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LAPLACE — Cajun House & Catering LLC celebrated the grand opening of its new full-service lunch and dinner restaurant this week at 405 Belle Terre Boulevard Ste. A in LaPlace.

Carrying on the traditions of The Cajun Grill, Cajun House & Catering offers some familiar culinary creations from the talented Chef Ryan Cashio, along with new menu items that have introduced a home-cooking spin on traditional Cajun foods. The restaurant is open seven days a week, with lunch offered daily and dinner service offered Tuesday through Saturday.

The new restaurant marks a new beginning for Chef Ryan and his wife, Heidi Cashio. Trained in business and education, Heidi will handle the logistical aspects of running the restaurant as the owner while Ryan focuses on his passion for cooking.
Appetizers include fais-do-do fries, Cajun meat pies, onion rings, fried pickles and boudin balls. There’s something for everyone on the entrée menu, from traditional fried seafood plates to hamburger steak, red beans and rice, and a 12 oz ribeye.

Chef Ryan got to flex his culinary muscles with the creation of a signature deconstructed poboy consisting of fresh Gulf shrimp sauteed with crab meat in a rich Cajun cream sauce over French bread towers.

Other offerings include a variety of soups, salads, wraps, poboys and sandwiches. On the dessert menu, customers will find white chocolate bread pudding, cheesecake, and beignets served with a choice of powdered sugar or chocolate, caramel or raspberry sauce.

Opening Cajun House was the crowning achievement of a difficult two years that included business setbacks from the COVID-19 pandemic and the total destruction of the Cajun Grill location from Hurricane Ida. On the family front, the past two years have included two graduating seniors, the Cashios’ oldest daughter having a baby, their youngest son going into the military, and Heidi’s father undergoing heart surgery. In 2020, the Cashios discovered their oldest son had a malignant brain tumor one month prior to the start of the pandemic. Thankfully, his cancer went into remission not long before Hurricane Ida.

Preparing 1,300 meals per day for 13 days during an extended relief distribution after the storm revitalized Ryan’s passion for cooking and sent the family in a new, positive direction.

While Cajun House is a much-needed fresh start, Chef Ryan reminded customers that some things never change.

“Don’t worry, the OMG sauce isn’t going anywhere,” he said with a laugh.

Cajun House is currently hiring servers, chefs, line/fry cooks and dishwashers. To apply or to contact the restaurant, call 985-359-4745.