Owner Will Edwards Kolache Kitchen founder Ryan “Bucky” Case announced Wednesday that all company-owned locations will close. The independently owned location owned by Ryan “Bucky” Case on Airline Highway near Highland Road will remain open.
The Kolache restaurant brand, founded in 2013 off the campus of Louisiana State University, has locations in Baton Rouge, Florida, New Orleans and Key West.
“If you look at the business environment over the last two years, it's been tough for us, especially with our expansion into Florida,” Edwards said, noting that business has also been slow during the summer months. “The last two years have been tougher than normal and things haven't gone well.”
Edwards said he plans to stay in the food service industry, but for now he plans to spend time with friends and family.
Edwards, a Houston native, launched the Kolache Kitchen concept at LSU Innovation Park and opened his first brick-and-mortar restaurant outside the LSU campus in 2013. Edwards expanded the concept outside the metropolitan area with a location in New Orleans in 2018 and entered the Florida market with two locations in 2022.
Last year, Edwards closed his longtime Bocage store, but a local supplier later told WBRZ-TV that Edwards had more than $10,000 in unpaid invoices for boudin. Edwards Daily Report He said yesterday that he would not publicly comment on private company contracts, but that the allegations in the WBRZ-TV article were inaccurate.
This story originally appeared in the June 6th issue. Daily Report. To stay up to date on Baton Rouge business and politics, Subscribe for free Daily Report Get the e-newsletter here.
