Even though my hotel was smack in the middle of the French Quarter, I trucked out to Carrollton to have dinner at Iris restaurant. Chef Ian Schnoebelen was just named a Food & Wine Best New Chef, and 20-minute cab ride or not, I was gonna try his grub.
The restaurant itself is set in a cozy home just off Carrollton Ave., and the dining room is quite simple: green paint, a mirror, a chalkboard and a small bar are pretty much the sum of the decor. A few tables are outside on a small porch, but you'd have to be southern to stand the humidity out there.
I started things off with a basil blood orange martini and an amuse of red Russian kale and a mussel. Pristine. The menu for the day was lengthy, with eight first courses, two soups, three salads and nine entrees. Though everything looked good, I picked the veal sweetbreads with baby leeks, sunchokes and mushroom-sage jus to start. For a main, I went with a duck breast served with Napa cabbage, Spanish chorizo, olive jus and honey.
After stuffing all that food down, I didn't have room for dessert, which is too bad. Chef Schnoebelen definitely deserves his Best New Chef title.
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· Hotels in New Orleans [HotelChatter]
· Iris restaurant [Official Site]]]>