The seafood restaurant PeeWee's Crabcakes got its start by founder Charles "PeeWee" Armstrong cooking in his apartment kitchen and selling lunch plates to his neighbors.

It evolved from a pop-up to a takeout shop in Central City and its following grew. When he was able to open a much larger dine-in restaurant in Gentilly in 2020, Armstrong developed it as a tribute to New Orleans culture.

That's one reason why contending now with the fire that damaged the restaurant feels like such a nightmare.

"It hurts, it's real pain to see this," said Armstrong.

The fire at PeeWee's Crabcakes, at 4500 Old Gentilly Road, occurred Sunday night after the restaurant had closed for the evening. The New Orleans Fire Department reports responding to a one-alarm fire at 10:14 p.m. and had it under cont

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