CONCO Food Service <> Customers

Lynn Boutin has been in the restaurant business all his life. A native of Breaux Bridge, Louisiana, where he learned the love of good food and lively music and brought these joys with him to Baton Rouge when he opened his own restaurant. Boutin’s Restaurant, located on Bluebonnet Boulevard, less than a mile from the mall, opened back in 2001 two weeks after September 11th. Boutin’s menu offers something for everyone from fried, to grilled, to baked seafood, steak, chicken, gumbos and more. Boutin’s livelihood is solely based on the atmosphere of Cajun food and music. One could tell by the pictures of the Atchafalaya Basin hanging on the walls to the crowded dance floors on Saturday nights. Boutin faced the challenges of opening his own restaurant even though most independent restaurants fail in the first year.

Boutin’s secret to success lies in the product consistency and his ability to adapt to economical changes. Currently, he is in a renovation project geared to add additional waiting space to a storefront that specializes in ready-made packed and frozen foods; including gifts that are food-themed. This renovation is another venue in hopes of bringing in more customers. Lynn explains that his revenue is down by 12.5%, partly because of the road construction on Perkins Road that limited traffic to his restaurant. The recession played a major part in the timing of Boutin’s renovation, but Lynn expects to see an increase in profit from the additional space created. "When people cut back on eating out, you want to try to fill that void with something else,” Boutin says. "You are always looking for the next thing you can do that keeps your business unique but doesn’t change who you are.” The addition to the retail store will transform the existing space while not expecting to increase his current staff or customer service. Boutin believes that long-term growth minimizes the affects of risk taking. "I’m looking at not just a temporary fix, but a long-term project,” he says. "I always saw this [business] as a thing to nurture, not just today and next year, but for many years to come.”

Other successful projects of Boutin’s were the private banquet hall, curbside service and a short-lived breakfast idea in the attempt to lure more customers to his restaurant. "The reward is seeing people eating, dancing and having a good time … it’s more than a restaurant, it’s an experience,” he says. "That really makes me feel good about what I do.” Lynn Boutin bases this belief on the foundation of offering Cajun food and culture. As he always says, "we cook the food Cajun’s love to eat.”