Wild Times: After much anticipation, Mike Stoltzfus, chef and founder of Coquette, very recently opened 40-seat Wild South in the Lower Garden District. The focus is on in-season Louisiana ingredients, especially fresh seafood. Executive chef Brett Macris, former chef de cuisine at Cochon, is focused on a tasting menu, but also offers á la carte at the bar. Book here, and check New on Resy for more recent openings.
Feeling Bleu: The Commander’s Palace family of restaurants recently opened Le Petit Bleu, a crêperie, café and market next door to Commander’s Palace. LPB offers signature breakfast, lunch, and early dinner dishes and drinks to be enjoyed there or to-go — as well as menu favorites from Commander’s. No reservations. More info here.
Right in Time for Jazz Fest … Gabrielle is now accepting bookings on Resy. This is key, given it’s just blocks from the grounds and always a tough reservation — and means a post-festival snack of silken duck liver mousse or a full-on meal of chefs Greg and Mary Sonnier’s celebrated gumbo and slow-roasted duck are now more a reality than a dream.
Do Good, Eat Well: The Emeril Lagasse Foundation Kitchen at Café Hope recently opened with a state-of-the-art teaching kitchen, catering facility, restaurant and bar, classroom, computer lab, and event venue. The café is part of a 16-week program for those 17 to 24 to learn culinary and hospitality skills as well as anger management, financial literacy, and healthy habits. Open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. More info here.
New to the Hit List (Mar. 2024) BABs, Sukeban, Hungry Eyes, High Hat Cafe.
