A new Cajun-themed restaurant has opened in the southeast part of Danville, offering a menu of favorites one would find in New Orleans and Louisiana.
Cherre Scheffer opened The Big Easy a week ago at 310 Bryan Ave., the former home of the Knights of Columbus, which sold the building last fall. The restaurant includes a bar area and seating at the front of the building, as well as a larger room in the back that is being used for overflow seating as well as music events.
Scheffer says her family is from the South, and several of her family members own smaller businesses in the Danville area, and she says her goal is to bring the flavor of the South to the local area.
The restaurant’s menu contains a number of well-known Cajun specialties, including gumbo, crayfish, Cajun chicken, shrimp, steaks and a “make-it-your-way” burger with 13 different toppings. Scheffer says the restaurant’s French fries are freshly cut each day. She says Cajun food has a strong flavor but most people will enjoy it.
“Cajun isn’t spicy where it, like, burns your mouth, but there is flavor, there’s a spice to it,” she explains. “It’s not overly hot.”
Scheffer says her mother is the head chef at the new restaurant. The Big Easy also has its own sauce, and manager Emily Foster says the staff has considered selling it in bottles as many people have enjoyed it.
The banquet area of the restaurant will be available for groups to rent, but it will primarily be used on evenings when larger crowds are expected. Scheffer says a large crowd came on Friday night, after only a few people earlier in the week, mostly due to the snow that fell in the area.
The Big Easy is open seven days a week from 11 a.m. until 9 p.m. You can find the restaurant on Facebook or by calling 217-213-6372.
