WEST ASHLEY — Less than three years after opening, a restaurant on bustling St. Andrews Boulevard will serve its last customers at the end of the month.
La Bonne Franquette, owned by the couple behind Christophe Artisan Chocolatier’s two locations on Society Street in downtown Charleston and on Ashley River Road, is closing Aug. 31.
Carly and Christophe Paume bought the restaurant site for $775,000 in February 2022, according to Charleston County land records. They opened La Bonne Franquette about a year later, serving a French-inspired menu that was the subject of a June 2023 Post and Courier review. Roasted duck, mussels, steak frites and croque monsieur are among the options served during lunch, brunch and dinner.
The owners, who could not be reached for comment, did not provide a reason for the closure in an Aug. 6 social media post announcing the decision.
“We have loved spending special moments with you and will miss our times with you,” the owners said in the post. “Many of you have become a family for us and we hope to see you in our future chapters.”
La Bonne Franquette is the fourth restaurant to close at 652 St. Andrews Blvd. in the last seven years.
An array of Caribbean flavors was served in the dining room before the Paumes took over, first at Cuban American-themed Spanglish and then the rebranded “pan-Caribbean” Patois. For 14 years before that, the building was home to the Bluerose Café, an Irish-inflected spot with “céad míle fáilte” inscribed on the wall and an “Old Country” Irish breakfast on the brunch menu.
In their social media post, the owners of La Bonne Franquette did not indicate what might be next for the West Ashley space.
Dining and Cooking