New Orleans rewards people who plan their days around meals. This food lover’s guide to New Orleans picks eight places that are open now and worth building a trip around: beignets at Café du Monde, a muffuletta from Central Grocery, Friday lunch at Galatoire’s, Creole classics at Commander’s Palace and Dooky Chase’s, fried chicken at Willie Mae’s, and a dripping roast beef po’boy at Parkway.
They aren’t the only great tables in a city that New Orleans & Company says has more than 1,000 restaurants. They’re the ones that tell the city’s story best, from French Quarter grand dames to neighbourhood counters where locals queue with you.
Here’s where each one is, what to order, and how to string them together without spending half your trip in a rideshare.
Key takeaways
- Four of the eight picks sit in the French Quarter, so you can cover coffee, sandwiches and a long lunch on foot.
- Commander’s Palace, Galatoire’s and Dooky Chase’s reward booking ahead; Galatoire’s and Commander’s also have dress codes.
- Willie Mae’s now serves its famous fried chicken at Willie Mae’s NOLA on Baronne Street in the Warehouse District.
- Order the house signature first time round: beignets, muffuletta, soufflé potatoes, turtle soup, bananas Foster, roast beef po’boy.
- Opening days vary and some places close one or two days a week, so check each official site before you plan a day.
The quick plan
Group your eating by neighbourhood and you’ll spend more time at the table and less time in traffic. The table below is the whole guide at a glance.
| Place | Neighbourhood | Order this | Book ahead? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Café du Monde | French Quarter (French Market) | Beignets, café au lait | No, walk up |
| Central Grocery & Deli | French Quarter (Decatur St) | Muffuletta | No |
| Galatoire’s | French Quarter (Bourbon St) | Soufflé potatoes, shrimp rémoulade, trout amandine | Yes |
| Brennan’s | French Quarter (Royal St) | Breakfast, bananas Foster | Check site |
| Commander’s Palace | Garden District | Turtle soup, bread pudding soufflé | Yes |
| Dooky Chase’s | Tremé | Fried chicken, gumbo, shrimp Clemenceau | Highly recommended |
| Willie Mae’s NOLA | Warehouse District | Fried chicken | Check site |
| Parkway Bakery & Tavern | Mid-City | Roast beef or fried shrimp po’boy | No |
A workable three-day shape: a French Quarter day built around Galatoire’s, a Garden District day with lunch at Commander’s, and a day that loops Tremé, Mid-City and the Warehouse District for fried chicken and po’boys.
French Quarter classics
Café du Monde
The original French Market coffee stand at 800 Decatur Street has been pouring since 1862, according to its New Orleans & Company listing. The menu is famously short: beignets under a snowdrift of powdered sugar and café au lait made with chicory coffee and half hot milk. Go early or late to dodge the peak crowd, and wear something that forgives sugar.
Central Grocery & Deli
A few blocks down Decatur at number 923, Central Grocery is where Salvatore Lupo created the muffuletta in 1906. The family still slices meats in house and layers them on locally baked bread with its own Italian olive salad. One sandwich easily feeds two, which leaves room for everything else on this list.
Galatoire’s
At 209 Bourbon Street, Galatoire’s is the Quarter’s great Creole dining room. Order the soufflé potatoes, shrimp rémoulade and trout amandine. Friday lunch is the local ritual and the room gets loud, in the best way. Gentlemen need collared shirts and long pants at all times, and jackets after 5pm and all day Sunday in the main and second-floor dining rooms; loaner jackets are available.
Brennan’s
Brennan’s, at 417 Royal Street, has served Creole cooking since 1946 and marks 80 years in 2026. Brennan’s says bananas Foster was created there in 1951, when Owen Brennan challenged chef Paul Blangé to invent a dessert, and that the flambéed result is now its most-ordered dish. Come for a long breakfast and finish with the flames.
The Garden District
Commander’s Palace
At 1403 Washington Avenue, Commander’s Palace is the Garden District’s showpiece dining room. The restaurant is the place for turtle soup and bread pudding soufflé, and lunch is a gentler way into a restaurant that feels more formal at night. There is a dress code, so check it when you book.
Plan a slow walk around the surrounding streets before or after. The big old houses and live oaks make a better digestif than anything on a bar menu.
In New Orleans, lunch is not a break between plans. Lunch is the plan.
Beyond the Quarter: Tremé, Mid-City and the Warehouse District
Dooky Chase’s Restaurant, Tremé
Dooky Chase’s opened in 1941 at 2301 Orleans Avenue and grew into a Tremé landmark of Creole cooking under co-founder and Executive Chef Emeritus Leah Chase, hosting guests from Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama to Hank Aaron. The menu lists fried chicken, gumbo, shrimp Creole and red beans and rice at lunch, with dishes like shrimp Clemenceau and stuffed shrimp at dinner. It keeps limited hours and says reservations are highly recommended, so book before you go.
Parkway Bakery & Tavern, Mid-City
Family-owned since 1911, Parkway sits at 538 Hagan Avenue in Mid-City. The roast beef po’boy, loaded with gravy on crusty bread, is the one to order; the fried shrimp version is the other half of the argument. It isn’t open every day of the week, so check before you head out.
Willie Mae’s NOLA, Warehouse District
Willie Mae’s Scotch House opened in Tremé in 1957 and built a national reputation for fried chicken, including a James Beard Award. Today that recipe is served at Willie Mae’s NOLA, 898 Baronne Street in the Warehouse District, which also appears in the 2025 MICHELIN Guide for the American South. Order the chicken and don’t overthink the rest.
How to order like you mean it
A few habits make the classic places more fun and less stressful.
- Order the signature on your first visit. These restaurants became famous for specific dishes, and those dishes are why you came.
- Share the heavy hitters. A whole muffuletta and a po’boy before dinner is a rookie move. Split and keep going.
- Mind the dress codes. Galatoire’s and Commander’s Palace both have them; the counters and cafés don’t.
- Learn the dishes. New Orleans & Company’s list of must-tries covers gumbo, jambalaya, crawfish étouffée, beignets, po’boys and the muffuletta, and every place above nails at least one.
- Leave room for a drink. The city’s bars are part of the food story, so read up on where to drink after dinner before you go.
For more cities worth eating your way through, browse our city guides.
FAQ
What is the one dish I shouldn’t leave without trying?
It depends on your appetite, but beignets and café au lait at Café du Monde are the easiest to fit in, and a muffuletta from Central Grocery is the most distinctly New Orleans sandwich.
Do I need reservations for these restaurants?
Book ahead for Galatoire’s and Commander’s Palace, which both take reservations, and Dooky Chase’s highly recommends booking. Check Brennan’s site when you plan your breakfast. Café du Monde, Central Grocery and Parkway are walk-up.
Is the original Willie Mae’s Scotch House in Tremé open?
The fried chicken is currently served at Willie Mae’s NOLA on Baronne Street in the Warehouse District. Check the restaurant’s official site for the latest on the Tremé building before you go.
Is there a dress code in New Orleans restaurants?
Most places are relaxed, but the grand dining rooms aren’t. Galatoire’s requires collared shirts and long pants, with jackets in the main rooms after 5pm and all day Sunday.
Book the big one first
Pick the one sit-down meal that matters most to you, whether that’s Friday lunch at Galatoire’s or turtle soup at Commander’s, and book it before you book anything else. Then fill the gaps with beignets, muffulettas and po’boys. Our restaurant directory and food travel planning tips will help you round out the rest of the trip.
Featured photo: Beignets & powdered sugar by T.Tseng, BY 2.0.
