Emeril’s
For dinner I went to Emeril’s in the Warehouse District. Emeril’s is celebrity chef Emeril Lagasse’s flagship restaurant, opened in 1990. The kitchen is now run by his son E.J. Lagasse.
When I visited Emeril’s, it had recently reopened after a 3 month renovation.
The brand new dining room. There is a large floor-to-ceiling glass window that displays the entire kitchen that I didn’t get a shot of.
To begin, I was led into the kitchen where one of the chefs presented a welcome drink of rhubarb tea and also a Vietnamese inspired spring roll filled with the fresh vegetables on display along with a dipping sauce. This was kind of cool and also just a little awkward 
To drink, a Creole cocktail ($18) off of the classics list, which had rye, amaro, sweet vermouth, and benedictine. It was very nice, like a Manhattan or Vieux Carré.
I got the Classics tasting menu ($195), which features several of Emeril’s classic dishes. There was also a Seasonal tasting menu available for $175.
First came some delicious amuses.
There was tuna wrapped in nori.
“PB & J” with foie gras in a shell that tasted like a corn chip. Rich and sweet.
Chilled daube on a toast round, topped with a ham hock gelée.
A shell filled with some of Emeril’s BBQ shrimp.
A ham and cheese gougere with comté cheese.
A small cup of room temperature vichyssoise.
Fancy wet nap.
Next, bread service, in which a cart with assorted breads and a tower of butter is wheeled over. I had a delicious piece of cornbread, a buttery brioche, and an epi roll. Butter was taken from the tower with a warm spoon. Excellent bread, especially the cornbread.
Smoked Salmon Cheesecake
Emeril’s Reserve Caviar, Dill
The first course was an Emeril’s classic that’s been on the menu since it opened in 1990 - a luxurious savory “cheesecake” with smoked salmon topped with a generous layer of caviar. I was informed by my waiter that Emeril used to eat the previous night’s leftovers of this dish for breakfast back when he lived above the restaurant, such a fancy breakfast! It kind of tasted like the filling of a cream cheese and smoked salmon bagel, with the luxurious addition of caviar. Delicious!
Oyster Stew
Herbsaint Cream, Foie Gras, Honshireji Mushroom
Next, an oyster stew topped with foie gras, with the liquid poured tableside. This was very good. It managed to taste almost light even with all of the rich ingredients.
Potato Alexa
Truffle, Parmesan Mornay
This is another Emeril’s classic, created for and named after Alexa Ray Joel, who once requested potatoes with truffle (as one does) as a child when visiting the restaurant with her father, Billy Joel. It is a potato shell filled with mushrooms, topped with shaved black truffles and served with a rich and creamy Mornay sauce. Delicious.
Maine Lobster Gumbo
Louisiana Rice, Trinity
Next was a gumbo. This had a rich dark seafood gumbo base, with a perfectly cooked lobster tail, and some crunch from the vegetables.
Wagyu & Daube Glacé
Lettuces, Beef Jus
This was a rich and tender piece of wagyu beef, with a demi glacé poured at the table that was really beefy and collagen rich and thick. On the left was a lettuce salad dressed with a mustard vinaigrette, and the daube that was previously seen in one of the amuses. Super delicious!
I think it came with a mini Parker roll.
Next, desserts.
Snoball
I’d just had my first sno-ball earlier in the day so was a bit tickled when this showed up as a first dessert, complete with some syrup flavors from Hansen’s Sno-Bliz. I forgot to write down which flavors I picked but it was nice and refreshing.
Banana Cream Pie
Caramel
Second dessert was a signature Emeril’s dish - banana cream pie. This was great, with banana on the bottom and a delicious rum sauce that was poured at the table.
Finally some mignardises - a mini Doberge cake, a mini beignet, a piece of raspberry pâte de fruit, a mini pastel de nata, and a chocolate bon bon.
Great meal!
You also get some snacks to take home with you - a jar of café au lait and a chocolate filled spongy pastry.
