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ORAL HISTORY
Isaac Toups
Toups' Meatery
Isaac Toups owns Toups Meatery, a restaurant in New Orleans, Louisiana. At the beginning of the Pandemic, Toups quickly outfitted his kitchen and pivoted to an all-takeout model. Though he was only required to furlough a few employees at the beginning of the Pandemic, he continued to serve family meal to all of his employees. Not long after the Pandemic began, Toups expanded his restaurants’ practice to anyone in need. At the height of his family meal, he served 500 community members per day.
Toups and his wife, Amanda, began seeking donations and worked with other organizations like the Krewe of Red Beans and World Central Kitchen. Toups discusses the difficulty of financial sustainability in the restaurant industry and the further negative impact COVID-19 has had upon it. He also talks about the gradual reopening of his restaurant in July 2020. As of his follow-up interview in March 2021, A year after the pandemic began, Toups continued his family meal program, feeding community members in his area.
