I dream of August in New OrleansBy Madelyn Miller, the TravelLadyAs I write this in April in New Orleans, I can hardly wait to come for August. Not the hot, humid month, but the delicious Restaurant August on Tchoupitoulas Street.
The foodie dining alone at the next table was a Canadian architect who finds himself in New Orleans monthly for a long term project. He told me that this is the restaurant he visits on each trip. The smart (and lucky) man was staying at the attached hotel, Loft 523, a place I had hoped to stay at, but was full when I was making reservations. Just another good reason to come back to New Orleans. The tasting menu ($50 or $85 with wine) is the best way to go if you like a variety of tastes. The most exciting part of the menu is the dessert flights, offering 5 flavor samples for $10. I almost did myself in by trying both the Chocolate Tasting and the City of New Orleans –each an exciting combination of tastes and flavors. Good thing I did not eat dessert first—or I would have missed all the other delicious things at Restaurant August. Restaurant August: A Classic on the Cutting Edge
Chef Besh is known for his playful presentation, creating visual puns on the plate. For his dinner at The James Beard House this year, Besh accompanied his third course of American Kobe Beef rib-eye, short rib, marrow, and oxtails with a trompe l’oeil “marrow bone” potato, artfully carved and cleverly cooked to fool and delight the diners.
Note that Chef Fields is a proponent of desserts that are remarkably “un-sweet” for traditional New Orleans, favoring natural herbs and spices for flavors on the savory side – a nice complement to the unconventional pairing of sweets and savories in Chef Besh’s menus at Restaurant August. Restaurant August For More Information on What to do Between MealsHELPFUL WEBSITE WHERE TO STAY Renaissance Arts Hotel What I Wish I Had Known Before I Went to New OrleansThere are two kinds of people who go to New Orleans, those who want to party and those who don’t. If you don’t plan to stay up all night, be sure to express that preference when you check in and request a quiet room, perhaps on a courtyard. Or consider staying outside the quarter if you value a good night’s sleep. I stayed at a to-be-nameless hotel (not in either of the two hotels recommended above) in the quarter and called down to the front desk because of all the noise. They were prepared. They sent up earplugs. That was not enough. Two sleeping pills and six hours later, I learned there was a long list of people who wanted to change rooms. I waited (and slept) all day in my room waiting for another room, wanting to be sure not to loose my place on that special list. The helpful front desk person told me that more people than usual had called down to complain the night before. BEST PLACE TO GET ONLINE FOR FREE GREAT GUIDEBOOKS INSIGHT GUIDES NEW ORLEANS ACCESS NEW ORLEANS NEW ORLEANS EATING NEW ORLEANS 2005 NEW ORLEANS RESTAURANTS STORIES IN STONE: A Field Guide to Cemetery Symbolism and Iconography MOST LITERARY TIME TO PLAN YOUR VISIT BEST FICTIONAL BOOK ABOUT NEW ORLEANS RESTAURANT SCENE HELPFUL MAP BEST SPA BEST SHOPPING ADVICE I’ll DRINK TO THAT BEST WALKING TOUR Another Great Tour If you are not familiar with the Segway HT, it is the first self-balancing, electric-powered transporter designed to enhance the productivity of people by increasing the distance they travel and the amount they can carry. The Segway HT uses a breakthrough technology called dynamic stabilization, enabling it to work seamlessly with the body's movements. It operates in any pedestrian environment and is perfect for City Segway Tour purposes. |
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To me, this is the Must Try Restaurant in this city of fabulous restaurants. Creative combinations, the freshest ingredients, and an inspired chef who changes the menu weekly, makes this a place you want to come back to again and again.
How does John Besh, Executive Chef of Restaurant August, an august establishment in the venerable dining town that is New Orleans – and currently listed in Gourmet magazine’s “Guide to America’s Best Restaurants -- keep it fresh? Here are just a few of the lively concepts that contribute to Besh’s reputation for wit and wonder in the kitchen:
The menu is constantly changing, and Chef Besh is fond of taking a single ingredient and incorporating it into all aspects of a multi-course meal. Recently, for example, he offered a menu using Pontchatoulas strawberries throughout -- not just for dessert, where you’d expect to find them...
Restaurant August offers one of the few artisanal cheese plates in New Orleans as a dessert course – a tradition very dear to John Besh’s heart. Chef Besh selects four farmstead cheeses to serve daily, based on seasonality. He groups his selections with a delicate sense of what region each is from, as well as from what kind of milk they’re made, often yielding a plate with four distinctly different textures, from soft and semi-soft to hard.
The Restaurant August dessert menu, created by Pastry Chef Kelly Fields, offers a selection of tastings on a given theme. For example, “The City of New Orleans” includes samplings of three variations on New Orleans classics: Bread Pudding; Cheese Cake; and a Café au Lait Pot de Crème. The Crescent City Farmer’s Market dessert varies frequently, according to what is available any given day at the local markets – it might include Strawberry, Rhubarb, and Ginger Cobbler; Chocolate Fondant Cake with Passion Fruit Curd and Strawberry Tawny Port Sorbet; and Pan-fried Lime Mascarpone Custard with a Balsamic, Strawberry and Mint Salad. A Non-fat Yogurt Dessert is great for those counting calories: a Green Apple and Vanilla Yogurt Mousse; Frozen Vanilla Bean Yogurt over seasonal fruit; and a Banana Pineapple Smoothie. There is even a Chocolate Tasting dessert featuring Dark Chocolate Pepper Cake; 
a Milk Chocolate, White Chocolate Espresso Tart; Dark Chocolate Paté with Crème Fraiche; and a Trio of Chocolate Truffles.