Notable New Orleanians: A Tricentennial Tribute

MANDINA’S
RESTAURANT
The owner and fourth generation of
Mandina’s Restaurant in the heart of New
Orleans’ Canal Street area, believes in treating
her customers as the generations before her
did. “Mandina’s started out as a grocery store
in 1898 owned by my great grandfather. Then,
it became a pool hall that sold sandwiches. My
great uncles, Anthony and Frank who lived
with their families above and adjacent to the
business, turned it into today’s favorite neighborhood
Italian and seafood restaurant that
serves well Cajun and Creole cuisine, as well,”
says proprietor Cindy Mandina.
Entrepreneur Sebastian Mandina (great
grandfather) came from Palermo, Italy, hoping
to prosper off the farmlands of Southern
Louisiana. Upon arrival, he saw the need for a
store in the largely residential mid-city area.
His young sons grew up in the family business
throughout the early 1900s after it became a
restaurant. Frank’s wife, Hilda, managed the
dining room while her husband, Anthony,
tended bar.
When WWII broke out, Frank and
Anthony served their country while Hilda ran
the restaurant. Their son, Anthony (Cindy’s
father) “was born and raised upstairs,” she
adds. “He grew up working in the restaurant
while attending St. Aloysius High School and
Loyola College. When he married, he worked
as bartender while pursuing other interests
including light bulb sales and life insurance.
When my grandfather had a heart attack in
1972, my father started working fulltime with
my grandmother, ‘Miss Hilda’.”
Before Cindy was ten-years old, she had
been lured by the fast-paced restaurant industry.
She and a friend began bussing tables
while attending Loyola at night. She helped
with salads, answered the telephone, and prepared
to-go orders. “I was only twenty-four or
twenty-five, but I loved the business. I was
hooked even though learning the family business
was hard.”
She persevered and it was not long until
Mandina’s was exploding. “Mid-City was upand-coming
because the streetcar was once
again clattering down the street. Mid-City
pre-Katrina was growing in popularity.
Mandina’s had flood damage due to Katrina,
and some thought it wouldn’t come back.”
Cindy insisted on reinvesting.
Today, it has the “Miss Hilda Old
Fashioned” look, but with a classier interior.
“I want to bring it back to the way it looked in
1930s.” She adds, “Don’t be mistaken by the
facelift. The food, the atmosphere and the
employees are the same as they were before
the hurricane.” Even the ambiance and willingness
to please customers are the same. If
someone wants a substitution, Cindy and her
staff are ready to accommodate. “If they want
something different than what is listed on the
menu,” she says, “Sure! We’ll take care of you.
You’ve been coming here for twenty years.
That’s what we’re all about.” Some things
never change, and Cindy likes it that way.
NOTABLE NEW ORLEANIANS: A Tricentennial Tribute
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