the direction of new manager and consulting chef Bart Thomas and his interest in “modern New World cuisine,” reports Ian McNulty of The Gambit. After opening in January, C’est La Vie at 4206 Magazine apparently closed earlier this month, reports Knapp at Eater NOLA, and the building owner is already taking calls from possible new tenants.

crime

NOPD: Man, 27, threatens to light himself on fire before sexual attack on woman in her 80s

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A 27-year-old man poured gasoline over himself and threatened to set himself ablaze if a woman in her 80s would not have sex with him, and then forced himself upon her anyway, police said Wednesday. Duglas Begarano remains in jail on charges of aggravated rape and extortion after his March 19 arrest, though police said the incident happened several days earlier in the 3600 block of Napoleon Avenue in the Broadmoor neighborhood. Begarano was apparently known for doing work for people in the neighborhood, said Lt. Mike Montalbano of the NOPD Second District investigative unit. The case was handled by the NOPD rape squad, so further details about the case were unavailable at Wednesday’s meeting of the Second District ranking officers.