Uptown 1: Garden District & Environs

French Quarter

Susan Spicer is rare among chefs of her caliber. She's affected neither by the river of her celebrity nor the drift of culinary fashion. Her career path always has been charted by her own curiosities. Not a hint of commercialism or voguishness about it. ¶ Her restaurant Bayona celebrated its twenty-fifth anniversary last week. It's a lovely, understated place, reflecting her personality and style. Its main room feels generous and comfortable. The other, smaller rooms are intimate but in a cool way. When the weather is decent, you can dine outside. ¶ If a measure of a restaurant is the number of its former cooks who have gone on to open their own good restaurants, then Bayona ranks high. Its most celebrated alumnus is Donald Link, who owns Herbsaint, Cochon and Peche. Other former Bayona hands are scattered throughout the country. Meanwhile, Susan keeps encouraging the careers of everyone who works with her, while keeping a solid base of local and visiting customers happy.

Uptown 3: Napoleon To Audubon

By Thomas Pearce Haiku is unlike any other Japanese restaurant I’ve tried around town. It has a sort of hybrid feeling, reminiscent both of the highest-caliber sushi bars and the quirky neighborhood joint. You get a relaxed, classy experience, but at prices that won't break the budget of anyone who has a budget. (How's yours?) The a restaurant's multiple dining areas give adaptable moods. The menu caters to both the novice and the hard-to-please sushi palate, with excellent, very fresh daily specials and custom orders.