P.O.E.T.S. was a Fat City institution in the 1970s. Opened in 1974 on Arnoult Rd, the setup mimicked that of other casual dining chains proliferating at the time, except that it wasn't a chain restaurant. A wrap-around four-sided bar was positioned centrally and raised a few steps above a gallery with tables overlooking an even lower level. Interior finishing was primarily dark woods and brass railings, and accented by curios and antiques. Sounds like a TGI Friday's? Well, that was the idea.
Even the name P.O.E.T.S. was a take on T.G.I.F. (Thank God It's Friday), except P.O.E.T.S. allegedly stood for "Piss On Everything, Tomorrow's Saturday". (The logo featured a dog on its hind legs behind a fire hydrant.) Creative, if not a tad crude.
P.O.E.T.S. was owned and operated by Ernie Masson, Jr. who, along with his brother Albert, had founded one of the most famous of old New Orleans restaurants, Masson's Beach House (later Restaurant Francais). That establishment's low building with its white clapboard siding and red awnings stood in a corner of the West End near the intersection of Pontchartrain Blvd. and Robert E. Lee Blvd. (since renamed Allen Toussaint Blvd.).
P.O.E.T.S. menu offerings were a bit more ambitious than others of its type. Entree names sounded more like what you would have seen on the menu at Masson's than at a soup, salad and sandwich place. It had Ernie's Cordon Bleu credentials to thank for that.
After 9pm, P.O.E.T.S. would switch gears and become a night club with dancing until after midnight.
Perhaps inspired by the success of next door neighbor The Godfather and other nighteries in the vicinity, Ernie's son D.J. Masson at one point tried his hand in the business with an "24 and over" lounge in a space with a separate entrance on the left side of the P.O.E.T.S. building. At the time, legal drinking age in Louisiana was still 18, and it seemed like such a place would appeal to people with a little bit more maturity, and probably a little more money to spend.
Those who heard D.J. called by his nickname, which sounded like "Doobie", might have thought it a drug reference, a la The Doobie Brothers, but in reality it was just short for his first name, Dubos, a family name on his mother's side. A long term career in the family business was not to be, however, as the young man went on to earn an MBA and a Ph.D. in finance.
Sometime in late 1978 or early 1979, P.O.E.T.S. was transformed into Ernie's Restaurant. The heyday of Fat City was already in the rearview mirror, and Ernie's catered to a more mature crowd, frequently hosting dinners for private parties, local businesses and organizations. Ernie's survived for a decade but was forced into bankruptcy and its entire contents liquidated at auction in 1989.
After Ernie's closed, the building was occupied by non-restaurant type businesses including a dry cleaner, a cash register sales company and, for many years now, an art supply store.
POETS Restaurant & Saloon: American, 3020 N Arnoult Rd, Metairie (Metairie Above Causeway) - 887-9491 (do not call) - map
Masson's Restaurant Francais: French, 7200 Pontchartrain Blvd, New Orleans (Lakeview) - 283-2525 (do not call) map