Josephine Estelle
With all the glorious beignets and po' boys and gumbo that New Orleans has to offer, what more could we ask of this epic food city? Well, to be honest, a gorgeous Italian restaurant wouldn't exactly hurt. Enter chefs Michael Hudman and Andy Ticer, who have a knack for threading together Southern and Italian traditions at their Memphis restaurants, Andrew Michael Italian Kitchen and Hog & Hominy (a past Top 50 nominee). They've expanded their reach to this buzzy room at the New Orleans Ace Hotel, outfitted by designers Roman and Williams with velvet-backed banquettes, palm-tree murals, and marquee-style lighting fixtures calibrated to give off the perfect glow. Josephine Estelle's raison d'être is the pastas; no fewer than eight different ones are made in house, including the standout mafalde (squiggly ribbons) with "Maw Maw's" gravy, canestri (curvaceous elbow-like noodles) cacio e pepe, and bucatini amatriciana fragrant with chili and garlic. Hudman and Ticer bring a modern, fresh sensibility to the table, evident in dishes like tuna ceviche with peanut agrodolce and contorni of broccoli rabe with black garlic. It's not exactly light food, but no one's here for the salad.
PRO TIP: Happy hour from 3–6 p.m. gets you hushpuppies with burnt ends and poutine with neck-bone gravy.
THE DETAILS: Breakfast, lunch, dinner.
