Lakeview's Familiar Addresses Have New Tenants This Fall. West End's Hasn't Been Chosen Yet.

At 900 Harrison Avenue, a domed oven at the back of the dining room now bakes pita. A mural of the city of Byblos on the Lebanese coast covers one wall, and the bar is a long, low, dark room of stools and side tables. A few doors away, at 908 Harrison, the snoball stand that served Lakeview families for generations closed at the end of September.

Both buildings are still standing. What changed is who runs them. Most of Lakeview's change this fall follows that pattern: the places keep their names in the neighborhood's memory longer than any one business keeps the lease. Out at the lakefront, the biggest site of all has been fenced off for two decades, and its next occupant is still being chosen in public.

Byblos is the fourth restaurant at 900 Harrison since Mondo

Many people in New Orleans still think of 900 Harrison as Mondo's corner. As NOLA.com's Ian McNulty put it in his opening report on Byblos Lakeview, Mondo had a 10-year run as a top neighborhood spot, and three restaurants came and went there after it closed.

The most recent was Boil & Barrel, a seafood-and-bourbon concept that closed after about nine months. Byblos founder Hicham Khodr was also an owner of Boil & Barrel. When that restaurant wasn't doing enough business, he decided a proven name would suit Lakeview better. The same team stayed in the building and changed what it serves.

Byblos has been part of New Orleans dining for more than 30 years. Tarek Tay, a longtime operating partner in both restaurants, said the Lakeview menu would largely follow the Elmwood location at 1000 S. Clearview Parkway, which opened in 2022 and focuses more tightly on Middle Eastern dishes. The older Byblos at 1501 Metairie Road has a much wider menu.

The Lakeview room has booths and tables, a private dining room for team dinners and group outings, and outdoor patios. The bar was the center of Mondo, and it is meant to be the center of this restaurant too. Tay has become a serious bourbon collector. Byblos Elmwood is still the flagship for that list, but McNulty reported that the Lakeview bar carries a strong selection of its own.

The weekly specials at opening:

When McNulty visited, the Lakeview location was open Wednesday through Sunday, with plans to open daily. Check current hours with Byblos before planning a Monday dinner.

908 Harrison lost its snoball stand, but NOLA Snow kept going

The NOLA Snow story runs the opposite way. Here the business stayed and the address went. The family behind NOLA Snow Snoballs traces its snoball history back to 1955. According to WWL Louisiana, the stand at 908 Harrison closed at the end of September, and the business now operates only as a mobile cart and caterer.

Many people read the first announcement as a retirement. The owners answered on social media:

"IT BROKE OUR HEARTS that many of you thought you'd never have our snoballs again. So, while we'd love a little time with your feet up, retirement is NOT in the cards just yet!"

Their shorter version was "NOLA SNOW IS STILL BALLING! Just not on Harrison Avenue." The cart can be booked through NolaSnow.com for homes, workplaces, schools, restaurants, and events. Pop-up locations are posted on Instagram at @nolasnowsnoballs. WWL's report did not include a fixed public schedule or a regular stop. No new business has been announced for 908 Harrison.

So the 900 block now has two buildings in two different situations. One building kept its owners and changed its concept. The other kept its business and gave up the building. In both cases, Harrison Avenue still hosts what Lakeview remembers about it, even as the names on the doors change.

West End is the one big site still waiting for a tenant

WWL has called West End "the Coney Island of New Orleans." It sits where the 17th Street Canal meets Lake Pontchartrain. Restaurants like Bruning's and Fitzgerald's once stood there, along with Swanson's, which was owned by the grandmother of Mike Mayer of Friends of West End. Storms, Hurricane Katrina above all, wrecked the area, and it has been fenced off since.

West End stalled for so long because nobody owned all of it. The land straddles Orleans and Jefferson parishes, and the state owns the water bottoms. State Rep. Stephanie Hilferty's House Bill 892 created the West End Economic Development District and brought all three owners into one structure. WWL says the law broke a 20-year gridlock. In July, the two parishes announced a finalized agreement on how they would work together. After that, the New Orleans City Council gave Mayor Helena Moreno authority to sign a cooperative endeavor agreement with the state, Jefferson Parish, and business organizations.

Here is the status as of early October 2026, based on WWL and Fox 8 coverage:

The over-water restriction shows how this version of West End will differ from the old one. In March, Jefferson Parish Councilmember Hans Liljeberg told Fox 8 that building over the water was unlikely because of the nearby pump station. The council-vote coverage later said those restaurants are no longer permitted. Officials have listed restaurants, green space, and pavilions as possibilities. None of them is a commitment yet.

The West End plan is still being shaped in public

Unlike 900 and 908 Harrison, West End's next chapter will go through a public process before anyone signs a lease. City leaders have said they want the public to help decide what returns to the lakefront. Procurement is expected to run through at least the end of the year and will include community meetings. Officials hope to choose a developer by the second quarter of 2027. The request for qualifications is posted on the city's bid opportunities page.

Hilferty said "some really qualified groups" toured the property during the RFQ period and that officials are "closer than we've ever been." She did not name the groups. Friends of West End members have spoken up as well. Mayer opposes full-scale commercial development. He supports listing the park on the National Register of Historic Places, with a museum, a boardwalk, conservation, and a street-level restaurant pavilion.

"I hope someone listens before the West End looks like anywhere USA rather than New Orleans people come here to visit."

NOLA.com reported this spring that some neighbors floated other ideas for the site, including green space, a bird sanctuary, pickleball courts, and parking. Friends of West End president Stanton Murray said the nonprofit itself would not take a position.

Dates on the Lakeview calendar between now and mid-November

You can follow these changes through events on the calendar, from the lakefront back down to Harrison Avenue.

• Saturday, Oct. 10, 9 a.m. to noon. The Pontchartrain Conservancy and Bike Easy host a Bayou St. John-to-Bucktown Bicycle Eco-Tour with stops at Bayou St. John, the New Canal Lighthouse, and Bucktown.
• Wednesday, Oct. 14, 3:30 to 5 p.m. The Pontchartrain Conservancy holds a fish-themed continuing education session at the New Canal Lighthouse.
• Friday, Oct. 16. West End RFQ responses are due.
• Oct. 15 to 18. Ghosts in the Oaks brings trick-or-treating, rides, and Halloween entertainment to Carousel Gardens and Storyland in City Park, with entry at 7 Victory Avenue.
• Saturday, Nov. 7, 11 a.m. to noon. The Lakeview Veterans Day Parade takes place on Harrison Avenue.
• Saturday, Nov. 14, 9:30 to 11 a.m. The Lakeview Civic Improvement Association holds its final general membership meeting of 2026 in the Hynes Charter School gym, with coffee and doughnuts starting at 9 a.m.

The LCIA's current event listings do not include a fall festival, a Halloween event, or a farmers market. Its next items are the parade and the November meeting.

At Burk Brokerage Real Estate, we follow changes on Harrison Avenue and the lakefront closely because they are part of what owning a home in Lakeview means. If you would like a clear picture of where your home stands while the West End process moves forward, we are happy to start with a Free Home Valuation and a conversation about your part of the neighborhood.

This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.