Oct. 09–A hotel that has been an eye-catching, sometimes eyebrow-raising presence along St. Charles Avenue will soon reopen with a much different look.
Al Copeland Investments, the company founded by the late Popeyes fried chicken creator Al Copeland, has been redeveloping the hotel at 2001 St. Charles Ave. since June.
It is now slated to open as the St. Charles Coach House in early November.
The 44-room, three-story property at the corner of St. Andrew Street was previously operated by the Copeland company as the Clarion Hotel Grand Boutique. It has since been reflagged under the Ascend Hotel Collection, a brand from the Choice Hotels company.
"We're repositioning the building from what it was known for in the past," said Al Copeland Jr., CEO of Al Copeland Investments.
The ground floor of the building had been home to a location of the restaurant chain Cheesecake Bistro By Copeland's, which closed in May. The company is still developing new plans for this space, Copeland said.
The remodeling of the hotel extends inside and out, with a new design for the rooms, lobby, parking garage and drive-up entry. The exterior, which previously had an Art Deco-style look in peach and terra-cotta tones, is being revamped with a much lighter color scheme.
"We think it will feel more in line with St. Charles Avenue," Copeland said.
Dating back to the early 1900s, the building was used as a car dealership for many different makers, from Packard and Studebaker to Cadillac and Mercedes-Benz. At one point early on, it was home to the Abbott Automobile Co., named for a pioneering family in the local auto business.
"We're embracing that history in the design and imagery," Copeland said.
In more recent history, this property was once home to Straya, a restaurant developed by Al Copeland Sr. that proved as flamboyant as its creator, and also as controversial.
It debuted in 1997 with an over-the-top design of neon, pastel, metal palm trees and panther statues. Dishes from sushi to barbecue chicken shared the menu. The restaurant's aesthetics turned it into the stage for a highly public spat between Copeland and the then-New Orleans-based novelist Anne Rice, who traded barbs in newspaper ads.
By 2001, however, Straya was transformed into a Cheesecake Bistro location, which toned down the design considerably. Although this restaurant closed in May, there are two locations of Cheesecake Bistro still open, in Bossier City and Baton Rouge.
While the Copeland name is locally tied forever to Popeyes fried chicken, Al Copeland Sr. lost that brand in a 1990 bankruptcy case that followed a massive expansion attempt. The family's Metairie-based company, however, still supplies the global chain with seasonings, mixes and other staples from a facility in Madisonville.
Meanwhile, the company operates a number of different restaurant brands, including Copeland's of New Orleans, which marks its 35th anniversary in 2018.
More recently, it debuted three new concepts around Louisiana. In Baton Rouge, a Copeland's of New Orleans was converted into a more casual eatery called Copeland's Batch 13 Biscuits & Bowls. In Alexandria, another was turned into Copeland's Brass Pearl, with an oyster bar, an oyster grill and fresh juice cocktails. And in Lafayette, the company opened Copeland's MKT (for "market, kitchen, table") for counter service and grab-and-go meals.
While Al Copeland Jr. said ideas for the ground floor of the St. Charles Coach House remain under development, he expects the space to be open by Mardi Gras.
