November Theatre
November 5, 2007
Daniel Rodrigue, Sr.
November 7, 2007
In just five weeks, Cajun Potato Kitchen has turned Houma residents into certified “Spud Connoisseurs.”
“Houma has been really receptive to us,” said Cajun Potato Kitchen co-owner Robbie Talbot.
Talbot and his uncle Lloyd acquired the space next to the Subway outlet in the Concord Shopping Center on St. Charles Street in Houma.
Cajun Potato Kitchen is a small restaurant offering baked potatoes with a variety of toppings as well as salads, gumbos, fried foods and pizza.
The Houma location only serves baked potatoes, salads and gumbos.
“Business in Thibodaux is doing extremely well. We thought it was time to bring our unique dining experience to Houma,” Talbot said.
Talbot compares the dining experience to eating in one’s own kitchen.
“The dining atmosphere is just a comfortable place to eat. I think people like it because it’s locally owned and they think of it as a neighborhood sort of cafe,” he said.
The Thibodaux location opened six years ago because Talbot and his uncle favored the concept of serving baked potatoes in a variety of ways. Cajun Potato Kitchen employees can top the spuds with traditional fixings like shredded cheese, sour cream, tomatoes and chives or with other flavorful toppings like red beans, chili, crawfish or shrimp etouffee.
For a long time, Cajun Potato Kitchen served only 18 different types of toppings including the signature Seafood Potato. However, in its grand opening, the Houma location debuted four new spuds: the John Wayne, the Sloppy Jose, the Buffalo Chicken and the Meatball Potatoes.
For the meat people, the John Wayne is topped with chicken, beef, sausage, cheese sauce, shredded cheese, sour cream, tomatoes and chives.
Although the new potatoes have a variety for the beef people, the Seafood Potato still remains supreme for Cajun country. Houma Manager Treesa Martin said, “Our signature Seafood Potato is among the favorite in Thibodaux. And it seems to be popular around Houma as well.”
Currently, Cajun Potato Kitchen is the only one of its kind in Louisiana. However, prior to the low-carbohydrates fad, there were nearly seven others like the Cajun Potato Kitchen, according to Talbot.
On a weekly basis, Talbot’s Thibodaux employees make close to 1,200 potatoes, most of which weigh nearly a pound with toppings. That number is quickly approaching for the Houma employees.
“There’s nothing else like it,” he said. “There may be other restaurants around that serve baked potatoes, but I don’t think there’s any that are strictly a baked potato restaurant.”
The Thibodaux eatery draws in the Raceland, Lockport and Galliano crowd. The Houma-based restaurant reels in the Bourg, Montegut and Pointe-aux-Chenes bunch.
Terrebonne Parish is rather large. Talbot said to accommodate the entire parish, the eatery could possibly branch out to East Houma.
Cajun Potato Kitchen is not the only business venture for Talbot and his uncle. The pair own five Subway restaurants between Houma and Thibodaux, while Talbot owns two Fantastic Sam’s locations.
But by far, Talbot said Cajun Potato Kitchen is his most unique venture.
Cajun Potato Kitchen co-owner Robbie Talbot and Robin LeBeouf show off one of the restaurant’s many specialty potatoes. * Photo by SOPHIA RUFFIN
