Stella!

Stella is an amalgamation of international flavors that join hands in New Orleans to create a completely unique fusion cuisine. It combines European, Asian and Gulf Coast American elements that unify into a deeply satisfying package, all contained in a beautiful restaurant with a fun atmosphere.

Chef Scott Boswell brings his fun personality to Stella. His adventurous spirit comes to play in everything you eat at Stella. It quickly becomes evident why Chef Boswell was nominated for a James Beard award this year.

The amuse bouche was a mango puree prepared with taro root strips and spicy kimchi. The sweet flavor of the mango puree is pronounced at first, and the tangy bits of kimchi and the crunch of taro root join into a synergistic whole.

My appetizer was a chef's garden Bibb lettuce and organic purple radish salad with sweet red onions, fiddlehead ferns and blueberry vinaigrette. The salad combined crispy lettuce and crunchy radishes with a tart dressing, and the pop of fresh ground pepper made the flavor explode.

Stella prepares a vegetarian composition daily. Its contents are determined by whatever the freshest ingredients of the day are. The latest creation is cauliflower, beets, turnips and white asparagus with sugar snap peas, wild rice and potato croquettes, cauliflower puree, tapenade butter and a micro green salad. The croquettes were soft, hot and delicious. The veggies were crisp and flavorful. The dish was presented beautifully

The most minor complaint I had about the choices available for vegetarians was that the appetizer/entree combination available for vegetarians on the night I went to Stella was a little too salad heavy. I like mountains of greens as much as the next guy, but the portions might have been more in order if there was a non-salad appetizer available, or if the entree had a smaller green salad and more of the fresh veggies and croquettes. Overall, this is a minor complaint. The fare was so amazing that it overcame this slight oversight.

The dessert grilled cheese (yes, you read that correctly), however, hit the bullseye. Small tea sandwich portions of bread were stuffed with Explorateur triple-cream cheese and luxurious chocolate ganache. It was augmented with artistically applied blueberry sauce and fresh berries. The dessert wa so rich, and it was impossible to tell where the chocolate began and the Explorateur ended. The acidity in the blueberries adds a great contrast to this fantastic dessert.

Dinner came with an additional lagniappe in the form of a plate of delicious candies and cookies. While the strawberry marshmallow wasn't vegetarian-friendly, the chocolate coconut macaroons, absinthe truffles, white chocolate coconut nougat and passion fruit candies were both vegetarian-safe and satsfying.

Service at Stella was outstanding. The staff was jovial, knowledgeable, and deeply capable of addressing vegetarian dining concerns.

The wine list runs the gamut from trophy wines from DRC, Guigal, Margaux, Ridge, Peter Michael and Antinori, to idiosyncratic labels like the Friedrich Becker Pinot Noir from Germany and Surh Luchtel Page Nord Vineyard Rhone blend from Napa. Stella also has a full bar.

Stella

Green Goddess

Green Goddess is a small French Quarter restaurant with a great array of vegetarian and vegan fare paired with exciting cocktails. What it lacks in size it more than makes up for with gigantic flavors that come from the fresh ingredients.

Calling Green Goddess intimate would be as apt a description as calling Shaquille O'Neal big or Glen Beck opinionated. The place isn't just intimate; it feels like you are sitting in the chef's home kitchen. The decor is eclectic and eccentric.

The menu at Green Goddess allows you to order a degustation or to make selections a la carte. While the degustation may have meat or seafood ingredients, the staff would happily prepare a vegetarian degustation if you ask nicely.

I started off with a cheese plate as an appetizer. The menu features about seven local, national and international cheese choices. I selected Mont St. Francis, a crumbly goat cheese with a full flavor, Veneto d'Estate, a medium bodied cow's milk cheese with grassy, herbal notes, and Brillat-Savarin, an unctuous triple cream. The cheeses were presented with pepitas, olive oil and a soft pita bread. It would have worked equally well as an appetizer or as dessert.

The main course was an example of how Green Goddess turns great ingredients into exciting international fare that defies category. The huitlacoche crepes made with fresh mushrooms in a brandy sauce are a great fusion of French technique and Mexican ingredients that combine into something that is greater than the sum of its parts. There are layers and layers of earthy flavor that pick up additional richness from the crepe and sweetness from the brandy. Still more layers of flavor come from the porcini salt and butter. Any time I see huitlacoche (a corn fungus) on a menu, I must order it, and Green Goddess rewarded my predilection for corn smut kindly.

My dessert, Saturn Calling, is a black rice pudding with rings of coconut milk and Arborio rice stars surrounding it. Instead of being cloying, the rice pudding had a subtle sweetness that envelopes the mouth. The cinnamon adds a horchata note to the dish. It is deeply satisfying.

The beverage list has some very interesting cocktail choices. Since it was Derby weekend, I sampled the See Rock City mint julep, made with Catdaddy Carolina moonshine, ginger syrup, lychee juice and muddled mint. I am not a mint julep fan, but this drink was absolutely delightful. Other cool cocktail options include an absinthe/sugar cane juice drink, a Rob Roy made with Scotch finished in Sauternes barrels with high-end vermouth and a cherry, and a horchata and brandy milk punch. Green Goddess also offers idiosyncratic wines by the glass and bottle, and it also has a decent selection of craft beer.

The staff at Green Goddess is tremendously friendly, and their service is outstanding. They did an excellent job presenting the vegetarian and vegan options on the menu, and the effervescence of the menu is matched by the vitality of the service.

The intimate environment at Green Goddess does create a few issues. The best plan involves showing up early on weekends, because the 25 seats fill up quickly. Once you get yourself in the door and in a seat, however, the fun of the Green Goddess is immediately evident.

Green Goddess