THIS RESTAURANT IS CLOSED 56 Degrees

THIS RESTAURANT IS CLOSED 56 Degrees Restaurant Review:

Chef Minh Bui’s solid success with Asian/French refinements at Lemon Grass Café prompted the opening of 56 Degrees (theoretically, the ideal temperature for storing wine), an even more ambitious restaurant in one of the most luxurious interiors in New Orleans. In one of the soups, sautéed diver scallops waft on creamy butternut squash flecked with chives and ground macadamia. Grilled Hawaiian pineapple and a dab of veal stock reduction flatter seared foie gras. Other dishes don’t reach the same heights: a tuna steak becomes an afterthought atop lentils, eggplant, onion compote and a reduced vinaigrette; excess rules in a plate of spinach pasta with Chinese and andouille sausages, smoked duck and shrimp. The parfait, with bits of almond brittle and just the right suggestion of lemon grass, is an unforgettably good dessert. The dining room and bar occupy a large section of the ornate Greek-Revival lobby of a 1920s bank, swathed in marble, now the home of The Whitney. Massive columns soar toward a ceiling replete with intricate plasterwork. Polished brass and steel gleam from what once served as a teller’s cage and a vault. A prix fixe menu is served at dinner, with an à la carte list available on request.