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New Orleanians are obsessed with food. Over lunch they're likely talking about dinner. Ask where to get the best gumbo, and you'll spark a heated debate among city natives.Everyone, no matter what neighborhood they're from or what they do for a living, wants a plate of red beans and rice on Monday, has a favorite spot for a roas
New Orleanians are obsessed with food. Over lunch they're likely talking about dinner. Ask where to get the best gumbo, and you'll spark a heated debate among city natives.Everyone, no matter what neighborhood they're from or what they do for a living, wants a plate of
New Orleanians are obsessed with food. Over lunch they're likely talking about dinner. Ask where to get the best gumbo,
New Orleanians are obsessed with food. Over lunch they're likely talking about dinner. Ask where to get the best gumbo, and you'll spark a heated debate among city natives.
Everyone, no matter what neighborhood they're from or what they do for a living, wants a plate of red beans and rice on Monday, has a favorite spot for a roast beef po'boy, and holds strong opinions about the proper flavor for a shaved ice "sno-ball."
The menus of New Orleans's restaurants reflect the many cultures that have contributed to this always-simmering culinary gumbo pot over the last three centuries. It's easy to find French, African, Spanish, German, Italian, and Caribbean influences—and increasingly Asian and Latin American as well. The speckled trout amandine at Antoine's could have been on the menu when the French Creole institution opened in 1840. Across the Mississippi River on the West Bank, Tan Dinh serves fragrant bowls of pho that remind New Orleans's large Vietnamese population of the home they left in the 1970s. And at Compère Lapin, Chef Nina Compton brings expert French and Italian fine-dining traditions to the down-home flavors of her St. Lucia childhood, and of her new home in the Gulf South.
For years New Orleans paid little attention to food trends from the East and West coasts. Recently, however, the city has taken more notice of the "latest things." In Orleans Parish you'll now find gastropubs, gourmet burgers, and numerous small-plate specialists. In a town where people track the crawfish season as closely as the pennant race, no one has to preach the virtues of eating seasonally. New Orleans is still one of the most exciting places to eat in America. There's no danger that will change.
Occupying what used to be New Orleans's oldest music store, this Dickie Brennan stalwart is a convivial spot to try some of the more imaginative contemporary Creole dishes, such as andouille-crusted fish, crabmeat cheesecake, and pepper-crusted duck breast with foie gras. Desserts, especially the white-chocolate bread pudding and the homemade ice creams, are luscious. Drugstore-tile floors and stained cherrywood booths set the mood. The wraparound mezzanine is lined with a large mural depicting the city's famous musicians, like Louis Armstrong, Fats Domino, and Aaron Neville. The Parisian-style sidewalk seating bespeaks small plates, wine, and people-watching (though you can also order the full menu outside). The Sunday jazz brunch is New Orleans all the way, while the daily happy hour, offering half-price drinks and snacks till 7 pm, is one of the best in town.
Sassy New York flourishes permeate the menu of chef Richard Hughes's smartly decorated, eminently comfortable restaurant in the heart of the French Quarter, but there's still evidence of Hughes's Louisiana origins. The Maine lobster with shrimp and diver scallops is decadent, while the rack of lamb with rosemary-pesto crust is almost a spiritual experience. There is even a children's menu for budding gourmets.
312 Exchange Pl., New Orleans, Louisiana, 70130, USA
Every night, no matter the weather, people wait for more than an hour outside Port of Call for fist-thick burgers made from freshly ground beef, served with always-fluffy baked potatoes (there are no fries here). For the classic Port of Call experience, drink a Neptune's Monsoon (their mind-bending house grog) while you wait, and order your potato "loaded" (with mushrooms, cheddar cheese, sour cream, butter, chives, and bacon bits). A juicy filet mignon is also available. In the afternoon and early evening, it's a fun stop for kids. Port of Call is open until midnight Sunday through Thursday and until 1 am on Friday and Saturday.
838 Esplanade Ave., New Orleans, Louisiana, 70116, USA
Superstars rarely start over when they're on top—but celebrity chef Rick Tramonto, best known for his avant-garde creations at Chicago's Tru, headed south when he needed a new challenge. Tramonto hooked up with Louisiana culinary renaissance man John Folse and the two set about remaking the state's creations, combining Folse's deep knowledge of Cajun and Creole food with Tramonto's modern techniques and impeccably high standards. The result is a lavish, multimillion-dollar venue where the encyclopedic menu ranges from oven-roasted bone marrow and hog's head cheese to crawfish-stuffed flounder and a "triptych" of quail. Diners can explore the restaurant's deep wine cellar via iPad.
777 Bienville St., New Orleans, Louisiana, 70130, USA
Operated by the owners of the posh Arnaud's, Remoulade is more laid-back and less pricey but serves the same Caesar salad and pecan pie, as well as a few of the signature starters: shrimp Arnaud in rémoulade sauce, baked oysters, turtle soup, and shrimp bisque. "Tasters," or sampler plates of three dishes like gumbo, crawfish pie, and jambalaya, are a steal at $17.50. The marble-counter oyster bar and mahogany cocktail bar date to the 1870s; a dozen oysters shucked here, paired with a cold beer, can easily turn into two dozen, maybe three. Tile floors, mirrors, a pressed-tin ceiling, and brass lights create an old-time New Orleans environment with a family-friendly ambience. It's open daily until 11 pm.
309 Bourbon St., New Orleans, Louisiana, 70112, USA
This sleek venture (whose name is short for "South of Bourbon Street") from the Commander's Palace team puts cocktails, beer, and wine front and center. The menu includes Louisiana-style snacks, such as grilled alligator sausage or cracklings with pimento-cheese fondue, and the cocktails are a mix of pre-Prohibition classics and crowd-pleasing originals. A row of self-service machines dispense wines by the taste or the glass, and a few coveted tables even have personal beer taps. The chef grew up in Puerto Rico, so Latin flavors creep into many dishes, like the oyster tacos or shrimp and tasso pinchos.
310 Chartres St., New Orleans, Louisiana, 70130, USA
Chefs across America are ditching the white tablecloths and applying fine-dining flair to burgers, bar food, and comfort fare, and here chef Scott Boswell attempts this with the food of Louisiana. Though some grumble about paying a premium for what is, at heart, New Orleans neighborhood fare, this crisply decorated café sits on a coveted corner of Jackson Square—and that view is priceless. At breakfast, pancakes are covered in earthy Louisiana cane syrup and eggs Benedict are topped with homemade Cajun boudin. At lunch and dinner, oyster po'boys get an extra zing from rémoulade dressing with a touch of heat, and the Club Stanley is topped with spicy pesto Caesar dressing.
547 St. Ann St., New Orleans, Louisiana, 70116, USA
Here Verona-born chef Samantha Castagnetti turns out sumptuous, authentic northern Italian pasta dishes, like fusilli with peas, shallots, and Italian prosciutto in an elegant white cream sauce, alongside meaty mains, such as veal osso buco over decadent polenta. This is the kind of place that turns first dates into lifelong affairs; you'll feel like you're dining at nonna's house. The all-Italian wine list is surprisingly affordable, with many glasses at $10 or less.
1240 Decatur St., New Orleans, Louisiana, 70116, USA
Pick up a sandwich or a hot lunch to-go from this distinctly New Orleans take on a deli, open 24 hours, and a prime refueling point for the late-night bar crawl. If you're really hungry, try the All That Jazz po'boy (ham, turkey, shrimp, and two cheeses with grilled mushrooms and tomatoes).
1201 Royal St., New Orleans, Louisiana, 70116, USA
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