#2440 - Kingfish, New Orleans - 3/15/2014

Kingfish Restaurant, New Orleans

New Orleans has, of course, many more than its share of famous chefs, and a number of top bartenders, and the Kingfish has had changes in both in this visit. On our stop we did not have time to sample the mix of Japanese street food, Cajun and French cuisines, but we did have a couple cocktails from legendary fourth-generation barman Chris McMillian. I've lost my notes on what we drank, but in any case McMillian has moved on to open his own place (Revel) in 2016, and both the kitchen and bar at Kingfish appear to remain in very good hands with new chef Nathan Richard and current bartenders.

Chris McMillian, Kingfish, New Orleans

As the name implies, the restaurant and bar are a paean to the era of prohibition and Huey Long, with bartenders and servers in white shirts and black braces. The cocktail menu is a mix of local classics and new inventions. There is a grand piano, pressed tin bar backing, 30s movies playing, and a large photo of Long. At dinner hours and evenings it is packed and lively.

337 Chartres St., New Orleans, LA 70125 - (504) 598-5005
Est. April 2013
Web site: kingfishneworleans.com - facebook
Reviews: nola.com - eater - countryroadsmagazine - bestofneworleans - yelp

#2439 - Bombay Club, New Orleans - 3/15/2014

The Bombay Club, New Orleans, LA

The Bombay Club in the French Quarter's Prince Conti Hotel is a green and woody paean to the heydays of British colonialism, Cajun cooking, and the great American invention of the martini. This visit came shortly after long-time manager Richard Fiske passed away and his staff departed to open a bar in his name. The group that runs Broussard's and Kingfish took over, remodeled, and installed chef Nathan Richard and bar manager Blake Kaiser. Our group did not have time for dinner this evening, but enjoyed our cocktails and old standards on the piano from our friend Monty Banks.

Monty Banks at the Bombay Club, New Orleans, LA

830 Conti St, New Orleans, LA 70112 - (504) 577-2237
Web site: bombayclubneworleans.com - facebook
Reviews: neworleansadvocate - curbed - nola - yelp - tripadvisor

#2438 - Broussard's (Empire Bar), New Orleans - 3/15/2014

On this visit our small group was not here for the elegant, old French restaurant which over it's nearly 100 years has served characters from Tennessee Williams and William Faulkner to Sammy Davis Jr., Tony Bennett, and Elizabeth Taylor. Rather we were headed for the new Empire Bar, where the new owners had completed a million dollar remodel, and put its cocktail program in the capable hands of Paul Gustings, who has been granted various titles along the the lines of "the crustiest bartender on earth." Alas, I failed to note the specific cocktails we tried that day, but I do remember that they included a punch and that we enjoyed them all in the shade of the 100-year-old vine in the refurbished patio of the 1874 mansion that eventually grew into Mr. Joseph Broussard's restaurant.


819 Conti St, New Orleans, LA 70112 - (504) 581-3866
Est. 1920, current bar 2013
Web site: broussards.com - facebook
Best articles: nytimes - eater - countryroads - nola - nola - gonomad
More articles: theneworleansadvocate - yelp - tripadvisor - neworleans - 10best - punchdrink

#2437 - Tony Seville's Pirate Alley Cafe, New Orleans - 3/15/2014

There's nothing wrong with a little Disneylandish corner in an historic setting, especially when they are pouring absinthe. The staff are friendly and the vibe is lively but not loud or overly crowded.

622 Pirates Alley, New Orleans, LA 70116 - (504) 524-9332
Web site: piratesalleycafe.com - facebook
Reviews: yelp - tripadvisor

#2436 - Cane & Table, New Orleans - 3/15/2014

Cane and Table, New Orleans, LA

The basement of my house started out being decorated as a goth bar and rather suddenly shifted to a tiki bar. How that happened is kinda a long story, but a similar thing happened to Pravda, this beautifully dark and ornately formal, Soviet-themed space on Decatur Street. I loved that bar and hated to see it go. But if the evil empire had to collapse, one could do a lot worse for a replacement than a "Rustic Colonial Cuisine and Proto-Tiki" joint. And we're not talking some cheesy, overly sweet bastardizations of tiki -- we're talking an ownership team from the highly regarded Cure and Bellocq hiring rum master Nick Detrich to devise a menu of well-balanced, Caribbean themed, pre-prohibition era and tiki style drinks.

The vibe has gone from dark to what feels like relaxing in a sunny plaza in Havana. This is especially true on the back patio, where strange gods mix unobtrusively, from tikis to faded Egyptian figures, all around one of the older buildings in all of New Orleans. There are nights with well known guest bartenders (including Beachbum Berry) and an "all you can drink brunch." It is now a place where it is easy to linger.

1113 Decatur St, New Orleans, LA 70116 - (504) 581-1112               
Est. 2013
Previous bars in this location: Pravda
Web site: caneandtablenola.com - facebook
Articles ranked: eater - nola - nola - 10best - yelp - zagat - neworleansonline

#2435 - 3 legged Dog Tavern, New Orleans - 3/14/2014

Three Legged Dog, New Orleans, LA

One of so many bars in the New Orleans that in any other town would probably be your favorite bar in the city, the Three Legged Dog is known for their crawfish, boiled with corn, potatoes, pineapple, sausage, garlic, artichokes, and heaped onto places from a huge bin.

Three Legged Dog, New Orleans, LA

Three Legged Dog, New Orleans, LA
(Photo from bar's facebook page)

400 Burgundy St, New Orleans, LA 70112 - (504) 412-8335             
Web site: facebook
Reviews: hungrycityblog - yelp - tripadvisor

#2434 - The Upper Quarter, New Orleans - 3/14/2014

The Upper Quarter has a nice, genuine dive feel to it. It is known as a big gathering place for New Orleans Saints fans, and one can only assume that its taken them a substantial number of pudding shots to handle recent seasons.

1000 Bienville St, New Orleans, LA 70112 - (504) 523-4111
Web site: facebook
Reviews: bestofneworleans - yelp - tripadvisor