With a Cherry on Top

Click Flipping Pages to Read PRINT VERSION of this Week's Independent Weekly

Photos by Robin May

Last week, chief scooper Miss Ella May Meaux celebrated her 79th birthday in the same spot she’s been sung to for the last 48 years, Borden’s Ice Cream. The song might have been the same old saw, but the digs are definitely different, if spit shined and polished can be construed as change. Since Kackie Lerille set her cap at owning the venerable ice cream shop and Deco icon, locals began by holding their breath and ultimately cheering on the renovation.

Lerille and her dad, fitness guru Red Lerille, along with their long time architect Don Breaux, teamed up to restore Borden’s to its 1940s glory. Without changing the exterior except to paint it the color of vanilla ice-cream, its original hue, and adding an inconspicuous drive-thru in the rear, they managed to gain miles of interior space, about 40 new seats including soda-bar stools at the counter and lots of kiddie tables down the center aisle. Not exactly what Kackie anticipated when she bought the ice cream shop back in the fall.

“It snowballed,” she says of the ice cream shop. “We knew we were going to take care of it, but we didn’t know it was going to be this beautiful.”

Ice creamers will be dazzled when they walk in, literally, by the geometric sparkle of the shiny tin ceiling. That’s Kackie’s touch, the high Deco design that wasn’t a part of a building newly constructed as the U.S. was ramping up to go to war in 1941. The old-fangled lights are new too, chosen by Red. But the ice cream is still the same Borden flavors we all grew up on, although Kackie has added a yummy eggnog shake for the season as well as some grown-up treats like lattes, cappuccinos and espressos.

Former Lafayette Mayor Dud Lastrapes showed up in time to wish Miss Ella happy birthday. Looking around, he reminisced about one of his most memorable days at Borden’s. “It was during rush,” he says, “as freshmen we got some hazing.” How bad could it have been in 1946? “They made us dance on the tables,” says Lastrapes. Ah, the good old days, redux.

Borden’s Ice Cream, 1103 Jefferson St., is now open at 6:30 a.m., Monday through Friday, for coffee, muffins, scones and banana splits if that’s what floats your boat in the morning. Weekends, doors open at 7:30 a.m., and the ice cream shop stays open till 10 p.m. nightly. Call 235-9291 for more info.

Comments (4)

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written by Joe Politico , December 09, 2009 - 08:37 am

I had the opportunity to drop into Borden's after dinner downtown last week to check out the renovation. I was thrilled to see that this landmark has been restored to something really better than what it was in the old days...by opening up the floor plan and adding the new decor touches they have brought a whole new life to an existing landmark. Kudos to the Lerille's and Don Breaux for making something old, new again.

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written by Gumbo , December 10, 2009 - 09:56 am

I was among those holding their breath, waiting to see what was to come of Borden's. As a fan of Lafayette, and of preservation in general (not to mention a loyal, if not overly so, patron), I was hoping for the best. As a lifetime resident of a town that seems to ignore so much of its past, I was nervous. Judging from the pictures, my wish has come true! I'm going to drop in this weekend to see it all in person.

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written by NORTHSIDIAN SHOTGUN , December 10, 2009 - 10:44 pm

MISS MEAUX ! My wife and i entered BORDENS for a late dessert with three other couples, my thought waves instantly brought to mind MISS MEAUX. WHERE WOULD SHE GO ? THANK YOU KACKIE, THANK YOU, THANK YOU !!!!!

I HAVE TO SAY, WE WERE ECSTACTIC WITH THE DECOR, AND WITH YOU, FOR INVESTING YOUR TIME AND MONEY TO PRESERVE SUCH A UNIQUE SAFEHARBOR OF CHILDHOOD MEMORIES. THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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written by Morrow , December 12, 2009 - 02:12 pm

I know most of us eat too much during the holidays, but it would be worth it to save some of the calories for a trip to Borden's! The atmosphere alone is worth the drive, but the ice cream is sublime. It was such a special trip, bringing back memories of childhood and then USL and finally, working in the courthouse. Banana frappe or one scoop of chocolate in a cup!

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