Photo by Kaj Friis-Hecht
By Kaj Friis-Hecht
One of the industries taking the biggest hit during the pandemic of COVID-19 in 2020 and 2021 and lockdowns was the restaurant industry. As many of us know, New Orleans is a tourist town that relies very heavily on the success of its restaurants. And nationally, more than 160,000 restaurants were forced to close their doors during those lockdown years–some temporarily, but some for good.
The restaurant industry is already so difficult as it is. Even in good times, about 30% of establishments will close before their first-year anniversary, according to the National Restaurant Association. This is due to the fact that the industry is built on razor-sharp margins, extremely long hours, low pay, and physically taxing labor. People who start their own restaurants are definitely not in it for the money, but more so for the passion that so many people share around food, as there are a million other easier ways to make a higher and more sustainable income.
One of these restaurants that were forced to close their doors in a temporary fashion is a local establishment in Jefferson Parish called Hippie Kitchen. Pre-COVID, Hippie Kitchen was a sit-down restaurant with a bar, serving gourmet, local, and homemade food. Entering its third year at the time, the owners assumed that nothing could stop them, as they were hitting excellent numbers and being extremely well received by the local community of Harlem. Employing more than 30 people, Hippie Kitchen was ecstatic about its impact on the community, as it was employing people for good wages and lifting up the community with homemade, healthy food—all at a very affordable price.
The owners Harvene and Wayne are both 30+-year veterans of the industry, working in world-renowned restaurants all over Europe, Asia, and the United States, and owning several restaurants in San Francisco and New Orleans. This was nothing new to them…until something that the world hasn’t seen in generations hit–a pandemic.
Within the span of a few months, it became apparent to them that something drastic would have to be done. The doors would be shut at Hippie Kitchen. Many would lose their jobs, which would drive many away from the industry. But for Harvene and Wayne, this just motivated them to create a new restaurant with a completely different business model that could sustain something as devastating as COVID lockdowns, while being able to operate in a low-stress environment for both themselves and their employees.
Introducing Hippie Kitchen Good Food Stand. Almost two years after the closing of the original Hippie Kitchen, Harvene and Wayne were finally able to open the doors to their new restaurant, built around a completely different business model. This model was built around learning the mistakes of the old one and building for the future. “There’s no other place around us that serves quick food for pickup that’s healthy, 100% made from scratch, and served at an affordable price,” Harvene said.
This was their main angle of attack with creating the best possible business model for the restaurant that they’d like to own. This time around, there would be no indoor dining, and physical contact between employees and customers, and the whole kitchen would operate on electricity instead of gas. “It’s like the Tesla of restaurants,” co-owner Wayne said.
