Travel Travel Guides Where to Eat in New Orleans Right Now: The New Garde In a city that treasures its historic restaurants, restaurant editor Jordana Rothman finds a few upstarts gunning for progress. By Tacos: Recipes + Provocations, with chef Alex Stupak of New York's Empellón restaurants; it was nominated for a prestigious James Beard Award and three IACP cookbook awards, even though she slipped a "Hail Satan" into the recipe index. Jordana also once challenged competitive eater Takeru Kobayashi to a hot dog eating contest. She lost." tabindex="0" data-inline-tooltip="true"> Jordana Rothman Jordana Rothman Jordana Rothman is a seasoned writer and editor, with a focus on American restaurant culture and a commitment to empowering marginalized voices in the food space. As Restaurant Editor at Large at Food & Wine, she spends half the year on the road researching the magazine’s Best New Chefs platform, now in its 31st year. In 2015 Jordana co-authored her first book, Tacos: Recipes + Provocations, with chef Alex Stupak of New York's Empellón restaurants; it was nominated for a prestigious James Beard Award and three IACP cookbook awards, even though she slipped a "Hail Satan" into the recipe index. Jordana also once challenged competitive eater Takeru Kobayashi to a hot dog eating contest. She lost. Food & Wine's Editorial Guidelines Published on July 21, 2017 In a city that treasures its historic restaurants, restaurant editor Jordana Rothman finds a few upstarts gunning for progress. Photo: Douglas Friedman There's an underdog coup brewing in the Crescent City these days. A movement of young chefs is shaking up the restaurant scene and siphoning the buzz that's kept the city's culinary Goliaths vibrating for years. At Marjie's Grill (320 S Broad Ave, New Orleans), chef Marcus Jacobs and his partner Caitlin Carney (vets of Donald Link's Herbsaint) imagine what a Southern meat and three might look like in Southeast Asia: perfect fried catfish with chiles and herbs or sweet potatoes roasted in coals and drizzled in cane syrup. A few miles away is Kristopher Doll's no-frills Shank Charcuterie (2352 St Claude Ave.), a whole-beast butchery and luncheonette. Doll, who also worked for Link, slings headcheese and a soul-rattling pimento cheese patty melt. There's new growth out of the John Besh root system, too. August alum Michael Stoltzfus earned his own raves at Coquette (2800 Magazine St.)—training ground for Mason Hereford, whose eccentric Turkey and the Wolf (739 Jackson Ave.) was one of F&W's 2017 Restaurants of the Year. All this rogue energy may be bringing new heat, but, of course, NOLA has always been one of the world's great food cities. At Compère Lapin (The Old No. 77 Hotel & Chandlery, 535 Tchoupitoulas St.), Nina Compton's Caribbean cooking made her a Best New Chef this year, but Leah Chase has been exploring Creole flavors at Dooky Chase's Restaurant (2301 Orleans Ave.)since the 1940s. Phillip Lopez's nostalgic Italo-American Corleone sandwich at Part & Parcel (611 O'Keefe Ave.) was one of the most satisfying bites we've had all year, but the muffuletta at Central Grocery (923 Decatur St.) hasn't lost its place in the pantheon. Even if the city's food scene is in the grips of a changing of the guard, in New Orleans there are still some things that will always stand the test of time. Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit