Closed: Cafe Roux in Leawood

November 30, 2011

Charles Ferruzza,

Nicole Reinertson
Will anyone boo-hoo over the loss of Cafe Roux?

Bringing the cuisine of the Big Easy to the Kansas City metro just hasn’t been that easy, particularly in the Kansas suburbs where the Eddy family’s Big Easy Cafe failed several years ago, followed by Copeland’s and the short-lived Boudreaux’s Louisiana Seafood & Steaks in Leawood. Last weekend, another Leawood restaurant serving New Orleans-influenced dishes closed its doors: restaurateur Jen Coniglio’s Cafe Roux at 11554 Ash in the Park Place Center.

Fat City wasn’t able to reach Coniglio for comment, but a spokesperson for Park Place confirmed that the restaurant is now closed. “That’s all the information we have at this time,” she told us.

Any thoughts on why so few local restaurants — Jazz seems to be the exception — serving the spicy cuisine of Louisiana seem to be able to succeed in the metro? Add your two cents in the Comment section.