Marv, Zeid and Richy Ammari
Creole Cuisine Restaurant Concepts
Most major restaurant groups in town put forward a famous chef as the face of the organization, trading on fame to promote growth and clout. But Creole Cuisine Concepts is different. Their owners the Ammari Brothers — Marv, Zeid and Richy (who passed away in 2023) — are discreet. That’s not to say they don’t have culinary bonafides — their portfolio includes such famed institutions as Broussard’s — but they put an intentional emphasis on humility and discretion, qualities that stem from their Christian faith. Their charitable endeavors have been part of their identity for a long time, but in the past few years have bloomed with their organization Creole Cuisine Cares. Because of all that they do to help those in need, the New Orleans Wine and Food Experience (NOWFE) recognized them with the 2026 Ella Brennan Lifetime Achievement Award in Hospitality. This award acknowledges those whose leadership, accomplishments and philanthropic contributions aid the community, and the Ammari Brothers check all those boxes. What’s more, they do so in a behind the scenes way that puts principals rather than personalities first.
“We grew up in a home of giving,” explained CEO Marv Ammari of their family’s approach. “My mom was always doing outreach and feedings and just giving back. Because of her we believe that we should focus on four immediate, simple essentials: food, clothing, medicine and shelter.” This philosophy in turn guides Creole Cuisine Cares, which partners with organizations like the New Orleans Mission and the Giving Hope Retreat in Lacombe. 2024 was a banner year for their fundraising, bringing in more than $250,000, which was divided across an umbrella of organizations. 2025 is in the books now and soon we will know what their most recent efforts have raised.
“Last year we directed $25,000 to the New Orleans Mission, earmarked for individuals living with diabetes,” Marv said. Along with medicine, their giving included thoughtful details like specially designed socks and shoes to enhance comfort of those suffering from this illness. Another $25,000 went to Celebration Church in St Bernard Parish, where Pastor Trevor Truitt used the gift to provide meals and fellowship to underprivileged families. And in one of their largest single efforts to date, $150,000 went to build out a kitchen at the Mission Pantry inside the Giving Hope Retreat in St Bernard Parish. “Our efforts there in Lacombe are just getting started,” Marv said. “As the foundation of New Orleans’s largest anti-hunger network, the sky is the limit for how much the facility can really benefit the people of St Tammany Parish and beyond.”
If their professional success is any judge, the needle is pointing in the right direction. What began with a single daiquiri shop has grown into an industry juggernaut which now employs more than 1,700 people across 40-plus restaurant concepts. Their reach has grown beyond the New Orleans area, expanding into Mississippi and Alabama. By any standard this is a successful restaurant group. The business got its start in 1989 when a teenage Marv took over a daiquiri business in St Bernard Parish. His brothers Zeid and Richy joined in, expanding that single Daiquiri Paradise into multiple daiquiri and casual dinging concepts throughout the 1990s. They proved shrewd businessmen, using the revenue engines of the daiquiri shops to finance real estate purchases to further expand into other dining concepts. They were on an upward trend when they, like other restaurant groups, ran into the make-or-break aftermath of Katrina. Their stewardship saw their company boom after the storm and then again after COVID-19. Today their collection includes prestige restaurants like Broussard’s and The Bombay Club. Proven upscale casual concepts like Boulevard American Bistro appear ready to expand, and they see their modern Italian restaurant A Tavola as traveling regionally as well. Their enviable real estate portfolio backs the overall enterprise.
Despite their success, the brothers remain grounded and guided by their Christian faith. They are first and foremost a family business, still mourning the loss of their brother Richy. Extending outwards, their restaurant group has long had a reputation of being a good place to work in an industry that often chews people up. “The way we look at it is, it’s a family first and then it’s a business. And if we let the dollars get caught up in the middle of the family, then the family gets destroyed,” Marv said. “We always work through our issues and agree that no matter what happens, we will put family first.” Marv and Zeid see the 1,700-plus members of Creole Cuisine as extended family, meaning “when our people are going through challenges, we work with them too.” And this isn’t just PR speak — multiple industry awards back them up. “That’s what I believe makes Creole Cuisine a different kind of business to work for,” Marv explains. And that too is what makes them ideal recipients of this year’s award. “Richy was there in the beginning when we started and was part of the partnership in putting Creole Cuisine Cares together before he passed,” Marv said. As so with Ella, Richy’s spirit of giving lives on.
