A nervous excitement

The year 1993 saw its fair share of momentous events. William Jefferson Clinton was sworn in as the 42nd president of the United States, the Branch Davidian Compound in Waco, Texas, was besieged by federal and state authorities, and the World Trade Center in New York City was bombed by Islamic Fundamentalists.
This year also marks the 25th anniversary of an event that happened here locally, and a celebration is planned for Saturday in honor of the event. While most celebrations of the sort bring excitement, this celebration, in particular, adds another dynamic.
“I’m excited and nervous at the same time,” said Larry Lachney, who is the owner of Gator’s on Main Street in Ville Platte, about the 25th Anniversary celebration. “We’re going to open at 8:00 in the morning. We’re going to have a BBQ rib cook-off, and the dishes will be turned in at 2:00 p.m. We have some great judges. We have Kermit Miller with Jack Miller’s BBQ Sauce, who is a two-time grand champion BBQ rib winner of the Smoked Meat Festival, and we have our mayor Jennifer Vidrine. I’m going to be asking the guy who is opening the new Vielle Banque” to also help judge.
Lachney explained that the music will begin at 2:00 with DJ Jude Dardeau. The music will continue with Casey and Clint Guillory and will conclude with a special performance by Ashton Dupre.
Other events will include a ribbon cutting at noon, a washer board tournament, and a dunking booth. “If anybody wants to get in the dunking booth, we will probably be charging and donating the money to St. Jude’s which is something that was always dear for me,” Lachney explained.
Lachney’s time behind the bar began back when he was working with Leroy Fontenot at The Last Chance. After moving to Atlanta where he worked in a bar, Lachney moved back to where he was born and raised. At that time, he bought The Bank Note. “I wanted to open up a business, and it seemed fitting,” he explained.
He added, “That was a nightclub, so that was a little faster pace. It was wide open, and we had bands and all sorts of stuff.”
Lachney had The Bank Note for three years before selling it. He then married his wife Sherron and opened up an insurance business with Todd Veillon. Fifteen months after selling The Bank Note, he then got back in the bar scene and bought what became Gator’s.
“Leroy had a drive in here, and he sold it to Cedric Soileau,” Lachney explained. “It became Big C’s, and then Cedric wanted to sell it. I heard about and then bought it.”
The name of the business came from Lachney’s infatuation with a reptile bearing the same name. “I just always like alligators,” he said. “It had nothing to do with the Florida Gators, I can promise you that because I’m a Tiger man. I always had this fascination with alligators, so I just named it Gator’s.”
“It’s become very well known,” he continued. “I go out of town sometimes and may tell people I’m from Ville Platte. They’ll say that they heard about a place over there called Gator’s. I’m like ‘I own the place.’”
Lachney’s 25-years of owning the establishment has seen its share of memorable moments not only for it but also for members of the community. Several local couples have met each other at the bar, and two couples even exchanged wedding vows at Gator’s.
“One of (the couples that got married) was on a poker run,” said Lachney. “It was some bikers, and they called a week ahead of time and said the girl didn’t know anything because it was going to be a surprise. We set up a tent and got them a cake. We served hot dogs and had the arch for them to get married. There was an ordained minister on the ride with them, so he married them.”
He continued, “Another little couple got married inside. It just so happened that they came here last Friday to come eat crawfish, and she’s pregnant. She’s due this week or next week. They plan on being here Saturday unless she has the baby. Like she said, she might have the baby at the party.”
While Gator’s has seen its changes over the years like the phasing out of video poker, one thing has stayed constant. That is the compact disc jukebox in the corner.
As Lachney said, “I refuse to go to the new Internet jukebox. As a matter of fact, I make jokes all of the time that I’m going to get rid of this one and get the 45s back.”
“We get a lot of compliments about the music,” he continued about Eugene Manuel’s jukebox from The Holiday. “I hear from a lot of people that they love our jukebox and that we have music on there that brings back memories.”
Lachney is thankful for all of the customers who have allowed the business to stay open for 25 years and is looking forward for new customers to go by the anniversary celebration. He concluded, “If you never been to Gator’s and you always wanted to, because I hear people say they want to go but never went, now’s the time to come on Saturday.”