Sammy’s Grill in Prairieville on track to open in spring 2012

A Sammy’s Grill restaurant is under construction on property adjoining the Prairieville estate once belonging to author Robert Penn Warren and is on schedule to open in spring 2012, says Sammy’s Grill owner Sammy Nagem. The restaurant had hoped to open this fall, Nagem says, but the zoning and permitting process has created some delays. The restaurant is being built on 5.1 acres of land that adjoins 7.1 acres of land, including the former Warren home, up for auction in U.S Bankruptcy Court in Baton Rouge on Friday, Oct. 7. The land on which the restaurant is being built is not included in the auction. Steve Bonfanti, property developer for an investment group building the restaurant, says the group will bid on the 7.1 acres of land and Warren house, but has no immediate plans for the site should they win the auction. The group purchased the adjoining land for the restaurant for $910,000 at auction in June 2010. The restaurant will be the fourth Sammy’s Grill in the region, joining those in Baton Rouge, Zachary and Central. “Our growth has been fantastic in recent years, and we’re looking forward to opening the restaurant in Prairieville,” Bonfanti says. —Steve Sanoski