Cafe Dupont

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Café Dupont is a fine dining restaurant located at 113 20th Street North in downtown Birmingham. The current location seats 60 and also features a private dining area and kitchen upstairs which can serve parties of up to 70 people.

New Orleans native Chris Dupont originally opened Café Dupont in Springville in 1994. Though the original restaurant was a success, he closed that restaurant and became chef at Arman's in 2003. In January 2004, after spending two years researching new locations for his own restaurant, he reopened Café Dupont in a downtown building he purchased for $160,000. The restaurant won many accolades and awards and was considered a pioneering establishment in the revitalization of 20th Street.

Dupont announced in February 2007 that he acquired two adjoining buildings (including the former location of the King Tut Deli) and planned on expanding the restaurant and adding a bar. Cohen Carnaggio Reynolds prepared architectural plans. Construction began in Spring 2008 when JR Robinson Construction began renovations on the adjacent 2,200-square-foot space. The new dining room would have added 35 seats in addition to the bar and proposed outdoor seating area. The expansion plans were halted, and the existing space was renovated instead. One of the adjacent buildings was later sold and turned into a residence, while the King Tut Deli space was sold to Bromberg's.

A strong supporter of the "Slow Food" movement, Café Dupont serves items from local purveyors, such as Michael Dean Farms in Leeds, which specializes in microgreens and various types of lettuce, and Wright Dairy in Alexandria, operated by the only dairy family in Alabama that milks the cows, bottles the milk and sells it right on the farm.

In March 2020 Chris DuPont sold the restaurant building to developer Lewis Mouron for $1.5 million and signed a long-term lease.

References

  • Williams, Roy L. (February 13, 2007) "Cafe Dupont to add bar, seats downtown." The Birmingham News
  • Williams, Roy L. (June 5, 2008) "Cafe Dupont expanding, adding bar and extra seating." The Birmingham News
  • Tomberlin, Michael (January 4, 2009) "Push continues for new projects in Birmingham's theater district." The Birmingham News
  • Van der Bijl, Hanno (March 12, 2020) "Local investor acquires downtown restaurant property for $1.5M." Birmingham Business Journal

External links