Must-see restaurants in New Orleans

Although the menu isn't exclusively vegetarian, 1000 Figs serves our favorite vegetarian fare in town. The falafel, hummus, baba ghanoush and lentil soup…

That the French expat community of New Orleans regularly makes its way to Mister Gregory's should tell you something about the quality of this bistro's…

Chef Nina Compton became a household name via the TV show Top Chef, but her New Orleans restaurant is anything but a celebrity flash in the pan. This is…

Avo is a new kid on the Magazine St block, serving pastas cooked to perfection – as one would expect, with the owner-chef hailing from Sicily. It's clean,…

Do not be skeptical of the 'bacos' ($3), as odd as they sound. These pillowy bundles of deliciousness – a banh bao crossed with a taco – successfully…

Coop’s is an authentic Cajun dive, but more rocked out. Make no mistake: it can be grotty and chaotic, the servers have attitude and the layout is…

The thin-crust pies here are done New York–style and taste great. The preparation is simple, but the ingredients are fresh and consistently top-notch. An…

You may get a no-nonsense 'what?' when you step up to the counter, but it's just part of the schtick at this scruffy deli. For quality sandwiches, cheese…

On weekend mornings the line quite literally extends out the door here. Biscuits and gravy (topped with andouille – smoked pork sausage), fried oysters…

Red's has upped the Chinese cuisine game in New Orleans in a big way. The chefs aren't afraid to add lashings of Louisiana flavor, yet this isn't what we…

Come here for the best banh mi (Vietnamese bread rolls of sliced pork, cucumber, cilantro; locally called a ‘Vietnamese po’boy’) around, fantastic pho and…

The phrase ‘everything but the squeal’ springs to mind at Cochon, regularly named one of New Orleans’ best restaurants. Donald Link pays homage to his…

Bayona is one of our favorite splurges in the Quarter, and a pioneer of the slow-food movement. It’s classy but unpretentious, an all-round fine spot for…

After much exhaustive research, this is our go-to bowl of pho in New Orleans (short of driving to New Orleans East). The Pho Cam Ly broth is rich and…

Cheese plates. Charcuterie boards. These are standard appetizers at restaurants across the land. But they are nothing compared to the chest-pounding glory…

Parasol’s is the anchor of the Irish Channel, serving as community center, nexus of gossip and watering hole. It's first and foremost a bar, but you can…

Dining at N7 is deeply memorable, right down to the dining space. You walk down a potholed road to a garden littered with a vintage French junkyard theme…

Irasshaimase! That's what they yell whenever you enter a business in Japan, and it's what the servers say here as well. New Orleans has been in dire need…

Established in 1840, Antoine’s is the oldest of old-line New Orleans restaurants. The dining rooms look like first-class lounges on the Orient Express and…

Cowbell has a scruffy charm – scuffed wooden floors, Elvis on the ceiling, a bottle-cap mosaic on one of its bars – that makes you want to stay awhile…