Cecelia Creole Bistro opened for dinner service this week in downtown Baton Rouge, and 225 Dine has a first look inside the latest restaurant from the team behind Kalurah Street Grill and Jolie Pearl Oyster Bar.
“Framed black and white photographs of downtown Baton Rouge and shrimping boats dot the walls of Cecelia Creole Bistro on North Third Street,” 225 Dine reports. “More than adding to the new restaurant’s aesthetic, though, these photographs hint at its place in Baton Rouge’s ever-changing food scene.”
Cecelia aims to bring traditional Creole food to downtown Baton Rouge. Co-owner Brad Watts says people visiting from out of town have often asked him and his staff at the nearby River Room to recommend sports bars and traditional Creole restaurants in the downtown area.
To answer them, Watts and business partners Eric Carnegie, Chad Hughes and Dustin Malina opened sports bar Bengal Tap Room in a space that The Draft House had occupied on Third Street. Cecelia, located next door, is their answer to a Creole restaurant.
“The bistro serves old-school dishes, but its interior has a modern vibe,” 225 Dine reports. “Think sleek wood furniture, exposed pipes and copper pendant lights hanging from high ceilings. On each table, small glass bottles hold sprigs of silver dollar eucalyptus. The dark granite bar near the back of the restaurant seats seven. Renovations to the space were not major, save for exposing a weathered brick wall that had been covered in plaster. The aesthetic feels upscale but inviting.”
Read the full story, which includes a number of photos of the new restaurant, and be sure to sign up for the free 225 Dine e-newsletter to get your fill of local culinary news each week.
