Cafe Rue Orleans to Open Oyster Bar

The owners of a new Fayetteville restaurant plan to open an oyster bar by April in a 900-SF space underneath the eatery.

Cafe Rue Orleans opened in January, serving south Louisiana cuisine at 1150 N. College Ave.

The building, on an incline in the center of the Hiway Motel, has a basement that isn’t being used. Carla Williams said she and co-owner Maudie Schmitt would use that space to serve oysters on the half-shell.

It will also provide an area where customers can wait until their table is ready in the dining room. Since the 53-seat restaurant opened, sometimes as many as 30 patrons at a time wait to get a table on Friday and Saturday nights, Williams said.

The owners also plan to use the oyster bar as a place to serve boiled crawfish and crabs, when those items are in season.