Cafe du Monde reopens for in-dining service as COVID-19 lockdown restrictions are lifted

(Photo: jc.winkler | CC Flickr)
Cafe du Monde reopened on Friday for the first time since closing its doors in March due to COVID-19.

The coffee and beignet shop, located at 800 Decatur St., is now open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day of the week as part of the May 16 phased reopening and easing of coronavirus lockdown restrictions in New Orleans.

Normally open 24 hours a day, the restaurant and must-see stop for tourists was forced to cease in-dining operations and use take-out or delivery services following Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s March 16 stay-at-home order issued as a measure to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

As the lockdown progressed, the restaurant also maintained its mail order operations by shipping coffee and beignet mix.

Cafe du Monde also ceased operations following Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and received national media attention when it reopened nearly two months later.

The phased reopening is based on several conditions, including that coronavirus cases continue to drop and that people continue following public health guidelines such as social/physical distancing at least 6 feet apart from each other, according to the city’s safe reopening page.

Read more on the city’s reopening plan at ready.nola.gov.

Cafe du Monde, 800 Decatur St., 504-525-4544, open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. seven days a week; cafedumonde.com.

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