Coquette in New Orleans is the Magazine and Washington corner restaurant from Michael Stoltzfus, a 2008 modern-Southern room with rotating tasting menus and a long Louisiana wine list.
Signature dishes: Tasting menu, Charcuterie board
Must order: Whatever the Blind Faith tasting menu is running that week. Trust the kitchen.
Tip: Sit upstairs for the corner-window view; downstairs runs faster and louder.
Address: 2800 Magazine St, New Orleans, LA 70115
Lilette in New Orleans is John Harris's 2001 Uptown bistro on Magazine Street, named for the Mauri family matriarch he lived with in France and serving bouillabaisse and duck confit.
Signature: Bouillabaisse, Hanger steak
Order: The bouillabaisse, on the menu since opening. Order a glass of Cassis blanc with it.
Tip: Lunch service is the most relaxed; the dining room is dim and pretty in the evening.
Shaya in New Orleans is the Magazine Street modern Israeli room that won James Beard Best New Restaurant in 2016, now under BRG Hospitality with its wood-fired pita oven still anchoring service.
Signature: Wood-fired pita, Lamb shawarma
Order: The wood-fired pita with hummus. Then the lamb shawarma.
Tip: Founder Alon Shaya now runs Saba up the road at 5757 Magazine; both rooms are worth a visit.
Saba in New Orleans is Alon Shaya's 2018 Magazine Street follow-up to Shaya, a modern Israeli room at Nashville Avenue with the whipped feta and whole roasted cauliflower he made famous.
Signature: Lutenitsa with whipped feta, Whole-roasted cauliflower
Order: The whole roasted cauliflower with whipped feta. Then the lamb ragu hummus.
Tip: Brunch on Sundays runs the shakshuka and matzo ball brioche French toast; book a fortnight ahead.
N7 in New Orleans is the Bywater French wine bar behind an unmarked fence on Montegut Street from Aaron Walker and Yuki Yamaguchi, with French bistro plates and a Japanese accent.
Signature: Tinned-fish plate, Steak frites with Bordelaise
Order: The tinned-fish board with bread, then steak frites with Bordelaise.
Tip: Reservations are tight; the garden seating opens at 17:00 and walk-ins land best on weeknights.
Mosquito Supper Club in New Orleans is Melissa Martin's Uptown communal-table Cajun room in an 1898 cottage on Dryades Street, with a single fixed Cajun menu and a Bayou Lafourche cookbook lineage.
Signature: Communal Cajun set menu, Crab stew
Order: The crab stew and shrimp boulettes; the menu is fixed and arrives in courses.
Tip: Reservations open the first of the month for the next month. Book the moment they appear.
Peche in New Orleans is Ryan Prewitt, Stephen Stryjewski and Donald Link's James Beard winning Gulf seafood room on Magazine and Julia, with a wood-fired grill and a daily whole fish.
Signature: Whole grilled fish, Smoked tuna dip
Order: The smoked tuna dip to start, then a whole grilled fish to share for the table.
Tip: The bar walks in best at 17:30; the kitchen sends the same menu and the oyster service is tighter.
