ZEA Rotisserie & Grill Restaurants

Zea Rotisserie & Bar is a New Orleans–based casual restaurant concept centered on rotisserie cooking, polished comfort food, and a full bar. The restaurants offer a broad menu built around rotisserie chicken, ribs, fish, and shareable appetizers, supported by cocktails, local beer, and an atmosphere suited to both everyday meals and social occasions. Sites typically sit within established suburban and lifestyle retail nodes, where Zea operates as a neighborhood gathering place for lunch, dinner, and evening bar traffic.

The brand was created by Taste Buds Management, a local restaurant group founded in 1990 by chefs Gary Darling, Hans Limburg, and Greg Reggio. They launched the first Zea in 1997 to bring chef-driven, approachable rotisserie cuisine to a wider audience while keeping the experience relaxed and accessible. Over the years, the team has refined the concept into a consistent full-service format that can be replicated across multiple markets without losing its New Orleans roots.

From its early locations on both the Southshore and Northshore of New Orleans, Zea has grown into a small regional chain. As of March 2024, the company operated approximately 10 restaurants across Louisiana and Mississippi. Public locations are concentrated in the New Orleans metro, including Metairie, Kenner, New Orleans, Harvey, and Covington, with additional restaurants in Lafayette, Baton Rouge, Denham Springs, and Ridgeland, Mississippi. The units generally occupy endcap or freestanding pads with ample parking in visible retail corridors and mixed-use districts, aligning with all-day and evening use.

Over roughly the last five years, Zea has continued a deliberate Gulf South expansion strategy rather than pursuing national scale. New openings in markets such as Lafayette, suburban Baton Rouge, Denham Springs, and Jackson–Ridgeland reflect a cluster approach around the New Orleans core, extending into key Louisiana MSAs and adjacent Mississippi trade areas. The brand has used a mix of company-owned and selected franchise relationships, particularly for out-of-state locations, to extend its reach while keeping operations close enough for direct oversight from its New Orleans headquarters.

The company is recognized as a stable regional operator with a strong internal culture. In 2023, the Louisiana Restaurant Association honored Zea for more than 300 combined years of service among 15 long-tenured employees, underscoring the group’s ability to retain staff and maintain consistent operations. For owners of well-located centers in Greater New Orleans, Baton Rouge, Lafayette, the Northshore, Denham Springs, and Jackson–Ridgeland, Zea represents a full-service tenant with an established following, a bar-forward component, and a track record of performing in grocery-anchored centers, power centers, and mixed-use environments across the Gulf South.