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Acme Oyster and Seafood House
Out-of-towners and locals alike flock to this old-school oyster bar. Its reputation for shucking the city's best oysters, along with its seafood gumbo and po'boys, has endured since 1910. Take a seat at the mirrored bar and be mesmerized by the shuckers.
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Angeli on Decatur
Angeli is a genuinely fun spot that stays open late. Pizzas, calzones, sandwiches, pita rolls and burgers sum up the straightforward menu. The real draw is the live music sets by solid outfits like the New Orleans Jazz Vipers - the early sets are a good way to launch your evening. It's situated towards the lower end of Decatur, near several other bars.
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Antoine's
New Orleans' oldest restaurant, having first opened for business in 1840. The dated atmosphere of its dining rooms might be just the ticket for a formal family gathering, particularly if older folks are involved. Dining here is certainly of historical interest, but in general the food here fails to thrill the senses and contemporary palates might find the meat and fish dishes overburdened by staid sauces. Even the oysters Rockefeller, Antoine's own invention, lacks spirit.
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Bank Cafe
Beautiful spaces such as this, with high ceilings, warm lighting and an impeccable Art Deco bar, create a sense of anticipation. It's in a former bank, and has preserved the grandeur and dispensed with the stodginess. The menu follows through wonderfully. It's Louisiana cooking with unintrusive updates. Fresh vegetables, while perhaps not exactly qualifying as innovations, are welcomed for their snap and color.
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Bayona
Bayona is in a converted Creole cottage, with former parlours serving as homely dining rooms. There's also al fresco dining on the back patio when weather permits. Chef Susan Spicer's menu pulls together local, European and Japanese concepts without muddying the waters. The wine list is extensive and the homemade ice cream is superb. Reservations essential.
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Bon Ton Café
Bon Ton is a good-time, old-style Cajun restaurant, open for half a century. The dining room looks like a pizza parlor, but folks show up dressed to the nines. This is Cajun food from before Paul Prudhomme came along. Spices are used in tasteful moderation in gumbo, jambalaya and shrimp étouffée. Crawfish show up in so many dishes, it's a wonder they haven't joined Louisiana redfish on the endangered species list. Don't pass on the rum-soaked bread pudding. And - what the hey? - Bon Ton is closed on weekends.
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Brigtsen's Restaurant
Despite all the critical acclaim that has been heaped upon chef Frank Brigtsen, Brigtsen's remains a decidedly unpretentious place. Set in a converted double-shotgun house, the restaurant feels homey and inviting. Service is attentive but never oppressive. Brigtsen terms his cooking 'modern Louisiana cuisine,' and those in search of haute Cajun cuisine will not find a better restaurant in the city.
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Café du Monde
Delectable deep-fried, powdered sugar-coated beignets paired with piping hot chicory café au lait are sure to cure almost any overindulgence. Eat in or take your treats to the levee Moonwalk overlooking the river.
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Café Maspero
Maspero's is another New Orleans restaurant that oozes atmosphere without trying very hard. Its smoky, brick arches make its street-level eating rooms feel underground. Its large menu touches all the bases of cheap local cuisine: fried catfish sandwiches, red beans and rice, cold Abita on tap delivered to your table by an alert waitstaff.
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Café Sbisa
A Vieux Carré institution (since 1899), Café Sbisa remained closed for nine months after Hurricane Katrina damaged its facade. Nice to see this one come back. It has a reputation for innovative regional cuisine. Tasteful restoration of the ancient building, with exposed brick and strikingly decadent art above the long bar, helps make this one of New Orleans' most stylish dining rooms, while New American touches spruce up a solid menu, which includes speckled trout, bouillabaise and huge steaks and chops.
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Camellia Grill
Hurricane Katrina imposed an extended hiatus on this New Orleans classic, most likely due to the exodus of the staff. Here's hoping it's back up and running in the very near future. The Camellia's popularity hasn't wavered since it opened in 1946. Its secret? It simply refuses to change. Well-made American short-order fare (the burgers and omelettes stand out) is served by some of the city's snazziest (in black bow ties) and most entertaining waiters. That this is the South, there is no doubt.
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Clover Grill
Compact and tidy, this '50s-style diner slangs the hash all night long. If you order a burger, the tatooed chef will cook it up under a hubcap.
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Commander's Palace
One of New Orleans' grande dames, Commander's is a formal but friendly mainstay of impeccable Creole cooking and knowledgeable, friendly service. In the heart of the gorgeous Garden District, pop in for the lunchtime 25¢ martinis and a cup of their signature turtle soup (around US$7 ), or a prix fixe extravaganza (around US$30 Post-Katrina renovations turned the formerly elegant dining room into an odd aviary. No shorts allowed.
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Coop's Place
Coop's is a darkly lit cavern put together like a maze to befuddle inebriated patrons. But Coop's has acquired a well-worn appeal and a loyal clientele. The huge chalkboard menu includes jambalaya with rabbit meat (an authentic, rural touch), hot links over a mess of red beans and rice, and Louisiana nibbles like fried alligator bits.
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Court of Two Sisters
Brunch in the famous courtyard here is fine on a bright Sunday morning. It's a circus of Creole omelettes, Cajun pasta salads, grillades, grits, fresh fruits, carved meats and fruity cocktails. The al fresco ambience is wonderful, but when it rains, patrons are seated in one of several slightly faded (some actually drab) indoor dining rooms. The regrettably lackluster dinners cover all the traditional Creole standards. Ask for what's fresh and opt for the simplest preparation available.
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Dick & Jenny's
Just up the street from Tipitina's, this quaint clapboard restaurant specializes in inventive, seasonal dishes like seared sea scallops and gulf shrimp with sun-dried tomato and goat-cheese polenta and saffron chardonnay butter - at a reasonable price. Though popular, no reservations are allowed, so be prepared to sip an excellent cocktail in the courtyard as you wait for your table. They always have a vegetarian option.
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Domilise's Po-Boys
On a quiet corner near the river, where scattered white shells stand in for sidewalks, this bustling little shack churns out some of the city's best-loved sandwiches. The huge fryer announces a readiness to dunk a basket of shrimp or catfish to order. Watch 'em sizzle, or turn around and, lo and behold, there's a little bar in the next room where a friendly old gent draws frosty mugs of draught Dixie. It's drinkable when served this cold. All in all, a most gratifying experience. Cash only.
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Elizabeth's
Bywater's hottest ticket is this welcoming spot facing the levee. It has been one of the city's favorite down-home lunch destinations since it opened in 1998, and regular customers still flock here for some of the the biggest po'boys around and for heaping plate lunches of barbecue beef and pork, meat loaf, baked chicken.
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Frankie & Johnny's
Down by the river you'll find this friendly neighborhood bar and restaurant. The joint really drives home the fact that you're in southern Louisiana. Come with a large group and expect to enjoy yourselves. In the spring, when crawfish are in season, order a platter of the boiled critters and a round of beers for your party. You can also choose starters like alligator pie and turtle soup, and mains like fried fish.
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Gabrielle
At this writing, Gabrielle's original location on Esplanade Ave was closed after Hurricane Katrina, and owner-chef Greg Sonnier had announced plans to relocate to this historic social hall near Audubon Park. It's a relief to know one of the city's best restaurants hasn't become a Katrina casualty. Sonnier captures the attention of both locals and a national audience with his innovative Creole and Cajun dishes.
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Galatoire's
A revered institution where the regulars are treated regally and tourists are sometimes dished out surprisingly average food. Local devotees so love this New Orleans establishment that to die here over a plate of, say, grilled pompano with almonds is considered a belle mort, or good death. (Fortunately, this doesn't happen very often.) The building has housed a restaurant since 1830 (it was called Victor's before Jean Galatoire bought it in 1905), and history is palpable in the main dining room.
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Gumbo Shop
Despite its tourist trap status, the Gumbo Shop is a decent fall-back where you can order passable regional classics - seafood gumbo, jambalaya and the like. It's a nice, open room with elegant frescoes of old New Orleans scenes. Out-of-towners eat here in astonishing numbers, and most of them seem to be satisfied.
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Johnny's Po-Boys
Well-worn and often crowded, Johnny's delivers superb stuffed po'boys. The fried oyster number (lightly breaded in cornmeal) recruits devotees. No credit cards.
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K-Paul's Louisiana Kitchen
Paul Prudhomme single-handedly popularized Cajun cooking in this welcoming bricked bistro. The chefs use the very best ingredients and a loving attention to detail in preparing quintessential dishes like jambalaya and blackened gulf fish, and the knowledgeable waiters bring it out with a smile.
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La Peniché
In the lazy twilight hour, La Peniché qualifies as an unassuming corner restaurant, a few blocks from the Frenchmen St scene. But it's open 24 hours, and it tends to get interesting later on when nightowls, clubhoppers, drag queens and insomniacs file through its doors. Surly waiters serve seafood platters, fried chicken, steaks, chops and po'boys - none of it exceptional, all of it reasonably priced.
