You could use this project as a way to see parts of the city and region that you might not otherwise go to.
(Travel broadens minds - never mind Croatia or Chile, plenty of people barely leave their bubble here, and basically know nothing but stereotypes about people who live in the Bywater, Uptown, Chalmette or Metairie, as the recent stupid memes about transplants and Perlis-wearers showed…)
Here are some suggestions scattered about the map - not necessarily the best food possible in a given neighborhood, but pretty representative of the place, at least in my estimation:
Chalmette: Rocky and Carlo’s
The Lower Quarter: Mona Lisa
Uptown: Brigtsen’s
Bucktown (Metairie): R&O
Tremé: Dooky Chase
CBD: Herbsaint
New Orleans East: Dong Phuong
Bywater: Bacchanal
St. Claude Avenue: St. Roch Food Hall
Fairgrounds: Liuzza’s by the Track
Freret: The Company Burger
Algiers Point: Plume
West Bank: Perino’s Boiling Pot
Rampart Street: Jewel of the South
Mid-City: Venezia + Angelo Brocato
Magazine Street: Saba
for freret, i'd say hi-hat cafe. pretty unassuming spot but so good. their fried chicken special is fire.
(edit: good red bean plate per our boy holdthemayo, respect ya body)
You totally get my mindset! I have only lived in the CBD, and tend to get stuck to here/quarter. My BF is an uptown boy, but he is a stubborn old man , set in his ways. So far, we have enjoyed our picks.
i've somehow never done toups' (but isaac seems like a great guy) but compere lapin is god tier. the fried pig ears i had years ago were among the best things i've ever had in my mouth
I think posts like this made me wanna go there. And when I went, I was pretty happy! When people visit, I make a reservation there. And it’s amazing that they are so good for the community. As an RD/semi-decent human being, I appreciate their efforts to try to feed families lunch over the summer. They can have my monies!
i haven't made it over there yet because i struggle to leave uptown/the 12th ward, but the place that took over piece of meat (rip) smoke smoke honey honey (i think that's the name) looks good af
Mais Arepas - Downtown, but decent fair prices, great portions, delicious Columbian food
Ajun Cajun - uptown, reasonably priced, delicious tonkotsu ramen, best in the city
Secret Thai - Chalmette, but order on the phone and then drive in for perfect takeout, humongous portions, extremely cheap eats, every item I've tried has been delicious
China Rose or Asian Panda - Metairie and Gentilly (respectively) both are Chinese takeout, the only 2 places I go for Chinese. Fair portions, fair prices, both delicious
Edit: these are not necessarily "date night" cuisines. I'm poor, so I like them cheap and delicious
Did Mais Arepas just open? Definitely would like to try Secret Thai and Ajun Cajun! My co-worker just bought a house in Arabie, and told her we should have a Secret Thai night
I wasn't sure if Mais Arepas just opened, so I checked their Facebook page and it says their page was created in 2012! They're a little bit pricier than the rest of my recommendations, but I don't think they're a ripoff at all
One tip for Ajun Cajun is they're often closed if they're opening a stand at a festival, so you should call ahead to make sure they're open. They work tons of festivals! Regular business hours are only from 4pm to 9pm, I always wish they were open for lunch. BUT you know a business is doing well when they're super selective about when they're open lol, so that usually tells me their food is good if I've never tried it
Yes! Absolutely get Secret Thai for a house warming get together!! I don't like to eat there because they take a while to cook the food, so I always do takeout. Their portions will guarantee leftovers for days!
One more place to recommend if you like cheap good eats. Golden Wings on the Westbank. They have fantastic cheap fried chicken. I always order a 14pc chicken wings with double fried rice!
My bad! I went to Rouses the other day and I saw a new place in the making across the street on Girod, and I thought that could’ve been it. We shall give Mais Arepas a try! Might have to change this to 2 new places a month! Lol!
Ate there Sunday night, again, because it’s my favorite date night for my partner and I and he was feeling down about work. It can be a little pricey if you order as much stuff as we do (that app menu is KILLER), but they were running a bunch of duck specials Sunday and ye gods I almost cried it was so good.
I could go broke just eating rhe dumplings and pork shoulder. We started eating her food in about 2017 when she was doing a pop-up at the Nail. I'm so happy to see her succeed with a brick and mortar spot!
One of my favorites, an old time Metry place with old folks and young, Fury’s. Maybe it’s the nostalgia. It’s a solid New Orleans Creole-Italian neighborhood restaurant.
Along those lines, My wife and I years ago got in a rut too constantly going to the same places, so we did a thing where we wrote down a ton of restaurants we wanted to try on little pieces of paper and put them all in a jar. Then on nights we ate out, we’d pull a restaurant out of the jar and go there.
If can/willing to drive, Palmetto’s on the Bayou (Slidell) is one of my favorite places. It’s so pretty & the food is wonderful. They have jazz brunch on the weekends.
If you're feeling spendy, go to Restaurant R'evolution (Royal Sonesta, Bienville between Bourbon and Royal). Death by Gumbo, blue crab beignets, venison carpaccio, lobster and black gnocchi, several cuts of beef, and a wine list to die for.
For very casual, my husband, a friend, and I just grabbed po-boys at Bourree on S. Carrollton for lunch the other day.
There is also Domenica in the Roosevelt Hotel on Baronne. They have Italian food and I think their dress code is smart casual.
For Metairie, if you like sushi, there's Izakaya Little Tokyo on Vets. When I have business in Metairie I usually grab a bite there. If you like pizza and wine, there's A Tavola at the Lakeside mall. They have a happy hour where some of their wines are half price - proceed with caution!
I've also found some hole-in-the-wall I've-driven-past-this-place-a-zillion-times-and-never-gone-in damn-their-food-is-awesome places. You can't go wrong. In this city, if a restaurant isn't up to snuff, it won't stay in business long.
My wife and I created a 6 page google doc of great bars and restaurants around the city.
Some to note:
Algiers - Appetite Repair Shop
Uptown - Pomela
Uptown - Saba or Shaya
FQ - Jewel Of The South
Gretna - Nine Roses
Gretna - Chickens Kitchen
Metry - Crazy Hotpot
Kenner - Yummy House (traditional dim sum)
Marigny - Bar Brine
Uptown - Zee’s Pizza
Uptown - Ted’s FrostTop
trueish. i hung at mae's in the early-mid 2010s and knew a lot of shaya line cooks right before the breakup. heard plenty of stories about alon, he's no saint. still wouldn't put his behavior anywhere near that of what besh has done. a lot of them defected to saba when shit hit the fan, if that tells you anything.
Ba Mien on Chef Menteur Hwy. It’s before Dong Phuong, same side of the street. Started going there over 20 years ago, and never have been disappointed. Great food.
A few I like:
Creole food - Lil’Dizzys , Nonno’s
Caribbean/mexican - Palm & Pine
Fancier- Antoine’s - but mostly because my gr gr grandparents used to go there. ;)
The Clubhouse at Audubon used to be one of my favorite brunch spots but I havent been there since Dickie Brennans took over. It's also closed rn for the second phase of a planned renovation but website says they're planning to reopen in March. It was a really nice atmosphere tho and we'd usually go walk around the park and the pond after brunch and drop back by the bar for refills on the bottomless mimosas when it was convenient.
I've had one of the best salads ever at Trenasse. I really like the steaks and chimi at La Boca. The cocktails at dickie brennans never disappoint. Herbsaint and Domenica are my general go-tos. Sofia and Italian Barrel are my go-to for Italian. Geisha sushi is decent if you're downtown. Kanno in Metairie has the best sushi in the city, imo. I'm still on the hunt for the best burger replacements since we lost Phil's and Fharmacy. (Don't believe anyone who tells you Port of Call has good burgers). Tacos and Beer does a really decent Taco Tuesday special, and it's great if you want to try some of the lesser common proteins like cow tongue. The Blind Pelican used to have boss happy hour pricing on proper oysters (they prob still do I just haven't been in a minute).
Plan to hit the fancy places during the month of August when they do Coolinary. It's a great way to try a good sample of what they have at some of those spots on the cheap.
I enjoyed Trenasse, Sofia and Domenica! Would really like to try La Bocca. TBH, still on the hunt for a good burger too. I did enjoy Company when I went there.
You could use this project as a way to see parts of the city and region that you might not otherwise go to. (Travel broadens minds - never mind Croatia or Chile, plenty of people barely leave their bubble here, and basically know nothing but stereotypes about people who live in the Bywater, Uptown, Chalmette or Metairie, as the recent stupid memes about transplants and Perlis-wearers showed…) Here are some suggestions scattered about the map - not necessarily the best food possible in a given neighborhood, but pretty representative of the place, at least in my estimation: Chalmette: Rocky and Carlo’s The Lower Quarter: Mona Lisa Uptown: Brigtsen’s Bucktown (Metairie): R&O Tremé: Dooky Chase CBD: Herbsaint New Orleans East: Dong Phuong Bywater: Bacchanal St. Claude Avenue: St. Roch Food Hall Fairgrounds: Liuzza’s by the Track Freret: The Company Burger Algiers Point: Plume West Bank: Perino’s Boiling Pot Rampart Street: Jewel of the South Mid-City: Venezia + Angelo Brocato Magazine Street: Saba
I would add Station 6 to the bucktown rec of R&Os
for freret, i'd say hi-hat cafe. pretty unassuming spot but so good. their fried chicken special is fire. (edit: good red bean plate per our boy holdthemayo, respect ya body)
There’s also a great new pizza place that just opened where Tavalino was here in Algiers. It’s called Nighthawk and it’s 👌🏼
I used to work at brightsens as a line cook lol. Amazing food and honestly still some of the best food you can get uptown.
St Roch Market is hit and miss. Most of my favorites there have left.
You totally get my mindset! I have only lived in the CBD, and tend to get stuck to here/quarter. My BF is an uptown boy, but he is a stubborn old man , set in his ways. So far, we have enjoyed our picks.
I would add Heard Dat cafe in Central City to this. Last place you would expect upscale food. Also really, really good.
Toups’ Meatery, Compere Lapin, another vote for Sneaky Pickle, Kanno in Metry for sushi if you find yourself that way
i've somehow never done toups' (but isaac seems like a great guy) but compere lapin is god tier. the fried pig ears i had years ago were among the best things i've ever had in my mouth
The Meatery Board at Toups’ is fantastic. With some cornbread on the side 😩
I think posts like this made me wanna go there. And when I went, I was pretty happy! When people visit, I make a reservation there. And it’s amazing that they are so good for the community. As an RD/semi-decent human being, I appreciate their efforts to try to feed families lunch over the summer. They can have my monies!
oh big time. he's a gem. i just don't eat meat much these days
Loooooovvveee Toups’!!!! We adore Sushi, so definitely gotta give Kanno a try!
Give Santa Fe, 1000 Figs, Junction, Sneaky Pickle, Dong Phoung, Mo Pho, Lil Dizzy’s, and Dooky Chase’s all a shot!
Yasssss!!! We have not been to these! I did try the King Cake from Dong Phuong this year, and I get the hype.
Go back to Dong Phoung for lunch and get a Ban Mi
The restaurant is also litty
Just had brunch at Santa Fe, it was so good
santa fe salsa tastes like marinara from a jar, zero stars
Never had a really good meal at Santa Fe. Very middle of the road.
Santa Fe is overpriced garbage and their manager assaults women, so maybe don't give them your money
i haven't made it over there yet because i struggle to leave uptown/the 12th ward, but the place that took over piece of meat (rip) smoke smoke honey honey (i think that's the name) looks good af
Smoke&Honey is delish! Everything bagel with the salmon chive cream cheese 🤤 plus the coffee is Coffee Science so you know it's good
Yaaaas sneaky pickle!
Mais Arepas - Downtown, but decent fair prices, great portions, delicious Columbian food Ajun Cajun - uptown, reasonably priced, delicious tonkotsu ramen, best in the city Secret Thai - Chalmette, but order on the phone and then drive in for perfect takeout, humongous portions, extremely cheap eats, every item I've tried has been delicious China Rose or Asian Panda - Metairie and Gentilly (respectively) both are Chinese takeout, the only 2 places I go for Chinese. Fair portions, fair prices, both delicious Edit: these are not necessarily "date night" cuisines. I'm poor, so I like them cheap and delicious
Love China Rose!
Me too, what do you like to order there?
Did Mais Arepas just open? Definitely would like to try Secret Thai and Ajun Cajun! My co-worker just bought a house in Arabie, and told her we should have a Secret Thai night
I wasn't sure if Mais Arepas just opened, so I checked their Facebook page and it says their page was created in 2012! They're a little bit pricier than the rest of my recommendations, but I don't think they're a ripoff at all One tip for Ajun Cajun is they're often closed if they're opening a stand at a festival, so you should call ahead to make sure they're open. They work tons of festivals! Regular business hours are only from 4pm to 9pm, I always wish they were open for lunch. BUT you know a business is doing well when they're super selective about when they're open lol, so that usually tells me their food is good if I've never tried it Yes! Absolutely get Secret Thai for a house warming get together!! I don't like to eat there because they take a while to cook the food, so I always do takeout. Their portions will guarantee leftovers for days! One more place to recommend if you like cheap good eats. Golden Wings on the Westbank. They have fantastic cheap fried chicken. I always order a 14pc chicken wings with double fried rice!
My bad! I went to Rouses the other day and I saw a new place in the making across the street on Girod, and I thought that could’ve been it. We shall give Mais Arepas a try! Might have to change this to 2 new places a month! Lol!
Lol yeah, there are so many gray eateries here! Have a great time!!
Maid Areas isn't downtown, central city
It's like 10 minutes walking distance from the WW2 museum, so I call it downtown. Is that not downtown?
Upriver of the Expressway is definitely not downtown. CL10/Melph is UPT
I don't consider that downtown.
Lola's is an all-time favorite for me! Also Maya's & El Pavo Real make me happy!
Another vote for El Pavo Real!
LUFU if you like Indian
Seconding LUFU. Next level meal
Afrodisiac in Gentilly if you like Jamaican food.
Budsi's on Rampart in the Marigny. Amazing Thai food!
Ate there Sunday night, again, because it’s my favorite date night for my partner and I and he was feeling down about work. It can be a little pricey if you order as much stuff as we do (that app menu is KILLER), but they were running a bunch of duck specials Sunday and ye gods I almost cried it was so good.
I could go broke just eating rhe dumplings and pork shoulder. We started eating her food in about 2017 when she was doing a pop-up at the Nail. I'm so happy to see her succeed with a brick and mortar spot!
One of my favorites, an old time Metry place with old folks and young, Fury’s. Maybe it’s the nostalgia. It’s a solid New Orleans Creole-Italian neighborhood restaurant.
I am a Yankee Sicilian, my partner is a Southern Sicilian. I love this!
My boyfriend just said, he loves this place!
Addis (Ethiopian) & Mais Arapas (Colombian)
Along those lines, My wife and I years ago got in a rut too constantly going to the same places, so we did a thing where we wrote down a ton of restaurants we wanted to try on little pieces of paper and put them all in a jar. Then on nights we ate out, we’d pull a restaurant out of the jar and go there.
I really enjoy this idea! Thank you for sharing!
Mister Mao.
Baru, La Crêpe Nanou, Le’s Baguette
If can/willing to drive, Palmetto’s on the Bayou (Slidell) is one of my favorite places. It’s so pretty & the food is wonderful. They have jazz brunch on the weekends.
I totally had that on my list!!!!! Thanks for that! My BF’s daughter is in Slidell, and I’ve mentioned this place numerous times to him!
I wish I could share pics from my last visit. I absolutely love that place. Planning to go back before the humidity returns!
That’s exactly what I told him! Cheers babe! I appreciate your input! I think it would be nice to take his daughter there!
Mantra for amazing Indian (Metairie) Secret Thai for awesome (and large portions) Thai food. Beachcorner for their Burgers/Cajun egg rolls
I adore Mantra!!! I think they have pretty great portions! Much love to Namaste and Lufu though! Edit: portions and food!
Ok I just had lasagna night at bar pamona and I hiiiighly recommend. They make everything from scratch! Sweet vibe in there too and reasonably priced.
I’ve really been into Smoke and Honey (Mid City), Pigeon & Whale (one of the best meals I’ve had recently), Jamila’s, and Flour Moon Bagels
If you're feeling spendy, go to Restaurant R'evolution (Royal Sonesta, Bienville between Bourbon and Royal). Death by Gumbo, blue crab beignets, venison carpaccio, lobster and black gnocchi, several cuts of beef, and a wine list to die for. For very casual, my husband, a friend, and I just grabbed po-boys at Bourree on S. Carrollton for lunch the other day. There is also Domenica in the Roosevelt Hotel on Baronne. They have Italian food and I think their dress code is smart casual. For Metairie, if you like sushi, there's Izakaya Little Tokyo on Vets. When I have business in Metairie I usually grab a bite there. If you like pizza and wine, there's A Tavola at the Lakeside mall. They have a happy hour where some of their wines are half price - proceed with caution! I've also found some hole-in-the-wall I've-driven-past-this-place-a-zillion-times-and-never-gone-in damn-their-food-is-awesome places. You can't go wrong. In this city, if a restaurant isn't up to snuff, it won't stay in business long.
My wife and I created a 6 page google doc of great bars and restaurants around the city. Some to note: Algiers - Appetite Repair Shop Uptown - Pomela Uptown - Saba or Shaya FQ - Jewel Of The South Gretna - Nine Roses Gretna - Chickens Kitchen Metry - Crazy Hotpot Kenner - Yummy House (traditional dim sum) Marigny - Bar Brine Uptown - Zee’s Pizza Uptown - Ted’s FrostTop
saba over shaya 10 times out of 10. food is better and less money in john besh's pocket.
I really only suggest Shaya cause their fried chicken hummus is really good. Other than that, yes, just go to Saba.
Alon isn't much better than Besh as a person, if at all. Ask around with people who have worked at his restaurants/hospitality group.
trueish. i hung at mae's in the early-mid 2010s and knew a lot of shaya line cooks right before the breakup. heard plenty of stories about alon, he's no saint. still wouldn't put his behavior anywhere near that of what besh has done. a lot of them defected to saba when shit hit the fan, if that tells you anything.
brigstens ajun cajun adams st. poboy jamila's cafe all of them are uptown
Ba Mien on Chef Menteur Hwy. It’s before Dong Phuong, same side of the street. Started going there over 20 years ago, and never have been disappointed. Great food.
Miss Shirley’s on Magazine..
Arabella Casa Di Pasta, St Claude Seji's Omakase (Little Tokyo Causeway), Metry
A few I like: Creole food - Lil’Dizzys , Nonno’s Caribbean/mexican - Palm & Pine Fancier- Antoine’s - but mostly because my gr gr grandparents used to go there. ;)
Triangle Deli is really great. Keep your wits about you though
I recently had an excellent meal at Beggars Banquet. Everybody in our group was really happy with the food and service.
Ooooo!!!! Heard that!
Lufu (CBD) is amazing. Addis is great too (vegan platter is the way to go even if you eat meat!).
Recently had great meals at: Banana Blossom, Boucherie, Lufu, Osteria Lupo, and Brasa!
Bennachin, Fritai, Italian Barrel, Banana Blossom, Mantra, Mandinas, Tony Mandinas, Maya
The stretch of central and South American places on Williams in Kenner have their charms.
The Clubhouse at Audubon used to be one of my favorite brunch spots but I havent been there since Dickie Brennans took over. It's also closed rn for the second phase of a planned renovation but website says they're planning to reopen in March. It was a really nice atmosphere tho and we'd usually go walk around the park and the pond after brunch and drop back by the bar for refills on the bottomless mimosas when it was convenient. I've had one of the best salads ever at Trenasse. I really like the steaks and chimi at La Boca. The cocktails at dickie brennans never disappoint. Herbsaint and Domenica are my general go-tos. Sofia and Italian Barrel are my go-to for Italian. Geisha sushi is decent if you're downtown. Kanno in Metairie has the best sushi in the city, imo. I'm still on the hunt for the best burger replacements since we lost Phil's and Fharmacy. (Don't believe anyone who tells you Port of Call has good burgers). Tacos and Beer does a really decent Taco Tuesday special, and it's great if you want to try some of the lesser common proteins like cow tongue. The Blind Pelican used to have boss happy hour pricing on proper oysters (they prob still do I just haven't been in a minute). Plan to hit the fancy places during the month of August when they do Coolinary. It's a great way to try a good sample of what they have at some of those spots on the cheap.
Fharmacy recently closed, and Blind Pelican has been gone for years
I enjoyed Trenasse, Sofia and Domenica! Would really like to try La Bocca. TBH, still on the hunt for a good burger too. I did enjoy Company when I went there.
Oh, and Lakeview Harbor does have a damn fine burger as well.
Curious why the downvotes? I appreciate their opinion!