New Orleans Area Culinary EventsHungry? Need to fill your culinary calendar? Here is where you will find all the restaurant and culinary happenings in Greater New Orleans. We feature a calendar of special dinners, tasting menus, prix-fixe meals, food festivals and other Louisiana culinary events, including regularly occurring food events as well as special one-time-only events featuring top chefs. Keep checking back so you can know all that's going on in the world of restaurant and food events in New Orleans and the surrounding area. We've also got the latest New Orleans Restaurant News and Wine Events.
March 2-April 27
For the sixth consecutive year, the Maison Dupuy Hotel and chef Michael Farrell of Le Meritage restaurant will host the French Quarter Wine Festival, March 2-April 27. This festival has become an increasingly well-attended event, once confined to the hotel's elegant courtyard, but now spilling out on to Burgundy St. into an upscale street party. The crown gems of the festival are the 16 scheduled wine dinners featuring Farrell's signature "southern coastal" cuisine, paired with individual vintner's special wines. For a full listing of scheduled wine dinners and vintners, visit www.frenchquarterwinefestival.com. The opening reception, scheduled for March 2 at the hotel is a lavish event with various rooms dedicated to regional cuisines and wine stations throughout. The closing reception, scheduled for April 27, is similarly over the top. Each reception is priced at $75/person. Dinner prices vary.
Ongoing
Recently hired chef René Bajeux is making his mark at the venerable Rib Room with new daily prix-fixe lunch and dinner specials. Three-course lunches are priced at $25 and three-course dinners at $35. Offerings change daily, but typical of the chef's selections include Chicken Grandmère, with onions, mushrooms and bacon au jus; organic tomato gazpacho with Gulf shrimp; sautéed black drum with roasted potato and asparagus salad; sautéed redfish with lobster sauce; tuna medallions with pasta and vegetbles. Desserts run the gamut from chocolate bread pudding to cheesecake with caramel sauce to bananas Foster cream pie. If you have not been to the Rib Room for a while, this is one of the best deals the restaurant has offered in a long time. The Rib Room, Omni Royal Orleans Hotel, 621 St. Louis St., New Orleans, LA 70130, 504-529-7045.
Ongoing
Domenica is offering cash-strapped diners a real break. Every day, from 3 p.m.- 5 p.m., all pizzas, cocktails, wine of the day and Prosecco (Italian sparkling wine) are offered at half price. Since opening its doors in New Orleans, Domenica has become known citywide for its pizzas, particularly the Pizze Calabresa, with olives, spicy salami, mozzarella and capers. Other pizzas include the meatless Margherita, with tomato, basil and fresh mozzarella, and the spicy lamb meatball pizza with ricotta and mint. The unique Gorgonzola pizza features figs and pecans. All pizzas are baked in a special wood-burning oven. Domenica, The Roosevelt New Orleans, 123 Baronne St., New Orleans, LA 70112, 504-648-6020.
Ongoing
The elegant downtown restaurant MiLa offers a nightly dinner tasting menu, six courses for $65. The only thing better may be their $20 prix fixe three-course lunch, offering such items as filo-crusted redfish or braised beef shortribs. And do not miss the vanilla bean rice pudding. The Rushings change the menu frequently, making repeat visits a must. MiLa, Renaissance Pere Marquette Hotel, 817 Common St., New Orleans, LA 70112, 504-412-2580.
Ongoing
The Oyster Bar at Dickie Brennan’s Bourbon House restaurant is one of the most happening places in the lower French Quarter. Now, Bourbon House is serving its new “Quick and Casual Lunch” at the bar. The no-fuss lunch offers sandwiches costing $8.50, among them muffalettas, pressed Cuban sandwiches and grilled veggie sandwiches with fresh mozzarella. Or, you can opt for a combo lunch, featuring the “Oyster Trifecta”---seafood gumbo, three freshly shucked oysters and a fried oyster po-boy. Also available is the “Shrimp Trifecta,” same as above, but with shrimp instead of oysters. Dickie Brennan’s happy hour is still happening every day from 4–6 p.m. The Oyster Bar serves oysters on the half-shell for $1/oyster, and the bar features specially priced wines and $3 Abita Amber drafts. Bourbon House, Astor Crowne Plaza, 144 Bourbon St., New Orleans, LA 70130, 504-522-0111.
Ongoing
As if the clubby, leathery bar at Dickie Brennan's Steakhouse were not reason enough to stop by after work, the restaurant just announced its new "$5 After 5PM" promotion, featuring small plates and specialty cocktails for just five bucks until 7 p.m. Try the “Spiked Arnold Palmer”---Firefly tea vodka with lemon sour and soda, garnished with fresh mint, and pair it with some prime rib chili, or andouille-stuffed fried olives. The other standout cocktail is a Sobieski dry martini with a hint of dry vermouth, which will go down easily with Louisiana crabmeat batons with pepper jelly glaze. It makes 5 p.m. seem so far away, doesn’t it? Dickie Brennan's Steakhouse, 716 Iberville St., New Orleans, LA 70130, 504-522-2467.
Last Wednesday
The monthly “Riverbend International Tapas Crawl” involves multiple restaurants offering a special small plate item and a short glass of wine, all for just $5. Participating restaurants include Barcelona Tapas, Brigtsen's, Dante's Kitchen, G.B.'s Patio Bar & Grill, Hana, Jazmine Cafe and Sara's Restaurant. Casual and fun, the event gives participants a little exercise between courses, walking between restaurants. Attendees are encouraged to bring cash to keep things moving along quickly, and there is not real itinerary. Participants move at their own pace and patronize the restaurants in any order they choose. The tapas crawl happens the last Wednesday of every month.
Wednesday through Friday
Bayona offers a Quick Fix Menu for lunch Wednesday through Friday. Guests can enjoy three courses for $22, excluding drinks, tax and tip. Bayona, 430 Dauphine St., New Orleans, LA 70130, 504-525-4455.
Fridays
The elegant Morton’s The Steakhouse is introducing its new Friday “Power Lunch.” Patrons will enjoy selections from the à la carte menu or a pre-set Power Lunch Menu. The power lunch menu at $39/person will offer three courses, including a choice of salads, entrées (with sides) and desserts. The entrées are among some of Morton’s top dishes, including the jumbo lump crab cakes, the filet mignon and broiled salmon. Dessert is a choice of double chocolate mousse or key lime pie. The per person price does not include tax or gratuity. Morton's The Steakhouse, Shops at Canal St., 365 Canal St., New Orleans, LA 70130, 504-566-0221.
Fridays
FridaysWhat began as a one-time tasting event has now morphed into an every-Friday night gathering at St. James Cheese Company. Stop by between 6 p.m.-8 p.m. for a free cheese tasting featuring a selection of washed rind cheeses to taste and learn about from the store’s “cheesemongers.” Also offered are wine and beer specials every week. The owners invite you in to sample “delicious, creamy and sometimes stinky artisanal cheeses.” St. James Cheese Company, 5004 Prytania St., New Orleans, LA 70118, 504-899-4737. Savvy Gourmet’s culinary staff offers a $15 tasting every other week on Fridays from 5:30 p.m.-7:30 p.m. The offerings might include freshly baked bread, creative entrées or even a glass of bubbly. Visit Savvy Gourmet’s website for a detailed schedule. 4519 Magazine St., New Orleans, 504-895-2665, www.savvygourmet.com . |
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DINING ON A BUDGET
Splurging at top-rated restaurants is fun for special events, but where can you go for a good quality meal that won't break the bank? Gather the change out of your piggy bank and sofa cushions and take it to one of our selections for the best cheap eats in your area. Also, check out our picks for the Top 40 Cheap Eats in the U.S.
