Photo by Anthony “Chopper” Leone.
Designed by Michael J. Roussel of the New Orleans architectural firm VergesRome, the new Friends is contemporary, a notable departure in style from its predecessor.
The man and his wife, matching in LSU polo shirts, said they had driven two hours from Lafayette to have lunch at Friends Coastal Restaurant in Madisonville. “A friend told us they were open again and we had to come. We love this place.” They were already planning a return trip for the following weekend, next time with their grown kids and grandkids in tow.
Their enthusiasm seemed to be shared by many of the casually dressed, happy-to-be-there crowd in attendance during the opening days, in late April, of the resurrected Friends. A Madisonville landmark for its position on the scenic Tchefuncte River, Friends has been a favorite dining destination in all its incarnations dating back to the 1970s. When the restaurant was badly damaged in 2012 by Hurricane Isaac and closed, and then razed by fire in 2013, it wasn’t just locals who mourned the loss. Sometime-visitors like the Lafayette couple, who had fond memories of summer afternoons spent on the Friends deck watching boats sail by, were saddened too.
Customers appeared happy during those first days of Friends’ return, but they were a blur for staff and for owner Ryan Richard, who did whatever he needed to do, including expediting food in the kitchen, to make his customers’ first meals at the new Friends a happy memory. The opening was two years in the making, as the site needed to be cleared before the new restaurant—bigger and higher—was designed. It wasn’t without controversy. And it wasn’t cheap. Richard spent about $8 million on what he sees as the new, improved
Friends, what he hopes will once again reign as a destination restaurant that keeps the feel-good vibe going in Madisonville.
Located just below a bend in the Tchefuncte River, Friends sits about two miles north of where the wide river flows into Lake Pontchartrain. A good meal, a cool beverage, the passing boats’ procession, and even the view of the nearby swing bridge slowly opening and closing make for a pleasant afternoon in a pleasant little town.
With a population projected at about eight hundred, Madisonville might seem an unlikely spot for a big new restaurant that can accommodate almost all of them at one event, and that’s been at the crux of the controversy around Friends’ rebuilding; some townspeople worried that traffic and parking would be an issue. Richard, who lives in Madisonville less than a block from the new Friends, was anxious to allay their concerns and, to that end, subsidizes valet parking (there’s a $3 charge) and has plans to relocate a nearby house to provide more spaces.
New Friends
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(L to r) (1) The new Friends Coastal Restaurant has a larger footprint than the previous, with about thirty thousand square feet. There’s a long bar and an expansive dining room, bathed in filtered sunlight during the day, with a bank of glass doors affording a view of the river beyond. (2) Friends features plenty of outdoor seating along wide, partially shaded balconies and decks facing the river. (3) Friends executive chef Matthew Standefer created a menu showcasing fresh seafood, Louisiana comfort foods, and the kind of casual fare you expect to find in any self-respecting Gulf Coast restaurant. Photos by Abby Sands Miller.
The new restaurant has a larger footprint than the previous, with about thirty thousand square feet. There’s a long bar and an expansive dining room, bathed in filtered sunlight during the day, with a bank of glass doors affording a view of the deck and river beyond. The deck itself is partially shaded and prized real estate; plan on getting there early if you want to dine outdoors.
The restaurant’s top floor is an events area, one Richard says is already booking up with parties and wedding receptions. The large open-air space beneath the building, created by elevating Friends above any future flooding, offers dock and boat service and provides a great party area. Friends’ opening gala christened the space a few days before the restaurant’s official opening with a lively performance by Rockin’ Dopsie Jr. and close to one thousand guests paying $30 apiece for food, drink, music, and a sneak peek.
Designed by Steve Rome of the New Orleans architectural firm VergesRome, the new Friends is contemporary, a notable departure in style from its predecessor. Where the former restaurant was all wood and rambling in that comfy old-shoe way, the new Friends is boxy and made with concrete, steel, and glass. The exterior is dark gray and the interior mostly lighter shades of gray, with a slightly nautical sensibility. Furnishings are white. While the space doesn’t feel warm exactly, it does feel welcoming and festive. There are nice touches everywhere, including—look up—large, colorful fish by Covington artist Keith Villere fixed to the second-floor overhang and massive wooden beams from the original building that have been incorporated into the design.
“People come here because they want to have fun, no tension. I wanted to make the color scheme calming,” said Richard. “I spent two years of my life working on this building. I wanted it to be right, to feel right. I have been coming to Friends since I was a kid. I love this place.”
Richard hired Matthew Standefer as the new Friends executive chef. Standefer previously worked in Baton Rouge at Maison Lacour with chef Michael Jetty, at the Baton Rouge Country Club, and at Tchefuncte Country Club in Covington before being tapped to head the kitchen at Friends.
Standefer and Richard collaborated on the menu, which showcases fresh seafood, Louisiana comfort foods, and the kind of casual fare you expect to find in any self-respecting Gulf Coast restaurant. Two long-time Friends favorites—the jack-leg chicken and the addictive sweet potato hushpuppies—are joined by new specialties. Buffaleaux oysters and a shrimp spinach dip with chips seemed to be at every table on a recent visit. Other menu items include raw oysters, blackened redfish on the half-shell, seafood gumbo and shrimp and corn bisque, poboys, wraps, and burgers. One woman was raving over the smoked gouda grits. Another sighed happily after tasting her first sweet potato hush puppy in several years.
Old Friends
The building that housed the previous Friends had a long history: the original structure was a four-room cottage built in the 1830s. At some point in the mid-twentieth century, the cottage was moved to the river’s edge and began a new life as a waterfront restaurant with various additions hammered on over the years. Former owner Karen Durham, who operated the restaurant from 1991—2005 with her now-late husband, Ronny, said they found handmade square nails in the oldest part of the building and that making electrical repairs to the hodgepodge of rooms almost required psychic ability.
The cottage had remained in the original family for much of its history, Durham said, and elderly relatives would come to the restaurant from time to time. On one occasion, a woman was there to celebrate her ninety-ninth birthday, and pointing to the cashier’s computer terminal, she told Durham “I was born right there where that cash register is now.”
Previously named the Ancient Mariner, the restaurant had become Friends on the Tchefuncte by the time Durham and her husband moved from New Orleans to Madisonville in 1986. Durham looked forward to every day she spent at Friends, and she’s thrilled that the restaurant is back, singing Richard’s praises: “I think Ryan has done everything right. He’s worked real hard to keep people happy. It’s going to be a great destination place, and people are really going to enjoy it. Madisonville has this small country town feel. You can take a deep breath and just relax.”
Customers can relax at Friends Coastal, but Richard can’t just yet. During opening week, there were finishing touches still to be made, a few things still to tweak. He looked a little frazzled but content, like a man who knows he’s where he’s supposed to be. Before buying Friends, Richard had worked an offshore service job. “I used to travel all the time, I was on a jet every week going somewhere. Now I’m a dad, I have three kids. I live behind the Abita Roasting Company [which he also owns] just down the block from here.
“This is great,” he says, looking around and acknowledging an old customer sitting nearby. “There is no place I would rather be. Really.”
Details. Details. Details.
Friends Coastal Restaurant
407 St. Tammany
Madisonville, La.
(985) 246-3370
Open 11 am–10 pm Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday; 11 am–11 pm Friday and Saturday. Closed Monday.
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