Nina Compton "pausing service" at Bywater American Bistro

• Bywater American Bistro opened three years later, becoming both a neighborhood favorite and a playground for Compton's more ambitious cooking.

Driving the news: Compton posted to Instagram on New Year's Day to say BAB "will be pausing service." She later edited it to say "temporarily."

• Details were scant, but she tells Axios New Orleans that the restaurant is "not shutting down permanently," and "we are taking a break to regroup."
• As she posted on Instagram, there are "new things to come."

The big picture: Independent restaurants around the country have struggled in the pandemic's wake as rising labor and food costs squeeze profit margins and inflation makes dining out more of a special event for customers.

Meanwhile: Compton's New Orleans empire grew last year with the addition of Nina's Creole Cottage at the evolving Harrah's Casino.

💭 My thought bubble: I'm hoping this just means Larry Miller, Compton's life and business partner, finally gets a restaurant dedicated to corndogs.