Opening Alert: Bourbon & Oyster Hub Kenton's Lands Uptown

Kenton's, the highly-anticipated bourbon-focused Uptown restaurant from NYC's Maysville owners Sean Josephs and Mani Dawes (also a Nola native), has opened at Magazine and Nashville, Helen Freund reports.  The restaurant—located in a new development that also happened to displace/shutter Vom Fass, Rare Cuts and more businesses— features 150+ American whiskeys and is in fact named for the founder of Maysville, Kentucky—a port city known as an early hub for bourbon production and transport.  Ian McNulty reports that the restaurant even carries the owners' own whiskey label, called Pinhook.

As for the restaurant, two dining rooms feature dark green booths banquettes and a bistro vibe. A marble bar has two televisions and a brass oyster bar overlooks the street. There's also a mural separating the bar from a dining area done by Dawes mother/local artist Nancy Dawes.

Chef Kyle Knall—an Alabama native and alum of Maysville and Gramery Tavern— has created a menu of American food with a decidedly Southern, sometimes even Creole twist that's meant to play off the flavors of whiskey, with smoked, charred and grilled items figuring prominently, including grilled pompano, smoked steak and smoked oysters.

Kenton's is now open for dinner and weekend brunch. Lunch and breakfast to come.  (504) 891-1177.