Top Best American Restaurants in Kenner

"Commander's Palace has been around since the late 1800s, but under Ella Brennan’s leadership starting in the 1970s, the restaurant essentially redefined New Orleans cuisine and catapulted into stardom with the help of celeb chefs Paul Prudhomme and Emeril Lagasse. Today, the menu and service are top notch with James Beard Award-winning chef Tory McPhail leading the kitchen and Ti Martin and Lally Brennan running the show. Go for lunch and make sure to end the meal with the bread pudding soufflé and whiskey sauce."

"While you’re in the Garden District or shopping on Magazine Street, you have to stop by Commander’s Palace. The place has been around since 1880, and it’s one of the most famous restaurants in New Orleans for a reason. Their famous teal and white striped exterior is what landed them on this list, but definitely check them out for fine Creole dining and their jazz brunch too."

"1403 Washington Ave., (504) 899-8221; www.commanderspalace.com. Duck fat-seared bluefin tuna is served with Meyer lemon grilled greens and sweet potato boulangere with miso-lemon grass veal bone jus and foie gras ganache. Reservations recommended."

"The wet-battered fried chicken at this Treme soul food institution (open since 1957) is the stuff of legend, which is why the line to get inside Willie Mae’s Scotch House usually wraps around the building. The best bet for getting in quickly is to come with a party of two. Do yourself a favor and get the mac and cheese too."

"Since it opened in October 2013, this delightful shop on Magazine Street and Jackson Avenue has been making all of New Orleans’ donut and coffee dreams come true. With flavors like miso praline and olive oil, NOLA cream, brown butter pistachio, Sriracha with candied thyme, lemon poppyseed, and Vietnamese iced coffee, District is serious about its roster of “fancy donuts.” In addition to donuts big enough for two, District’s other breakfast creations include kolaches, pork belly, egg and avocado breakfast tacos, and buttermilk biscuit egg sandwiches with miso-praline bacon. Plus, their cinnamon roll is topped with extra sugar and brûléed under a blow torch, which is pretty awesome if you ask me."

"District provides an ever-changing selection of innovative, creative, and most importantly, delicious doughnuts to its adoring public. They look as great as they taste, and that's saying something. The locally owned biz now has four locations in New Orleans and one in Baton Rouge."

"For some people, donuts are an inexpensive sweet treat but for us they’re a bit of an obsession. We always seek them out when we visit any American city in our ongoing quest to find the best donuts in America. These are our favorite donut shops in New Orleans:"

"Anyone available for good American meals at affordable prices can look no further than Sylvain’s in the French Quarter. This cozy restaurant provides a welcoming environment for brunch, lunch, or dinner. While the location and style gives off a casual vibe, the service makes sure to keep up its classy atmosphere, creating a presence unmatched by any other restaurant in the Quarter."

"This charming, dark, romantic spot in the French Quarter is known for exceptional food, from Sylvain’s Southern fried chicken sandwich to its version of shrimp and grits, a creamy dish of ambrosia that includes tomato-basil brodo, bacon, mushrooms and sweet caramelized onions. The beauty of this place lies in the unpredictable twists weaved throughout the menu — and it’s all good."

"Though most often associated with hefty sandwiches running from $10.50 to $12.50 , fantastic bargains for under $10 are also available. Try the ethereal fried chicken skins and deviled eggs for $6, or the fried pot pie stuffed with slow cooked chicken and a side of tarragon buttermilk dipping sauce for $7.50. 739 Jackson Ave., 218-7428, turkeyandthewolf.com."

"The gist: For much of the pandemic, chef Nina Compton’s first New Orleans restaurant, Compere Lapin, remained closed. It has since reopened, but the long-term laser-focus on Compton’s second location means the already great restaurant never lost a beat.The food: Compton’s St. Lucian roots mix with a New Orleans neighborhood restaurant in dishes like the snapper, which is served with okra and lima beans, and the not-to-be-missed curried rabbit. The cost: Starters $10 - $18, mains $18 - $31, beverage prices vary."

"The quality of the food, for me, is the fancy part of dining out. It’s in the ingredients and the preparation. Bywater American Bistro sources quality ingredients, the food is prepared very well in a technical sense, and the flavors are incredible."

"2900 Chartres St., (504) 605-3827; www.bywateramericanbistro.com. Pickled Gulf shrimp are served with avocado, radish, jalapeno, celery, herbs, chili oil and rye croutons. Reservations accepted."

"The unassuming Uptown building with no seats may be over 100 years old, but Tips, as it’s affectionately known, only became a music venue in the 1970s. It quickly cemented its place as a New Orleans music institution: Local brass bands are a particular thing to see here. There are no seats, but you'll likely want to be up on your feet for whatever local talent is about to take the stage by storm."

"Tipitina’s opened in 1977 and has been hosting live music and cajun dancing ever since. It’s one of the best know music clubs in New Orleans and is a favorite venue of many local musicians such as The Radiators, The Neville Brothers,  Galactic, Professor Longhair, and Dr. John."

"The theatre was originally built in 1906 and completely renovated in 2011. The venue is now used for concerts, plays, films, corporate events, and private parties."

"Named for the beloved New Orleanean gospel singer, the jewel of Armstrong Park was decimated in Katrina and subsequently refurbished into a state-of-the-art facility. The inaugural performance of Giuseppe Verdi's Messa di Requiem established a roster a of stellar lineups, ranging from Broadway shows and the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra to the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra and the New Orleans Ballet Association. Catch programmes such as Shostakovich, La Bohème and comedian Aziz Ansari this spring."

"The Mahalia Jackson Theater of the Performing Arts is a theater located in Louis Armstrong Park and named after gospel singer Mahalia Jackson, who was born in New Orleans. It originally opened in 1973 as the New Orleans Theater of the Performing Arts and then was renamed after Jackson in 1993. The theater was badly damaged during Hurricane Katrina but reopened in January 2009."

"The team at Warehouse District food hall Auction House has an on-trend new cocktail menu for summer, offering a Kalimotxo that marries the traditional Basque punch and a Whiskey Sour; a Barcelona style G&T with gin, El Guapo tonic, thyme, clove, house tincture, and grapefruit; and the cloudy Pau Hana, made with rum, manzanilla sherry, lime, banana and pimento dram. The bright, plant-filled space makes for a nice setting to sip drinks, and there’s are new happy hour specials weekdays from 4 to 7 p.m."

"I actually went here twice because of its location, and it’s obviously got some delicious options. It was only a few minutes walk from our first hotel, Loews New Orleans, and also near the WWII Museum. The food hall is from the same team that’s behind the more well known St. Roch Market, and it has a number of different vendors."

"Lunch at Auction House Market This is a newer place on the outside of the French Quarter, just past the Loew’s Hotel. Inside are several cool restaurants like pop-up shops. You can get so many varieties here like Cuban, French, New Orleans style, desserts, you name it."

"Even if you’re not planning a trip out to the Chalmette Battlefield for a morning of history, you’d do yourself a service by planning a stop on the way for a morning pick-me-up at Gerald’s, an old-school bakery that sells new school donuts. Their melt-in-your-mouth sweet dough is the perfect base for giant apple fritters, classic glazed donuts, cinnamon twists, and even more fanciful options like the ones that come covered in M&Ms."

"While home to some of the best burgers in Greater New Orleans, locals love heading to Gerald’s Donuts for a quality sugar rush any time of day. They’re open 24 hours, so you’re never too far from one of their sweet, sugary treats. They also once took fifth place in the New Orleans King Cake Contest."

"Hot, fresh donuts are served 24 hours a day at Gerald's Donuts. The family-owned and operated establishments (three locations in total) also make king cakes all year round, not just during Mardi Gras. Classic cake donuts come in flavors like powdered lemon, blueberry, maple, and strawberry cream."

"The quintessential museum of Louisiana, the permanent collection includes nearly 40,000 world-class works of regional, national and international art, such as Picasso, Braque, Dufy and Miró, and drawings by Degas, who worked just blocks from the museum when he visited maternal relatives in the early 1870s. Lectures, book clubs, film presentations, art classes and musical performances are all presented with aplomb – and you can even take yoga classes in the sublimely beautiful Sydney and Walda Besthoff Sculpture Garden, where works of the 20th century's master sculptors reside in a sub-tropical sanctuary. 1 Collins C Diboll Circle, noma.org."

"New Orleans Museum of Art, 1 Collins Diboll Circle, (504) 482-1264; www.cafenoma.com. An Americana grain bowl includes chicken breast over wild rice, sweet potatoes, cranberries and baby spinach with warm bacon vinaigrette."

"When I walked into Revelator Coffee and saw all of their unique blends and espresso machines at work, I knew I was in for a treat. Their coffee tastes legit, and you can even buy some coffee grinds to DIY at home. Along with the relaxing music playing, the sounds of their espresso machines were extremely therapeutic while studying."