Check out this week's recipe.
This city is, unquestionably, one of the top five restaurant cities in America. I would imagine that if one were to poll national food critics New Orleans would be listed among the top three. To my taste— and I’ve eaten extensively in most of America’s top restaurant cities— New Orleans is number one. Period. No question. End of discussion.
As a citizen, I consider myself
fortunate to have grown up 90 minutes away from this culinary mecca. As a
restaurateur, I consider myself blessed to have spent almost six decades eating
my way through New Orleans. Granted, the Crescent City is a second home for me,
but I still log in over 150 New Orleans restaurant meals there each year.
For the past couple of decades, I
have kept a running journal of my restaurant visits in New Orleans. I also keep
a to-do list of new restaurants that I have yet to visit, and a separate list of
restaurants that I plan to re-visit. I also field a lot of requests for restaurant
recommendations in New Orleans. There are a few dozen restaurants that aren’t
on any to-do or re-visit list because they are places that I frequent on a
regular basis. The following is that list.
Author’s Note: Everyone has an
opinion on restaurants, and all restaurant opinions are 100% subjective. You have
yours. These are mine:
MY FAVORITE
BREAKFAST SPOT: LA BOULANGERIE, 4600 Magazine St— Most mornings I drive
from the Marigny to Uptown Magazine just west of Napoleon, because the croissants
are worth the drive.
Other
Breakfast Joints I Frequent: Toast, 5433 Laurel Street— I bounce
between the Uptown location and the one near the fairgrounds. Toast is 100%
local New Orleans in the morning.
Willa Jean, 611 O’Keefe Avenue—
A solid breakfast venue. Pre-Covid they made some wicked pecan sticky buns
every Sunday morning. I miss those.
MY
FAVORITE BRUNCH SPOT: PALADAR 511, 511 Marigny Street— This is the place
I eat brunch most often, and not just because it’s in our building. The huevos
rancheros and the lemon-ricotta blueberry pancakes are stellar. I can never
choose between the two, so I always order both.
Other
Brunches I Frequent: Justine, 225 Chartres St.— Justin Devillier’s
French Quarter spot, and the sister restaurant to La Petit Grocery, is fun,
lively, and all of the offerings are excellent.
Brennan’s,
417 Royal Street— Of the four old-line French Quarter institutions,
Galitoire’s, Arnaud’s Antoine’s, and Brennan’s, I eat at the latter most often.
Ralph Brennan did the city a huge favor when he took over the reins several
years back.
MY
FAVORITE DINNER SPOT: BRIGTSEN’S, 723 Dante St— This restaurant and this
chef have been at the top of my list for over three decades. Frank Brigtsen is
the heir apparent to his longtime mentor, Paul Prudhomme. The Butternut Shrimp
Bisque is one of the best soups I have ever tasted (second only to Paul Bocuse’s
mushroom soup in Lyon). The seafood platter often features Warren LeRuth’s
baked oyster recipe, and I could seriously make a meal of just the crawfish
cornbread, alone. Long live Frank Brigtsen.
Other dinner spots I frequent:
La Petit Grocery, 4238 Magazine St— The birthplace of the Blue Crab Beignet
Coquette, 2800 Magazine St— Solid offerings from a team with excellent “touch” who always seem to be working together as a team.
Lilette, 3637 Magazine St— Also a perfect spot for lunch.
Bywater American Bistro, 2900 Chartres St— Nina Compton runs my wife’s favorite New Orleans restaurant.
August, 301 Tchoupitoulas Street—
Probably still my favorite fine-dining spot in the city after all of these
years.
MY
FAVORITE STEAKHOUSE: DORIS METROPOLITAN, 620 Chartres St— Their aged
prime beef is excellent. My son loves this place.
Other steakhouses I frequent: Mr.
John’s Steakhouse 2111 St. Charles Avenue— It always feels very “Uptown
New Orleans” in that room, and the steaks are great, too.
MY
FAVORITE PO-BOY SHOP: DOMILISE’S, 5240 Annunciation Street— My go-to for
po-boys for over 30 years.
Other po-boy shops I frequent: Parkway Bakery and Tavern 538 Hagan Avenue— There’s always a line so schedule accordingly.
R&O
Restaurant and Catering, 216 Metairie-Hammond Highway— A great roast
beef po-boy, and excellent fried seafood.
MY
FAVORITE SANDWICH— THE SAM AT STEIN’S DELI, 2207 Magazine St— In years past
I have driven from Hattiesburg, ordered this sandwich, eaten it, and driven
home.
MY FAVORITE BLOCK FOR FOOD (*the three-fer)
The Italian Barrel, 1240 Decatur St— Solid Italian (my favorite in the city).
Dian Xin, 1218 Decatur St— Solid Chinese (my favorite in the city).
El Gato
Negro, 81 French Market Place— Solid Mexican (my favorite in the
city).
MY
FAVORITE PIZZA: PIZZA DELICIOUS, 617 Piety Street— Excellent pies.
MY
FAVORITE BURGER: COMPANY BURGER, 4600 Freret Street— Everything I want in
a burger joint.
(Note:
Those who wait in line at Port Of Call can get the same burger at Sung Harbor
without the wait)
MY
FAVORITE THAI RESTAURANT: SUKHO THAI, 2200 Royal St— My family eats a
fair amount of Thai food. This place is always spot on.
MY
FAVORITE OYSTER BAR: PASCAL’S MANALE, 1838 Napoleon Avenue— It’s an
old-school stand-up oyster bar. The oysters are always cold and salty. My son
and I go there for the raw oysters and typically eat dinner somewhere else.
Though he would probably tell you that Casamento’s is his favorite. Lately, the
four of us have been eating oysters at Cooter Brown’s at the Riverbend (oysters
always taste better in a dive bar).
MY
FAVORITE ATMOSPHERE: SEAWORTHY, 630 Carondelet Street— The designers did
such a great job on all aspects of this interior. I love it. Killer oyster
selection, too.
MY
OFF-THE-BEATEN-PATH FAVORITE: ROSEDALE, 801 Rosedale Drive— You have to
be going there to get there, but this Susan Spicer restaurant almost feels as
if it were 100% tailor made for me— very casual, comfortable, with great
service and excellent food. The barbeque shrimp served there should be the gold
standard for all others.
MY
FAVORITE TACOS: GALAXIE TACOS, 3060 St. Claude Avenue— the barbacoa
tacos here are spot on. The converted gas station vibe is perfect, and there’s
almost always a place to park on the neutral ground of St. Claude.
Other taco joints: Val’s, 4632 Freret—
there must be something about tacos served in a converted gas station that
appeals to me.
MY FAVORITE GUMBO: STATION 6, 105
Metairie-Hammond Highway— I have yet to finish a giant bowl of this gumbo
that always comes out piping hot and loaded with large shrimp and plenty of oysters
and crabmeat.
Other gumbos I like: Herbsaint, 701
St. Charles Avenue
MY FAVORITE SOUP: SHRIMP AND SQUASH BISQUE, BRIGTSEN’S, 723 Dante St— So good it’s worth mentioning twice in this list.
MY OFTEN-RECOMMENDED NOT-IN-ANOTHER-CATEGORY FAVORITES (the Link trifecta)
Herbsaint 701 St Charles Avenue
Cochon 930 Tchoupitoulas Street
Peche 800 Magazine Street
OTHER RANDOM FAVORITES
N7— cool outdoor area; Upperline— Joanne is the reigning grande dame of New Orleans’ dining rooms; Gris Gris— solid food, fun brunch; Horn’s— another great locals-only breakfast spot; Red’s Chinese— three words: kung pao pastrami; Gabrielle— glad they’re back; Saint Germain— the best fine dining meals I’ve eaten in New Orleans in years, those chefs have excellent “touch.” It’s a tough reservation to get. Partially because there are only 12 seats inside, but also because it is so good.
Check out Robert's seafood gumbo recipe.
22 comments:
Kingish, this is a great list. Thanks for posting.
Great. Now I have to drive to NOLA for lunch.
If BBQ is your thing….The Joint is the best there imo
Stanley has the best breakfast in the Quarter IMO
Cheapest best breakfast? Toulouse House Grocery
Best most entertaining Friday lunch is still galatoires and it’s back
Bookmark this one.
Dinner at Bistro Daisy in uptown last weekend was fabulous. The oyster appetizer for $10 was huge and amazing!
Willa Jean is amazing for breakfast and I highly recommend taking home as many baked good and pastries as you can for later.
Casementos is my families long time
Favorite for raw oysters, oyster or soft shell crab loaf and other goodies. Pro tip go to the bathroom so you can walk past the ancient small kitchen and see the huge pot of lard frying the seafood. Yum
When I was in grad school at Tulane ('65-'69), we students would often go to a neighborhood poboy place named Tujagues down near the river. Yes, there was a restaurant in the Quarter with the same name, but no connection otherwise. As you entered, there was a counter to the right with three women side by side making sandwiches. The place was small, with maybe half a dozen tables. They only served Pepsi, and the women were not inclined to smile or chat. Some wiseass who looks a lot like me decided to order an "erster" poboy. "What?" "Erster." "What?" "Oyster." "Oh, erster."
Years later I'm living here, and I keep hearing about the best poboy place in New Orleans being "Domilise's." "That's where the Mannings eat," etc. So three or so years ago, Betty and I are in N.O., and manage to find Domilise's, on Annunciation. Yes, the name had changed, but the place was the same: same counter, three women behind it, same small space. I got a beer but I should have got a Pepsi. The erster poboy was still wonderful.
we now have The Lost Cajunin Pearl so I don’t even see the point of ever returning to that steaming septic tank called New Orleans.
I can’t wait to enjoy some NOLA food, again.
It’s been awhile. I was just talking about how good the food—some believe the seasoning to make the biggest difference. I believe it’s the seasoning and the waters.
Just a bad look for a man who was all over the media saying he didn't have any money, going and eating high on the hog, opening new restaurants in Hattiesburg and now Jackson. Will the King post this criticism of his boy Robert.
What would be a reliable source for “gumbo crabs” in the Jackson area?
@5:09
Obviously he got his business stimulus. I myself applied for everything my business could get both times. Didn’t you?
@5:48 - Try Mr. Chen's Oriental Market for fresh seafood. It's much fresher than any of that frozen and thawed seafood on display at Whole Foods.
When I was in grad school at Tulane in the early 1980's, the best muffaletta was at Acey's Pool Hall, Garden District. Mothers made good po'boys.
I'd love to save Robert's list of restaurants. I guess I'll have to take a screen shot because I don't see any way to do that on this website. I'm surprised that Commander's Palace didn't make Robert's list. I've always liked it better than Brennan's.
5:48 Duggan's Seafood has them from time to time, or you can call early in the week and order ahead.
New Orleans is my favorite restaurant - Dirty Coast
While they did not make St. John's list, you can never go wrong with Galatoire's, Mandina's, Ye Olde College Inn, and the Camelia Grill. The P&G Restaurant is a great place for a casual lunch; it's not upscale or trendy, but the food is excellent.
How can Clancy’s not make this list ... You can skip Herbsaint - was there two weeks ago - meh....
I agree with you about Herbsaint, 9:08. Both the armosphere and the food left us rather cold. He is right about Brigtsen’s, though. I could live at that place, if they had someplace I could sleep!
One we find ourselves returning to regularly is the Palace Cafe’ on Canal. It’s another of the Brennan iterations. If there is a tastier starter than their crabmeat cheesecake with meuniere sauce, I have not found it.
During the 1980's nothing was better than NOLA Takee Outee.
(Best food one could find at
4 AM.)
Galitoire’s, Arnaud’s Antoine’s, and Brennan’s, could never replicate the deep fried (cat on a stick)
as did Takee Outee.
No mention of Lucky Dog ????
Pascal Manales has the best bbq shrimp poboy! Every time we are in New Orleans, we go uptown for the bbq shrimp poboy. By the way, Robert and I were in college together at Miss State.
Good Luck Robert!
Duff Lindsay
The Woodlands, Texas
Post a Comment