Best Bars for New Year’s Eve
Ring in 2015 at one of these three New Orleans hotspots.
Le Foret
129 Camp St.
(504) 553-6738
leforetneworleans.com
“New Year’s can be so overhyped,” says Chris Benton, head bartender. “Anthony and I are pouring Champagne cocktails and bubbly by the glass all night in a chill environment. This place almost feels like a private home, so you can enjoy the countdown with cool people, minus the rowdy crowds.” Bonus: The intimate bar at Le Foret offers a variety of sparkling wine by the glass and by the bottle that pair perfectly with sweet treats by new pastry powerhouse, Ruby Bloch.
Casa Borrega
1719 Oretha Castle Haley Blvd.
(504) 427-0654
casaborrega.com
Looking for an alternative to a Champagne-fueled New Year’s Eve? You’d be hard-pressed to find a more unique bar in New Orleans to welcome 2015 — General Manager Hugo Montera, an artist from Mexico City, and Linda Stone, an environmentalist from San Francisco, created this folk-art-filled temple to Mexican heritage and culture in Central City. Fittingly, Hugo and his son, Yves, have collected some 100 unique Tequilas and mescals to share with imbibers, with live music (usually sultry Latin jazz) adding to the buzzy atmosphere most evenings.
Arnaud’s French 75
813 Bienville Ave.
(504) 523-5433
arnaudsrestaurant.com/french-75/
Sometimes, only the classics will do. Book a table at Arnaud’s for your NYE dinner — and while the surroundings may be familiar, menu items like potato-encrusted Gulf fish and roasted Louisiana quail have been updated. Even a vegan dish makes the menu (a delicious squash-and-eggplant-stuffed mirliton with roasted red-pepper coulis). The staff will be handing out hats and noisemakers for the countdown, but it won’t feel like New Year’s in New Orleans without one of Chris Hannah’s classic French 75 cocktails (and possibly a cigar) in hand.
Drink of the Month
The Pour: Champagne Taittinger Comtes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs
The Palate: Few occasions give us license to splurge quite like New Year’s Eve. If you’re going to shell out big for a glass of bubbly, make it count for the countdown. This is nuanced, creamy, toasty Blanc de Blanc at its best. Made entirely from first-press Chardonnay grapes grown in the Côte des Blancs only in exceptional vintages, this Champagne is aged for 10 years on the lees, and the results are worth the wait, with beautiful notes of brûléed grapefruit, lime and honey.
The Place: The Comtes de Champagne Blanc de Blancs is worth the $60 price tag (that’s per glass!) at Restaurant R’evolution. 777 Bienville St., (504) 553-2277, revolutionnola.com