OPERA HOUSE REOPENS WITH HISTORIC STYLE

Standing knee-deep in water, Dennis Stockard a year ago surveyed the burned, crumbling shell of a building that housed the Royal N'Orleans Restaurant and announced that he wanted to rebuild.

Architects and structural engineers told him rebuilding was possible, but not practical. The cost of rebuilding would be high, they advised, so they recommended that the 123-year-old brick walls be taken down and that he start from scratch. It would be the least expensive option, they said.

But Stockard, who owns the building, was determined to save a piece of Cape Girardeau history.

Less than a year later, the N'Orleans restaurant is open for business again, with much of its history still intact. No signs of the fire remain except outside, behind the building, where a charred door leans against a brick wall.

And now, with the restaurant reopened, Stockard said he is pleased with the results.

On March 8, 1990, fire gutted the building. Virtually all that remained of the structure were the four, 22-inch-thick brick walls.

Stockard said: "After the fire, I didn't know exactly what could be done, but I knew I wanted to save the walls. We were two months into the project and still weren't sure we would be able to do it.

"I was standing on the ground looking at the stars," he recalled. "When we first got into this, it was mostly a business decision."

But, he said, "I was interested in preserving the history. The place was insured. I guess we could have taken the money and run; but we're in the restaurant business.

"Then letters started coming in from everywhere. People were telling me about their first date with their husband 30 years ago at the N'Orleans and their 25th anniversary here. We also got so many phone calls. People called from everywhere.

"It was amazing. I didn't know how broad an appeal this place had. After I realized what this place meant to people, I really got involved in restoring it."

Stockard said: "It would have been much, much less expensive to start over. But you can't put a price on something like this; you can't put a price on tradition."

He said engineers and architects oversaw the early stages of the renovation, and he became much more involved toward the end.

"We wanted to basically keep the feel. When you walk through the doors, although everything is new, it's the same restaurant," he said.

"We were trying for an 1868-look." Stockard said he even watched reruns of the television shows "Wild, Wild West" and "Gunsmoke" for decorating ideas.

Diners will recognize red-velvet drapes and crystal chandeliers in the dining room. The bistro features gas lamps and the familiar piano bar.

Before the fire, six chandeliers hung in the restaurant. When the roof collapsed, it crushed one of the chandeliers. But the five remaining were refinished and repaired using pieces salvaged from the damaged lamp. The chandeliers hang in their original places.

A prime feature of the dining room, a 1600s-era buffet, was also restored.

"I came in here after the fire and I was standing in water. This was covered with water and smoke," Stockard said of the buffet.

"Just before we opened, this was at my house. It has been restored, and I hand-waxed every inch of it myself," Stockard said. "It took me four hours."

The dining room now sports the original sandstone pillars, which previously had been covered up.

The bar in the bistro is new. "We found it in a garage on Main Street," Stockard said. "It was built in 1903, and at some time it was at the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair."

The bistro will open for lunch in about three weeks, Stockard said. While the building was empty, a wine cellar was dug at the north end. Several tables are placed there, providing extra seating.

He said employees at the restaurant have been very supportive. All but one has come back.

Steve Blankenship, who manages the restaurant, said: "In the beginning it was kind of doubtful that this would ever happen. A lot of time and money went into bringing it back."

But he said customers seem pleased. "This is a landmark. We could have built a new restaurant for a lot less money, but then it would have been just another restaurant," Blankenship said.

"This place is special," said Blankenship. "We have people who have been coming here 25 years or more. Some come every week; others come once a year.

"I've seen more people get engaged here, and then they make it a point to come back here every year on their anniversary. That's why this place is so special. It's the customers."

"It's great to be back," said Geri Wissman, a N'Orleans waitress for 18 years. "The fact that we're all still here tells you a lot about this place," said Wissman. "It's like family."

"We're back bigger and better," said Jan Halter, a waitress for 17 years.

"It's definitely better," said Grace Williams, who has worked at the restaurant 22 years. "Things are new, but enough is the same to make it familiar. The bar is enlarged, which was really needed."

Jenny Breeding, a waitress for 10 years, said: "It is updated, but it has the same atmosphere. The antique feeling is still here, yet it's modernized also."

Flo Robert has been a waitress the longest; she has been there 26 years and has gone back to work.

The building, known as the Old Opera House, was built in 1868 by the German Turner Society. The building was part of a Civil War reconstruction program.

For years it was the social center of Cape Girardeau, the site of parties, dances, weddings, election rallies, minstrels, operas, wrestling and boxing matches.

In the 1950s the building was destined to be razed to make way for a parking lot. But the late Richard Barnhouse purchased the building and restored it. He opened the Royal N'Orleans Restaurant.

Following the deaths of Barnhouse, and later his wife, the building was purchased by Stockard. He had just finished restoring the building when the fire broke out.

"It's nice to hear from people about how much they like the building," Stockard said. "I hear from our customers, but I also hear from people who have never eaten here. People seem pleased that the Old Opera House is still here. It's a good feeling to do something people appreciate, and its great to be back."