Creole restaurants in New Orleans
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Dick & Jenny’s
You could easily accuse New Orleans of doing the contemporary Creole thing to death, but Dick and Jenny (a real couple) have breathed life into this overdone genre. Hidden away in what looks like grandma’s shack by the river is a warm dining room packed with artsy accents, laughing locals, families out for a good night and couples on romantic dates. The food is a good example of what can be done when a profound respect for local ingredients meets a talent that goes beyond craft into art; the last time we visited, a roasted duck seemed to melt off the plate onto a bed of pecan risotto. We wanted to sleep a happy nap right there and then, and that’s the essence of D&J’s –…
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Café Adelaide
The Brennan family tribute to their endearingly eccentric aunt Adelaide is as funky as you like; try dining in the ‘Turtle Room, ’ where two shelled lovers dance a reptilian pas de deux on the wall. The motto here is the namesake’s own: ‘Eat, drink and carry on, ’ a philosophy realized by haute Creole cuisine cooked, apparently, by a pleasantly insane jester. Examples? Steak with brie mashed potatoes, a truffled crab-claw ‘cake’ and a brilliant take on biscuits and gravy, where the ‘biscuit’ is duck cracklin’ and confit, and the ‘gravy’ is foie gras mustard. It’s all as good as it sounds, and the attached Swizzle Stick is one of downtown’s better…
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Muriel’s
Good food, sultry atmosphere and location, location, location make Muriel’s hard to pass up. You have your choice of settings: the main dining room evokes the lurid pomp of Storyville, with deep-red walls and chandeliers; in the eclectic bistro, 19th-century art hangs from exposed brick walls; the courtyard bar exemplifies traditional tropical decadence with potted palms and marble-topped cafe tables; while the balcony seating affords an elevated view of Jackson Sq’s motley krewe of musicians, magicians, painters and tarot readers. The kitchen tinkers with the Creole ethos enough to steer clear of stodginess without alienating the average patron. It’s also a good spot for…
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Olivier’s
Olivier’s is run by an African American–Creole family that’s been in the restaurant business for five generations, passing down and refining recipes over the decades. That should make for some of the best Creole dining in town, but we’ve found the food can be hit or miss, although when it does hit, it’s great stuff. Go for the gumbo sampler to get an education in local cuisine before digging into specialties such as Creole rabbit, crab cakes and broiled catfish. Save room for bourbon-pecan pie.
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Restaurant August
August’s converted 19th-century tobacco warehouse gets the nod for most aristocratic dining room in New Orleans. Candles flicker soft, warm shades over a meal that will, quite likely, blow your mind. Pied du cochon (stuffed pig trotters) with black truffles, pork belly stuffed with crawfish and blood oranges, and a 10-course, three-hour degustation (tasting) menu that local foodies weep over mean this book’s contents are actually more beautiful than its substantially attractive cover.
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Domilise's Po-Boys
A dilapidated white shack by the river serving Dixie beer (brewed in Wisconsin!), staffed by folks who've worked here for decades and dressing one of the most legendary po' boys (trad-itional Louisiana submarine sandwich) in the city. It's cash only and prepare to hurry up and wait on weekends.
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Antoine’s
A California native once commented to us, regarding the tuxedo-ed formal service staff at Antoine’s, ‘What’s with the waiters here? Dude, you’re just a waiter.’ To which we say: have some respect for history. Antoine’s is the oldest of old-line New Orleans restaurants, and the oldest family restaurant in America (established 1840). Kitchen and floor jobs are held for decades and passed down between family members, which is practically unheard of in this country. ‘Class’ is an understated description of the atmosphere, where the rooms all look like first-class lounges on the Orient Express and are named for Mardi Gras krewes. That said, the food is…
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Galatoire’s
We’re in a bit of a pickle here. We want to tell you the best time to come to this revered institution, whose interior resembles a debutante’s ball, is Friday lunch. That’s when a brand of New Orleanian you may not have known existed – ladies in big hats and gloves and men with names like ‘Chet’ – buys copious bottles of champagne, gossips to high hell, gets called honey or darlin’ or just their first name by the waiters, and generally lives life in an unapologetic aristocratic rhythm. But if you arrive at this time you may not get a table and will probably feel like an outsider, so maybe you should come some other time, when Galatoire’s feels like all outsiders.…
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Brennan’s Restaurant
Brennan’s is many things: upscale Creole, French Quarter cornerstone, yada, yada, yada. But mainly, we give it credit for reinventing the concept of ‘poached eggs on bread with hollandaise.’ In its quest to create the city’s most extravagant breakfast, there’s a dozen variations on the above eggs on offer – with andouille, wine sauce, trout, you name it. You’ll have your not-so petit déjeuner in one of the restaurant’s 12 elegant dining rooms or its lovely courtyard, and if you’re big enough, you’ll start the day with an ‘eye-opener’ (if you can imagine downing a Sazerac before breakfast). Bananas Foster is the recommended dessert, as it’s a Brennan’s…
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Tujague’s
Tujague’s has been holding down its corner since 1856, making it the second-oldest eatery in New Orleans. Dinner is a traditional six-course affair that highlights the joint’s signature items: a piquant shrimp rémoulade and tender beef brisket with a simple Creole sauce for dipping. Diners can select from four mains based on choice offerings from the butcher and the fishmonger. Sometimes this set meal is fantastic, but part of Tujague’s staying power comes from its position on several organized group tours of New Orleans, so the kitchen can get rushed. The atmosphere is classy but far more casual than institutions such as Antoine’s. Patrons enter the small dining room via…
reviewed
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Arnaud’s
Back in 1918 ‘Count’ Arnaud Cazenave, a French immigrant with some extravagant tastes, took roughly a city block’s worth of buildings and turned them into a restaurant that’s been serving fine upscale Creole cuisine ever since. The main dining room is much admired for its stately old-world elegance (which, in New Orleans, means hex-tile floors and cast-iron posts supporting the ceiling). Keep your eye peeled for the specialties, which appear in red type on the menu – shrimp Arnaud (shrimp in a rémoulade sauce), oysters Bienville (an original dish, with mushrooms and a white-wine sauce), speckled trout meunière (saved by a rich, gravy-like sauce) and steak stuffed with…
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Upperline Restaurant
An excellent choice for contemporary Creole food in romantic surroundings. Owner JoAnn Clevenger loves her city - it's art, its architecture, its cuisine - and Upperline reflects these passions. She plays the charming hostess, making sure each guest feels welcome in her beautiful old house, its walls covered with vibrant paintings. Diners are then treated to exquisite Creole dishes.
Chef Ken Smith applies original touches without reinventing the wheel. Mostly, Upperline is about great food prepared with care.Dishes like grilled gulf fish with warm salad Niçoise and roast duck with garlic port are classics prepared with a contemporary sensibility. The kitchen also does…
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Palace Café
This outpost of the Brennan family, one of the great houses of New Orleans cooking, straddles the undefined space that marks entry into the French Quarter. One of the best things the Palace has going for it is its space: occupying a former music store, the building’s original tile floors and interior columns have been retained and a corkscrew staircase sets off the posh affair with a bit of idiosyncrasy. Businesspeople, conventioneers and office workers rule the roost here, eating off a menu that takes a generally nonexperimental but very good approach to classic Creole standards.
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Clancy's
A most unassuming local favorite, Clancy's is fine dining in intimate surroundings - you'll feel like a welcomed stranger in a crowd of old friends here. Have a finely mixed cocktail while perusing the menu. You'll see nearby patrons sighing with pleasure over Clancy's beloved blue crab specialty, smoked then sautéed, which should nudge you in that direction. Nightly specials are always solid and inventive takes on Creole classics. Ice box pie is brings perfect closure.
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Court of Two Sisters
The Court regularly makes at least top five in ‘best place for brunch in New Orleans’ lists, a standing that’s as attributable to its setting as its food. The latter is a circus of Creole omelets, Cajun pasta salads, grillades, grits, fresh fruits, carved meats and fruity cocktails; the former is a simply enchanting Creole garden filled with sugar-scented warm air and a soft jazz backdrop. Outside of brunch, the quality of the Court drops a bit.
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Patois
One of the hottest names on local foodies’ lips, Patois serves French haute with a New Orleans accent (hence ‘patois’). Roasted pheasant in foie gras emulsions and new twists on surf-and-turf, like pork belly with scallops, pop up on an ever-shifting, always excellent menu. Customers – largely locals – are here for good food in an old house. You feel like you’re at a friend’s dinner party rather than a restaurant.
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Tee-Eva’s Creole Soul Food
Just search out the little yellow shack with the singing lady painted on the side. That’s Tee-Eva, who once sang backup to late, great local legend Ernie K-Doe. Now she whips up snowballs, pralines and some fine hot lunches like baked chicken, plates of red beans and rice, and sweet and savory pies.
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Emeril's
Chef Emeril Lagasse's flagship restaurant lives up to all the hype. His protégés rustle up consistently scrumptious bam!-worthy fare under the modern glass arch looking out on the main dining room, and an attentive staff sees to your every need.
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Ignatius
One of New Orleans’ better small neighborhood joints, Ignatius does standbys like alligator po’boys and red beans and rice very well, if not exceptionally. Brunch is the main draw, especially omelets groaning under crab meat and crawfish étouffée.
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