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Louisiana-Style Restaurant Noel's Kitchen To Open in Bed-Stuy This Fall

By Camille Bautista | September 7, 2015 9:51am
 Robert Crawford, owner of catering company Noel's Kitchen, plans to open a brick and mortar on Chauncey Street this fall.
Robert Crawford, owner of catering company Noel's Kitchen, plans to open a brick and mortar on Chauncey Street this fall.
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DNAinfo/Camille Bautista

BEDFORD-STUYVESANT — Crawfish and bacon-wrapped shrimp will make its way to Chauncey Street this fall with the opening of a new Louisiana-style restaurant.

Noel’s Kitchen, an eatery serving up Cajun, Creole and southern-inspired dishes, plans to open its doors in Bedford-Stuyvesant come October, according to owner Robert Crawford.

Crawford, who started Noel’s Kitchen as a catering company in 2011, received his culinary training in the Bayou State and sought to bring the flavor to New York, he said.

“I always liked cooking ever since I was a kid,” Crawford said. “This is my dream.”

Opening the restaurant at 373 Chauncey St. isn’t just a fulfillment of his aspirations, the chef said, but it also serves as an opportunity to help others.

Crawford served time in prison for a robbery, a crime for which he said he was wrongfully convicted. After his release in 2011, he found it difficult to get hired, he added.

“I figured if I can’t find a job, I might as well go and create one. My own niche, my own market, everything.”

After beginning his business in the city, he's expanded to clients in the tri-state area, he said.

Noel’s Kitchen's brick and mortar base will give ex-offenders an opportunity at employment, Crawford said, adding that he knows the struggle and stigma recently released individuals can face.

“I know what it’s like to not have a shot,” he said.

“In my way, I just want to help the community, and not just people coming home but people who want to work, who just want to be productive.”

The business is also a nod to Crawford’s grandfather, the company’s namesake and his “first exposure to entrepreneurship.”

The eatery’s menu will include gumbo, jambalaya, mussels, catfish and soft-shell crab. Crawford’s catering business dishes out popular items like a carrot soufflé topped with a whiskey sauce, as well as Cajun mac and cheese and barbecue chicken.

Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner, Noel’s Kitchen plans to offer specials like shrimp and grits and tilapia po’ boys, the chef said.

The restaurant will be decked out with beads and hats, as well as photos of Louisiana. Occasional live jazz music is also planned for the venue.

Crawford is crowd funding online for the restaurant’s build out and will host a fundraising event at the Chauncey Street space on Sept. 19.