One of the best things about the holiday season is not
only spending time with loved ones, but enjoying great food and drinks along
the way. While past holiday seasons have been filled with family gatherings,
this year's ongoing pandemic has scaled down typical home get-togethers and
social interactions. There are, however, still ways to connect with one another
and enjoy meals, such as social distancing at a favorite restaurant or even
planning virtual cooking dates with friends and family. For those who are used
to cooking large family meals every holiday season, what better way to end this
crazy year than relaxing and having a great meal cooked and served to you for a
change? If there has been any year to take a break, it would be this one! Restaurants
around the city are cooking old and new holiday dishes, with extensive holiday
menu items for everyone to partake in. Here is a list of six places to indulge
in tasty cuisine, where one can treat themselves or their families to
appetizing meals this holiday season without having to cook.
Café
Degas
Café Degas
is the longest running French bistro in New Orleans, with a mostly outdoor café
and a beautiful ambiance that sets this place apart. Their French cuisine has a
taste of Creole flavors, sure to provide a great dining experience, whether
with family, friends, or on a date night. They're offering their Réveillon dinner menu through the month of
December, which includes flavorful multicourse meals at one fixed price of $44.
Their decadent, four-course dinners even include a glass of ruby port for 21+ guests to enjoy with their meal. Dinner starts
with seared sea scallops alongside braised fennel, spinach, and bacon jam, and
is followed by a Réveillon Salade. The next course includes a New York strip au poivre with garlic mashed potatoes,
vegetable medley, and green peppercorn brandy cream sauce. No dinner is
complete without dessert, and Café Degas's chocolate pot de crème is a sweet, satisfying end to a delicious dinner. 3127 Esplanade Ave., (504) 945-5635, cafedegas.com
Red
Gravy
Red Gravy
is a cozy bistro serving deliciously rustic Italian cuisine that has been
passed down through family generations. Their locally sourced ingredients
create delicious food, from brunch to their homemade pastas. This year, Red
Gravy is hosting their fifth annual Feast of the Seven Fishes, an
Italian-American food celebration serving a variety of seafood, fish, and
shellfish dishes. Seafood-lovers can indulge in Red Gravy's grand multicourse
meal of seafood, pastas, and vegetables for $85 on Friday, December 18.
Purchase tickets for their Feast of the Seven Fishes event to reserve some of their
limited seats and enjoy six-course meals with delicious dishes such as baked
stuffed clams, seafood panzerotti, fried flounder, and their famous and
traditional sweet dough struffoli for
dessert. 4206 Magazine St., (504)
561-8844, redgravycafe.com
Gianna
Gianna's
dishes reflect cooking techniques that stem from family in the Veneto Region of
northern Italy. Throughout the month of December, Gianna is celebrating the Feast
of the Seven Fishes, with Italian dishes that honor Italy's and Louisiana's
culinary traditions. Their $50 "Feed Me" menu is family-style, providing fresh
and sustainable seafood that includes fresh, spear-caught cobia fish from Chris
the Spearfisherman. The meal starts with cobia belly crudo and chopped salad,
followed by chili shrimp spaghetti, asciutta pasta, steamed mussels, and
focaccia bread. The next course features grilled cobia and vegetables, finished
with a dessert of lemon mousse and chocolate budino. There is also a pairing of beverages, including wine and an
aperitif to drink while enjoying a great meal. 700 Magazine St., (504) 399-0816, giannarestaurant.com
Gris-Gris
Gris Gris
is celebrating Louisiana culture this holiday season with their first annual Mangé Loa Holiday,
which features a Voodoo-inspired menu. Mangé Loa, the feeding of the gods, is a Voodoo
ceremony consisting of a feast of animal offerings, drinks, and desserts. Until
Christmas Eve, Gris Gris's four-course dinner menu is $65 and showcases a great
host of tasty Loa offerings, including optional wine pairings provided by The
Prisoner Wine Company. Their delicious dishes include options such as chicken
and andouille gumbo, poached oysters, herb-roasted Cornish hen, cast-iron
seared fish, brown-butter-basted swordfish with lobster, and more. The meal is
complete with cherry chocolate chuck ice cream with dark-chocolate peppermint
ganache to finish the Mangé Loa celebration off right. 1800 Magazine St., (504) 272-0241, grisgrisnola.com
Galatoire's
Galatoire's has been a legendary staple in New Orleans since 1905, with
recipes and traditions that have spanned from the Galatoire family for
generations. For the holiday season, Galatoire's is offering their Réveillon
menu every Wednesday through Sunday, for lunch and dinner, until Christmas Eve.
This four-course menu starts at $48, with first-course choices of fried oysters
or shrimp remoulade, one of the restaurant's most popular dishes. The second
course has options of root vegetable salad or turtle soup au sherry. For the entrees,
there are a variety of great dishes to choose from, such as a roasted half
chicken with butternut squash ($48), fried trout ($52), duck leg confit ($58),
or grilled filet mignon ($60). Galatoire's dessert is a choice of bread pudding
with banana praline sauce or apple streusel tartlets, made with green apples
and spiced wine meringues. 209 Bourbon
St., (504) 525-2021, galatoires.com
Dickie Brennan's Tableau
Tableau's amazing dining experience is well-known, and shortly after
opening, they were named one of The Times-Picayune's
Best New Restaurants in New Orleans and voted as having #1 best balcony for
dining and drinking. Tableau honors the authentic roots of Creole cuisine,
while also infusing their dishes with flavors from around the world. Tableau's Réveillon
menu is offered until December 23, with a four-course dinner for $62. The first
course has a choice of rabbit pot pie or brown-butter sage gnocchi, followed by
a second course of turtle soup or winter green salad. The third course has a choice
of seared scallops or a 12-ounce prime rib eye with oyster mushrooms and tomato
salad. Tableau ends the meal with a dessert of eggnog panna cotta, perfect for
the holidays, or a tarte à la bouillie,
made with Cajun sweet dough and old New Orleans Rum caramel sauce. 616 St. Peter St.,
(504) 934-3463, tableaufrenchquarter.com
