Stella Chase Reese, daughter of the late renowned Creole Chef Leah Chase, says “the moment we stop telling our stories is when history begins to fade.” And the Chase family will not let that happen in Dooky Chase’s – a landmark restaurant that has served New Orleans since 1941.

For more than 80 years, the restaurant’s well-known upstairs dining area has hosted civil rights advocates, cultural figures, and served as the venue for freedom riders and local leaders, where civil and economic rights were championed for New Orleans and the rest of the nation.

Now, a recent renovation to the upstairs dining area of Dooky Chase’s has preserved the legacy of the civil rights movement and reopened the space, modernizing it to deliver a private dining room area that is available for events, parties, and special dinners. The project was led by New Orleans-based MADE Design and Metairie-based Ryan Gootee General Contractors (RGGC).

“Renovating the upstairs dining area has always been part of the long-term vision for Dooky Chase’s. This space holds deep historical and emotional significance, and we always intended to restore and reintroduce it to the public,” said Stella Chase Reese. “This renovation project began before the passing of my brother Edgar “Dooky” Chase III and was one of the last projects he was deeply involved in. For our family, this made it even more meaningful to see it through.”

The renovation project includes the installation of various murals by local artists Ayo Scott and Ron Bechet, the Department Head of Art & Performance Studies at Xavier University of Louisiana. Bechet called upon several Xavier students to assist on the project. The art includes a mural of Leah Chase and Edgar Chase Jr., and dining room scenes from “Monday’s at Dooky’s” and additional meetings that took place at the restaurant – paying homage to the venue’s importance as a meeting place for local and national African American leaders.

“This renovation allows us to preserve and honor the important legacy of the space, while also continuing to pass these stories down through future generations,” said Reese. “We wanted to ensure that the role Dooky Chase’s played not just in the fight for civil rights, but in the everyday lives of the Black community remains visible, respected, and alive.”

The project also included the installation of a new wheelchair lift, an upgraded HVAC system, the installation of a small kitchenette, new wood flooring, and an overall refreshed dining area. Reese said since the reopening earlier this year, the restaurant has hosted several events, including corporate dinners, board meetings, weddings, and anniversary parties. The restaurant’s menu can be tailored and specially curated to fit any event in the upstairs dining area.

“The goal has been to make the space not only a tribute to the past but also a functional and welcoming space for today’s community needs,” she said. “The response has been incredibly moving. We’ve had longtime patrons – some who have been dining with us for decades – share their personal stories about the upstairs space. Some recall attending birthday parties there as children; others talk about community meetings or family celebrations. Many have expressed gratitude that the renovations were done with such care and authenticity.”

Reese added: “All of our customers are touched by the way the space tells a story. It’s not just a dining room, it’s a living museum of resilience, joy, and history. The blend of history and hospitality has sparked emotional reactions, pride, and a deeper connection to the legacy of Dooky Chase’s.”

The staircase includes the titles of various Civil Rights Acts and local legislation that have been passed because of conversations that happened in the Dooky Chase’s upstairs dining room. Up the staircase, there is magnolia patterned wallpaper for Emily Chase’s favorite bloom, and a framed quote inspired by Edgar Chase III – “People of color and all Americans have progressed and will continue to make progress in the United States through liberty and love.”

“The family had provided some guidance on the more meaningful aspects of the renovation – most notably, the staircase,” said Jack Altman, RGGC Estimator. “MADE Design and the family were committed to preserving the existing treads and risers, as many prominent Civil Rights leaders had walked up those same steps. We honored this by carefully restoring the staircase without altering its original materials or proportions, allowing it to remain a historical feature to a modern renovation.”

A video display in the upstairs dining area allows guests to learn about Dooky Chase’s role in history, including how the space was used for strategic meetings and community resilience efforts. The documentary has interviews with people who played a role in the restaurant’s history, and another interesting aspect is that the mirrors are positioned on the walls so that restaurant goers can visualize themselves in the room as if they are dining with faces from the past.

“For many first-time visitors, especially those unfamiliar with this part of New Orleans history, the experience is eye-opening,” said Reese. “It becomes more than just a visit to a famous restaurant; it’s a moment of education, reflection, and celebration of a legacy that continues to inspire.”

Shea Trahan, architect/design director with MADE Design, said “the task architecturally was to be as respectful of the space as possible, and this meant restoring what remained, replacing what was no longer there, and having as minimal an impact in our interventions. Design moves were beholden to the significance of the space and so nothing flashy or distracting could be introduced.”

The vision of the Chase family for the upstairs dining area renovation was inspired by historic photos and stories passed down by both Leah Chase and Edgar Chase Jr. to the current family that runs the restaurant.

“The stories coupled with historic photos taken around the restaurant allowed us to immerse ourselves in the era we were striving to honor,” said Trahan. “One photo in particular showed the original magnolia wallpaper that adorned the walls and allowed us to hunt down a modern wallpaper which would pay tribute to the room’s original presence. The family was very clear in their vision, and it was simply our task to find the right elements to make it real again.”

One of the challenges in the renovation project was the installation of the wheelchair lift. Trahan said the Chase family placed importance on wheelchair accessibility because family members, friends, and guests faced accessibility challenges over time to the upstairs dining area.

“As such, we were asked to find a way to introduce as minimal an intervention as possible to provide such access without greatly impacting the room’s configuration,” said Trahan. “We identified the smallest lift we could find and worked it into the corner of the space to meet the need without dramatic intervention. Selection of a modest lift allowed us to avoid many foundational modifications which would have accompanied a larger elevator and thus tread lightly on the building’s existing foundations.”

Altman said the lift required several architectural and structural modifications to introduce this new element within the old building’s envelope, including an open shaft way, a two-inch elevator pit, properly sized rough door openings, and full compliance with ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) codes. “Among all the technical considerations, the most challenging aspect was aligning the finished wood flooring with the base of the wheelchair lift platform,” said Altman. “Since the second-floor elevation could not be altered, we had to find a way to ensure the platform met the existing flooring seamlessly.”

Because the space would be used for private dining and event hosting, RGGC and MADE Design collaborated with the Chase family’s audio-visual contractor to ensure rough-ins were installed for speakers, displays, and wiring. “Having this information early allowed us to integrate the artistic and multimedia elements without causing delays or rework,” said Altman.

“We also worked together to ensure that the materials being installed would be long-lasting and acoustically suitable for the intended use of the space. One example of this was installing a true wood floor in lieu of an LVT (Luxury Vinyl Tile) or a pre-engineered wood floor.”

The two firms also collaborated on the project, time schedule, and surface requirements of the upstairs dining area’s walls to allow and ensure that the artists could install their art murals in conjunction with the construction work taking place in the same area.

“The restaurant envisioned the space as a ‘showcase’ that would celebrate and display the rich history behind the room,” said Altman. “To bring this vision to life, we worked closely with the artist to understand the surface requirements. At their request, we ensured that specific wall sections were left as a blank canvas that they could properly finish the mural on.”

Trahan said his design team was “most proud of the authenticity that was manifest in this design by paying homage to the space without distracting from its historical significance.”

“Our design aimed to follow the Chase family’s lead by being humble and gracious so that the murals and historical elements could hold their own without having to compete for attention,” said Trahan. “There was enough presence here that a heavy hand was not needed and so a welcoming space with a story to tell was what we hope to have provided for the Chase family.”