Cafe Adelaide

Description:

• From the same branch of the Brennan family that brings you Commander's Palace, and well worth your dining time, given the talented chef, playful menu, and the superb drinks. Come here if you want to sample and taste; those all-the-rage small plates that allow the indecisive to sample a lot, and plates designed specifically for parties to share make up the start of the menu. The menu will change frequently but possibilities include shrimp-and-tasso "corn dogs," a duck BLT, and even a spinach and (now-legal) absinthe dip. Look for powerful entrees such as rhubarb-glazed duck with pepper jelly sweet-and-sour sauce. At breakfast they offer the classic pain perdu, New Orleans's version of French toast. The drinks, especially the sweet and powerful house Swizzle Stick (which can be had on the festive cocktail sampler tree; ask for one!), make this a bar worth investigating as well. As if all that isn't enough to lure you in, they often have great lunch and dinner multicourse meal deals.

• © Frommer's 2013

Awards:

Frommer's

•  Very Highly Recommended 2010