The turreted blue-and-white Garden District landmark has been the standard-bearer of haute Creole since 1893 — the kitchen that launched Paul Prudhomme and Emeril Lagasse, still turning out turtle soup, pecan-crusted fish, and 25-cent martinis at lunch. Jazz brunch is the rite of passage; the bread pudding soufflé is non-negotiable. Polished, joyful, deeply Southern in its hospitality. The single most essential restaurant in New Orleans.