Maylie's Restaurant - New Orleans, LA
Posted by: 
JimmyEv
N 29° 57.037 W 090° 04.462
15R E 782371 N 3316914
Only in New Orleans, where cuisine is oh-so-important, would you find restaurants on the Register. Maylie’s Restaurant evolved from a coffee stall in the Poydras Market in the mid-19th century. It served Creole food to New Orleanians until 1986.
Waymark Code: WM19MP
Location: Louisiana, United States
Date Posted: 03/06/2007
Views: 43
Bernard Maylie and Hypolite Esparbe operated a coffee stall in the Poydras market in the mid-19th century. Their coffee stall turned into La Maison Maylie et Esparbe by 1894, serving a petit dejeuner (11 o’clock meal) consisting of stew, coffee and wine. The restaurant only served men until after World War I, and refused to serve Negroes until after the 1960s. The restaurant went as far as becoming a ‘private club’ so it would not be required to serve Negroes.
Over time, Maylie’s expanded into a menu including table d hote, offering many different items and several courses at fixed prices. Creole cooking, one of the first truly American cuisines, is an amalgation of varying backgrounds, cultures and ingredients, combining New World foods with Old World cooking methods.
The building was constructed in 1894, as a residence with the restaurant adjacent. A wisteria vine grew between the restaurant and the house, eventually becoming Maylie’s trademark. The restaurant expanded into the living quarters. That was a good thing, since the restaurant building was destroyed when O’Keefe St. was expanded, leaving only the building that was originally the residence. The restaurant remained in the Maylie family until 1986.
