I had a great experience here in my group of 4 after enjoying drinks at the Carousel Bar & Lounge located in the same building. Our server was professional and quick. We wanted to do something where we each pay around $75 and get whatever our server recommended. This was executed well and we were all satisfied with our meal. I wish I could elaborate on what we had. At any rate, this is a nice place in the French quarter to get a elegant sit-down dinner. If you're there at the right time, there'll be a band playing. read more

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If you offer a free bottle of wine...they will come. We were staying at the Hotel Monteleone when we decided to try Criollo Restaurant one night for dinner (after an afternoon of drinks at the Carousel Bar next door, of course), prompted by the promise of free wine on the voucher in our room. We made reservations about an hour in advance, and had not wait when we arrived. The restaurant atmosphere seemed very informal, with most guests in jeans. The lighting was incredibly bright, so if you are looking for a great place to set the mood...keep looking. The service was okay, it started off a bit slow, but ended on a pleasant note thanks to the super smiley support staff who not only brought out all of our dishes, but also gave us great recommendations and ran our check at the end of the meal. The food was better than we expected. The crab and shrimp stack was super fresh and light, the best way to start a meal (and best shared by 2 people and not many more). I had the snapper as my entree, and it was delicious. The Ancho-butter sauce it was served with seemed a little heavy, so I would request it on the side or just lightly drizzled atop the tender fish. The menu is not huge, but gets the job done. Seemed like a menu created to appeal more to a room service crowd...which is how we will likely dine with Criollo again in the future...unless there is free wine involved again (which, i was worth it to get that bottle!) Cheers! read more

I wouldn't know if the food is good. I asked the manager if we could have cocktails and appetizers because the bar was so full and he was so rude that my friends and I were shocked. Perhaps he thought I was drunk, like many of of the bar patrons that night. In reality, as guests of the hotel, we just thought we could find a place to sit and have some food and drinks and (gasp) spend some money. Instead he told me that I would need a reservation (his 1/4 full restaurant was "fully booked"). We sat in the lobby and had drinks and watched all the empty tables all night. I was literally refused service from an empty restaurant in the hotel I paid to stay in (@hotelmonteleone) The manager was rude from the second I stepped up to the host stand, for no reason other than (I guess) I was coming from the bar area and he had preconceived notions of how I was going to be. It's a real shame, we have had a great time and spent a lot of money at a lot of restaurants but this one will never see a dime. Try Mr B's or GW Finns... great food and very nice people who know what customer service is... read more

The service was exceptional and the food exquisitely tasty. Hands down BEST BEIGNETS in New Orleans. We went for breakfast and they pulled out all the stops for my son's 7th birthday. My husband had the eggs Benedict, I had a goat cheese asparagus egg white dish, my daughter had a parfait and son had cinnamon French toast- we also shared an tapas style avocado with tomato, pickled onions, and vinaigrette that was amazing! read more

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Ordered the traditional eggs Benedict, which looked fabulous when delivered. With my mouth watering I cut into first egg and nothing gushed out. They had over poached the egg. Cut into the second egg and same thing. After waiting for several minutes waitress finally came over and asked the normal question. "Is everything alright". Second order was very good but still a few seconds over poached. I love my eggs Benedict, so very particular on its yolk. Overall I thought waitress was very good considering the number of tables she had. Loved the vibe, music and decor. I would recommend this restaurant especially if a guest at the hotel. read more

Criollo Restaurant - New American Near Me - New Orleans, Louisiana

Dressy dinner for our family's first night in New Orleans! Absolutely wonderful food, even better ambience! We were seated right next to the open kitchen area but did not mind! I LOVED the lump crab stuffed shrimp with risotto (though it's super rich, watch out!) Ceasar salad was good but not incredibly memorable? (Except for the baked parmesan bowl it was served in...) My mother ordered the "seasonal salad" with deep fried plantain, papaya, mango, arugula and goat cheese...simply fantastic. Service was wonderful as well, our waiter was attentive and kind. The ONLY thing was that we felt a bit "rushed" from course to course... would still recommend!! We did come during the Holidays! Tip: book reservation EARLY on and enjoy a late dinner! This restaurant is in a really cool location! read more

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This is your basic hotel restaurant. If you're staying at the hotel you are sorta trapped ... at least for breakfast. The food was acceptable but not tasty. Service was good one morning but the server was MIA the second morning. I see this place has a rating of 4 stars. Sorry. No way. Nothing to set it apart. read more

Absolutely amazing if you are looking for an upscale lunch, but still casual this is the place to go. Open face drum fish sandwich was amazing. Great drinks we recommend both the sazerac and Brazilian Rita. Staff was very attentive making sure we had everything we needed. Three people it was about 70ish dollars but worth every penny. There is plenty of decent cheap places to eat in NOLA and if that is what you are looking for this is not the place. This is wonderful for lunch and we may have to try dinner before we leave town. read more

Criollo Restaurant - Open face drum fish sandwich - New American Near Me - New Orleans, Louisiana

Terrible service today. Sat for over 20 minutes and no one came to our table. We approached someone who appeared to be a buser/water table attendant who did not seem to care. After over 20 minutes of wait we left and notified the hostess we were leaving. At least 4 people were hanging out at the hostess stand, one of which was the manager who while applogetic did not do much besides look at the computer and want to know what table it was so they could reseat it. This used to be a good place for brunch but it's just a tourist trap now. Avoid at all costs. read more

A great meal and a very nice space next to the Carousel bar. Lot of good choices. After drinks we sort of delved into the entrees and settled on what have you. I had a filet with fingerling potatoes, some greens, and topped with FOIS GRAS! My very first time. It was a total treat for me since the sauce (a wine madeira blend) was the perfect balance of acidity and heft -via reduction- to accompany the otherwise very rich Fois. The server was totally stoned I believe but he did do his job very well so why not. Note: the fois is NOT offered a la carte. It must be added to the meal. Previous iterations of the menu did not have this distinction, but if you would like fois this is your avenue of choice. read more

Criollo Restaurant - Filet topped with Fois Gras in a wine madeira sauce, ft. Some accoutrements - New American Near Me - New Orleans, Louisiana

Planning for a business trip to New Orleans, I scouted out the Carousel Bar as a place to go, and the next-door restaurant Criollo also seemed to offer charms. The online menu announced Beef Rossini (aka Tournedos Rossini), and anything good enough for the composer of the William Tell Overture is good enough for me. We arrive, and the menu has no Beef Rossini. Devastation! Fortunately, it can still be reconstructed, as Beef Rossini is basically a filet mignon with foie gras on top. The filet is on the menu, and the foie gras is on the side, and if you wink at the staff, the foie gras is not on the side, but on top. NB: the foie gras is from Hudson Valley farms, and as far as I can tell, if foie gras can be made cruelty free, this place does it so. And how does it taste? Amazing. Foie gras is definitely a sometimes food. But I really enjoyed it, and the madeira sauce and taters rounded out the plate really nicely. Suave staff, and no complaints. read more

Criollo Restaurant - 'Beef Rossini' - New American Near Me - New Orleans, Louisiana

We made reservations for Sunday brunch. The seafood gumbo, shrimp, and grits were fantastic. Coffee was great, and so was the Criollo Bloody Mary. read more

Criollo Restaurant - Shrimp and Grits. Huge jumbo shrimp. Delicious! - New American Near Me - New Orleans, Louisiana

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Highly recommend this restaurant if you're staying at Hotel Monteleone. We came here every morning for breakfast during out trip and we never had a bad meal. Their omelets, breakfast sandwiches, eggs benedicts, etc, were all really good. Also, we had beignets a few times during our trip but the ones here were my favorite. The waitresses were very kind and helpful which made us want to come back each morning. No complaints! read more

Criollo Restaurant - New American Near Me - New Orleans, Louisiana

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The crab cake appetizer is amazing. The Redfish entree was one of the best I have ever had, Being local I can tell you that this is one of the best kept secrets in the FQ. Very nice atmosphere and romantic. Wednesday night. Wine specials are amazing. read more

Criollo Restaurant - Desert at Criollo,combo of Bread Pudding and Creme Brûlée. A nice end to a perfect dinner - New American Near Me - New Orleans, Louisiana

Three separate meal on separate days: (room service) 1st meal: the Monteleone breakfast: toast, potatoes, sausage, tomato, and eggs! Added: a bowl of grits and OJ Conclusion: everything was cooked to perfection and they sent all the condiments requested. 2nd meal: seafood gumbo Conclusion: average, nothing to get excited about. I tasted better. And the loaded too much rice in it. The roux was thin. 3rd: the New York strip steak med-well Conclusion: this was the best steak we've had in NOLA hands down. Cooked to perfection, juicy, well seasoned. Had to be anywhere between 16-20 oz. covered in a Madeira sauce With sautéed wine onion bulbs. The onion bulbs contained its on sweet wine juices and was very tender and good. The side vegetables were the asparagus, garlic mash potatoes, carrots, and Brussels sprouts. The vegetable were cooked correctly except the Brussels sprouts were undercooked and should have been cooked longer. All in all the room service and food from criollo was great. I wished they offered the entire menu for room service. I'm sure if I asked they would. read more

Criollo Restaurant - New York strip steak $42 - New American Near Me - New Orleans, Louisiana

It is located inside Hotel Monteleone. Pricey. Not kids friendly at all. No menu for little ones. Food was great though. We had their crab cakes and their jumbo shrimp avocado appetizers which were yummy. Had their mix spring salad with caramelized walnuts and it was one of the best salads I've ever had. Dessert menu was ok. Flourless chocolate cake was a bit dry. Creme Brûlée was ok. Friendly staff. Great service. read more

We took a chance on this place because we love brunch in the French Quarter and their Coolinary menu had three courses and a complimentary cocktail. The food was amazing and the server was very kind and attentive. The restaurant was very clean with upbeat music and ambience, and our window seat was great for people watching. The Pimms Cup was incredibly refreshing on a hot day and the trout and beignets were to die for. We will be coming back! read more

Worst meal I have ever had in New Orleans. I had the steak and it had zero flavor, the vegetables and potatoes were cold. My husband had the Shrimp Bienvelle, and he was sick before we left the restaurant. The service was top notch, but the food was awful. As soon as we got the room we had to order ginger ale to settle our stomach. read more

Criollo Restaurant - New American Near Me - New Orleans, Louisiana

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Fernando took great care of us during lunch. We enjoyed the fantastic value of the COOLinary menu, especially the Key Lime Raspberry Tart. It's a beautiful restaurant with great service! read more

Criollo Restaurant - Key Lime Raspberry Tart - New American Near Me - New Orleans, Louisiana

We ate breakfast here and it was very good. Best thing was probably the beignets, which were pretty much perfect. But the real standout was our server Kathy. She was exceptional. Request her when you come, you won't be disappointed! read more

Criollo Restaurant - Me and our amazing server Kathy - New American Near Me - New Orleans, Louisiana

Server James was excellent. The food was spectacular in taste and presentation. I highly recommend the experience. We ordered gumbo for appetizer, and red rock fish, surf and turf, stuffed baked shrimp and seafood linguine for the entrees. For dessert the cream brûlée was amazing!! This restaurant did not disappoint! read more

This was our second time visiting New Orleans and our second visit to Criollo. We had Michael both times and couldn't have been more satisfied with our experience. The food and service were great and Michael even gave us a history on New Orleans and their celebration of Mardi Gras! read more

Beware of high drink prices like $18.00 for a Pimm's cup. Previously offered nothing during a birthday dinner - not even a candle on a cupcake !! Did not wish to honor a seating after falling. Service was poor and did not want to honor the 3 course Coolinary menu posted on the internet. A real shame due to poor management as the food is good. Yes I know hiring for restaurants is tough during covid but no excuse as other places can provide good staff who in many cases have been there for years read more

Possibly the best restaurant in New Orleans. The quality and the taste are so good. I was there for brunch and I had the little gem wedge salad, scallops, and New Orleans bread pudding. Everything was fantastic. Jada was a great service professional. Must visit!!! read more

What a great fine dinning experience. The lunch was wonderful, our waitress was attentive but not over-bearing. She gave us great recommendations. I tried the coolinary experience and if you have the chance make sure you do it. It is going on throughout the month of August. Set in the heart of the French Quarter, definitely a hidden treat. read more

Criollo Restaurant - New American Near Me - New Orleans, Louisiana

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We came to Criollo for breakfast twice during our stay at the Monteleone. Both times we sat with Ms. Maria and we experienced nothing less than perfection. The beignets with praline sauce were the best beignets we had on our trip. read more

We were lucky enough to eat at this fancy restaurant during Coolinary week at NOLA. The servers and greeters were very nice, friendly, helpful and efficient. The ambience was romantic and the adjoining carousel bar was playing some music, not too loud that it got annoying, just enough that it provided some background music. The food: Appetizers: I had - grilled octopus with petite potatoes and brown butter: octopus was cooked just right. not long enough to be chewy nor rubbery but just enough to char some of the sides and cook. Sauce was lemony herby (yes, that's the best way I can describe it). Husband had the pork cheeks in grits. Nice flavor, texture? not so much (glad he ordered it and not me:) Entree: I had the Angus flap steak - nice and juicy, good flavor, ample serving Husband had the Cobia and it was realllyyyy good! I had to steal some of his fish as it was so flaky, tender, fresh and clean tasting. Dessert: I had the strawberries, husband had the creme brulee. Not a big fan of strawberries, once again stole some of my husband's food :) Overall a nice experience. read more

The food was absolutely amazing, however, the service was less than wonderful. It wasn't exactly bad, but they were slow to come around. They have a weird system where you don't have a specific waiter assigned to you. It was one guy named James who, sort of, oversaw these runners. I feel that if they had just had a normal, traditional waitstaff, service would have been faster. read more

The service is amazing, Mike B. gave wonderful recommendations and he was so spot on in recommending the best beignets in New Orleans!!! Must get! Also everything on the menu is delicious!! read more

appetizer and main was fine for lunch. shortcake dessert with lunch was almost impossible to cut. worst was the appalling service simply appalling. had to ask the main chef for water after waiting 10 minutes. it really did not get much better. you have been warned. read more

This is an expensive but lovely restaurant located in the Hotel Monteleon. The turtle soup alone is worth the visit. I won't say it's better than a certain restaurant that's supposed to have the best ever...but I won't say it isn't either. But DAMN is it expensive. NO Caesar Salad should cost 17 bucks. Sorry....No. I've been backstage of the hotel and the idea of Rodents of Unusual Size from Princess Bride comes to mind. P.S. It's NOT in the lower Garden district as listed here. I have no idea what the person was smoking, shooting up or otherwise ingesting who labeled it that. read more

Beautiful place in the Monteleone. I have been wanting to try Criollo for a while and finally did for their Coolinary offering. My friend and I were seated in a window overlooking Iberville. I felt like I was in a little bistro in Paris, which is amazing since I knew if I had two more feet of a view on either side, I'd see Walgreen's and the crowd of guys hanging out in front of the old penny arcade. Service was charming and attentive, from the server to the runner to the hostess. We started with their delicious bread basket and assorted butters. I chose the gumbo, friend had the salad. The gumbo was good, not outstanding but it did distinguish itself with a garnish of fried okra. Very nice. Salad looked uninspired. For entrees, I had the soft-shell crab with brown butter. Yes! Excellent. My friend had the cobia and the bite I had was the blood line so it wasn't a good first impression. I did have another bite (no blood line) and it was good but at nice restaurants, please remove the blood line from the fish! Her dish was topped with a sort of okra popper (cheese-stuffed and fried), which I really liked. I ordered the chocolate-pecan parfait, which sounded way better than white chocolate creme brulee tart to me. What a letdown. It was served nearly frozen solid and it was several inches high so to cut through it was nearly impossible. The flavor was also boring and the cake bit on the bottom was dry. It was terrible. The creme brulee tart however, was stupendous. Loved it. Also, extra kudos for having espresso and not french press. I like french press too but I have one at home. What I don't have at home is a $4,000 espresso machine so I appreciate them when I go out! read more

Sadly underwhelmed. Avocado shrimp appetizer was not creative and very bland. Guacamole atop crab with mayo. A single shrimp simply grilled. Salad with mango and papaya. Deconstructed salad with 3 pieces of lettuce on the plate. A round thick banana chip that was so hard I wondered if it were meant to be eaten. Bass plate had 2 large pieces of fish topped with fennel slaw. I wish there were more orange. It only had 2 small segments. Good portion, but again, bland. read more

The Monteleone hits a home run with their new in-house restaurant. Virtual perfection. My family and I visited Criollo one evening by accident. The nearby restaurant at which we originally made reservations was closed when we showed up, due to plumbing problems I later discovered. Too bad for them, but hooray for Criollo and us. New Orleans hotels are fortunate in that their in-house restaurants are often run by local chefs with some experience in meeting the demands of local diners. I must admit I'm not familiar with the provenance of Criollo, only that it was part of an extensive renovation to the up-river side of the Monteleone that contributed to a much improved Carousel Lounge as well. The restaurant and the lounge flow into each other, which could be a huge disadvantage in my book, due to the fact that the lounge is full of large television sets (I deplore televisions in purportedly high-end restaurants). Yet, they've arranged much of the seating and other decorative elements in such a way that I neither saw nor heard the televisions that were only about 20 feet away. Bravo. The maitre d'hotel was an old pro, and the waiter he sent to our table must be one of the city's finest, recently imported to Criollo from another place to "teach the new guys how it's done," he later told me. Per typical experience in a French Quarter or CBD restaurant, the waitstaff assumed we were tourists, but truly lit up when they learned we were locals trying the place for the first time. I generally find that service kicks up a notch when the staff realizes you hold the potential of coming back, and spreading word around town about your experience. Let the word-spreading begin. In addition to quick and impeccable service, the food was almost uniformly outstanding. I had the sweet potato and andouille bisque, one of my companions the seafood gumbo, all declared excellent. I didn't taste the gumbo, but judged it by its lovely rich color and plump fresh shrimp to be worthy of a try. One of the diners chose an appetizer, the Crawfish Ravioli, as his dinner entree and was not disappointed one bit: The size of the dish was enough to count as an entree, and quality was five-star in every way. Other entrees enjoyed included Tarragon Butter Poached Shrimp and a Cane Marinated Pork Tenderloin, both succulent and cooked to perfection. Keep in mind the portions are ample, and sharing an entree among diners would have been a satisfying option. As it was, entrees were shared around the table anyway. The one item that doesn't warrant five stars and should be given another thought entirely by the chef is the Criollo Salad, which I chose as an entree. An attempt at an upscale wedge salad, it doesn't work. The composition of the salad is artful, but creates an inelegant dining experience as it needs to be decomposed to get at it. The iceberg lettuce was bitter, the duck bacon was tough as jerky, and minuscule portions of Humboldt cheese and quail egg proved disappointing. But why belabor this? Just avoid it and fill up on every other wonderful thing available. The martini was outstanding, as always at the Monteleone. The wine list really very good, with options for by-the-glass that pair well with the entrees. The breads and butter concoctions served along with the meals are sublime, and frankly could constitute a hearty lunch if paired with a soup, which suddenly gives me inspiration for my next visit, which will happen sooner rather than later. Expect to spend a fortune, by the way. read more

Hidden gem behind the carousel bar in the Monteleone hotel. Fantastic and entertaining service. Tasty and complex sauces take dishes to a new level. Must get foi gras. We had snapper and trout cooked very well. If you want a quiet evening this is not for you. The carousel bar creates a noisy background. However, is not distracting and can still enjoy a great meal. More people must go to criollo! read more

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We decided to digress from all the fried food for a healthy dinner for our last night and everything was great! Dwayne, our server, was terrific..super friendly & professional. Caesar salad is served in Parmesan encrusted small bowl. Highly recommend the soup flight for a little taste of NOLA. Snapper, shrimp dishes were good but may want to skip the fish with the tomato jam. Or ask for just a small spoonful of it as it overpowers the fish. Then we stopped by the Carousel Bar and listened to the band and the singer (I think her name was Amanda) was not only gorgeous but had a fantastic voice and sang a lot of the great old classics like "At Last." read more

Criollo Restaurant - Snapper with fennel and cucumbers...refreshing dish. - New American Near Me - New Orleans, Louisiana

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The food was decent. The smoked bacon is really salty. We never got the beignets we ordered. It's just an average breakfast based on what I had which was eggs, smoked bacon, toast, and potatoes. Check it out if other spots have a wait. read more

Criollo Restaurant & Lounge is located inside the Hotel Moteleone. If you didn't know any better, that may make the restaurant difficult to find, so to help you out if you intend to dine there, once you enter the hotel, go to the right and you will see it. I was very captivated by the ambiance of the restaurant. A lot of dark browns and woods were used in decorating this restaurant but that is offset by white walls and huge windows lining the restaurant. Despite the dark colors, it was still bright and since I do not like a poorly lit restaurant that was a huge plus for me. But, what I really liked about my experience at Criollo, is our waiter. He was funny yet professional and as attentive as they come. I was able to get that Southern hospitality which doesn't always seem to exist in New Orleans. At Criollo, like most other restaurants, they start you off with bread but what makes theirs different, is that they serve it with three kinds of butter. Butter can't sell the bread though, so thankful the bread was actually good and fresh. The Foccacia Bread was like the really good homemade kind with actual olives in it. My boyfriend ordered the special for the day, Chicken and Waffles. He was at first disappointed that it was Chicken breast not chicken parts but the well-seasoned, tender pieces chicken made his not think twice about that one. The Waffles were fresh but on the crunchier side. What really sold the dish was the two accompanying sauces. Instead of regular maple syrup it was their own sweet sauce along with the option of a spicier one. I, on the other hand, ordered off the COOLinary menu and for my first course, had the Soft Shell Crab Belle Meuniere. The soft shell crab was lightly breaded and fried. Along with the brown butter sauce, onions, tomatoes and wild mushroom, it created a delectable light lunch. It was subtle but flavorful and had just the right amount of sauce that the dish didn't become soupy and the Soft Shell Crab never got soggy. For my second course, I indulged in the White Chocolate Creme Brûlée. I was amazed by this creme brulee. It wasn't too sweet and you could distinguish the white chocolate flavor without it overpowering the dessert as a whole. The fresh fruit and the pastry shell were a great touch to an already outstanding dessert that I honestly would go there solely for. If you cannot tell by now, I LOVED dining at Criollo. Obviously I will be back for many more times to come, but now that I have experienced New Orleans dining at Criollo Restaurant, cocktails at Carousel Bar (located just next door) are definitely in order on my next visit. read more

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I waver between a 3 and 4 star rating, but as I am feeling generous I will round up. This restaurant is in a gorgeous setting with great ambiance. The food was rather forgettable, except the beignets. I really liked their beignets! They have excellent, flakey, fresh fried beignets with an amazing praline sauce accompanying it. Tea was good, served with warm milk, and service was excellent, though I was a little taken aback when we arrived just five minutes behind schedule for our 7:30 reservation, and they told us not only were there no tables, but we were five minutes late. That was weird, however, we waited less than ten minutes and were soon seated to everything else we enjoyed for breakfast. read more

The chef was accommodating for my vegetarian needs! It's always nice to know that chefs are willing to make changes, and for the record the pasta and roasted veggies were delicious! The best part of the meal had to have been the strawberry beignets. The outside was crunchy and the inside yummy and sweet! Thanks for a great experience!! read more