Italian restaurants in New Orleans
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A
Bacco
You shouldn’t reduce our review of Bacco to three words, but these are three very important words: 10-(freakin’)-cent martinis. That’s what’s going on for lunch here, and as a result, we can happily say Bacco does a very fun lunch. It also does good dinners, come to think of it; it’s all of the upscale Italian school plopped into New Orleans. Fresh basil accents a pesto served with shrimp and bow-tie pasta, while Louisiana asserts itself in hickory-grilled redfish topped by lump crabmeat. And you know what makes it all better? Ten-cent martinis.
reviewed
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B
Mandina’s
In the Italian American community in New Orleans, funerals were followed by a visit to this century-old institution for the turtle soup. That’s just the way it was and that’s what Mandina’s is: the way it was. When you’ve been around for over 100 years you stick to what you know. In this case that’s Sicilian-Louisiana food: trout almandine, red beans and rice with veal cutlets, and bell peppers stuffed with macaroni and meat. The family-style dining room, in its way, is as historic as any building in the city and just as crucial to its culture. Cash only.
reviewed
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C
Irene’s Cuisine
Irene’s may be in the Quarter, but it's in a corner generally missed by tourists – not that that’s easy to do given the overwhelming(ly good) scent of garlic emanating from this cavern of Italian intimacy. It’s Italian-French, really: you can pick from seasoned rosemary chicken, seared chops, pan-sautéed fish fillets and great pasta, but leave room for the decadent pecan-praline bread pudding. Reservations are not accepted and long waits are the norm.
reviewed
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D
Pascal’s Manale
Pascal’s Manale is an Uptown tradition, established in 1913, with walls bedecked with black-and-white photos of staff, patrons and the odd celebrity. It claims to have invented the local take on barbecue shrimp that requires no grill (it’s sautéed in a garlicky sauce). Specialties are mostly Italian standards – lots of veal, seafood and steaks – enjoyed with a lot of gusto by a crowd that look like they could moonlight on weekends in a Mario Puzo novel.
reviewed
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E
Adolfo’s
If you take your girl or guy to this intimate Italian cubby and get nowhere afterwards, your date was too hard to please. Adolfo’s is pretty much as romantic as New Orleans gets, and it doesn’t miss on food either: it’s all working-class Italian-Americano fare with some requisite New Orleans zing. Cheap reds by the carafe emerge from the kitchen and raise a diner’s spirits – and if they don’t, go back to your little black book.
reviewed
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F
Fiorella's
If you need to eat right in the Quarter for under $20 a head, Fiorella's is as good as it gets.Fiorella's is a Sicilian café, all red-checkered cloth, but run through a similar punk-rock wringer. The food is quintessential Italian New Orleans: pastas, pizzas, veal cutlets and, arguably, the best fried chicken in town. Some find its too salty; we say it's just right, especially with a bit of hot sauce.
reviewed
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G
Mona Lisa
An informal, quiet local spot in the Lower Quarter, dim and dark and candlelit romantic in its quirky way. Kooky renditions of da Vinci’s familiar subject hang on the walls. In hair curlers, 50lb heavier or in the form of a cow, she stares impassively at diners munching on pizzas, pastas and spinach salads.
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