Antoine’s Alum Brings Fine French to Algiers Point, and More New Orleans Restaurant Openings

To keep track of all the new cafes, bakeries, bars, and restaurants in New Orleans, here is Eater’s ongoing roundup of 2022 openings diners need to know right now, arranged chronologically (mostly). This curated list of notable openings will continue to be updated, so if there’s something we’ve missed, send us an email.

For Eater’s guide to the hottest new restaurants in New Orleans this month, see here.

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December

Tonti’s Hand

The end of November brought the debut of Tonti’s Hand, a neighborhood French bistro in Algiers Point led by two local industry veterans with big-time resumes: A.J. McAlear, a former general manager and sommelier at iconic French Quarter restaurant Antoine’s, and Freddy Augustin, most recently a chef at citywide brunch destination Atchafalaya. McAlear, in partnership with two other locals in the film industry, brought on Augustin to create an all-day, Parisian-style cafe — in the neighborhood in which they all live — with a menu of upscale bistro classics like French onion soup, ratatouille, jambon beurre, and escargot Bourgogne. Located at 323 Verret Street, Tonti’s Hand is now taking reservations for lunch, dinner, and weekend brunch Thursday through Monday.

Baby’s

A former corner pottery studio at the edge of the Marigny is now home to an exciting new coffee and pastry shop (2400 St. Claude Avenue). Beyond beans brewed by an alum of the long-loved Hey! Cafe network, the baked goods are most enticing: apple and brie hand pies; fennel parmesan quiche; spiced cranberry tarts; and dark chocolate sea salt brownies, for example. Various roasters, like Mourning Coffee, will rotate through on drip. It’s open 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily; solid coffee shop hours.

Miss Shirley’s Restaurant

The Magazine Street address that area residents long relied on for Chinese-American staples and Chinese specialties is now home to a new, but familiar, legacy: Shirley and Tang Lee’s. They are the the original proprietors of Royal China in Metairie, and after an attempt at retirement have brought Miss Shirley’s famed cuisine to the former home of Jung’s Golden Dragon. Serving a new, smaller menu than at Royal China, Miss Shirley’s focuses on dim sum, as well as rich, brothy soups and a few Chinese-American staples. The recent refresh adds comforting blues, festive lights, and bigger tables, as dim sum is best enjoyed with a group.

November

Randy Schmidt/Eater NOLA

Mamou

MaMou, one of Eater’s most anticipated restaurants of 2022, has finally opened on Rampart Street, taking over the space formerly home to longtime neighborhood favorite Meauxbar. Bright and flirty with a Parisian vibe, the modern French brasserie is from New Orleans chef Tom Branighan and sommelier Molly Wismeier. Branighan, who most recently cooked at Longway Tavern and before that at acclaimed restaurants in New York and Philadelphia, has created a fine-dining level menu of Louisiana ingredients prepared with French techniques, dishes like braised celery hearts with smoked beef tongue; an escargot tartlet with romesco; and red beans cassoulet with fresh made hogs head cheese. Wine plays an equal role to food, with Wismeier’s background as a top sommelier, most recently at Restaurant R’evolution.

Dakar NOLA

New Orleans’s most exciting tasting menu has opened at its forever home as of November 23, bringing Serigne Mbaye’s dazzling Senegalese tasting menu dinners to 3814 Magazine Street. Mbaye is Eater New Orleans’s 2021 chef of the year and a 2022 James Beard Award finalist for emerging chef, and has held Dakar NOLA dinners at various locations including the Southern Food and Beverage Museum (SoFab) and Mosquito Supper Club over the last two years or so. With the new restaurant of the same name, Mbaye serves riffs on traditional West African and Senegalese dishes, which are mostly gluten and dairy-free, that blend West African and Louisiana ingredients, like habanero peppers and dehydrated seafood powder with okra and red beans. Dakar NOLA, co-owned by Effie Richardson, holds one seating per evening for 30 guests, Wednesday through Saturday at 7 p.m.

Addis NOLA (new location)

After more than three years drawing diners to a warm, bright space on Broad Street for Ethiopian cuisine, acclaimed New Orleans restaurant Addis Nola has opened in a new, bigger home on Bayou Road. Co-owner Prince Lobo and his family, founder Dr. Biruk Alemayehu and chef Jaimito “Jaime” Lobo are taking it to the next level with a full bar and stage for the restaurant’s traditional Ethiopian coffee ceremony, which became a signature part of service on Broad Street. The new restaurant is stunning, rich with deep colors, intricate patterns and fabrics, and Ethiopian art, and the menu of stews, stir fry, and specials like whole fried red snapper and mar mitmita shrimp is elegant as ever. A new bar program is a major addition, courtesy of a partnership with Turning Tables.

Scrambled

Steven Green opened Scrambled on Laurel Street in Uptown in early November, replacing the former breakfast restaurant spot, Toast, with a similarly fun, but even more tempting, breakfast and brunch destination. Green’s menu is creative, fun, and large, containing dishes like shakshouka and a scrambled tofu and vegetable bowl and over-the-top plates of peanut butter mousse waffles and cannoli French toast, offering something for everyone. It’s open from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday through Friday and until 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

October

Vaucresson Creole Cafe

Vaucresson Sausage Co. made its grand return to New Orleans’s Seventh Ward at the end of October with Vaucresson’s Creole Cafe at the corner of St. Bernard Avenue and North Roman Street. The new deli is from Vance Vaucresson, owner of Vaucresson’s Sausage Co., and his wife Julie, who runs the iconic business with him, with involvement from Dook Chase. Vance is the third generation to run the century-old butcher and legendary Jazz Fest food vendor, and he’s spent the last two years developing plans to build a multi-faceted business in the company’s former Seventh Ward address — a Creole restaurant, deli, market, and butcher all in one. A robust menu of po’ boys, burgers, boudin balls, and sausage platters is available for lunch Tuesday through Saturday.

Parish Line Bistro

This fresh rooftop lounge opened in mid-October in Old Metairie, a highly-anticipated bar and restaurant just outside parish lines backed by local businessmen like Saints general manager Mickey Loomis and John Georges, the owner of the Times Picayune/New Orleans Advocate. Besides an open-air rooftop, a menu from chef Chris Wilson (who most recently led the kitchen at Larder Gourmet Market and before that, Emeril’s Restaurant) is the major draw. It’s an elegant and concise selection of dishes, with starters like Littleneck clams, smoked salmon bruschetta, and wagyu beef sashimi, and roasted chicken thighs over spaghetti and a lobster roll for the main course. The ice cream sandwich made with a Piccola Gelateria flavor of your choice is bound to be a hit.

September

Tito’s Ceviche and Pisco St. Charles

A bright spot in New Orleans dining has expanded with a second location in the LGD, bringing ceviche, tiraditos, and a wide range of pisco to a stretch of St. Charles Avenue in need of a culinary refresh. Located at 1433 St. Charles Avenue, the new Tito’s opened in the former St. Charles Tavern location, a 100-year-old greasy spoon that closed during the pandemic. For now, Tito’s on St. Charles is open for dinner every day but Sunday, but will add lunch and brunch down the line.

District All Day Delicious

The folks behind District Donuts have opened a new full-service breakfast, lunch, dinner (eventually), and bar downtown, right next to the new Tava Indian Street Food. The location greatly expands on the mini chain’s existing menu, adding Mexican breakfast dishes, lemon ricotta pancakes, and breakfast wings, which utilize breakfast sausage crumbles, to its many doughnut offerings. In addition to burgers (no sliders here), the lunch menu adds nachos, fish and chips, and other game day-friendly food — the menu, as well as the addition of frozen drinks and to-go cocktails, are sure to be a hit given the restaurant’s proximity to the Superdome and Smoothie King Center. The restaurant plans to add dinner eventually but opened with breakfast and lunch only.

Moon Garden

234 Loyola Ave., CBD (Inside Pythian Market)

The name of the game at Moon Garden is bubble tea and charcuterie (say it out loud), making for a delightful addition to downtown food hall Pythian Market. The colorful stand serves hot or cold bubble tea in flavors like mango vanilla, honeydew, and red bean; smoothies; fruit teas; and brewed teas. Customers can top drinks with boba jelly, made from tapioca but often in a square shape, crystal boba, made from konjac, regular bursting/popping boba, and most excitingly, boba ice cream bars, which come in three sweetness levels. An extensive charcuterie menu is available to order for pickup and catering.

Feng Cha Nola

2131 Magazine St., LGD

Chinese-born bubble tea chain Feng Cha has opened a shop on Magazine Street, marking the first dedicated bubble tea shop to open in Orleans Parish (others in the area are all outside of parish lines in Metairie or Kenner). The shop serves dessert and drinks only, including cheese milk tea and milk foam toppers; boba staples like dirty boba; a selection of brewed teas featuring oolong blends; a caffeine and lactose-free “breeze” series; and fruit tea creations upgraded with kiwi basil, jasmine apple, and dragonfruit. Airy milk foam cakes are Feng Cha’s staple dessert — spongey bases are covered with creamy milk foam in flavors like sea salt and brown sugar boba, strawberry, matcha, tiramisu, and taro chocolate. It’s open daily from 11 a.m. to 9 .m.; 10 p.m. on weekends.

August

Katherine Kimball/The Hall on Mag

Hall on Mag

801 Magazine St., Warehouse District

A new food hall brings full-service options for brunch, lunch, happy hour, dinner, and late-night to the Warehouse District, in a revamped version of the already-dazzling Auction House Market space. The vendors, while not New Orleans-born businesses, offer enticing menus of Southern comfort food; Italian fusion; Japanese street food and sushi; and Mexican and Japanese fusion street food; among a few others. The lovely marble central cocktail bar from the previous food hall remains, making for a good spot to slurp oysters and crab legs.

Monday Restaurant and Bar

4327 Bienville St., Mid City

The newest destination from nightlife entrepreneur Larry Morrow debuted in Mid City in August, taking over the former pandemic-born, outdoor-centric Trep’s. With a kitchen led by Morrow’s mom, chef Lenora Chong, Monday offers a familiar mix of local specialties like boudin eggrolls, crawfish etouffee, and red beans and rice as well as burgers and other bar food. Expect this to be a brunch and happy hour hotspot, with fresh, fruity cocktails taking center stage to match the backyard party vibes.

Cru Lounge

301 Decatur St., French Quarter

The largest Black-owned nightlife chain in the United States, Cru Lounge, now has a location in the French Quarter. The Atlanta-born “fast-casual hookah-hemp lounge” was founded by Atlanta-based entrepreneur Dennis McKinley, who appeared on The Real Housewives of Atlanta for a few seasons and also owns a hot dog chain called the Original Hot Dog Factory. Opened in early August, Cru serves upscale bar food, po’boys, and over-the-top “Crutails” topped with candy. Hookah (when it’s offered) can be infused with CBD oil, and hemp flower pre-rolls and CBD gummies are also forthcoming, as is brunch.

July

Randy Schmidt/Eater NOLA

Zee’s Pizzeria

3914 Baronne St., Milan

Zander White’s long-awaited pop-up-turned-restaurant finally debuted on Thursday, July 28, bringing New England-style pizza and pepperoni cups to Uptown’s Milan neighborhood. White first gained a following for his thin crust, “old-school” pizza with crispy edges and chewy centers at Mid City brewery Zony Mash, which became an integral outdoor destination for beer, live music, and food pop-ups during the pandemic. Nearly two years later Zee’s tavern-style space is open and already bustling, serving an expanded menu of whole pies, slices, and salads, and beer and wine.

Skeeta Hawk Brewing

455 N. Dorgenois St., Mid City

Joining new next-door neighbor Flour Moon Bagels in shaking up the Greenway is one of two new breweries to open this summer, Skeeta Hawk. It’s from military veteran Aaron Merrill, who is the managing partner of a group owners and the brewmaster for the small operation. It opened in late July with 12 beers on tap along with ciders and shared patio space with Flour Moon.

Sukeban

8126 Oak St., Carrollton/Riverbend

The founder of upscale culinary shop Coutelier, Jacqueline Blanchard, has turned her love of traditional Japanese izakayas into New Orleans’s newest sushi destination, Sukeban. The sleek, fast-casual restaurants debuted in early July, adding to a slew of exciting new restaurants that have either recently opened or are opening soon on Oak Street, like Mukbang and forthcoming brewery Calliope Beer Works. At Sukeban, Blanchard serves a succinct menu of rotating handrolls, traditional sides, as well as Japanese beer, sake, and whiskey. Food is delivered to a sushi bar lined with 22 seats, designed to ensure immediate delivery of freshly made temaki.

The Chicory House

2725 Prytania St., Garden District

Still Perkin,’ the Rink shopping center’s former coffee destination, has grown into a new restaurant with familiar drinks and faces, but a new name, menu, and interior. It’s still the sister spot to Garden District Book Shop, located upstairs, so they’ll continue to hold cookbook events in tandem some evenings, and otherwise serve a daytime menu of granola bowls, breakfast sandwiches, paninis, and salads. The art, light fixtures, counter, and expanded seating area give the renovated space a convincing all-day cafe vibe.

Thai’d Up

1839 Gentilly Blvd., Gentilly

The city’s years-long wave of Thai restaurants, previously a scarcity, continues with Thai’d Up in Gentilly, taking over the space formerly home to the much-loved Catty Shack Tex-Mex taco stand. Saowanit ‘Kate’ Welch and Ryan Walsh have built a similarly charming space with Thai’d Up, a 25-seat dining room where diners order from an all-day menu of Thai specialties (and some mashups) for lunch and dinner. It’s the couple’s first solo restaurant, though their background running Bangkok Thai in the Riverbend neighborhood boasts well for its success.

Peach Cobbler Factory

2372 St Claude Ave., Marigny

New Orleans’s newest dessert destination is open on St. Claude Avenue (located in the former Em Trai Sandwich Co. next to the Healing Center.) and serving a dozen types of cobbler as well as banana pudding, cinnamon rolls, coffee, and strawberry and chocolate milk. Husband and wife Tami and Juan Edgerton first opened Peach Cobbler Factory in 2013 as a food truck in Nashville, and have since branched out with locations in Georgia, North Carolina, Kentucky, West Virginia, with plans to open in more states like Mississippi and South Carolina.

June

Randy Schmidt/Eater NOLA

Flour Moon Bagels

457 N Dorgenois St., Mid City

New Orleans now has a second dedicated bagel shop (Humble Bagels being the first) on the Lafitte Greenway next to (and in the same building as) Hey! Cafe at 2606 St. Louis St. Flour Moon’s exciting move from pop-up to restaurant was a dream of chef and owner Breanne Kostyk’s for some time, who first started baking bagels while making them as part of her role as head pastry chef for New Orleans’s Ace Hotel. Flour Moon serves airy, browned bagels in an array of flavors like cacio e pepe, pumpernickel, rosemary or sage sea salt, and more, in addition to breakfast sandwiches and tartines served on bagels.

Dian Xin 2

620 Conti St., French Quarter

When Dian Xin first opened in the French Quarter at the beginning of 2019, it was a game-changer for a city with few dim sum restaurants. In fact, it was so popular upon debuting it had to shut down in its first week in order to regroup, restock, and recalibrate volume. Now there’s a second location in the Quarter, but it’s not a replica — the second restaurant at 620 Conti Street adds hot pot to the menu, in addition to Dian Xin’s much loved soup dumplings, other dim sum dishes, and American-Chinese takeout specialties.

Ayu Bakehouse

801 Frenchmen St., Marigny

There’s a new bakery on Frenchmen Street, a welcome addition to the strip known for nightlife in the form of music clubs, bars, and a few ever-changing restaurants. Ayu Bakehouse is from Samantha Weiss and Kelly Jacques, who have both had extensive pastry chef training at some of the best spots around — Weiss in New York, and Jacques at Emeril’s NOLA. The shop sells loaves of bread and savory pastries, sweet pastries like babka and sweet red bean rolls, sandwiches, salads, and coffee and espresso drinks at 801 Frenchmen Street, 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. daily.

May

Randy Schmidt/Eater NOLA

Velveteen Lounge and Restaurant

2565 Bayou Rd., Mid City

Opened over Memorial Day weekend, Velveteen Lounge takes over the former Bayou Road Pirogues — and that history, as well as the address’s incarnations prior to Pirogues — are central to the idea behind Velveteen Lounge. The 100 percent worker-owned restaurant and bar is a nod to the neighborhood, a simple spot serving funky wine, beer for cheap, $5 cocktails and $4 wells, and an affordable menu of quality bar food, all in an eclectic, welcoming space.

Bisutoro

1581 Magazine St., LGD

Bisutoro is New Orleans’s latest sushi restaurant, continuing a recent trend of new restaurants featuring chefs trained classically in Japanese sushi like at Yakuza House and Yo Nashi. It’s a promising new Magazine Street spot to try rare fish, specialty sake, and other traditional Japanese specialties, taking over the space formerly home to Magasin Cafe.

April

Randy Schmidt/Eater NOLA

Margot’s

1243 Frenchmen St., Seventh Ward

A new spot for Neopolitan pizza and natural wine made its debut in April, a straightforward, cafe-style restaurant that serves a concise menu of pies, two salads, cocktails, and wine from small producers. The small corner restaurant is simply adorned, with large windows, muted yellow and green walls, wood booths, hanging bulb lights, and a gorgeous bar, where customers can dine in addition to the tables. There’s no sidewalk seating yet, and there’s not much room to wait, but the charred, bubbly pizzas — various meat and Margherita pies, as well few white pies like the Cavoletti, with shaved Brussels sprouts, ricotta cream, and lemon zest — come out of the kitchen fast.

Afrodisiac

5363 Franklin Ave., Gentilly

After nearly 8 years operating their popular Jamaican-Creole food truck Afrodisiac, husband and wife Shaka and Caron Garel have landed a permanent home in Gentilly, bringing a literal bright spot to Franklin Avenue that serves shrimp curry, jerk goat burgers, jerk chicken nachos, crawfish étouffée, gumbo, and more. Colorful and mural-adorned, the full-service restaurant and bar serves lunch, dinner, and cocktails inside the cottage or on the lovely patio Wednesday through Saturday, and lunch only on Sunday.

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March

La Vie en Rose

1420 Annunciation St., LGD

After sharing a space with an art studio and museum cafe, owner Kirby Jones is showcasing her art, the charming La Vie en Rose Cafe, in its own space in the LGD. The pretty and elegant Creole cafe specializes in espresso drinks more interesting than your average, like the rose cold brew made with rose cane syrup and flavor-infused matcha drinks. Don’t miss Jones’s king cakes during Carnival season.

Crawlins Seafood

506 Terry Parkway, Terrytown

The welcome wave of Viet-Cajun options in New Orleans continues with the opening of Crawlins Seafood in March, a Terrytown restaurant from Jimmy and Anthony Nguyen. The West Bank-raised New Orleans natives serve boiled seafood platters — with a Viet-Cajun option — as well as Louisiana staples like po’ boys, red beans and rice, and smothered pork chops.

Froot Orleans

2438 Bell St., Mid City

Mannie King has made the move from vendor to cafe with the new brick-and-mortar version of Froot Orleans, a longtime juice, smoothie and fruit parlor. The mission-driven entrepreneur has been serving his fruit-based creations with his mobile stand, and with a brief stint at Circle Grocery, since 2014, compelled by a desire to bring fresh fruit to the parts of the city that need it most. Now his shop serves custom boards, salads, smoothies, juices, and bowls in a sleek new space next to the popular Leo’s Bread baker. Froot Orleans is open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and 10 to 5 p.m. Sunday.

Tava

611 O’Keefe Ave., CBD

After years of building a loyal fan base with a pop-up-turned-food hall vendor, Tava, chef Manish Patel opened his first restaurant in late March, bringing a much-needed addition to New Orleans’s options for Indian cuisine and breathing fresh life into the business-heavy neighborhood in between the Warehouse District and CBD. Patel’s contemporary takes on Indian street food with Tava are exceptional, from a Chana salad to kati rolls, but diners can expect even more with the restaurant — new dishes like vegetable pakora and a version of Chicken 65, a spicy chicken dish hugely popular across South India, using chicken wings.

Ginger Roux

1100 Tulane Ave., CBD

Canopy by Hilton just opened in downtown New Orleans, and with it two new dining and drinking options for the CBD neighborhood — Ginger Roux, which the hotel says is Creole and Cantonese-inspired, and the Herbalist, which will serve as a bar, coffee shop, and juice bar. Interestingly, the idea for the restaurant is a nod to the hotel’s location in what used to be the Chinatown district in New Orleans (the Cantonese part). The kitchen is led by Jonathan Hostetler, a local chef who most recently owned a hybrid restaurant and catering business on the Westbank, serving some interesting mashups, dishes like boudin lumpia, gumbo dumplings, General Tso’s alligator, and crawfish etouffee shumai.

Wishing Town Bakery

802 Nashville Ave., Uptown

A second location of Metairie’s inventive cafe and bakery is now open in Orleans Parish as of March, taking over the charming Uptown location of the former Cafe Luna. The wonderful Asian bakery and dim sum destination brings an array of exciting food to the address, from intricate custom cakes and desserts like green tea, durian, and taro crepe cakes; its fruit-covered Wishing Cake; and egg yolk puff pastries, as well as an array of dumplings: scallop and shrimp; crawfish; onion and beef; crispy fried chicken; and char siu tofu pockets.

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February

Ciao Tapas Bar & Lounge

4033 Tulane Ave., Mid City

Formerly known as Bar Culture, Ciao is the newest incarnation of the Tulane Avenue building that was once a Mid City gas station, reopened as a tapas bar and lounge in February. Part of the goal of Bar Culture was to create an out-of-town feel with New Orleans flavor, and with Ciao, owner Nicholas Reed is bringing more of the flavor, literally — Chris Malachi is cooking up a new menu of craveable pub food, as well as a brunch menu that puts fresh spins on classics. Still, Ciao holds onto its legacy as a neighborhood nightlife destination with bottle service, hookah, and lots of neon lettering.

Wetlands Sake

634 Orange St., LGD

As of February 3, New Orleans has its very first sake brewery, a few blocks down the road from another pioneering local brewery, Urban South. Founded by Nan Wallis and Lindsey Beard, Wetlands Sake is made from Louisiana short grain rice, a special strain produced by LSU AgCenter Rice Research Station, given that most rice grown in Louisiana rice is long grain. The sake, which started showing up on the shelves of local grocery stores and other retail shops in Louisiana last year, is served in the taproom; filtered and unfiltered varieties, both dry and fruity flavors — think blueberry lemon, spicy paloma, and sparkling hibiscus. When it opens, the taprooms hours are 4 to 9 p.m. Wednesday/Thursday; 4 to 10 p.m. Friday/Saturday, and noon to 5 p.m. Sunday.

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January

Queen Trini Lisa

4200 D’Hemecourt St., Mid City

It may be her first restaurant, but Queen Trini Lisa is already well known around these parts for serving specialties from her native Trinidad and Tobago, at food festivals and markets, through her pop-up, and via chef collaborations. Her jerk chicken won the Marley Festival in 2019, and her doubles became highly-sought after she began popping up at Portside Lounge. Queen Trini Lisa opened the doors to her eponymous restaurant in January, serving a concise menu of curry and jerk chicken, island stir fry cabbage, fried fish sandwich on coco bread, and doubles, which is one of several vegan-friendly dishes.

Breakaway’s R & B

2529 Dauphine St., Marigny

The former owners of Green Goddess have opened a new restaurant and bar in the Marigny, in the address formerly home to much-loved Marigny dive bar Lost Love Lounge. Paul and Olivia Artigues are serving New Orleans staples like gumbo, a beef daube sandwich, crawfish etouffee, fried shrimp, and white beans with ham hock — as well as a number of vegan versions of New Orleans classics. The small menu of sno-ball cocktails is especially fun: the Green Goblin, made with absinthe, orange liqueur, and lime over shaved ice; the Pretty Baby with nectar cream and vodka; a mint julep; and a sno-ball version of Cafe Brulot, a cocktail normally made by lighting cognac on fire.

Cypress Cakes

1919 St Claude Ave., Seventh Ward

New Orleans is blessed with a bounty of talented cake bakers, but the city can always use more charming bake shops. Cypress Cakes fills that role, opened in late January by local baker Margo Robert. It’s a very pretty shop, with a long glass case full of Robert’s creations. In addition to cakes by the slice or whole, Cypress Cakes sells cookies, pastries, muffins, cupcakes, and pies, Thursday through Sunday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Bao Mi

2000 Tulane Ave., CBD

How wonderful to have Bao Mi in New Orleans. This new downtown shop specializing in grab and go Vietnamese food — favorites like banh mi, bao, and vermicelli bowls, not to mention the ridiculously good bulgogi fries — opened in January. With a number of longtime Vietnamese restaurants closing in recent years, it’s heartening to see a new, modern Vietnamese option for downtown workers and city residents alike. Find Bao Mi in the Louisiana State University Health Foundation building, Monday through Friday from 10:30 a.m. to 7 p.m.

B Sweet Bistro & Bakery

704 N. Rampart St., French Quarter

One of the city’s newest king cake purveyors is B Sweet Cakes, a lovely storefront located directly across from Congo Square on the outskirts of the Quarter. Talented chef and baker Brittney Walker opened her shop and restaurant at the beginning of January and quickly took the city by storm, especially her hugely popular king cakes. In addition to her many cake varieties, Walker serves expert New Orleans comfort food: gumbo, red beans, fried catfish, and more.

Thaihey NOLA

308 Decatur St., French Quarter

Husband and wife team Orawin “Nim” Yimchalam and Nathan Greene relocated their hit Baton Rouge Thai restaurant to the French Quarter in January, lured in part by a prime French Quarter address. The warm, welcoming Thaihey NOLA serves a concise menu of modern Thai dishes, including deep fried frog leg marinated in red curry; soup hang waw, or spicy and sour Northeastern Thai oxtail soup; and pumpkin chicken curry. There’s also a separate vegan menu, with starters, noodle, rice, and curry dishes.

Le Chat Noir

715 St Charles Ave, Warehouse District

A former longtime cabaret and lounge, Le Chat Noir is now playing the role of upscale-casual restaurant, the result of a partnership between James Reuter, the owner of Bearcat Cafe, and Gene Todaro, who owns the new restaurant’s building and founded its predecessor, Marcello’s. Chef Seth Temple heads up the kitchen, combining the vegetable-forward influence of Bearcat Cafe with an upscale approach to dinner dishes like heirloom carrots with tofu hummus and chiles; white anchovies with lime and chile; and sun chokes with walnut, preserved lemon, and mint. It’s open for dinner Tuesday through Saturday.

Banh Mi Boys Uptown

3244 Magazine St., Irish Channel

Also open in December was the first Orleans Parish location of the beloved Banh Mi Boys, Peter Nguyen’s inventive, standout Vietnamese restaurant specializing in banh mi. After years of having to head to Vets Boulevard for his creations, a second shop is now open at 3244 Magazine St., a restaurant formerly occupied by a Reginelli’s. It’s Nguyen’s first time franchising — he partnered with local couple and Banh Mi Boys fanatics Christian Lombardo and his partner Arleth Blanco for the second restaurant, and has even shared his “banh mi bible” with the franchisees. Banh Mi Boys Uptown is open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Tuesday through Sunday.

Pomelo

4113 Magazine St., Uptown

A number of excellent Thai restaurants have opened in New Orleans in the last few years — Budsi’s, Cho Thai, and Thaihey, to name a few. Continuing that trend is chef Aom Srisuk, a Bangkok native who moved to New Orleans in 2018 after years spent working in her family’s Japanese and Thai cafes in Thailand. Srisuk, along with her husband Frankie Weinberg, opened Pomelo in late 2021, serving traditional Thai cuisine based on her family’s way of cooking as well as street food-style noodles and curries. The cafe, which is currently BYOB, is open for lunch Friday through Sunday and for dinner Wednesday through Sunday.

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