A beautiful new French country restaurant takes shape in Algiers
Why it matters: The restaurant is now taking reservations for seatings beginning June 26.
The big picture: Martin has developed a now-national reputation for her Uptown restaurant, Mosquito Supper Club, and a pair of James Beard Award-recognized cookbooks that bear her thoughtful, environmentally conscious approach to the Cajun cuisine she grew up learning to cook from family.
And Dymond co-owns Maple Street's Satsuma Cafe and Kalimera Construction, a commercial construction company that specializes in beautiful restaurant build-outs like Dakar NOLA, the Tell Me Bar and N7.
The friends had long kicked around the idea of creating a restaurant in the country, Martin tells Axios New Orleans exclusively.
Still, she laughs, "I don't think anybody's ever ready for the next phase." But then, the property at 1300 Richland Road came on the market. With its four acres of land dotted with towering oak trees and a century-old home at its core, the decision felt obvious.
First, the pair rented the West Bank property, wanting to better get to know the 1920s historical home that once served as a WWII-era internment camp. They spent time learning about its history and the neighborhood — it sits adjacent to a parcel slated for a future bed and breakfast — before making the sale official.
As they did, the concept for Saint Claire unfolded around them.
"We were looking for a little bit of romance and just a lot of relaxation," Martin says, adding that they're exploring ways to weave in the property's complex history as they steward its future.
The vibe: Though Martin and Dymond got some design help from Logan Killen Interiors, the vision for Saint Claire has always felt familiar.
A center hall opens into a warm bar room and French country kitchen to one side, and an open dining space to the other. At the back, they've added a near-wraparound porch where you can imagine pouring glass after glass of wine as you listen to the frogs come alive in the yard at sunset, just a stone's throw from the Mississippi River levee.
Inside, the space is filled with creamy whites and lived-in blues, simple French antiques, and mismatched porcelain plates and silverware. As guests sit for their meal, servers light a golden-yellow taper.
"It's like somewhere I've never been but have always been," Martin muses.
Zoom in: To start, Saint Claire will be open for dinner Thursday through Saturday and brunch on Saturdays and Sundays.
But Martin and Dymond already have expansion plans for the future.
With a space like they have on Richland Road, it's hard not to imagine them: live music on the sweeping lawn, picnic baskets packed and ready to go for guests to enjoy the green space and, maybe one day, a pool installed off to the side.
Unlike Mosquito Supper Club's communal dining standard, Saint Claire guests will be seated individually with their party, though the space lends itself beautifully to gatherings large and small: Whether that's a solo glass of wine on the porch to "a 12-top to a wedding," Martin says.
Dig in: Saint Claire offers a French country-inspired menu with around a dozen or so items. Some will be familiar, Martin says, for guests who frequent the a la carte bar menu at Mosquito Supper Club.
During one night of the restaurant's soft opening, they included a dish I'm still thinking about, of beets that had been smoked overnight and served with créme fraiche and trout roe.
I'm also going back for the oversized gnocchi that came swimming in lemony butter and laden with jumbo lump crab, and a chocolate semifreddo that arrived atop a drizzle of orange-scented olive oil.
If you go: Saint Claire is at 1300 Richland Road in Algiers, which is about a 10-minute drive from the Warehouse District.
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