The Chili House in August, 1951. Construction of the Franklin Overpass started in 1950 and took 2 years to complete. During that time, traffic was detoured away from the Chili House, and the noise and mess were cumbersome and further deterred customers. Image provided courtesy of the Charles L. Franck / Franck-Bertacci Photographers Collection, The Historic New Orleans Collection. 1979.325.4680
On Ralph Campos’ 29th birthday, he ran away from home. Every year, his family threw him a surprise party. So when his mother told him to come to her house on his birthday in January of 1937, he had certain expectations. Family members were sitting in the living room when he arrived and wished him a happy birthday, but even though he checked the other rooms again and again throughout the evening, there were no hiding people. The surprise that year was that there was no surprise. As he and his wife readied to return home at the end of the evening, he told his mother that he felt unhappy and hurt that he hadn’t had the surprise party he was expecting.
Once home, he went into the bathroom and wasn’t seen or heard from again for about a week. His car and $200 cash had disappeared with him.
Fortunately, Ralph survived the crushing disappointment and returned back home to continue running his Blue Wing Restaurant on Elysian Fields. And a few years later, in 1939, he opened his second restaurant: the Chili House at 2701 Franklin Ave.
The Chili House was a neighborhood restaurant and bar that was known primarily for its sandwiches (and of course, chili). Its location on Franklin Ave. was a great asset at the time, as it was a heavily traveled road leading out to Lake Pontchartrain. The Chili House was a frequent stop for travelers, and it provided both curbside and bicycle delivery services.
The location became a liability, however, with the construction of the Franklin Overpass. After the overpass was completed in 1952, all the traffic that had passed directly by the restaurant now passed overhead, leaving it almost invisible to potential customers.
Campos sold the Chili House in the mid-1950s. It went through a few different owners over the following decade until it closed, and in the late 1960s, the building became home to Frey Plumbing.
As for Ralph “Two-for-a-Nickel” Campos, he lived his entire life in New Orleans and died at age 79. There were no more reports of surprise parties – or disappearances – to be found.
