There are times when new restaurant openings in New Orleans garner attention for being wildly inventive and envelope-pushing, with experimental modernist cuisine that breaks rules and boundaries at 100 miles an hour. And as much as we appreciate culinary ingenuity and razzle-dazzle pyrotechnics, sometimes we yearn for something that’s familiar, but not staid. That can be a tall order and a difficult tightrope for even the most seasoned chefs and restaurateurs, but when executed properly, elevated Louisiana comfort food is something we’ll come back to time and time again. In that vein, the recently opened Delacroix restaurant hits the mark with aplomb, deftly marrying a rustic Louisiana “fish camp” aesthetic with fine dining technique and craftsmanship.
It shouldn’t surprise anyone that Delacroix’s success in treading this fine line comes at the hands of John Besh, whose restaurant Borgne had a similar philosophy. For this project, located in Spanish Plaza with stunning views of the Mississippi, Besh tapped Louisiana native Wiley Lewis to steer the ship (or pirogue, rather), her first restaurant opening after extensive experience in Crescent City fine dining ranging from Ralph’s on the Park to Sucre, Borgne, Domenica and Restaurant August. According to Lewis, “I met with John, and he said, ‘You know, this is a fish camp. This is a hunting camp. We have all this incredible South Louisiana heritage and wildlife we get to honor.’ And I was like, ‘Well, that’s how I grew up, and I would love to be able to honor that and tell those stories. So, whether it’s a celebration or just having a small bite and some oysters, we kind of hit on every level. It’s just very ‘come as you are.’”
Given its prime location on the river, Delacroix is perfectly situated to appeal to a variety of diners, as fitting for a business lunch as it is for a date night, cocktails and snacks with friends, or perhaps just popping by for a generous fried seafood sandwich after roaming the Quarter on a muggy afternoon. Even the decor feels like it’s occupying two separate worlds simultaneously, given its spacious and sleek modern design decorated with taxidermy and antique photographs celebrating the people and landscapes of southern Louisiana. In less artful hands, this might seem a jarring juxtaposition, but here it comes off as natural and comforting, much like the cuisine.
Speaking of which, the menu at Delacroix is filled with familiar favorites, but it’s not without some pleasant and unexpected surprises. The raw bar options, for instance, include off-bottom Gulf oysters, briny Royal Red shrimp, and a luscious smoked oyster dip paired with fried saltines, crowd pleasers all. But you’ll also find stone crab claws, something that many people (including this writer) might associate more with South Florida than South Louisiana, however these meaty and delicate claws are both locally cultivated and an absolute joy. Said Lewis, “It’s one of those special items that you can only get a certain amount of at certain times a year, and it’s a short season. We haven’t seen them since Katrina, so we’re just as lucky as y’all to be able to have them right now.”
Perhaps the most difficult proposition when dining at Delacroix is not filling up entirely on appetizers. Take, for instance, the fried duck popper meat pies stuffed with smoky Benton’s bacon and jalapenos, the satisfying hybrid between an empanada and a classic Natchitoches meat pie inspired by a snack Besh favored at his duck hunting camp. Similarly are the crispy boudin balls, which are always a welcome proposition if not a particularly novel one, only here they incorporate gooey pepper jack cheese, making them more like Cajun-style arancini. Also worth checking out are the crispy snapper collars with spicy herbed butter, a dish not normally available at your traditional fried fish joints around town. “The collar is underutilized, almost a delicacy,” said Lewis. “We batter and fry it, then we put this little tomato butter at the very bottom, and then this little herb chili glaze. It’s so tasty, and it’s a product that people just throw away. You can’t just throw that away! You can fry it and batter it and put a delicious sauce on it. And there’s still plenty of fish, and it’s excellent.”
There are also a number of sandwich options at Delacroix, all served on potato buns specially crafted for the restaurant by Leidenheimer Baking Co., and featuring your choice of fried shrimp, oysters, soft-shell crabs or a combination thereof. You’ll also find a pepper jelly-glazed fried chicken thigh version that Chef Lewis claims is, “the best piece of fried chicken I’ve ever had. It’s just the sweet heat that everybody loves. It’s not too spicy, it’s not too salty, it’s just the best kind of flavor profile.” And then there are the more traditional entrees, a smorgasbord of comforting staples like southern fried chicken with red beans, wild boar cavatelli, an absolutely massive 8-ounce, shrimp-stuffed bone-in pork chop, and a pitch-perfect drum almondine swimming in buttery meunière sauce. Another notable and surprising addition to the menu is a pairing of fried catfish with turtle sauce piquant and fluffy jasmine rice. “We just had to have it on the menu,” says Lewis. “It just tastes like this down home, Cajun delicious bayou dinner that you never knew you needed.” If that didn’t quite put you over the top, you’ll definitely want a taste of Chef Lewis’ signature “Baked Bismarck” a riff on a classic baked Alaska named after her grandmother’s houseboat.
As for her first restaurant opening after an already impressive culinary career in the Crescent City, Lewis appears happy and grateful for the opportunity to showcase her talents – and her love of Louisiana – with local diners and visitors alike. “The heritage and the culture of the city, either you get it or you don’t. And so I love it,” she said.”Life is hard enough, so let’s try and have a good day, because tomorrow’s not promised.”
About the Chef
A Shreveport native, Chef Wylie Lewis grew up appreciating the “sportsman’s paradise” of hunting and fishing with her family on Caddo Lake and Grand Chenier. An interest in nutrition as a high school athlete naturally led to a career in culinary arts. With a degree in hospitality from the University of New Orleans, Lewis scored her first kitchen gig at Ralph’s on the Park, which led to her specializing in baking and pastry, and followed by stints at Sucre, Sainte Marie, and then the Besh Restaurant Group, including Borgne, Domenica and Restaurant August. When Delacroix opened in late 2025, she seemed a natural fit to helm the nascent eatery’s kitchen team. Chef Lewis couldn’t feel more at home at Delacroix. “I’ve never opened a restaurant, so it’s been absolutely incredible, and it doesn’t feel like work,” she says. “It feels like I’m supposed to be here, and I feel really good about what I’m doing every single day. To have the love and support of my family and all the people that come into the restaurant, it’s just been amazing.”
