Address: 333 Saint Charles Avenue

Tel: 504-378-2840

In the Central Business District, John Besh's latest endeavor is best at lunchtime, when it bustles with businessmen and VIPs. Tin ceilings, leather banquettes, and inlaid wood set the stage for chef Jared Tees's take on brasserie fare. The hodgepodge of New Orleans classics, bistro staples, and German-Jewish dishes (a nod to the now--shuttered Bavarian institution Kolb's) includes excellent salads such as local Bibb lettuce doused in creamy buttermilk dressing or mustardy friseacute; with lardons and a warm, runny egg, as well as Flammenküche, a cheesy, bacon-studded onion tart. Shrimp en cocotte—jumbo Gulf shrimp, Anson Mills grits with mascarpone cheese, and andouille sausage—is a must, but save room for the bread pudding, which gets a kick from whiskey ice cream (entrées, $15–$28).