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Citrus gochujang hen.
Katherine Kimball/Sun Chong

The Hottest New Restaurants in New Orleans, June 2023

Our answer to the question: Where should I eat right now?

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Citrus gochujang hen.
| Katherine Kimball/Sun Chong

Every month, Eater tries to answer the oft-repeated question: Where should I eat right now? New Orleans’s steady stream of restaurant openings can make it difficult to keep track of what’s new, what’s cool, and where New Orleans’s top local chefs are cooking. To help, Eater’s heatmap tracks the city’s most exciting new restaurants, all worth a try. The below restaurants are open as of publication time, but be sure to call or check a restaurant’s social media pages before paying them a visit.

Below, are the most exciting new restaurants to check out in New Orleans this month, including an ’80s-themed restaurant specializing in martinis Uptown, a Korean-inspired lounge in the French Quarter, and a debut dishing southern Indian specialties downtown.

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Sun Chong

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Sun Chong is the third restaurant from Larry Morrow, the New Orleans entrepreneur behind hotspots Morrow’s and Monday. It’s arguably his most stylish restaurant yet, and his most meaningful — it’s named after his grandmother, who also leads the kitchen (with help from Morrow’s mother Lenora Chong and chef Christian Green). In addition to Korean specialties like bulgogi and bibimbap, the menu features Asian American classics like fried rice (crawfish or vegetable), lettuce wraps, sweet and sour pork, bacos, and dumplings. Overall, Morrow aimed to create a “cool, intimate spot with classic hip hop music being played and dope food,” and Sun Chong is just that.

Katherine Kimball/Sun Chong

Namaste Nola

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There’s a splendid new Indian restaurant in the heart of the CBD (located on the ground floor of the Wyndham Garden Hotel), a low-key spot opened by Kumud Ranjan and Rani Masgalli with chef Sudhardshan “Suda” Kasarapu in late March. The large menu highlights dishes from southern India, including several vegetarian items like kadai paneer, aloo mutter, and dal makhani, as well as familiar biryanis, lamb and goat curries, lamb vindaloo, and tandoori chicken (there’s even a section of noodle and rice Indo Chinese dishes). It’s open every day but Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., and a liquor license is in the works.

Tonti's Hand French Bistro

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This neighborhood French bistro in Algiers Point is 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. The all-day, Parisian-style cafe serves a menu of upscale bistro classics like French onion soup, ratatouille, jambon beurre, and escargot Bourgogne.

King is a new brasserie in the Kimpton Hotel Fontenot, a sister restaurant to the vibrant Peacock Room that opened last year. Chef Samuel Peery has designed a menu heavy on seafood, with a raw bar full of elegant options like caviar served with brioche Madeleines and a seafood platter of oysters, mussels, gulf shrimp, blue crab claws, and an option to add poached lobster. Carbonara gets the uni and black truffle treatment, and a braised veal shank is served with white mirepoix and mushroom. An impressive dessert menu makes clear it was not an afterthought — finish it all off with technique-driven dishes like a caramel torte with black cocoa, cremeux, and crème fraiche sorbet.

Cris Molina/Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants

Devil Moon Barbecue

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This new barbecue restaurant downtown is seeking to define South Louisiana barbecue as championed by a local pitmaster known for creations like meatloaf sausage and a pastrami banh mi. Shannon Bingham leads the kitchen at Devil Moon Barbecue, run by a DC-based restaurant group and opened in late February. Start with Southern snacks like pimiento cheese and smoked onion dip before diving into plates of pork ribs, beef brisket, pulled pork, turkey breast, and Louisiana smoked sausages like boudin and chaurice. Sides, particularly white beans, dirty rice, and chicken sauce piquant further reflect the Cajun tilt of this exciting barbecue joint.

Devil Moon Barbecue

Mucho Mas Mexican Eatery & Lounge

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A vibrant new destination for Mexican cuisine and agave cocktails has opened on Oak Street, the much-anticipated Mucho Mas from Julio Machado. The former chef and co-owner of Metairie’s Tacos del Cartel has been working on the restaurant for some time now, taking over the large Oak Street space that was previously home to DTB (Down the Bayou). With an eye-catching, trendy vibe and over-the-top decor, it’s sure to be a new Uptown go-to for mashups like barbecue birria tacos and Mexican ramen as well regional Mexican dishes like carne asada tasajo and snapper a la talla, with many dishes grilled on charcoal. Weekend brunch is 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The latest addition to the ever-growing South Market development is Dahla, a stylish, contemporary Thai restaurant that shares a building with Tava, the Indian street food hit that opened last year. It’s from the owners behind former Metairie restaurant Thai Ocha, but Waraphon Chittrakul and family have kicked everything up a notch at the new spot downtown, from ambiance and cocktails to menu offerings like the extravagant crispy duck curry, seafood tom yum fried rice, and siam steak. It’s open Monday through Saturday for lunch and dinner.

Miss Shirley's

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Shirley and Tang Lee, the original proprietors of Royal China in Metairie, 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.

Dakar NOLA

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Serigne Mbaye’s dazzling Senegalese tasting menu dinners are now a permanent fixture in New Orleans, after holding Dakar NOLA dinners at various locations including the Southern Food and Beverage Museum (SoFab) and Mosquito Supper Club over the last two years. At the new restaurant of the same name, Mbaye serves riffs on traditional West African and Senegalese dishes, 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 holds one seating per evening for 30 guests, Wednesday through Saturday.

Dakar NOLA/Official

Hungry Eyes

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After conquering breakfast and lunch, Mason Hereford and the team behind Turkey and the Wolf have opened Hungry Eyes, a splashy, ’80s-themed dinner and drinks restaurant. The menu ranges from “drinking snacks” to medium plates that top out at $20, like grilled pastrami kebabs and a seafood curry with calamari, catfish, and hearts of palm served with roti. The food is designed to compliment the drinks, and Hungry Eyes mixes a menu of classic martinis and not-so-classic cocktails, like a pandan old fashioned made with rum and bourbon and an Ube Baby Baby made with coconut, pineapple, and rum. Open Wednesday through Monday from 4 to 10 p.m., it doesn’t take reservations, so expect a bit of a wait (which can be spent next door at Second Vine Wine).

Grilled pastrami, artichokes on the half shell, halibut crudo, and Earl’s seafood and turmeric curry.
Randy Schmidt/Eater NOLA

Osteria Lupo

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The much-anticipated debut of this Italian restaurant arrived in early April to the delight of fans of Magazine Street Spanish restaurant Costera. For their second restaurant, partners chef Brian Burns and Reno De Ranieiri drew on inspiration from Piedmont, Liguria, and other regions in northern Italy for a menu of fresh pasta like blue crab radiatori, wood-fired pizza with clam and broccoli rabe, antipasti like red snapper crudo, and roasted meat and fish entrees, like rack of lamb with pistachio verde. A very blue, airy dining room centered around an open kitchen with an adjacent bar area is open for dinner Wednesday through Sunday from 4 to 9 p.m.

Arancini, blue crab radiatori, campanelle with mushrooms, wood-fired oysters, and bigoli carbonara from Osteria Lupo. 
Katherine Kimball/Eater NOLA

Wonderland & Sea

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This fun, funky fast-casual spot with a focus on fried fish, chicken, and frozen drinks opened in May. Wonderland & Sea serves kale and cous cous salads; sides of flash-fried bok choy, rice fritters, and grilled collard greens; fried chicken and fish sandwiches; and fried chicken and fish platters served with a sweet potato biscuit, crunchy cabbage, and house pickles. There’s even a vegan crispy chickpea tender sandwich. Prices are extremely fair given the restaurant’s claim of antibiotic-free chicken and locally caught fish; everything except the fried fish platter is priced at $10 or less.

The Wonder-Bird from Wonderland & Sea. 
Wonderland & Sea

Sun Chong

Sun Chong is the third restaurant from Larry Morrow, the New Orleans entrepreneur behind hotspots Morrow’s and Monday. It’s arguably his most stylish restaurant yet, and his most meaningful — it’s named after his grandmother, who also leads the kitchen (with help from Morrow’s mother Lenora Chong and chef Christian Green). In addition to Korean specialties like bulgogi and bibimbap, the menu features Asian American classics like fried rice (crawfish or vegetable), lettuce wraps, sweet and sour pork, bacos, and dumplings. Overall, Morrow aimed to create a “cool, intimate spot with classic hip hop music being played and dope food,” and Sun Chong is just that.

Katherine Kimball/Sun Chong

Namaste Nola

There’s a splendid new Indian restaurant in the heart of the CBD (located on the ground floor of the Wyndham Garden Hotel), a low-key spot opened by Kumud Ranjan and Rani Masgalli with chef Sudhardshan “Suda” Kasarapu in late March. The large menu highlights dishes from southern India, including several vegetarian items like kadai paneer, aloo mutter, and dal makhani, as well as familiar biryanis, lamb and goat curries, lamb vindaloo, and tandoori chicken (there’s even a section of noodle and rice Indo Chinese dishes). It’s open every day but Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., and a liquor license is in the works.

Tonti's Hand French Bistro

This neighborhood French bistro in Algiers Point is 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. The all-day, Parisian-style cafe serves a menu of upscale bistro classics like French onion soup, ratatouille, jambon beurre, and escargot Bourgogne.

King

King is a new brasserie in the Kimpton Hotel Fontenot, a sister restaurant to the vibrant Peacock Room that opened last year. Chef Samuel Peery has designed a menu heavy on seafood, with a raw bar full of elegant options like caviar served with brioche Madeleines and a seafood platter of oysters, mussels, gulf shrimp, blue crab claws, and an option to add poached lobster. Carbonara gets the uni and black truffle treatment, and a braised veal shank is served with white mirepoix and mushroom. An impressive dessert menu makes clear it was not an afterthought — finish it all off with technique-driven dishes like a caramel torte with black cocoa, cremeux, and crème fraiche sorbet.

Cris Molina/Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants

Devil Moon Barbecue

This new barbecue restaurant downtown is seeking to define South Louisiana barbecue as championed by a local pitmaster known for creations like meatloaf sausage and a pastrami banh mi. Shannon Bingham leads the kitchen at Devil Moon Barbecue, run by a DC-based restaurant group and opened in late February. Start with Southern snacks like pimiento cheese and smoked onion dip before diving into plates of pork ribs, beef brisket, pulled pork, turkey breast, and Louisiana smoked sausages like boudin and chaurice. Sides, particularly white beans, dirty rice, and chicken sauce piquant further reflect the Cajun tilt of this exciting barbecue joint.

Devil Moon Barbecue

Mucho Mas Mexican Eatery & Lounge

A vibrant new destination for Mexican cuisine and agave cocktails has opened on Oak Street, the much-anticipated Mucho Mas from Julio Machado. The former chef and co-owner of Metairie’s Tacos del Cartel has been working on the restaurant for some time now, taking over the large Oak Street space that was previously home to DTB (Down the Bayou). With an eye-catching, trendy vibe and over-the-top decor, it’s sure to be a new Uptown go-to for mashups like barbecue birria tacos and Mexican ramen as well regional Mexican dishes like carne asada tasajo and snapper a la talla, with many dishes grilled on charcoal. Weekend brunch is 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Dahla

The latest addition to the ever-growing South Market development is Dahla, a stylish, contemporary Thai restaurant that shares a building with Tava, the Indian street food hit that opened last year. It’s from the owners behind former Metairie restaurant Thai Ocha, but Waraphon Chittrakul and family have kicked everything up a notch at the new spot downtown, from ambiance and cocktails to menu offerings like the extravagant crispy duck curry, seafood tom yum fried rice, and siam steak. It’s open Monday through Saturday for lunch and dinner.

Miss Shirley's

Shirley and Tang Lee, the original proprietors of Royal China in Metairie, 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.

Dakar NOLA

Serigne Mbaye’s dazzling Senegalese tasting menu dinners are now a permanent fixture in New Orleans, after holding Dakar NOLA dinners at various locations including the Southern Food and Beverage Museum (SoFab) and Mosquito Supper Club over the last two years. At the new restaurant of the same name, Mbaye serves riffs on traditional West African and Senegalese dishes, 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 holds one seating per evening for 30 guests, Wednesday through Saturday.

Dakar NOLA/Official

Hungry Eyes

After conquering breakfast and lunch, Mason Hereford and the team behind Turkey and the Wolf have opened Hungry Eyes, a splashy, ’80s-themed dinner and drinks restaurant. The menu ranges from “drinking snacks” to medium plates that top out at $20, like grilled pastrami kebabs and a seafood curry with calamari, catfish, and hearts of palm served with roti. The food is designed to compliment the drinks, and Hungry Eyes mixes a menu of classic martinis and not-so-classic cocktails, like a pandan old fashioned made with rum and bourbon and an Ube Baby Baby made with coconut, pineapple, and rum. Open Wednesday through Monday from 4 to 10 p.m., it doesn’t take reservations, so expect a bit of a wait (which can be spent next door at Second Vine Wine).

Grilled pastrami, artichokes on the half shell, halibut crudo, and Earl’s seafood and turmeric curry.
Randy Schmidt/Eater NOLA

Osteria Lupo

The much-anticipated debut of this Italian restaurant arrived in early April to the delight of fans of Magazine Street Spanish restaurant Costera. For their second restaurant, partners chef Brian Burns and Reno De Ranieiri drew on inspiration from Piedmont, Liguria, and other regions in northern Italy for a menu of fresh pasta like blue crab radiatori, wood-fired pizza with clam and broccoli rabe, antipasti like red snapper crudo, and roasted meat and fish entrees, like rack of lamb with pistachio verde. A very blue, airy dining room centered around an open kitchen with an adjacent bar area is open for dinner Wednesday through Sunday from 4 to 9 p.m.

Arancini, blue crab radiatori, campanelle with mushrooms, wood-fired oysters, and bigoli carbonara from Osteria Lupo. 
Katherine Kimball/Eater NOLA

Wonderland & Sea

This fun, funky fast-casual spot with a focus on fried fish, chicken, and frozen drinks opened in May. Wonderland & Sea serves kale and cous cous salads; sides of flash-fried bok choy, rice fritters, and grilled collard greens; fried chicken and fish sandwiches; and fried chicken and fish platters served with a sweet potato biscuit, crunchy cabbage, and house pickles. There’s even a vegan crispy chickpea tender sandwich. Prices are extremely fair given the restaurant’s claim of antibiotic-free chicken and locally caught fish; everything except the fried fish platter is priced at $10 or less.

The Wonder-Bird from Wonderland & Sea. 
Wonderland & Sea

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