Archived Article By Tom Fitzmorris Originally published December 26, 2006 Click here for the current edition Times-Picayune Headline Overstates Danger To Antoine's I know I'm going to be asked this question a hundred times, so here's the answer in advance: An article in the Christmas Day edition of the newspaper said, "Tourism Slump Threatens Antoine's Survival." More people will remember that headline than the article, if they even read it. The article describes how Antoine's has asked to have the several parcels of property that make up its "campus" (that's what Antoine's CEO Rick Blount calls it) redefined. Like many old French Quarter properties, the property lines are fuzzy. The wine cellar, for instance, straddles two parcels. The reason that the restaurant wants to do this is so it will have the option of leasing or even selling some of the buildings, many of which are only peripheral to the restaurant's operations. None of the dining rooms will disappear. Blount told me some a month ago that the restaurant is taking a big loss on operations at the moment.  "We need to be serving 110,000 meals a year, and for 2006 we'll only serve about 57,000." The newspaper article gave the impression that the place had to serve 2000 meals a day to stay alive, while it's currently serving only 150. Two thousand meals a day would be nice, but that would make Antoine's by far the busiest restaurant in New Orleans. It's a number the restaurant has only hit a few times a year through its entire history. To make a long story short, Antoine's had a bad year because of the lack of visitors to the city. It is hardly unique in that regard. The damage it suffered from the storm was among the most severe suffered by any restaurant in town--but they've fixed most of it. But Antoine's existence threatened? Not a chance. Unless, of course, something else disastrous happens. But that's always a danger. Next year will be much stronger for visitors, and 2008 better still. Rick Blount has ambitious plans for the restaurant, and they will likely all come to pass. So, instead of worrying about whether Antoine's will make it, or backing away from a loser, take heart. The place is entering a renaissance. It's now better than it's been in years. And you and I will be dining there a decade, two decades, three decades and more from now. While there's no question that news is what went wrong in the world today, I can't figure why the worst possible spin has to be placed on every story. What good can come of it? © 2006 Tom Fitzmorris. All rights reserved. news@nomenu.com