By Morgan Lawrence
With a grand opening today (Wednesday, June 7), the Box Spot, 1700 N. Claiborne Ave., serves healthy and hearty appetites. The former empty lot in the Seventh Ward is now home to a pair of casual restaurants built from recycled shipping containers, with one serving chicken wings with loaded fries and the other specializing in salads and wraps.
The Box Spot features J’s Creole Wingery and The Fresh Side; each built in its own truck-sized, air conditioned container. They sit parallel to each other, and share a deck covered by overhead screens. At J’s Creole Wingery the motto is “We Good Baby” and on The Fresh Side the motto “Eat Healthy Honey.”
The pair of restaurants are owned by a family with deep roots in the New Orleans and a long history of entrepreneurship. Gina and Omar Duncan are part of the Rhodes family, whose enterprises throughout New Orleans include funeral homes, a limousine service, a special events center and a business center. Later this year, they plan to develop another Box Spot in Mid-City.
J’s Creole Wingery and The Fresh Side are open daily, with the exception of Tuesdays. For hours and more information, call 309-9444 for J’s Creole Wingery and 309-8888 for The Fresh Side.
