New Orleans Take-Out was scheduled to close Saturday after 32 years on Fordem Avenue, but shut down Tuesday instead after three cooks left for other jobs, its owner said.

John Roussos said after word got out that the restaurant was closing, its phone rang off the hook all day and he ran out of food by 6 p.m. Tuesday. He was forced to close early.

He stocked up for Wednesday, but then said his cooks all left, forcing him to close for good earlier than anticipated. He had originally intended to close after dinner service Saturday. The whole fiasco brought him to tears, he said.

"No one wants to earn anything or pay any dues," Roussos, 66, said about his restaurant employees. "They want to be star chefs. They watch TV."

A big party for friends and family Saturday after business hours has been called off, or at least scaled back considerably.

"Everything's off," he said. "I have a ton of food here. That's the restaurant business. That's what I expect. And that's why I'm getting out."

Roussos said he's stuck with two cases of chicken breast and 100 pounds of shrimp. "I'm loaded. I have enough food for a week."

He said he'll donate what's leftover to a local food pantry.