Last weekend, we rolled with the Krewe of Boo. Last week in the French Quarter Journal, I wrote about Día de los Muertos, when our beloved dead find their way home. And today, I bring you a different kind of ghost story... a business that came back from the dark.
On Halloween of 2024, the Hi-Ho Lounge went quiet. The sign came down, the name on the door changed, and the corner of Marigny and St. Claude lost a little of its heartbeat.
Two Halloweens later, the Hi-Ho is back. New owners Mike Davis and Melissa Politte reopened the doors October 1, 2026 just in time for the Hi-Ho's Halloween return.
They never set out to buy a bar. While planning Mike's 50th birthday party at the St. Claude club, Melissa casually told one of the owners over the phone that if they ever wanted another investor, she'd be interested.
In Melissa's words: "Honestly, I never expected him to call! It was just a casual comment while we were planning Mike's birthday party. Two weeks later, the phone rang, and suddenly we were considering something neither of us had ever planned on doing. It's funny how one little conversation can completely change your direction."
Mike and Melissa asked the building's owner, the man who opened the original Hi-Ho, if they could bring back the name. He was absolutely ecstatic.
As Melissa puts it: "One thing became clear almost immediately; this place meant something to the neighborhood. People kept telling us how much they missed the Hi-Ho, and we realized we weren't just buying a bar. We were taking on a little piece of New Orleans history. And they weren’t the only ones who felt that way. " The attorney behind the deal was Amanda Butler Schley of Business Law Group, and for her, the Hi-Ho was never just another file on her desk.
Back when she was a Loyola law student, Thursday Reggae night at the Hi-Ho was her ritual. "The nostalgia for this place and that time in my life runs deep, and I couldn't pass up the chance to help bring it back," she said.
In New Orleans, a business is never just a business. Buying one means inheriting the history, the regulars...
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8 days agointhespotlight504
In New Orleans, a business is never just a business. Buying one means inheriting the history, the regulars, and the relationships that built it. Amanda has worked day in and day out with local restaurants, bars, and businesses, and she knows what not to change. But keeping a neighborhood institution alive takes more than passion; it requires sharp business instincts from the very start. "There are many traps for the unwary in these deals," she said. "The real landmines are the ones the seller never puts on paper." Her advice: structure the deal right, buy the assets and not the liabilities, and do your due diligence with the right professionals. "That's how you end up with clean assets and a tax strategy instead of a headache." In New Orleans, the person dancing in the crowd on a Thursday night is often the same person, years later, making sure the stage gets its second act. And now that the stage is set, Mike and Melissa are ready for the next crowd to make their own memories. "We want people to walk through the doors and immediately feel like they belong. Whether you've been coming here for 20 years or it's your first time, we want you to feel at home. Good music, good drinks, familiar faces, and the kind of nights you didn't necessarily plan on having but end up remembering. That's the Hi-Ho we want to bring back," Melissa said. So this Halloween, put on your costume (or don't), head to St. Claude, and raise a glass to a room that came back from the dark. Meet me at the bar. With a second line in my step wherever the rhythm carries me, Karlita #NewOrleans #HiHoLounge #StClaude #Halloween #BusinessLaw
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