If you are observing Lent (or you just love seafood), lots of local eateries are here to help you with your seasonal sacrifice. At the Bower, order the spicy scallop arancini for a spiritual experience. The peppered conchiglie with Louisiana blue crab or tuna crudo with avocado, cucumber, sweet pepper relish and satsuma vinaigrette will make you feel closer to the divine. Newly opened Charmant’s porcini dusted trout with hazelnut, celery root, Brussels sprouts and truffle beurre blanc might convince you to abstain from meat year-round. Tujague’s is throwing a hail Mary your way with its Gulf shrimp in a lemon beurre blanc with herbs and lump crab meat, complete with brown butter fingerling potatoes on the side. You’ll have nothing to confess if you get the fried fish collar with passionfruit glaze and picapepper salsa at Compère Lapin. Amen.
Doin’ Good in the Neighborhood
The former Uptown Surrey Cafe on Magazine Street is being given new life as a pay-what-you-can eatery. For more than 15 years, Crescent City Cafe has served free breakfast twice a month to New Orleans’ low-income and marginalized communities from the kitchen at Rayne Memorial Methodist Church on St. Charles Avenue. Everyone is welcome at the new, donation-based cafe, and those who can pay it forward are encouraged to do so. crescentcitycafe.com
Surf and Turf on the Northshore
Seafood and steak take pride of place on the menu at the new Covington restaurant, The Hampshire. Co-founders and friends Executive Chef Ryan Gall and General Manager Jonathan Cimino are behind the latest addition to Covington’s ever-growing downtown dining scene. Situated at 401 N New Hampshire St., the restaurant is about a block away from the Southern Hotel. The interior design includes an open kitchen where diners have a front row seat to the action behind delectable menu items such as mussels Provencal in white wine sauce; Maine lobster pasta with herb and brie cream, fresh dill and smoked pancetta; and the 16-ounce Delmonico ribeye with smoked citrus compound butter. The latter is clearly a nod to Gall’s time with Emeril Lagasse Group as executive sous chef. Many will also know Gall from his most recent stint at Tchefuncte’s Restaurant. 401thehampshire.com
Brunch, but Make It Caribbean
Oak Street Jamaican restaurant 14 Parishes is now serving weekend brunch Saturdays and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Expect the traditional Jamaican breakfast (and the country’s national dish) of ackee (a savory fruit) and salt fish cooked in spices, onions, peppers and tomatoes; jerk chicken and croissant waffles with guava butter; and various specials. The restaurant’s Hummingbird Lounge event space is also available to lease during brunch for special events. Reservations are encouraged for brunch, but not required. 14parishes.com
Salutations and Incantations
Alert your coven, witches, because Chef Christina Quackenbush is actively summoning the spirit of Tatlo. In July of 2025, the chef shuttered her popular French Quarter bar and restaurant — a sacred space steeped in Filipino witch energy — with the promise of otherworldly popups to come. Quakenbush and her circle are officially conjuring the monthly popups at various restaurants around town, with the first held in January at Hot & Soul in Mid-City. The evening featured Quackenbush’s signature Filipino fusion cuisine (such as the “Peanut Butter and Belly” with seared beef belly and short rib in rice paper atop a puddle of peanut sauce with sauteed Bok choy and green beans and flavorful fried boudin spring rolls) and cocktails, tableside spells, tarot readings and, in true takeover fashion, enchanted decorative touches. Look for announcements about the monthly popups on Tatlo’s Instagram account instagram.com/tatlonola
